§ What is Indian Astrology? §

Astrology is an ancient school of thought, which believes in a correlation of the movement of celestial bodies with events on earth. It is considered to be a sort of divine knowledge of nature which consists of the study of positions of the stars and the movements of the planets which affect all the events of the world. The Sanskrit term for astrology is Jyotish. The word Jyotish literally means the ‘knowledge of light’. The derivation of this word from its syllables is also interesting to know. The different syllables of the word Jyotish stand for the following:-

Ja + Ya – Water or Birth

O – And

Ta – Earth or Stars

Ish – Knowledgeable

Hence, the entire word Jyotish could sum up as ‘knowledge of the water and birth in relation to the earth or stars’. In other words, it means the influence of light over all things and occurrences on the earth.

In the Indian scriptures, Jyotish Shastra is one of the six disciplines required for the proper understanding of the Vedas, which are known as the Vedangas. The other five Vedangas are:-

Shiksha – Study of Phonetics

Chanda – Study of Meter

Vyakarana – Study of Grammar

Nirukta – Study of Etymology

Kalpa – Study of the Rituals

Thus it can be seen how astrology has been given a prime position along with the other disciplines in order to get a proper understanding of the scriptures.

The study of astrology was not done by one man. It is the fruit of millennia of observation and study of how celestial changes show their effects on the earthly lives. Several great rishis and munis have contributed to the volume of Jyotish knowledge available to the world today. Bhrigu, Jaimini, Satyacharya, Narada, Garga, Parashara, Kalyana Verma, Mantreshwara, Vaidya Nath are some of the important figures in the development of Jyotish as it is known to man today. The very great Kalidasa, who is remembered even today for his great literary works Shakuntala and Vikrama-Urvashi, was a staunch believer of Jyotish Shastra.

§ Beliefs of Astrology §

These believers of Jyotish went even so far to propound that Jyotish is the only direct science in the world, and all other sciences are just an extrapolation. They argues that the foundation of Jyotish stems from the external bodies that govern the world and humankind, but other sciences merely delve into the internal factors, i.e. earthly factors to arrive at their theories and conclusion. According to Jyotish, the primordial bodies – the Sun and the Moon – have been in existence much before humans came on earth. Hence they are the best witnesses to the kind of changes that have occurred. The physical sciences only deal with contemporaneous changes; but Jyotish is a rich science that goes much into the past to make its studies more relevant.

One more important belief of Jyotish is that the human being is not an isolated entity; but he/she has links to both the past and the future. In short, Jyotish Shastra believes very strongly in the Karma theory and in Punar Janam, i.e. reincarnation. Whatever a human being achieves in his/her present life, it is a result of the deeds of the previous birth(s). This has been recorded by Varaha Mihira in the Brihata Jataka. He says:

‘Karmarjita poorvabhave sadadi yattasya pankti samabhivyanikti.’

which literally translates as:

‘A person’s good or bad deeds will always influence his/her future births.’

§ Astrology and Modern Science §

The conventional medical experts have always looked upon Jyotish as a baseless and erratic kind of science; they have not even accorded Jyotish to be called as science. However, this cannot be so easily neglected. Just as medical science deals with diseases and their treatments, astrology also investigates a correlation of heavenly bodies with the diseases afflicting people. Therefore, astrology cannot be made light of and denounced as a mere superstition.

Even the Father of Modern Medicine, Hippocrates, had made the statement, ‘A physician without the knowledge of astrology has no right to call him/herself a physician.’ This kind of belief over astrology has been seen in contemporary America too. Dr. Kallman of the Psychiatric Institute at New York has said that, ‘Every being has a clock set at the moment of his/her birth which predetermines illnesses and accidents.’

Though this kind of statements might seem quite fanciful and difficult to digest, a careful understanding of what Jyotish implies would lead to a much clearer perspective. Astrology believes in horoscopes, which are known as kundalis, which are determined by the positions of stars and planets at the time the person is born. One of Jyotish Shastra’s strongest beliefs is that the kundali of the person is like the blueprint which would determine in which direction his/her life would go. Whatever good or bad is to occur in life is already indicated in the kundali of the person. Obviously, corrective measures can be taken to offset the faults or defects in the person’s kundalis. This is what constitutes the treatment included in the vast repertoire of Jyotish Shastra.

Astrology does tell many more things than just the positions of the celestial bodies at the time of a person’s birth. It also tells at what time which medicine must be taken to have the best effects, when a particular activity should be started, and such time-related information. People going by their kundalis have made great successes of their lives, as is seen quite clearly in the celebrity world of India.