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Astrologically real friends and fake friends

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In today’s superficial world we have lots of social ‘friends’ who ‘like’ us, ‘besties’ and ‘bff’s’, but then when we look around for that buddy when we really need someone, there is no one. Life time friendships and close friends are a thing of the past and most of us labour on through life without shoulder to cry on. And we too never attempt to really try to give our friends a boost when they need it. All of us are very busy in our lives and most best-friend-forever’s are the fair weather variety who disappear at the first hint of trouble.

Having no or very few genuine friends is a reality of our times. So let’s try to analyse our friends or the lack of them astrologically.

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First to check out which sort of people do each of the houses bring into your life.

  • The 1st house brings in people who are like your own self and are generally supportive. People who help in creating your personality and are a huge part of your environment.
  • The 2nd house brings your family members closer to you, people you have known throughout your life. These people help you and your family grow and gain in several ways, its a close knit thing.
  • The 3rd house is siblings, the neighbourhood, all those linked to you by a common purpose or a team with common skill sets. They support you only upto limited levels and later will become your competitors.
  • Anyone you meet through your 4th house is a maternal figure in some way connected to your homeland and traditions. You are comfortable with these, but there is an undercurrent of need based love which can become suffocating later.
  • The 5th house rarely brings friends, it is the house of self-referential genius. You prefer self-love here and do not allow friendly relationships to emerge from its depths.
  • The 6th brings in people whom you owe service, money, debts, emotions, worry or work. No friends here, it is the breakdown of all amiable relationships.
  • The 7th house is that one real best friend, the closest one-one relationship that you will have with one or rarely two people in your life. The one whom you instinctively yearn for. Someone whom you instantly know to be your own, a spouse or a platonic friend. You just know that he is your partner and friend for life.
  • The 8th house is all those people you’d rather not meet. Harbingers of catastrophes and traumatic change. Your interactions in the 8th are are generally painful and thankfully short.
  • The guides who support are brought in by the 9th house. Good people, peer and patrons but you wouldn’t be very comfortable partying with or sharing your innermost feelings here.
  • The 10th is all sorts of fatherly figures, even the boss who teaches you how to conduct yourself in the office. They expect best behaviour and work from you. No friends here.
  • Now the 11th house is your friend and it supports your like minded groups. All the interactions, the help that you may give or receive from people you would like to spend time with, go out with, enjoy with because you all are alike in some way or the other. It is the gain in terms of emotional support and the physical presence of having your friend around when you need him the most.
  • And finally the 12th rarely brings in actual people as friends. It can allow entities or spiritual helpers during your mediative or dream states. Or people who can lead you astray, cause you losses or make you feel alone.

eg. Open your chart, note the sign placed in the 11th house. Note where its lord is placed. eg suppose it is Gemini, ruled by Mercury. And Mercury is placed in your 3rd house. So your ideal friend is the one who is more of a team-mate, someone with whom you can learn new things and later compete with.

So to have ‘friends’ as we understand it, the basic requirement is a strong 11th house supported by an auspicious 7th house. In case these two are working against you, then there are no real friends for you.

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Here I am listing some possible combinations for friendlessness which indicate people whom you initially think to be your ‘friends’, but they will be inimical to you and your interests. If you think of anyone as your ‘friend’, the inherent imbalance will start affecting the relationship.

If these combinations exist in your birth Moon chart, then the effects will be seen on the emotional levels more than physical levels. Lack of emotional satisfaction and emotional suffering from your friends.

Malefics in the 11th house

Natural malefics – Wrote about the role of the natural malefics ie Sun, Mars, Saturn, Rahu and Ketu in the 11th house and your friendships in this post.Natural malefics in the 11th house do not grant genuine friendships.

If this planet is either your ascendant lord or a yogkarak for your chart, then he will always support you, not harm you. But the types of people he indicates will still enter your life posing as ‘friends’ with ulterior motives. But the difference is that you will be able to manage your ‘friend-circle’ so as to always gain from them. Especially so if this planet is powerful. But if this planet is debilitated, then be aware that your friends will try use your talents or cheat you in ways you do not expect and cause you harm.

Functional malefics – There are 3 houses of turmoil the 6th 8th and 12th. (The 3rd house can go both ways depending on the chart)

  • The 6th house and its lord. Any connect between the 6th and the 11th house does not give genuine friendships. You are required to be there for your friends and will lose money or get stressed because of them. People will briefly come in your life, take something from you and vanish forever. They will make you serve and suffer. You might lose your time, money, emotions or energy in these interactions. So be careful about people whom you meet especially in the course of your profession or in social settings, those who try to get close to you. Unhappiness is often a result.
  • The 8th house and its lord. If there is a connect between these and the 11th house in any way, then your friendships will not prosper. There will be an initial fascination because of some common secrets, mysteriousness, occult interests etc. The initial spark will entice, but as time passes this will fade. Often explosive arguments or actual physical fights, after which the friendship ends. Suppressed rage issues are often a result.
  • The 12th house and its lord. A connection between the 11th and the 12th house/lords means that you might meet people in isolated places, eg treks in remote areas, at retreats for meditation, in hospitals, or if the chart is bad then even in jails etc. You will be drawn to them because of undefinable reasons, pinning down the exact reason this person came close to you will not be easy. But eventually these people will cause losses in your life. You might take this in a philosophical vein but sorrow is often a result.

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The power of the 11th lord. And if you have any planet in the 11th then analyse him too. If he is affected in any way he will not be able to provide you with life time friends. A simple interpretation would be something like this,

  • debilitated planet – mean minded people will come into your life posing as friends. They will try to put you down, injure your self confidence, diminish your self ego, make use of your assets for their purposes, cheat you.
  • combust planet – your ‘friends’ turn out to be selfish and self-centred. They expect praise and recognition form you but never notice the important things about you. No real interaction is possible with such self-referential egoistic people so the friendship will naturally be short lived.
  • You can further check the power of the planet using Shadbala concepts and their interpretations. A planet with low power cannot give pleasing results.
  • Especially check his Ishta Kashta phala, a planet with high Kashta phala will grant you friends who give you pain.

You can also cross check with the Ashtakvarga table.

  • The score of the 11th house sign, should be more than 27 points in order to give favourable results.
  • The score of the 11th lord in the sign he is placed in should be more than 4, for auspicious results.
  • If you have a planet in the 11th house check his score for the sign he is placed in, ie your 11th house sign. This less than 4 will grant failure in friendships.

Use the Navamsha chart for checking the potential of the 11th house things. (detailed post on Navamsha analysis). Any connect with the Dusham sthan here can affect things.

  • eg. Suppose your main birth chart 6th house is Virgo/Mercury so naturally the 11th house will be Aquarius/Saturn. In your navamsha chart, check if Saturn has been allocated to Virgo navamsha. Or Mercury is placed in Aquarius navamsha. If this is so, then your friends will seem very good on the face but will have a rotten core. They will hurt you and eventually exit from your life.

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If your 11th house is very strong then this means that you will benefit from your friends. For this to happen your friend has to first have something which he can then give to you. So your own 11th energies will act as a catalyst on him and give him several benefits. On the subconscious levels it is expected that he will give them back to you, thus sustain that loop in a positive feedback situation. Now we will have to see his Dharma trikon, if this is strong then he will happily give it to you and the self-sustaining loop will continue. But if his Dharma trikon is afflicted, he will not be able to hold up his part of the subconscious bargain and you will not get the benefit that your 11th house has created in him, to give to you. And the loop will sense a negative feedback and the friendship will be severed. This is a rather convoluted logic but this is the way it works.

A strong 11th house will not allow a sneaky person to enter your life as a friend. So if you are having issues with ‘friends’ it is your 11th house that needs to be addressed. Ultimately you are responsible for what is happening to you and there are several ways to resolve these negative patterns.

Everything that happens in our lives is for a reason, basically karma. It is possible that you do not understand astrology much, but even then, reading these posts will be helpful. Knowing that the reason your bosom friend kicked you in the ass had something to do with 6th house or something like that and was not your fault per se, can help bring acceptance and closure.

Analysing trends over longer time periods

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There were several questions on the the long term trends on what is going to happen to us. I do not have time to write detailed explanations, but you can use the following to come to your own conclusions.

Right now the world is going through a horrible crisis triggered by the eclipse of 26th Dec 2019. This annular solar eclipse involved 6 planets in Sagittarius and one Rahu in Gemini, so a total of 7 planets were mixed up in this energy. The, luminaries of the zodiac, Sun and Moon are not effective during an eclipse and unable to guide us. Rahu and Ketu in the stationary or in the forward motion indicates a release of a huge quantum of pending karma during a short span of time. Anything mixed up with an eclipse means that it is karma in fast forward. Whatever you have sown, this is the time you will reap it. 

Sagittarius is the foundation house ie the 9th house of the natural zodiac, and anything which disturbs the 9th house has the potential to deeply destabilise. This eclipse hit very hard and initiated several disasters, most prominently the COVID 19. Sagittarius is the natural Dharma sthan. So on an esoteric level this eclipse has triggered a clash between the Dharma and Adharma. This is evident in the daily news, these sort of clashes suddenly increased after this eclipse. Ketu at the mid-point of Sagittarius, eclipsed the sign itself and also Sun, Moon, Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn all at once, thus humanity as a whole remained apathetic to and disinterested in these many aspects of life. We failed to pay attention to these many keywords in our personal and collective life. We could not foresee the implications of our actions as Rahu at the mid point of Gemini, ie the natural 3rd house, first eclipsed the sign and its keywords. This ensured that we, as a collective, took risks which now, in retrospect, seem to be an overreach leading to disaster. 

This eclipse lasted for about 5:35 hrs, so its results on the global level will last for at least 5.5yrs, ie till mid 2025. So whatever was triggered by this eclipse on the personal and global levels will continue to show its effects till this time at least. These years will also have their own eclipses and transits which will modify the effect of the trigger eclipse. Especially combinations involving 5 or more planets in a sign will add to the overall instability. 

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With this background let’s try to very briefly analyse the time till mid 2025.

Jupiter has the unique ability to sustain life on Earth, he is called the Jiv karak. He is the sustainer of the body, mind and the individual soul. He allows the accumulation of resources, building up of assets and ensures support from the foundations of life. A favourable and powerful Jupiter has the capacity to set things back on the auspicious track. He owns Sagittarius and is the the natural Dharmesh of the zodiac. 

For an overview of trends over longer time periods, we use Jupiter as the primary agent and see how the other planets are influencing him. We try find out those time periods where Jupiter has the power to set things back on an favourable, auspicious, Dharmic track. 

I have very briefly sketched out the framework, try to see if you can fill in more details yourself. For the past, I have written posts on Jupiter transits. (use the index and see if I had got it right back then)

  • Jupiter in Capricorn, 2020-21 was debilitated and so practically of no use. He allowed the collective health of humanity to deteriorate, economy to collapse, resources to be diminished etc. And Saturn in Capricorn meant karma came calling in a big way and Jupiter unable to do much about it.
  • Jupiter in Aquarius 2021 – 22 is also not of much use, it is an average position for him. And Saturn continues powerfully in his own Capricorn, now more dangerous in the Shravan Nakshatra and will not let Jupiter act freely. 
  • An eclipse on 8th Nov 2022 involving 6 planets will have an undesirable impact on the global affairs. 
  • Jupiter in Pisces, 2022- 23 is a ray of hope but the window that he gets is very small and in pieces, 3 mths in 2022 and 3 mths in 2023. For the rest of his stay here, 6 mths, Saturn will significantly aspect him from Capricorn, hampering his style. This will be his 3rd aspect so will give more inauspicious and extreme results.
  • An eclipse on 6th May 2023 will involve 6 planets causing more confusion. 
  • Jupiter in Aries 2023-24 would have helped global affairs. But Saturn will be aspecting him from Aquarius throughout his time here. Again the 3rd aspect which is not encouraging. 
  • An eclipse on 29th Oct 2023 will involve 7 planets and cause significant instability.
  • Jupiter in Taurus 2024 – 25 is in a better position to do good for us. We will see some positive changes during this time. Jupiter in the natural 2nd house of the zodiac will help us accumulate resources and live a comparatively better quality of life. And he is not affected by the major malefics, ie Saturn Rahu Ketu. Depending on the other transits and personal charts of nations/ individuals, this time can turn around things for several of us.
  • Jupiter in Gemini 2024-25 also should help humanity recover to some extent as he is not afflicted by major malefics, Saturn Rahu Ketu during his time here. The risks that we take will have more potential to be favourable in the long run. Economy will show visible signs of recovery.
  • In 2025 Jupiter will also briefly enter Cancer, get exalted, but he is going forwards and backwards in Cancer over a period of 3yrs, from 2025, 26, 27. This means that the results expected will neither be deep nor long lasting. However there will be brief options opening up for short periods. He will be with Ketu briefly so the Guru chandal yog will operate. 

Thus the 5.5yrs from the eclipse of Dec 2019 will unfold. 

There are so many conjunctions, retrogression, eclipses, combustions etc which will occur during this time giving their own results. But the overall theme is of hardship and harshness. If your original birth chart is powerful enough, you will be able to make use of the windows of opportunity which will come from time to time. But overall for the world, Time is not favourable. Mahakaal has awakened. We humans can start something but how this action will end is in the hands of Mahakaal. 

In your personal lives, take care of your health and finances. Most importantly follow Dharma in some way or the other. ie do your daily pujas, hold on to the mantra your Guru has given to you, practice the Gayatri mantra, practice gratefulness to the Sun, keep a living Tulsi plant in your house etc. Try to increase your internal energy in every way you can and fortify yourself. 

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This analysis is continued here to cover the time till 2033.

 

Analysing harsh combinations in Navamsha

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I have written a few posts on planetary combinations which cause turmoil in life. If two planets interact in the horoscope, they enhance each other’s similar qualities and create harshness where they differ from each other. Some of these typical combinations are,

If you have these combinations in your birth chart then you will clearly see these results on the material plane in your physical life and the environment around you. You can easily identify the problem, so can also act to resolve it. But if you get these uncomfortable combinations in your D9 chart, ie the Navamsha chart then you may remain unaware of the situation which will continue as you generally are unaware of the subtle things of the Navamsha chart.

The Navamsha D9 chart is considered to be the expansion of the 9th house, ie your foundations in all ways. It is where you analyse your potential, your expectations and your ability to feel satisfied about something in life. If something is uncomfortable here then it subtly affects your life in every way. The Navamsha chart is next in importance to the birth chart. you draw from its potential energy to actualise your material life. There are three ways to analyse the Navamsha (post here). The third way listed here is the Navamsha tulya Rashi, ie the navamsha chart is interpreted in the same way as the birth chart.

So open your birth and navamsha chart together.

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1. If you have a harsh planetary combination conjoint in your birth chart and this conjunction repeats in your Navamsha chart.

This means that the energy springs from deep within the psyche, strongly pervades into your material life and exponentially increases the effect of the combination. You will express its full energy and also feel internally comfortable when you do so. Rectifying these negative traits will not be easy as you do not feel them to be negative as per your perception.

Analyse the two signs and the Nakshatra pad/quarter involved to get more information.

Eg Suppose you have your Jupiter at 7deg Leo and Rahu at 8deg Leo. Both are in the Magha nakshatra 3rd quarter. It is a very close Guru Chandal yog in the birth chart. In the Navamsha chart too, both are allocated to the same Gemini Navamsha. The Guru Chandal is present in both the potential D9 and the manifested D1. The environment of Gemini will be in the background and will be expressed though the lens of Leo. ie you will be very logical, intelligent, able to think quickly through options, choose the right one and act very boldly and confidently. You can get more information when you add the qualities of Magha 3rd pad, ie highly individualistic, capable, fiery, ambitious, rebellious, intelligent, always wanting to learn new things etc to your analysis. But the typical nature of the Guru chandal will exist, the foundation of the personality is linked to its energy and at some point of time you will betray those people who have supported you and also feel satisfied about this act of yours.

Navamsha analysis for beginners

2. The planets are not together in the birth chart but are allocated to Navamshas ruled by the same sign.

Eg suppose you have your Saturn at 8deg Cancer and Mars at 28deg Taurus. As per the navamsha allocation table above, both are located in a navamsha ruled by Virgo. Suppose Virgo sign falls in the 4th house of your Navamsha chart. So you will analyse the effect of the Saturn Mars conjunction in Virgo sign and 4th house as per this post. These two together will have their typical combined effect on the keywords of the 4th and the opposite 10th house, creating an undercurrent of frustration and dissatisfaction. You will not be able to create or stick to schedules. You will have several genius level ideas, but you will not be able to structure them in a practical manner. Strangely this will not cause you much stress as you have so very many ideas that just thinking about them or briefly following them satisfies you. You will not be acknowledged for any specific thing but will be respected as a useful and powerful person to have around. The underlying energy of the personality in the home and office will be Saturn + Mars. Even if the 4th and 10th houses in the birth chart are exceptionally powerful, aspected by benefics etc, still this background Navamsha energy will affect these parts of your personality till you finally become aware of your inner discomfort and take active steps to address it. The trigger dasha when you will understand this, will be a combination of Saturn Mars and Mercury. And the trigger transit will be most likely a Mars or Saturn transit in Virgo. After this realization you might be able to take corrective action if the rest of the chart allows this.

3. The planets are not conjunct in the birth chart but are aspecting in the Navamsha chart.

Eg You have your Saturn in 5deg Aquarius, allotted to Scorpio navamsha. Your Moon is in 23deg Virgo allocated to Leo navamsha. So Saturn will aspect Moon with his 10th aspect in the Navamsha chart. (I wrote a post here on Saturn and Moon.) This position means that the mother, people from your maternal side etc 4th house things will subconsciously be a source of betrayal, you will feel emotionally disconnected from your traditions, feel anxious if you are required to look after your home, landed property or even drive a car. These are subconscious expectations so even if your birth chart’s Moon is strong etc these Navamsha influences will always be at the back of your mind creating discomfort.

4. The harsh combination present in the the birth chart does not exist in the navamsha chart.

Eg suppose you have your Mars aspecting Saturn in the birth chart but there is no connection between the two in the D9. This means that the uncomfortable energy very much exists in your material life, you will feel all the frustrations that this will give in the life that you are living. But on the inner levels you will perceive differently,

  • If the D9 offers a better position for both of them eg Saturn moves to a Capricorn navamsha and Mars to an Aries navamsha then both are separated in the D9. Each is in its own sign’s Navamsha so more comfortable and potentially capable of better results. If you are aware of their more balanced potential from the D9, you can actively use their energies from here to reduce your stress in the physical life.
  • But pay attention if the same harshness repeats in the D9 but in a different ‘flavour’. Eg if Saturn is allocated to Scorpio navamsha. Here Mars will continue to subtly affect the potential power of Saturn in your life from your D9 too, giving you no respite.

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Let’s take a look at our standard example chart, Aleister Crowley, 12th Oct 1875, 11: 42pm, Leamington Spa, Britain. A reasonably accurately recorded life, happening events and dead, so a good case study.

Birth chart Aleister Crowley

Navamsha Aleister Crowley
Navamsha Aleister Crowley

This birth chart has several harsh combinations. If you analyse this person, his material life had several typical characteristics of these dissonant combinations.

  • Venus Jupiter are within 15deg, influencing 4th 10th.
  • Rahu Moon conjunct but just about 15deg apart, both influence the 9th house.
  • Mars Saturn are not typically conjunct but both influence 7th and 1st house.

In the Navamsha chart, it is incredible that all these 3 typical pairs, Venus – Jupiter, Mars – Saturn, Moon – Rahu get positioned in the 5/9 axis. ie In the mutually cooperative 5/9 axis of genius and creativity feeding each other as an evolving energy spiral. Planets in the 5/9 axis are very comfortable as each uses the power of the other in his own way to give his typical gains. These navamsha positions have removed much of the negativity of these combinations of the birth chart. On the inner levels, Crowley was not very concerned with the havoc these planets were playing in his material life, he was evolving with their support on the inside. However Rahu Moon continue in the Shakti yog in the navamsha too, affecting its Dharma trikon, so he was quite satisfied with his actions of attacking the dogma of the religion that he was born in and in developing the Thoth tarot etc.

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Other Divisional Charts. The Navamsha chart is critical, do analyse it for all questions that you get, just ensure that you have the correct birth time. The other divisional charts are used depending on the question that you ask. The logic of analysing these harsh combinations will remain the same in the divisional charts too.

  • Eg if you have been asked a question on professional success, you will open the D10. If you see a Mars Saturn combination in the 1st house of this divisional chart, Dashamsha, then you cannot predict a very successful professional life for this person. If you can, counsel him about the effects of this combination and if he addresses the issue he may improve to some extent.

Finally, I often get this question often on how to find out if the remedies will work or not? Here are a few tips for you to evaluate this.

  1. Prashna – if the client has come to you at an auspicious time then the remedies you prescribe will work well. Use Prashna techniques liberally at every reading, even if your client does not ask you a specific ‘Prashna’ in the astrological sense of this word. This means to always be aware of the current position of the planets in the skies, the current ascendant sign etc. To note the movement of your own nadi, ie Ida, Pingala and Sushumna, your own state of mind is connected to this. And finally to remain aware of the surroundings ie Shakun /omens, all this will help you give more accurate predictions.
  2. The client’s Dharma trikon – it has to be strong in the birth chart or at least in transit when he has come to consult you. Especially his 9th house has to be strong.
  3. Your own Dharma trikon – A person becomes an astrologer or has the ability to divine only if he has a strong Dharma trikon, especially the 5th house has to have power. You can analyse this for yourself, whenever your 5th house gets strength in transit your readings will be more accurate.
  4. The D 60 of the client is used to get a summary of the planet in life. The Shashtyamsha is the final say on the auspiciousness of the planet. If you have the precisely accurate birth time, then you can check the D60, you will need to do a seconds level birth time rectification for this. Any remedy done for a planet auspicious in the D 60 will 100% work. For the other planets placed in the malefic/ inauspicious Shashtyamsha, you will have to predict average results even after doing the remedies. But as remedies reduce the intensity of the negativity, it is always advisable to do them, ie do Daan and Mantra as per Rishi Parashar.

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(I was getting too many questions of this sort, so use this post to analyse your birth and navamsha chart for yourself.)

Shri Plava Naam Samvatsara 2021-22 predictions

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The Vedic new year begins with the first day of the bright half of the Chaitra month, ie Chaitra Shukla Pratipada. On this day Moon is in Aries and Sun in Pisces. This will happen on the morning of 12th Apr 2021. But as the Vedic day is from sunrise to sunrise, the Shri Plava naam samvatsara will technically begin on 13th April 2021. The first day of the Vedic new year is called Yugadi युगादि (mispronounced as Ugadi or Gudi in the local languages). The Vedic year ends on the no-moon, Amavasya of the Phalgun month, on this last day both the Sun and Moon are both in Pisces, so Shri Plava will end on 2nd April 2022.  

The Shri Sharvari vedic year will be coming to an end, with a sigh of relief. I had written some predictions for Shri Sharvari post here. It was, for most of us, the deep dark night of the soul. (The Sanskrit word Sharvari means the night of the Amavasya, no-Moon night and also is a name for the highly medicinal turmeric.) Do take some time to evaluate what happened to you in Shri Sharvari and think on how you will be using the energy of Shri Plava in the future. 

  • Plava प्लव is a Sanskrit word which means floods, marine birds, boat, to float, to return, to leap ahead, a meter of prosody, tendency, inclination, bathing, swimming, enemy, uncouth person, temporary, etc.

The new year predictions are based on the Nav-nayak scheme of things (post here), ie each planet gets a specific post/ ministry/ task for the year. We also draw a chart for the sunrise of the new year day to get an indication on how things will work. The positions of the planets at the exact time of the new year are also considered for the yearly predictions. (Plus there are chakra-s from the Medini jyotish and Atharva-ved which are used to predict. These things are now lost or are not fully available.)

Following the Nav-nayak scheme, for this Samvatsara, 

  • Mars is the Raja – King
  • Mercury is the Mantri – Minister 
  • Mars is also the Senadhipati – Commander
  • Mars is the Arghyadhipati – Rains/water, all things which flow or are given out
  • Mars is the Meghadhipati – Clouds 
  • Jupiter is the Dhanyadhipati – food grains
  • Saturn is the Sasyadhipati – Agriculture
  • Moon is the Rasadhipati – Essences which nourish or grant auspiciousness
  • Venus is the Neerasadhipati – Essences which do not nourish or cause negativity 

Mars the King, holds three additional ministries. Mercury, Saturn, Jupiter Moon and Venus hold one ministry each. Sun the natural ruler of the zodiac does not hold any ministry in Shri Plava.

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So obviously the energies of Mars are going to be expressed in abundance this year, he will express his power through four different ministries. There will be an outburst of outgoing energy, heat, passions, aggression, risky and rash behaviour, unpredictability, self-confidence, an urge to defend, offend, invade and conquer in several aspects of life. He is a natural malefic and holds four out of the nine ministries including the all important King and the Commander. He holds the Meghadhipati and Arghyadhipati posts, both connected to the water availability/ rains. On the day of Yugadi, he is conjunct Rahu in transit, which adds to his roughness and boldness. 

Mercury being the Mantri will add a strong dose of practicality and logic to things, sometimes with his typical juvenile behaviour. On the new year day he will be combust and closely with the Sun in his sign of debilitation, Pisces (post here). This means that he is going to behave more like a malefic that the neutral to benefic that he usually is. Things connected to him will be tinged with selfishness and a sense of egoistic entitlement. A Mantri, Prime Minister, the closest advisor to the King, is the one with whom the King confers before taking any actions. So this sort of Mercury advising a super strong King, Mars, think for yourself how this will go.

Moon is the Rasadhipati so ‘needs’ will be more in the limelight. Everyone will need to be nourished, nurtured, ie will be more focussed on their own selves. He will be in Aries which is the regular thing every Samvatsar. But being conjunct a combust Venus on the new year day will create a mix of selfish needs and imbalances in love etc. One may get what one needs but this may not necessarily satisfy.

Venus is the Neerasadhipati, he will control all those things in life which do not appeal, do not nourish and are not wanted. So spiritual practice, equal love, equitable partnerships, fairness in relationships, marriage may not appeal this year. Neerasadhipati controls diseases and all such negative things too. So expect diseases and pain in the things that Venus signifies, the organs connected to Venus, shoulders, back, eyes and whatever else as per your own chart. This may also have an adverse effect on finances on local/ global levels. On the new year day he is transiting Aries and combust (post here) so expect heat related discomfort throughout the year.

Saturn, the Sasyadhipati, controlling agriculture will grant success but after the due efforts. So if you want something be prepared to work for it. Also anything which requires processing, like mineral ores from the earth, will be available in abundance. Real estate and things related to the land can give gains if you deserve them ie have worked for them. He is transiting Capricorn and is strongly placed in his own sign. He is a natural malefic so whatever he is going to grant, do not expect it to give genuine happiness.

Sun not being a part of this year’s nav-nayak rulerships means that the ruler of the zodiac himself, is absent from the scene. This factor will bring its own share of confusion, misdirection in critical and subtle ways during this year. The true royal is missing from this year’s government. But on the Yugadi, he will be combusting Mantri Mercury and Neerasadhipati Venus so will be exerting an invisible influence over these two. And not a very benign one at that.

Of the nine ministries, natural malefics Saturn and Mars are controlling five. Combust Mercury is also more of a malefic. The natural benefics, Jupiter, Moon and Venus (combust) get three ministries. So life will be not so secure, satisfying or comfortable in this year. There will be issues, you will have to address them. You will win eventually as Mars does grant energy but it will not be a pleasant experience.

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Now some general readings for the Shri Plava naam samvatsara.

Weather will be hot, unseasonal heat. There will be fire related accidents, in towns as well as forests etc. Rains will be untimely, sometimes less/more, irregular, but overall there will not be a deficit. Winters will be colder than average.

For nations with genuinely elected governments, general administration should improve. Army and police will also be active and work better. Armed forces and government service will be a popular choice for young people as a profession. This is a good year for those working in the government setup, there will be opportunities to perform. Honest and capable officers will be appreciated and recognised. 

Governments will be able to take effective preventive actions against disruptive forces. And there will be plenty of disruptions. From petty local crimes to international boundary disputes, criminal activity will flare up. The police will have their hands full. Crime rates are set to increase but the government will able to take action in time. May see arrests of powerful criminals in this year, but cyber-criminals may remain elusive. On the borders, skirmishes and even full out war is possible in some places. The Army will be competent if the cause is right.

Internally, motivated traitors will try to whip up passion against democratically elected governments. This will cause several disruptions in public life. The governments will put in strict laws and take stringent actions against traitors which will cause a spurt in motivated journalism, leading to stricter laws on this too. 

Misuse of media will be rampant. Self-proclaimed social media activists, environmental activists, in fact all sorts of activists, will be very active on social media and will try to interfere in the cultural and traditional rights of the general people. This will cause a lot of righteous unrest in the general public. 

Social media use increases overall, people will be online all the time. General laziness will increase. Making and completing plans will be difficult as people feel less motivated to work systematically.

Means of communication will improve, maybe 5G will be available globally. There will be new breakthroughs in electronics and software. This is a good time to invest money in some genuine technology related companies etc.

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Corruption will increase but some of these corrupt people will eventually get caught in controversies. Some politicians and senior bureaucrats will be be humiliated in such cases. Several politicians might change their parties this year. Forgery and adulteration will be on the rise. People will be motivated to seek shortcuts for success thus frauds and cheats will increase. All will generally think of themselves and there may be a general overall selfishness.

Tempers will be generally high and people overall will behave rashly. So expect cases of road rage, accidents on the roads, in the shipping sector, industrial accidents etc this year. Malfunctioning electronics, ie short circuits can lead to fire related accidents. There may be natural calamities around the total solar and lunar eclipses in May-June.

There will be increase in cheating, online frauds, banking sector issues may occur. Share markets and stocks will be unpredictable, but lucky investors can make good profits off them. Global economy will still be doldrums, with more debts and losses than real permanent gains.

Women will be in the forefront in all fields including crime. Increasing number of women will occupy powerful positions in society, and issues related to women will be highlighted more. 

Lower income groups should see some benefit as the governments take notice of their issues and takes some genuine measures for them. Also other neglected sectors which were ignored as they demanded more work will be given attention. 

Exclusive restaurants, pubs, clubs should be able to do good business. People will want to show off even though the finances will be limited. Also stores which sell expensive art, branded and luxury items will profit. Creativity, sports, art, crafts will be appreciated.

Schools and traditional education will suffer for some more time. This is partly due to the laziness and lenient attitude of people overall. People will want their children to learn fancy things rather than learning the basic fundamentals.

There will be intelligence and logic available in plenty. Energy and the ability to create options and take risks will also be high. Try to use this power for auspicious and genuine causes. Use this strength in a sensible manner.

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Issues created by COVID 19 will be handled in a better way, life will slowly go back to routine. Things will start improving as Jupiter enters Poorvabhadrapada nakshatra and when Jupiter enters his own Pisces in April 2022. 

 Pharmaceutical companies will try to make profits by selling medicines at highly inflated costs. Adulteration in medicinal drugs is possible. However these acts will make the government more serious about the health sector and there will be some reforms/funds for this now. 

Illnesses related to fatty and sugary diets will increase. Undiagnosable diseases will increase but there will also be an increase in patients with routine conditions like diabetes in this year. People will suffer from psychological issues in increasing numbers. Drug abuse, alcohol consumption and addictions will increase. Adulteration of food items and milk is possible. 

Religious activities will increase, some people will also be drawn to genuine spirituality. Sanatan Dharma will see an upsurge as people try to find the spirituality within. But some religions will promote very high levels of extremism. Racism and hatred will find acceptance in some extremist groups. Expect more terrorist attacks from such fringe groups in this year.

Animal husbandry related sectors will show gains, milk production etc will be good. Agriculture will do well in most regions, only thing is that farmers should pay attention to their irrigation requirements. Pests will be a concern and pesticides will be used in increasing quantities. Fertiliser use will increase but awareness on organic farming will also be significant. Some people will try to shift to organic food and prefer home-cooked food. Awareness regarding holistic remedies like Ayurved, a more balanced life style will increase. Some people will benefit from this change. 

Industries which are expected to do well are metals, gold, silver, technology, pharmaceuticals and media/ communications. However investing in any sector in Shri Plava will start giving some real gains only after Jupiter enters Poorvabhadrapada nakshtra ie from Jan 2022. Share markets will be risky so get into short term investments here only if you know what you are doing.

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Major transits in Shri Plava.

This year we have Jupiter retrograde and forward in Aquarius and Capricorn. I have written in depth on his effects on the twelve signs (post here). Then he will continue in Aquarius for the remaining period of the Shri Plava. 

Rahu and Ketu will be in Taurus and Scorpio (post here). 

Saturn will be in Capricorn throughout (post here). This Saturn will be problematic for the elected governments and the general public in some way or the other. Religious and Dharmic leaders will suffer in some way. A sort of a collective karma unleashed during this time affecting all of us. These larger events may be political, social or financial in nature. This Saturn generally gives tragic events in the higher sections of the society, people in power are removed from power in some way or the other. This naturally will filter into the lives of the general population causing hardship in different ways. And this is a pattern which happens every 30yrs or so (check the past global events for such patterns). Shri Plava also will have Saturn in Shravan Nakshatra till Feb 2022. This is the main reason why the general global situation will not be good. I have written a post on Saturn in Shravan (post here). Students of astrology should try to analyse the past world events during Saturn’s this typical transit and compare with what will happen in the world in the 13 months from Jan 2021 to Feb 2022. (In the past century,Saturn in was in Shravan from Feb 1903 to March 1904. From Jan 1933 to Jan 1934. From Feb 1962 to Feb 1963. From Mar 1991 to Mar 1992 and again from Jul 1992 to Jan 1993.) This is a broad interpretation and you will have to analyse the individual charts of the nations to know more about them individually.

However Shri Plava, especially the last 2-3 months from Jan 2022 onwards does offer some promise.

The overall results for individuals will depend on the power of the personal horoscope. If you have a strong birth horoscope, ie a strong ascendant sign/ lord and a birth Moon then you are better equipped to deal with whatever comes up in life. If you are undergoing Dasha periods of benefic planets, they will help you in overcoming the possible negatives. And if you have helpful planetary transits over your birth chart positions, then the graha can create opportunities for you even in adverse conditions. (I have written several posts on these topics do use the index page or the search bar to locate them)

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On the new year day, Yugadi there are several traditional which are followed. Different states follow their typical customs but there are these themes common to them all. Hindus/ followers of Sanatan Dharma will wake before sunrise and get ready. Then give arghya to the rising Sun. Tie garlands (toran) made of Mango leaves, Neem leaves, ripened wheat stalks and marigold flowers outside the main door of the house, draw a Rangoli on the ground and put turmeric, vermillion etc, as a puja of the home. This ensures that only positive energy enters your home. Then doing puja, arti etc of the household deities. Doing namaskar to the elders, the elders blessing the younger family members etc. There is a typical naivedya, ie food offered to the deities, this is a mixture of tastes, ie a mixture of neem flowers/new neem leaves, coriander seeds, jaggery, tamarind and salt are coarsely crushed together. After offering it to the deity everyone eats a spoonful of this mix as the Prasadam. Then all go to a local temple, do puja, give Daan and intend for a happy new year.

Daan and Mantra are the only two remedies for reducing the malefic effects of the planets in your life and enhancing their positive effects. So try to do something on the day of the Yugadi, if you feel inclined to do so, it will help in improving the auspiciousness of Shri Plava for you.

In families of Jyotishi-s, there is an additional puja. We will offer vermillion, turmeric, unbroken rice, flowers and do arti of the Panchangam. And the eldest in the family will read aloud the the new year predictions, Nav-Samvatsara-phal, from it, in Sanskrit and the rest of the family will listen. Then we will specifically go to a Nav-graha temple to pray to them and seek blessings for an auspicious new year, Shubha Nav-samvatsara.

युगादि शुभाशयाः

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Indra, his esoteric significance

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Devraj Indra, the king of dev-s. Let’s first look at these Sanskrit words.

  • Dev – deity, wish to overcome, desire to excel, prince, priest, play, sense-organs, king, divine, copy, cloud, offspring, radiance, divine light, resonance, etc.
  • Raj – sovereign, meter in prosody, radiant, shining, guidance, governance, etc
  • Indra – night, human soul, geometric figure, pupil of the eye, chief, first, excellent, ruler of the east direction, god of the sky, royal, the individual soul/ jiv-atma etc.

Indra is the hero, the warrior, the invincible King of the Dev-s. He is the enjoyer of absolute prosperity, Param-aishwarya. His other names are, Amrish, Devesh, Gyanendra, Mahendra, Purandar, Sachin, Shatamanyu, Satipati, Suresh, Svar-raj, Vajrapani, Vajrin, Vrittahan, Vruddha-shrava, Sutrama, Gotrabhit, Sunasheera, Purohuta etc. Now put these meanings together to get a glimmering as to who and what Indra really is.

Indra is the power who brings life on this earth in all ways possible. Indra controls the sense organs, by energising them with his power. His power is the power of the Jivatma directly linked to the Param-atma. On the esoteric levels, Indra is you, your individual soul/ Jivatma. The conscious essence that you are, is Indra. Your mind, body, soul, your existence. You are the hero of your world, Indra.

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Indra is the ruler of the East/ poorva direction. He is the dawn of radiance. Also the ancestral energy most closely connected to the source.

Indra is the yajnya-palak. Yajnya is the continuous evolution of the individual soul/ jivatma. Every action you take is technically a ‘yajnya’. He protects you as you unceasing make efforts to attain the highest Param-Atma. He is the one who gets the energy of the main oblations/ havish offered in the Yadnya. ie when you perform any action you yourself get the main energy linked to that action. If you do good for others know that you are actually doing good for your own self. Conversely if you hurt others you hurt your own self first. Indra also destroys all those who obstruct the performance of yajnya-s. If you want to perform auspicious actions your internal Indra is the one who will help you. Shakra, he is the destroyer of discordant energy. Remember that yajnyas are essentially internal. You offer your Pran with the mantra into your own internal Agni. Thus Indra ie your individual soul receives this energy. There is no concept of an external ‘god’ in Sanatan Dharma. It is all internal, within you.

He is Lokpalak, the guardian/ ruler/ protector of the worlds including the Prithvi, Antariksha and Vyom. Without his support the universe cannot exist. He is the Marutvan. He controls the subsidiary deities called Marut-gan. They are 7 divided into further 7. आवहः Aavaha controls the movement of the earth. प्रवहः Pravaha is connected to the Surya mandala. उद्वहः Udvaha is the one who provides movement in the chandra mandala. सुवहः Suvaha for the luminous heavenly bodies. विवहः Vivaha provides motion to the graha of Jyotish. परावहः Paravaha provides movement in the realm of the Sapta-rishi/ Seven Seers. परिवहः Parivaha is the motion of the Dhruva mandala. These realms are not only in the external space but also within you. Do your spiritual practice to experience them.

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The rakshak/ protector of the Dev-Lok, he guards the seat of the divine illumination. He is the Swarg-adhipati, he rules over and protects the incredible energies of the heavenly realms and its treasures. The Swarg-lok has the Ratna/ jewels which emerged out of the Samudra Manthan, these include the Kalpa-vriksha, Kaam-dhenu, Parijaat, Airavat, Amrut etc.

Indra is the Go-rakshak. He brought back the ‘Go’ when they were stolen by Asuras. Go is said to mean cows but it is one of the most complicated words in Sanskrit to understand and then experience, Go has hundreds of meanings like cows, thunderbolt, leather strap, stars, sky, skin, body, light rays, milk, hair, bow string, water, sun, singer, sense-organs, moon, medicinal plants, third eye, one who goes, billion, voice, speech, Devi Sarasvati, Vak, number 9, mother, earth, etc etc. Indra is the energy which protects the internal Go within you from the Asur/ discordant energies.

In the Ved it is said that Indra is the only one who drinks maximum amounts of Soma, Somapa. (I have described the nature of Soma in this post.) Essentially Anna is converted to Soma. Soma is further transduced into Pran. Indra consumes Soma, the purest form of conscious energy and then goes to fight his enemies. The esoteric significance of this is that only when the Jiv-atma has access to maximum amount of Soma can he create the necessary boost of Pran. This Pran will be then channelised into the Sushumna to fight the karmic imprints/ discordance within. Later this Pran will be used to activate the Kundalini, which will rise as a flashing thunderbolt.

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Indra is mentioned in every allegory, every Ithihas of Sanatan Dharma.

Ramayan is about the ‘travels of Ram’ so naturally Shri Ram is the main hero. But the main deity mentioned maximum times in the Valmiki Ramayan is Indra. His name Shakra शक्र is mentioned 182 times, Indra इन्द्र 164 times, Mahendra महेन्द्र 95 times, Vasav वासव 74 times, Sahastraksh सहस्राक्ष 54 times, Purandar पुरन्दर 31 times, Shatkratu शतक्रतु 29 times, Vajrin वज्रिन् 25 times, Devraj देवराज 16 times, Pakshashan पाकशासन 11, Sureshwar सुरेश्वर  10, Shachipati शचीपति  8 and Maghvan मघवान् 6 times. In Ramayan, Indra first ‘kills’ Maruti by breaking his jaw and then later revives him and gives him the boon of immortality, makes him a Chiranjeevi. Indra gave Shri Ram his own chariot, charioteer, weapons etc during the war with Ravan. Indra brought back the dead Vanar-s to life when Shri Ram requested him to do so. Indra is very much a major part of the Ramayan.

Then when you study the Mahabharat, again there are several references to Indra. Arjun, the major actor of the Mahabharat, is the son of Indra. Arjun was created by mantras recited by Kunti. Kunti’s other name is Prutha, ie Earth. So then Arjun represents the creative power, the inherent divinity, the genius, the active intelligence, the projection etc, the ‘son’ of Indra which is materialised ie ‘brought by mantras on the earth’.  Indra helps the Pandav-s several times, eg by ensuring that Karna gets cursed, by taking away Karna’s kavach-kundal, by giving the Pandav-s divine astra-weapons for fighting the war, protecting them from time to time etc. The Mahabharat is also an esoteric text. In this, Shri Krishna narrates the Yog-shastra Bhagvat Gita to Arjun. So the highest Consciousness (Param-atma), Krishna, describes to the genius of the limited consciousness (Jiv-atma), Arjun, how it can attain the highest Consciousness itself. This is the deepest secret within the Mahabharat.

My favourite Shri-sukta. As per the Laxmi tantra, Devi Mahalaxmi describes and gives this Sukta to none else but Indra. The Ved-s are majorly about Indra. If you read through the allegories and histories of Sanatan Dharma you will realise that Indra is the main pivot around which things happen.

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Now I need to write a bit about the Ved-s and the Puran-s.

We have lost a significant portion of Ved, ie the associated Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyk, Upanishad texts etc are incompletely available now. But in what we have at this moment, Indra is without a doubt the most significant Vedic deity. Eg in the Rg Ved, 239 out of 1028 sukta are exclusively composed in his honor. Additional 27 sukta, where he is mentioned with other deities. The Ved describe Indra, his activities, his powers, his heroic achievements. Ved have no origin, there were directly seen from the Akash by enlightened Seers/ Rishi-s. The Vedic age was one of significant enlightenment where even general people were aware of the internal divinity/ Indra within them, and they would make active efforts using the Sukta-s etc to pull themselves higher towards the Param-Atma. The sukta-s dedicated to Indra were used to awaken/ energise their internal Indra. Now unfortunately we are not capable of using these as such and the knowledge too has hidden itself.

Then we come to the Puran-s. In these stories, other deities like Shankar (sometimes called Shiv), Vishnu Brahmadev come into focus. These three deities are the conscious energy of the Satva, Raja and Tamas Gun-s. The Puran were composed by Rishi-s, eg the author of several major Puran-s is Maharshi Vyas. Regarding Indra, in the Puran, there are mainly two recurring themes.

Theme 1 – Indra by his action/ inaction gets into trouble. The negative forces like Daityas, Rakshas-s, Danav-s etc attack him and the Dev-lok, the realm of Divine radiance is in trouble. He rushes to the Tri-dev ie Vishnu Shankar, Brahmadev and requests help. These three deities are generally shown to be in deep Dhyan or asleep, ie inanimate. Only when Indra comes knocking, are they roused and help him defeat his foes. If you analyse this, the only player who acts of his own volition is Indra. He commits mistakes, loses, does penances, wins etc. The several other players help/ hinder/ interact with him in different ways, eg by giving him blessings, weapons, taking avatars or by attacking, cursing him etc. (ie You have to use the energies of the Satva, Raja and Tama Gun to destroy the discordance within you. eg Satva-gun ie Mahavishnu will help Indra in making his Vajra.)

Theme 2 – A Rishi starts doing intense spiritual practice/ Tap. The fierce energy created by this Tap starts shaking the throne of Indra. He feels insecure and sends his Apsara-s to disturb the Rishi and break his sadhana. Sometimes the Apsara succeed and sometimes fail. The Apsara are turbulences in the stillness of the mind, but here these are controlled by Indra. Here Indra is operating at his dullest level of consciousness thus scared of the fire generated by Tapasya. He tries to stop the Tapasya so that he can continue to enjoy the illusion of the jiv-atma/ individual soul. (ie. If you are at the lower levels of spiritual evolution, then try not to get scared by the concept of spiritual practice. Initally the mind will fight it, but later will actively help you in your routine.)

What actually happened during the Puranic times was that the inner awareness of the general population decreased. They started losing touch with their internal divinity. Their internal Indra started getting into trouble, attacked more by negative forces. So the Gun-s, Satva-Vishnu, Raja-Brahmadev and Tamas-Shankar had to be invoked to help Indra. Here the level of the aspirant was lowered in the sense he could not directly invoke Indra using the Vedic suktas directly anymore. So the via media of the three Gun-s energy had to be used. So we have the typical puranic prayers to the Tri-dev. Indra, though shown to be less glamorous, still is the central theme. Indra will always remain the central theme, because he is the Jiv-atma, the player in the Game of Creation. You are the only hero, the only actor in your life, the rest around you only help/ hinder you.

And now we are in the Kali yug, so the internal Indra for most of us is generally overwhelmed by Asur forces, unable to counter-act them.

You are Indra. Puranic or Vedic? Or at a level even lower than the Puranic? Evaluate for yourself.

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Indra, as per the Puran-s, is the son of Maharishi Kashyap and Aditi. He is thus the grandson of Brahmadev, ie Raja-gun. Kashyap is a Sanskrit word which essentially is the energy which makes visible or makes something brilliant. Aditi is literally the energy of manifestation, heaven and earth, speech, inexhaustible creative power, perfection, boundlessness, freedom, happiness, completion etc. So Indra is essentially the visible brilliance of the boundless power of manifested creation, which is in motion and is also capable of causing movement.

Aditi and Kashyap have 33 sons, ie the 33 koti Devata-s which exist within all of us. They are Indra, Prajapati, the 8 Vasu, the 11 Rudra and the 12 Aditya. (These are all within you, do click on these links to read about them)

Indra is married to Sachi. Sachi-pati is his name. Pati is the catalyst energy which acts on another substance and causes it to change. The word Sachi has several meanings like speech, skills, activity etc but it is also another name for Vak, Prajnya, Karma. This means that the power of the individual soul/ Jiv-atma enters the substance of Vak, Prajnya and Karma and causes changes in them, leading to further creation. Indra is more esoteric than people today realise.

Indra is the destroyer of several Asur forces including Vala, Panis, Namuchi, Shushna, Sambhara, Himarina, Vrittasur etc. He released Sapta-sindhu, released the Go, created the Agni etc. All these allegories are full of esoteric meanings. I will just briefly write on the esoteric theme of the killing of  Vrittasur, you can explore the other allegories on your own if you feel inclined. This is from the Rg ved, 1.80.1-16.

Our minds are very low in consciousness, the several ideas, thoughts, desires, wishes which stir up the serenity of the mind are called Vritti. These Vritti cause turbulence, these are the barriers to self-realisation. Only when the mind becomes still, does the light of the Self dawn. Indra uses his weapon Vajra to kill Vrittasur. This in the esoteric sense means that when you have Indra on your side in your spiritual practice, you put a stop to the waves of disturbance rising in your mind. These waves are Asur, discordant. They stop you from your spiritual practice, cause distress, pain and keep you at a low levels of awareness. When Indra kills Vritasur, the spiritual aspirant starts resonating with OM.

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Indra is the only deity who carries a Vajra in his hands. I read about Tibetan Vajrayana and was surprised to note that it is also called Mantrayan, ‘the travel of the Mantra’. One of the major deities of Vajrayana is Vajrasatva, he carries the Vajra and a bell in his hands. The Vajra is used to destroy the turbulence of the mind and the bell with its resonating sound of Om creates the resonance of Om in the aspirant. The Tibetan Vajrayana is deeply connected to Sanatan dharma, especially its practical Tantra/ Mantra/ Yantra aspect.

Now Indra’s weapon, the Vajra. It actually looks like a dumb-bell shaped object, about as big as can be gripped comfortably. It is said to create thunderbolts, which is accurate. Vajra was created by Vishvakarma from the Asti of the body of the enlightened MahaRishi Dadhyang specifically for Indra’s war with Vrittasur. The MahaRishi ‘donated’ his body, specifically his head, as a weapon fashioned only from its Asti could kill Vritasur. The fire of his Tapasya had made his Asti/ essence intensely powerful so if used as a weapon could easily destroy Vrittasur. And there is a proper definition for Vajra, ‘tapovya sa vajra asit’. ie Vajra is the essence, the fire of Tapasya, the radiance emitted when you perform intense spiritual practice. It is the thunderbolt flash of the ascending Kundalini. And Tapa in its essence is the discarding of vasana/ desires which is precisely what killing of Vrittasur implies.

There are endless allegories linked to Indra and his exploits. If you wish you can read them and try to glean their hidden meaning for yourself.

But one thing is true, you become aware of the internal Indra, when you perform your regular spiritual practice, by the blessings of the Param-atma. As per the allegories if you perform 100 Ashvamedh yadnyas you attain the title of Indra. Here Indra is the Vedic Indra, the hero Indra. If you are still at the Puranic or even lower stages of evolution you have to perform 100 Ashva-medh yajnyas to reach this level. Then there is a very confused concept of Ashva-medh going around these days. No one sacrificed horses! In Sanatan Dharma you can never never kill another living thing as a sacrifice, if you do you will create horrendous karma for yourself. Ashva is literally the external and the internal Sun. Medh means ‘essence’. So to first realise the essence of internal Sun, you have to work /act /perform yajnya, ie your regular sustained spiritual practice over several lives consistently.

Understanding and experiencing yourself as Indra is a very significant step in your spiritual practice. Every deity in Sanatan Dharma is there for a specific reason, there are no superstitions in Dharma.

Judge a true Ascetic from the horoscope

I had to write this post as a response to an adverse comment on Indra. Disparaging Indra means disparaging your individual soul, your own jiv-atma. Who are you now? Indra, the Jiv-atma. What do you want to experience? Advaita, the Param-Atman. This is the secret of all spiritual practice.