Thursday, August 12, 2010

ORIGION OF ASTROLOGY

It is impossible ascertain the exact time of origin of our astrology. Even the most famous historians differ wildly, from 1200 BC to 2500 BC while trying to fix our Vedic period. A lot of them, especially the westerners, still study India based on the Mahenjadaro and Harappan discoveries, which were discovered in the 1920’s!! Several archeological discoveries of recent times date our culture to 7500 BC, making it the ancient most civilization in the world. Our astrology has details of the horoscopes of Lord Krishna, Lord Rama and many other ancient Indian kings and queens, recorded thousands of years ago. The Bhishma Parva and Udyoga Parva chapters of Mahabharata mention many astrological descriptions and omens just before the Mahabharata war. It also describes a period of draught with several planetary combinations. There is also a very clear reference about two eclipses, a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse occurring, creating a rare 13 day lunar fortnight. Available scientific research data shows that the Mahabharata war must have occurred either in 3129 BC or 2559 BC. According to the Hindu Panchangas, maintained from ages, Kaliyuga era is counted from February 17/18 midnight 3102 BC. Hindu epics like Mahabharata and Ramayana have been written off as myths by the western historians. However the recent discovery of the submerged ancient city Dwaraka, (the site of the legendary city of Lord Krishna, which got submerged in the sea after the death of Lord Krishna), led by Dr. S.R. Rao of the Marine Archaeology Unit of the National Institute of Oceanography of India lends a lot of credence to our mythology. Various texts attribute the origin of Indian astrology to various gods and Rishis. It is futile to ascertain who was the originator. The most popularly followed astrological classics today are the ones written by Rishis like Parashara, Varahamihira, Garga, Jaimini and their followers. People in those days had no satellites or telescopes and yet the planetary positions and their motions recorded by them are as accurate as the planetary positions and degrees recorded today using the space satellites. Our ancient astrologers used their divine intuition to record these planetary movements and their effects on us.

Astrology has a twofold purpose. On one hand it is used as a tool to select the right month the right date and the right time to start various auspicious rites and rituals so that the results are better. On the other hand it is used as a guide to study the destiny of an individual.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

ASTROLOGY PTOLEMY MODERN SCIENCE.



SEEING FROM THE END OF THE PLANET EARTH IN ANCIENT PERIOD

ASTROLOGY PTOLEMY MODERN SCIENCE.
¬Astrology seems to have made no progress since the
days of Claudius Ptolemaeus, who wrote nearly two
thousand years ago, and his "Tetrabiblos" is undoubt-
edly the best text-book on the subject existing today.
Modern astrologers, notably Kepler, have introduced
some changes, and made large claims, which Ptolemy
did not venture to do. He said specifically that the
science of astrology does not enable any man to predict
particular events, and there are certain things which no
rational man would think of foretelling. His method of
prediction was precisely that of the modern doctor, who
says that a disease will run a certain length of time, that
a certain constitution must have care or it will break
down, that from external appearances one man should
make a good blacksmith, another a good orator, and
so forth. The positions of the stars help us to analyze
more subtle physical conditions, not subject to external
observation. But the whole ground of prediction is
simply a knowledge of the physical, mental and moral
condition of a human being from birth. If we know
that the germs of hereditary consumption exist in a
child from birth, we can predict that he will die of the
disease, and may judge the time with tolerable accuracy.
And if we know the mode of crystallization, we have as
it were a chart of latent germs.

PTOLEMY as Cartographer



Ptolemy gave details on how to create maps both of the whole inhabited world (oikoumenè) and of the Roman provinces. In the second part of the Geographia he provided the necessary topographic lists, and captions for the maps. His oikoumenè spanned 180 degrees of longitude from the Blessed Islands in the Atlantic Ocean to the middle of China, and about 80 degrees of latitude from The Shetlands to anti-Meroe (east coast of Africa); Ptolemy was well aware that he knew about only a quarter of the globe, and an erroneous extension of China southward suggests his sources did not reach all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

The maps in surviving manuscripts of Ptolemy's Geographia, however, date only from about 1300, after the text was rediscovered by Maximus Planudes. It seems likely that the topographical tables in books 2-7 are cumulative texts - texts which were altered and added to as new knowledge became available in the centuries after Ptolemy .This means that information contained in different parts of the Geography is likely to be of different date.

Life of PTOLEMY


Claudius Ptolemaeus (Greek: Κλαύδιος Πτολεμαῖος Klaúdios Ptolemaîos; c. AD 90 – c. 168), known in English as Ptolemy was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek.He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer and a poet of a single epigram in the Greek AnthologyHe lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the Thebaid. He died in Alexandria around AD 168.

Ptolemy was the author of several scientific treatises, at least three of which were of continuing importance to later Islamic and European science. The first is the astronomical treatise now known as the Almagest (in Greek, Ἡ Μεγάλη Σύνταξις, "The Great Treatise", originally Μαθηματικὴ Σύνταξις, "Mathematical Treatise"). The second is the Geography, which is a thorough discussion of the geographic knowledge of the Greco-Roman world. The third is the astrological treatise known sometimes in Greek as the Apotelesmatika (Ἀποτελεσματικά), more commonly in Greek as the Tetrabiblos (Τετράβιβλος "Four books"), and in Latin as the Quadripartitum (or four books) in which he attempted to adapt horoscopic astrology to the Aristotelian natural philosophy of his day

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Maharshi vastu

Orientation

The principles of orientation in Maharishi Sthapatya Veda are based on the position of the sun, considered by MVS to be the most powerful natural influence on Earth. Aligned with the rising sun, an East-facing house is considered most auspicious for the building's inhabitants. The other three cardinal directions also have their corresponding influences. Homes with entrances facing west invite "poverty, lack of creativity and vitality",and "anxiety, depression, bad luck and even criminal tendencies". According to the MVS official website, the west direction is said to have the influence of poverty and lack of vitality or creativity, the north direction has the influence of prosperity and happiness and the south direction has the influence of negativity, problems and suffering.
Placement

When a house for a particular individual is being designed, the placement of the building and its rooms are carefully planned according to their intended usage and the influence of the sun as it moves throughout the day. Rooms are placed to "take in the sun's light as it passes overhead". Windows and skylights are also used to allow as much natural sunlight as possible to enter the building.An aspect of MVS called "Vastu Vidya" determines the places in the building that are used for generating and storing natural elements like fire and water; heating and plumbing Bathrooms fixtures such as sinks and mirrors also have a particular placement according to MSV.
Proportion

The rule for proper proportion in MVS is symmetry. Symmetry is orderly and in a symmetrical system every part is related to every other part. MVS says that there is an ideal proportion for every room in a home or office. Also, the length, width and elevation of the building are individually calculated using the ancient Vedic mathematical formulas and requires a level of construction precision that includes a one eighth inch error tolerance.

MVS planning and building is said to take into account the effects of the sun, moon, planets and stars and also using the poles and the equator as reference points. The measurements and proportions are calculated in reference to proportions of the human physiology and the cosmos. This results in building proportions that are in harmony with nature.
Features

One unique feature of a MVS or "Vedic building" is a center space called a 'Brahmasthan', serving as a "silent core" which is "never walked on" and is "lit by a skylight". The Brahmastan is said to act as the "nucleus" or axis point for the structure like the nucleus of a cell or an atom.

Other unique features include a perimeter designation called a 'vastu fence'. This boundary line may consist of shrubs or a metal, stone or wood fence. Another feature is a "small, golden, roof ornament" or cupola, called a 'kalash'.

Three "special ceremonies" performed on "auspicious dates" are recommended by MSV. These include a ground breaking in which is described as digging a precise square hole while facing East, adding organic fertilizer and "sacred water" from India and making statements of goodwill and success for the new construction. A cornerstone laying and moving in ceremony complete the trio of recommended procedures.

Maharshi Vastu,mix of OLD AND NEW


Maharishi Sthapatya Veda (MSV) concept advocated by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi andpurportedly a school of "architecture" based on the Hindu tradition of Vastu Shastra.

MVS is said to be based on "ancient Sanskrit texts".MSV emphasizes the use of natural or "green" building materials such as wood, bricks, adobe, rammed earth, clay, stucco and marble. Other natural fibers such as wood, paper, cotton and wool are used in the interiorThe MVS architect also considers the slope and shape of the lot, exposure to the rising sun, location of nearby bodies of water and the other buildings or activities in the nearby environment.Items in the nearby environment, such as high tension wires and microwave towers, are avoided.

According Maharishi Global Construction LLC (MGC) in Fairfield, Iowa, building a home according to the principles of MSV "connects the individual intelligence of the occupant of the house to the cosmic intelligence of the universe".Craig Pearson, Executive Vice President of Maharishi University of Management (MUM), says that spending time in buildings that follow these principles makes one smarter

Lords of each Direction


Vastu Purusha Mandala
The concept of Vastu Purusha

The Vastu Purusha Mandala is an indispensable part of vastu shastra and constitutes the mathematical and diagrammatic basis for generating design. It is the metaphysical plan of a building that incorporates the course of the heavenly bodies and supernatural forces. Purusha refers to energy, power, soul or cosmic man. Mandala is the generic name for any plan or chart which symbolically represents the cosmos.

In Hindu cosmology the surface of the earth is represented as a square, the most fundamental of all Hindu forms. The earth is represented as four-cornered in reference to the horizon's relationship with sunrise and sunset, the North and South direction. It is called Chaturbhuji (four cornered) and represented in the form of the Prithvi Mandala. The astrological charts or horoscopes also represent in a square plan the positions of the sun, moon, planets and zodiac constellations with reference to a specific person's place and time of birth.

The legend of the Vastu Purusha is related thus. Once a formless being blocked the heaven from the earth and Brahma with many other gods trapped him to the ground. This incident is depicted graphically in the Vastu Purusha Mandala with portions allocated hierarchically to each deity based on their contributions and positions. Brahma occupied the central portion - the Brahmasthana- and other gods were distributed around in a concentric pattern. There are 45 gods in all including 32 outer deities

Finer details of VASTU


In Indian architecture, the dwelling is itself a shrine. A home is called manushyalaya, literally, "human temple". It is not merely a shelter for human beings in which to rest and eat. The concept behind house design is the same as for temple design, so sacred and spiritual are the two spaces. The "open courtyard" system of house design was the national pattern in India before Western models were introduced. The order introduced into the "built space" accounts for the creation of spiritual ambiance required for the indweller to enjoy spiritual well-being and material welfare and prosperity. At right is a typical layout of a square building, with a grid of 9x9=81 squares, meant for family persons (for scientists, artists and yogi a grid of 8x8=64 is prescribed). The space occupied by the central 3x3=9 squares is called Brahmasthanam, meaning the "nuclear energy field". It should be kept unbuilt and open to the sky so as to have contact with the outer space (akasha). This central courtyard is likened to the lungs of the human body. It is not for living purposes. Religious and cultural events can be held here--such as yajna (fire rituals), music and dance performances and marriage. The row of squares surrounding the Brahmasthanam is the walkway. The corner spaces, occupying 2x2=4 squares, are rooms with specific purposes. The northeast quarter is called Isana, the southeast Agni, the southwest Niruthi and northwest Vayu. These are said to possess the qualities of four respective devatas or gods--Isa, Agni, Niruthi and Vayu. Accordingly--with due respect to ecological friendliness with the subtle forces of the spirit—those spaces (quarters) are assigned as follows: northeast for the home shrine, southeast for the kitchen, southwest for the master bedroom and northwest for the storage of grains. The spaces lying between the corner zones, measuring 2x5=10 squares, are those of the north, east, south and west. They are meant for multi purposes

Pancha bhutas of Vastupurusha


There are many principles in Vaastu Shastra. To mention a few which involve certain mathematical calculations, Maana is used for proportional relationships in a building and Aayaadi specifies conditions for maximum wellbeing and benefits for the residents of a building. Below are some of the basic theories in vaastu sastra.
Five elements

According to vastu sastra, the world comprises five basic elements known as the pancha maha bhoota. Out of the eight planets, ours has life because of the presence and balance of these five elements. The five elements are as follows.

EARTH (Bhumi) - Earth, the third planet in order from the sun, is a big magnet with North and South poles as centers of attractions. Its magnetic field and gravitational force has considerable effects on everything on the Earth, living and non-living.

WATER (Jala) - This is represented by rain, river, sea and is in the form of liquid, solid (ice) and gas (steam, cloud). It forms part of every plant and animal. Our blood is nothing but water with haemoglobin and oxygen.

AIR (Vayu) - As a life supporting element, air is a very powerful life source. Human physical comfort values are directly and sensitively dependent on correct humidity, air flow, temperature of air, air pressure, air composition and its content.

FIRE (Agni) - Represents light and heat which account for day, night, the seasons, energy, enthusiasm, passion and vigour.

SPACE (Akasha) - The akasha provides shelter to all the above elements. It is also considered the primary conductor of all energy sources within the universal context - physical energies such as sound and light, social energies such as psychological and emotional, and cognitive energies such as intellect and intuition.

There is an invisible and constant relation between all the five elements. Thus, the person can improve their conditions by properly designing their buildings by understanding the effectiveness of these five natural forces. Vaastu sastra combines all the five elements of nature and balances them with the person and the material. It takes advantage of the benefits bestowed by the five elements of nature to create a congenial living and working environment thereby facilitating spiritual well-being and paving the way for enhanced health, wealth, prosperity and happiness.

Vastu, List of ancient books,


The Sanskrit word vastu means existing or abiding substance or essence, thing, object,wealth, property". The vriddhi, vāstu takes the meaning of "the site or foundation of a house, site, ground, building or dwelling-place, habitation, homestead, house". The underlying root is vas "to dwell, live, stay, abide".

The term shastra may loosely be translated as "science, doctrine, teaching".
Vastu shastras include

Manasara Silpa Shastra (by Manasara),Mayamatam (by Maya),
Visvakarma Vastushastra (by Visvakarma),Samarangana Sutradara
(by Raja Bhoja),Aparajita Priccha (a dialogue between
Viswakarma and his son Aparajita, written by Bhuvanadevacharya)
Other treatises such as Agni Purana and works by Kautilya and Sukracharya are not popular even though they preceded the previously mentioned documents. Distinction of style exists due to each document's place of origin. Mayamata and Mansara Silpa Shastra are considered Dravidian because they are from south India whereas Visvakarama Vastu Shastra is considered Indo-Aryan due to its north Indian origin.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Predictive astrology, IS LIKE THIS ?


Although the connection between celestial mechanics and terrestrial dynamics was explored first by Isaac Newton with his development of a universal theory of gravitation, claims that the gravitational effects of the celestial bodies are what accounts for astrological generalizations are not substantiated by scientific research, nor are they advocated by most astrologers.

Most astrological traditions are based on the relative positions and movements of various real or construed celestial bodies and on the construction of implied or calculated celestial patterns as seen at the time and place of the event being studied. These are chiefly the astrological planets, dwarf planets, the asteroids, the stars, the lunar nodes, Arabic parts and hypothetical planets. The frame of reference for such apparent positions is defined by the tropical or sidereal zodiac of twelve signs on one hand, and by the local horizon (ascendant-descendant axis) and midheaven-imum coeli axis on the other. This latter (local) frame is typically further divided into the twelve astrological houses. Furthermore, the astrological aspects are used to determine the geometric/angular relationships between the various celestial bodies and angles in the horoscope.

Predictive astrology, in the Western tradition, employs two main methods: astrological transits and astrological progressions. In astrological transits the ongoing movements of the planets are interpreted for their significance as they transit through space and the horoscope. In astrological progressions the horoscope is progressed forward in time according to set methods. In Vedic astrology, the focus is on planetary periods to infer the trend, while transits are used to time significant events. Most Western astrologers no longer try to forecast actual events, but focus instead on general trends and developments. By comparison, Vedic astrologers predict both trends and events. Skeptics respond that this practice of western astrologers allows them to avoid making verifiable predictions, and gives them the ability to attach significance to arbitrary and unrelated events, in a way that suits their purpose.

Astrologers vs Astronomy


In the past, astrologers often relied on close observation of celestial objects and the charting of their movements. Modern astrologers use data provided by astronomers which are transformed to a set of astrological tables called ephemerides showing the changing zodiacal positions of the heavenly bodies through time.
Although the principle that events in the heavens are mirrored by those on Earth was once generally held in most traditions of astrology around the world, in the West there has historically been a debate among astrologers over the nature of the mechanism behind astrology. The debate also covers whether or not celestial bodies are only signs or portents of events, or if they are actual causes of events through some sort of force or mechanism
The core beliefs of astrology were prevalent in parts of the ancient world and are epitomized in the Hermetic maxim, "as above, so below". Tycho Brahe used a similar phrase to summarize his studies in astrology: suspiciendo despicio, "by looking up I see downward".

Astrology ,Ancient Science


Astrology is generally considered a pseudoscience or superstition by the scientific community, which cites a lack of statistically significant astrological predictions, while psychology explains much of the continued faith in astrology as a matter of cognitive biases.The scientific consensus, as expressed by the National Science Foundation, is that astrology is one of ten subjects considered to be pseudoscientific beliefs.

Numerous traditions and applications employing astrological concepts have arisen since its earliest recorded beginnings in the 3rd millennium BC. Astrology has played an important role in the shaping of culture, early astronomy, the Vedas,[12] and various disciplines throughout history. In fact, astrology and astronomy were often indistinguishable before the modern era, with the desire for predictive and divinatory knowledge one of the motivating factors for astronomical observation. Astronomy began to diverge from astrology after a period of gradual separation from the Renaissance up until the 18th century. Eventually, astronomy distinguished itself as the empirical study of astronomical objects and phenomena, without regard to the terrestrial implications of astrology