Now that Mangala has almost finished his extended stay in Karkata, I wanted to capture a few thoughts on the transit. Hindsight being 20/20, it is definitely more convenient to capture the events which I believe were caused by this transit.
First of course, a brief analysis of Mangala in this sign. It is the sign of his debilitation and so the transit cannot be entirely beneficial for anyone - not even those that count on Mangala to be a rajayogakaraka in lagna (Cancer not Leo ascendants), leave alone those for whom he is a malefic. And if we remember, when Mars first transited into the sign, he was conjunct ketu. Ketu is supposed to act like Mars, and so the conjunction compounded the effects of Mangala going in for this 236 day stay in Cancer. Mercifully though, there was the mutual aspect of Mars and Jupiter for about 10-12 weeks which mitigated the debilitation of both somewhat. Apart from that Mars in Cancer causes misplaced agression and a certain degree of futility in actions.
Cancer is this motherly, emotional sign and Mars being a fiery, action oriented planet is distinctly uncomfortable in that environment. Cancer contains within its realm parts of Punarvasu, and the entirety of Pushya and Ashlesha nakshatras. Pushya is supposed to be the epitome of a soft nourishing nakshatra, Ashlesha tending a bit more towards emotional manipulation. Pushya - extending from 3 deg 20 mins - 16 deg 40 mins of Cancer contains within its orb the cluster of stars that contribute the archetypical energies represented by Cancer. So while Mars transits Pushya, it is focusing energy antithetical to its nature, and is getting deeper into debilitation. Its point of extreme debilitation is the 28th degree of Cancer in Aslesha. This is also a part of the zodiac which does not have any particularly powerful stars and the warrior is completey spent and clueless in a watery emotional abyss. Moving beyond the extreme debilitation of the 28th degree of Cancer, Mars will start approaching Regulus, the main star in Magha nakshatra, approximately at 10 degrees in Leo. Regulus is one of the most powerful stars along the zodiac and it channels the kind of showy, regal energy that Mars has a better affinity for. So Mars will be much happier moving past Regulus at less than full speed since he is just emerging from retrogression. That being said, the super long stay in Cancer would result in neecha bhanga at some point for those whom Mars is both a rajayogakaraka and has other mitigating factors. For the rest, well, its moving out on the 26th May anyways.
However our intent here was to provide some retrospective analysis - so let's look at the overlap between the portfolios of mars and of cancer - also representing the 4th house of the kalpurusha. Mars represents the military, land (also a 4th house signification), Mars is bhumiputra - so he affects the earth in general and also the oceans, especially during the transit in Cancer. Mars also represents athletes, young men, testosterone and sexuality. It represents engineering and machinery, again in a marine environment since its in cancer. Mars also rules the Manipur chakra and the digestive fire.
So lets start with the military and defense forces. Mars had just moved into cancer when the shootings happened at the Fort Hood military base - the most populous base in the US. Misplaced agression from a psycho-emotionally disturbed soldier. It has also been under Mars in Cancer that US has expanded its presence in Afghanistan. The Marja offensive was timed around the same time that Mars was approaching stationary to turn direct. I hope things go well for our forces. Mars in Cancer doesnt start wars. It just makes them harder to win. Because now we have to win hearts and minds, besides just killing the enemy. Since the "hearts and minds" component is central to the US initiative, it certainly improves our chances for success. The battle of Stalingrad was launched by the Germans when Mars was in the 28th degree of Cancer. Their objective was just to kill the enemy and they failed.
Is it just me or does anyone else also feel that we've had an awful lot of earthquakes in the last 7 odd months? Lets start with the Earthquake in Haiti - On a Tuesday, with Mars retrograde in Cancer and Chandra in Mula nakshatra. Earthquake in Chile - 27th Feb - with Mars getting close to retrograde stationary and conjunct with Chandra in Karakata. And this is not counting aftershocks and smaller magnitude earthquakes in California and Asia. Hmmm.
Well, its not just about earthquakes - Its also about land deals. Mars had just turned retrograde when someone I know with Mesha lagna had the good fortune of buying land overseas in the course of a short visit. Everyone acknowledged that the deal had gone through with unusually remarkable speed. Though I suspect it was a combination of Mars transiting the 4th, Guru in the 11th and Rahu in the 9th which expedited the process. But nonetheless Mars was aspecting Guru from the 4th - and forced the investment to be in real estate. Rahu in the 9th caused the overseas trip in the first place.
Mars rules Aries and Scorpio - so this transit cant have been entirely smooth for people with their moon in either sign. However Scorpio seems more circumspect being the debilitation sign of the moon. So do we know of any archetypical Martian personality with a moon in Scorpio? Lets just take Tiger Woods. Mars was deep in debiltation and careening forward when the scandal erupted. Mars went retrograde and Woods disappeared from the golf scene for rehab. Mars turned direct again in early March and Woods was back at Augusta!! Classic timing through the initial deep debilitation, retrogression and possible neecha bhanga (some would say the jury is still out), and the eventual restitution and return to competition. It is interesting to note that his Scorpio moon is conjoined with Venus and aspected by Mars. Eliot spitzer has a Cancer moon conjoined with Mars and Venus. Conclusion: Beware the sexual appetites of the moon under the simultaneous influence of Venus and Mars (especially if one of the 3 is debilitated). Through this whole process, it is interesting to note that Woods' Sagittarius surya is under Rahu's shadow. For that matter Rahu in Sagittarius (Philosophy/Religion/ Church) and Mars in Cancer have also dogged the Catholic church with the child abuse scandal.
So we mentioned that Mars rules the digestive fire and the Manipur chakra. Someone I know with Cancer lagna and 3 fiery planets in lagna + budha had to be hospitalized and luckily escaped without damage to the kidney - a clear case of too much mars during the extended stay in cancer.
Mars debilitated produced some hyper-activity when surya was in Mesha. On Tuesday 20th April, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill started. Malfunctioning machinery in the ocean. Karka mangal all over again. With Surya in Mesha, the government has also been indulging in its fair share of futile actions. US started its investigation of Goldman, Arizona passed its controversial immigration law. Karkata Mangal has been causing blocked progress and false starts for the houses it owns and aspects. Now it has moved out of the shadow of its retrogression and is approaching Regulus. So hang in there - things are about to pick up speed again!!
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Saturday, May 15, 2010
The Blessings of Brihaspati
Om Ganeshaya Namah! It has been a while since I last posted. Life goes on, the Chandra-Rahu antardasha ended without me getting beheaded and life has been good for the last year and a half under my Chandra-Guru antardasha. That should come as no surprise seeing that Chandra as lagnesh is sitting in the 10th house and Guru is svagrahi in the ninth.
Parashara does say however that for the Chandra mahadasha, an antardasha of the planet sitting in 12th from Chandra produces mixed results. I probably blamed them on Shani subconsciously at that time - though Guru transiting Makar was responsible for some of those. However with my Chandra-Shani coming up, I want to be in Shani's good books and will start posting to this blog on Saturdays to take advantage of the Shani-Guru opposition in Kanya-Meena currently. Shani Maharaj will help me document my observations with Kanya-like attention to detail.
Coming back to Brihaspati - the great benefic. As Prof. Steve Magee reminds his students - the Owl of Minerva only takes flight at dusk. The knowledge required to understand any age/ period in life becomes available only when that epoch draws to an end. Now I have a better understanding of why Guru is debilitated in Makar. There have been few periods in life that I have put in as a sustained effort as when Guru transited Makar. It could be that because my natal Makar (7th house) receives drishti from both Shani and Mangal that Guru was energized to act thus. I worked hard professionally (10th from Chandra), I was able to establish a regular regimen at the gym (transiting Guru drishti to lagna), I worked hard in my garden (Makar guru brought out the farmer in me). For a while the going was extremely rough due to Guru being debilatated and conjunct Rahu - but there was never an expectation on my part for any Grace. A good teacher first completely destroys his students and then builds them from the ground up based on what he thinks correct for them. So the various Gurus that blessed me in this period certainly made me work hard (including my personal trainer at the gym). But at the end of it, now I am considered a subject matter expert at work, the trees in my garden are laden with fruit and I am in much better shape physically than at any time in a the last few years.
For a brief period in 2009 - Guru entered Kumbha in opposition to his lord Shani in Simha at that time. From Simha, Shani aspected my 4th House and so surely enough on one fine Thursday (11th June) a hailstorm came along and totaled my roof. Boy that Simha Shani was rough, but as luck would have it, Guru was transiting the 8th from lagna and so the Insurance kicked in. Shani was the deductible, Guru was the insurance coverage - both aspected my 4th house and so I have a new roof!
Then Guru went retro and back through Makar - and it was nearing the opposition with Surya in Karka and on a fine Thursday I got a speeding ticket driving down Brushy Creek Road on my daily commute. In hindsight, the details of my driving folly seem to me to be a classic case of divine entrapment. But that was a debilitated, overconfident Guru who had the rug pulled from under his feet.
Then Managal moved into karka and started throwing a juvenile aspect on an already down Guru and sure enough on another fine Thursday night, some neighborhood vandals smashed my car window at night to rummage through the contents. They didnt find anything worthwhile but I still had to replace a car window. OK - so I also got the garage door fixed and now park inside. So you can imagine that I was ready Guru to move into Kumbha so my Thursdays could start delivering better luck.
On the positive side, the Guru-Mangal opposition in some way served to reignite my reading habit (novels/fictiton/non-fiction) which had fallen by the wayside years ago when I started my MBA applications. I started reading an assortment of books that I had acquired but never read - Histories, the Manusmriti, Books on the Vedas, and more.
I was in India last December and was browsing at the local bookstore at the beginning of Dhanurmasa - Surya and Chandra were both in Mula nakshatra on Thursday - when my eyes fell on the Aghora trilogy by Dr. Robert Svoboda. I remembered my brother recommending his book "Light on Life" a while back and so I purchased the triology out of curiosity. Growing up in India, I had a vague notion of Tantra but it was very general and very dark - I needed to know more. My dad was with me on the trip to the bookstore and he raised both his eyebrows at my selection - "So now you are going to get into Tantra???" I just shrugged it off, not sure why I had picked up the books. Perhaps I was drawn by the image of Kali on book one. Guru was about to re-enter the 8th house for a more extended period.
During this year, aspirants flock to Prayag in search of a Guru at the Kumbha mela. And when a student is ready, the Guru appears in due course. I will not belabor the point - reading this trilogy has had the most profound impact on me. It has validated some of my core beliefs that were hitherto not articulated, and it has revealed to me truths that will become an integral part of my consciousness going forward. Powerful Stuff - transformational.
Guru was giving additional 8th house (11th from Chandra) results as well - Joint investments, Networking opportunities, Inheritances (aptly enough - of knowledge and family traditions), Extended company of the In-Laws, and happier Thursdays since he enjoys exaltation-like strength in Kumbha. My eighth house is unaspected and unoccupied, apart from of course being the eighth house. So in his transit there, Guru, though stronger and more inclined to being his natural benefic self, produced fewer externally visible results than in his transit through Makar. For the most part, the changes were both profound and internal. I expect the external manifestations to play out over the coming years. He still has some unfinished business in Kumbha apparently and will be back later this year for a month or so - but then I'll be settling into my Shani antardasha.
Having been a student of Jyotish for a while now, I want to explore opportunities to meet other Jyotishi's in the Austin area and engage in discussions. With that in mind, I was browsing the internet and voila - I came across an event hosted by Yoga Yoga of Austin - A weekend with Dr. Svoboda. Apparently this is the last year he is traveling to give public appearances, giving me this wonderful opportunity to meet him in person - and that too in Adhik Maas. Coincidence anyone?
And now of course, dear reader, Guru has moved into Meena Rashi - in my ninth house. Last weekend I heard Dr. Svoboda and met him briefly. I knew from reading his books of his holistic knowledge of all the Vedic disciplines - it was all the more fascinating to hear him in person. He talked of Ayurveda and Yoga and Jyotish and Vaastu, weaving them together with the common thread of his personal experiences. It will enliven all of his books when I read/reread them and lend them deeper meaning given the added insight of his interpretations. Of course, I was also able to connect with other like minded people at the event. Om Guruve Namah!!
Still about a month of my Guru antardasha left. I woke up early today morning around 5:00 AM and opened the front door to gaze at Guru rising and seek his blessings anew. We still have some unfinished business in the days ahead before I submit myself to the TLC of Shani Maharaj!!
Parashara does say however that for the Chandra mahadasha, an antardasha of the planet sitting in 12th from Chandra produces mixed results. I probably blamed them on Shani subconsciously at that time - though Guru transiting Makar was responsible for some of those. However with my Chandra-Shani coming up, I want to be in Shani's good books and will start posting to this blog on Saturdays to take advantage of the Shani-Guru opposition in Kanya-Meena currently. Shani Maharaj will help me document my observations with Kanya-like attention to detail.
Coming back to Brihaspati - the great benefic. As Prof. Steve Magee reminds his students - the Owl of Minerva only takes flight at dusk. The knowledge required to understand any age/ period in life becomes available only when that epoch draws to an end. Now I have a better understanding of why Guru is debilitated in Makar. There have been few periods in life that I have put in as a sustained effort as when Guru transited Makar. It could be that because my natal Makar (7th house) receives drishti from both Shani and Mangal that Guru was energized to act thus. I worked hard professionally (10th from Chandra), I was able to establish a regular regimen at the gym (transiting Guru drishti to lagna), I worked hard in my garden (Makar guru brought out the farmer in me). For a while the going was extremely rough due to Guru being debilatated and conjunct Rahu - but there was never an expectation on my part for any Grace. A good teacher first completely destroys his students and then builds them from the ground up based on what he thinks correct for them. So the various Gurus that blessed me in this period certainly made me work hard (including my personal trainer at the gym). But at the end of it, now I am considered a subject matter expert at work, the trees in my garden are laden with fruit and I am in much better shape physically than at any time in a the last few years.
For a brief period in 2009 - Guru entered Kumbha in opposition to his lord Shani in Simha at that time. From Simha, Shani aspected my 4th House and so surely enough on one fine Thursday (11th June) a hailstorm came along and totaled my roof. Boy that Simha Shani was rough, but as luck would have it, Guru was transiting the 8th from lagna and so the Insurance kicked in. Shani was the deductible, Guru was the insurance coverage - both aspected my 4th house and so I have a new roof!
Then Guru went retro and back through Makar - and it was nearing the opposition with Surya in Karka and on a fine Thursday I got a speeding ticket driving down Brushy Creek Road on my daily commute. In hindsight, the details of my driving folly seem to me to be a classic case of divine entrapment. But that was a debilitated, overconfident Guru who had the rug pulled from under his feet.
Then Managal moved into karka and started throwing a juvenile aspect on an already down Guru and sure enough on another fine Thursday night, some neighborhood vandals smashed my car window at night to rummage through the contents. They didnt find anything worthwhile but I still had to replace a car window. OK - so I also got the garage door fixed and now park inside. So you can imagine that I was ready Guru to move into Kumbha so my Thursdays could start delivering better luck.
On the positive side, the Guru-Mangal opposition in some way served to reignite my reading habit (novels/fictiton/non-fiction) which had fallen by the wayside years ago when I started my MBA applications. I started reading an assortment of books that I had acquired but never read - Histories, the Manusmriti, Books on the Vedas, and more.
I was in India last December and was browsing at the local bookstore at the beginning of Dhanurmasa - Surya and Chandra were both in Mula nakshatra on Thursday - when my eyes fell on the Aghora trilogy by Dr. Robert Svoboda. I remembered my brother recommending his book "Light on Life" a while back and so I purchased the triology out of curiosity. Growing up in India, I had a vague notion of Tantra but it was very general and very dark - I needed to know more. My dad was with me on the trip to the bookstore and he raised both his eyebrows at my selection - "So now you are going to get into Tantra???" I just shrugged it off, not sure why I had picked up the books. Perhaps I was drawn by the image of Kali on book one. Guru was about to re-enter the 8th house for a more extended period.
During this year, aspirants flock to Prayag in search of a Guru at the Kumbha mela. And when a student is ready, the Guru appears in due course. I will not belabor the point - reading this trilogy has had the most profound impact on me. It has validated some of my core beliefs that were hitherto not articulated, and it has revealed to me truths that will become an integral part of my consciousness going forward. Powerful Stuff - transformational.
Guru was giving additional 8th house (11th from Chandra) results as well - Joint investments, Networking opportunities, Inheritances (aptly enough - of knowledge and family traditions), Extended company of the In-Laws, and happier Thursdays since he enjoys exaltation-like strength in Kumbha. My eighth house is unaspected and unoccupied, apart from of course being the eighth house. So in his transit there, Guru, though stronger and more inclined to being his natural benefic self, produced fewer externally visible results than in his transit through Makar. For the most part, the changes were both profound and internal. I expect the external manifestations to play out over the coming years. He still has some unfinished business in Kumbha apparently and will be back later this year for a month or so - but then I'll be settling into my Shani antardasha.
Having been a student of Jyotish for a while now, I want to explore opportunities to meet other Jyotishi's in the Austin area and engage in discussions. With that in mind, I was browsing the internet and voila - I came across an event hosted by Yoga Yoga of Austin - A weekend with Dr. Svoboda. Apparently this is the last year he is traveling to give public appearances, giving me this wonderful opportunity to meet him in person - and that too in Adhik Maas. Coincidence anyone?
And now of course, dear reader, Guru has moved into Meena Rashi - in my ninth house. Last weekend I heard Dr. Svoboda and met him briefly. I knew from reading his books of his holistic knowledge of all the Vedic disciplines - it was all the more fascinating to hear him in person. He talked of Ayurveda and Yoga and Jyotish and Vaastu, weaving them together with the common thread of his personal experiences. It will enliven all of his books when I read/reread them and lend them deeper meaning given the added insight of his interpretations. Of course, I was also able to connect with other like minded people at the event. Om Guruve Namah!!
Still about a month of my Guru antardasha left. I woke up early today morning around 5:00 AM and opened the front door to gaze at Guru rising and seek his blessings anew. We still have some unfinished business in the days ahead before I submit myself to the TLC of Shani Maharaj!!
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