Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter March 2005

[Guest guest]

Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter March 2005

http://www.jyotish.ws

Michael Laughrin, Michael, business phone: (440) 582-

9848; cell phone: (440) 263-2159

To , send an email to: jyotish_ws-

Contents of this newsletter © copyright 2005, Michael Laughrin

unless otherwise noted.

 

Contents:

1. Introduction to Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish

Newsletter

2. A Message From Rahu

3. A Message From Jupiter

4. Planetary Potency

5. Review of Mahatma Gandhi's Autobiography

 

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1. Introduction to Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish

Newsletter

 

I offer you this newsletter to enhance and deepen your experience of

Vedic Astrology. In these newsletters, expect to find a combination

of helpful articles, book reviews, Jyotish links and more. The

purpose of this newsletter is to educate and titillate the Jyotish-

loving public. The opinions given within are solely those of the

author.

 

In this issue, Rahu and Jupiter tell all. And Alison Neilson tell us

about planetary potency. Additionally, I urge you to purchase one of

the most inspiring books I have ever read: Mahatma Gandhi's

autobiography.

 

Please visit my website at http://www.jyotish.ws at your

convenience. I offer Traditional/Classical Vedic Astrology,

Intuitional Jyotish (Vedic Astrology based on deep intuition),

Chakra Readings, and Advanced Structured Psychic Work (for deeper

interpretation of your karmic pattern).

 

- Michael Laughrin (Michael)

 

 

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2. A Message From Rahu

By Michael Laughrin (Michael)

 

[As you may know, I can talk to the planets and other celestial

bodies. Rahu wants me to give you this message. - Michael]

 

I am the stuff that dreams are made of. I am the impulse to find a

new world, to wander, to be more, to become more, to break out of

the mold that society or parents or tradition would put me in.

 

I am ephemeral. I cannot be seen--therefore, I rule cyberspace. I

cannot be seen, but my effects can be seen: eclipses. I am the wild

card, the joker who would become King. I care not for the past or

beaten paths or the way things should be done. I make my own

traditions. I cut my own path through the forest, the jungle--even

through Life itself.

 

In the low thinkers, I am the criminal, the con artist, the fast-

talking trickster. Without me there would be no meaningful

scientific research, no modern art, no jazz, no rock-and-roll, no

twelve-tone music.

 

I am space.

 

One could say that life is a continuum between the past (Jupiter)

and the future (Rahu). If there is too much past, society is

stagnant. If there is too much future, neurosis emerges: the very

fabric of society is ripped asunder. The old view of Indian

astrology does not have much good to say about me. That is because

their society is traditional and bound to the past. I really come

into my own energy in the New World--in countries like the USA.

 

I am desire. I give the entrepreneur the desire and the ability to

create something out of nothing. Modern transportation and lightning-

quick communications are mine. Yes, I am ephemeral, but isn't life

itself ephemeral?

 

I am that Divine discontent that causes one to do more, to seek new

means of expression.

 

I am the engine of Progress that goes boldly forward into unknown

regions. Indeed, I am those unknown regions themselves. Therefore, I

rule Maya (Illusion) but I also rule the deep, truth-seeking mind

that cuts through the crap to grab hold of the diamond truth lying

unexpectedly in the mud.

 

I am movement. I cannot bear to stand still for long. I do not like

to stay in one place, to keep with one mindset, to maintain the same

Weltanschauung. I am the frontiersman, the pioneer, the explorer,

the conqueror. Do not expect me to be polite, clean-shaven, nice-

smelling. I am rough, tough, ornery, and wild. If you invite me to

your oh-so-nice salons, expect the rugs to get dirty, the punch to

be spilled, and the furniture to get scuffed or even knocked over!

 

Either get with me or try to hide from me. But you cannot ignore me.

 

I am the wild side, the Shadow self, the opening of Pandora's box. I

am the principle of All Possibilities, with or without Enlightenment.

 

I am Mighty Rahu!

 

Om shri Rahave namaha.

 

 

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3. A Message From Jupiter

By Michael Laughrin (Michael)

 

[As you may know, I can talk to the planets and other celestial

bodies. Jupiter wants me to give you this message. - Michael]

 

I would be a god. I am the divinity in you. Therefore I am the

healer, the Lawgiver, the man of learning, the teacher -- the

Priest. Without me you are an animal -- and not a very clever

animal at that. Other animals see more, hear more, run faster or

have a better sense of smell.

 

I am wisdom. I cause you to save money, and to invest wisely.

Ultimately the best investment is good children; therefore I rule

children. One's own education is the best personal (not family or

societal) investment. I rule higher education. Without me, Mercury

is merely clever but is also shallow. Mercury likes the play too

much. He would spend it all now. The things that I give last a

very long time -- some even last forever: children, soul

development, growth of consciousness toward Enlightenment, wealth

that lasts for generations, deep Soul skills whose essence lasts

from lifetime to lifetime, purchases that have lasting value.

Mercury rules fun, I rule depth and wisdom and divinity.

 

I walk with the Devas, talk with the Devas, I am with the Devas. I

would become a Deva. It is said that an Enlightened person is

higher than the angels. Anything that gives that feeling of

Divinity I am. Eternal Love -- I am That. Perfect knowledge -- I

am That. Healing -- I am That. The Guru -- I am He (or She). Of

course I rule meditation because meditation gives Yoga (union) with

the Absolute unbounded Reality which, ultimately, is all there Is.

Some come to Me (the god within) through prayer. I am That. I am

the Essence of the civilized, benevolent ways (acceptable to

educated people) through which people experience Divinity:

philosophy, wisdom, tradition, history, respect for and learning

from elders, classical music, classical art, classical dance,

classical poetry, classical Rhetoric. You see, the arts (normally

ruled by Venus), when done in a classical context, are not so much

about creating Beauty (although they do that also) but about

refining the minds, hearts, souls and windows of Perception of the

student. That sort of art is of My Essence.

 

I see the big picture. So does the Sun. But the difference between

me and the Sun is that I am not interested in such worldly and low

class things as power and Earthly rulership. They are a waste of

time. Yes, I do rule Political Science but more the divine essence

of Political Science as it relates to philosophy, religion and the

Law. Something like the politics that Plato talked about.

 

I am the giver of Laws. Let the warriors enforce them.

 

The essence of Jupiter is what separates man from the apes and lets

him walk with the angels.

 

If I have failings (Do I?) it is arrogance and laziness. I cannot

be bothered with digging ditches or details. Therefore I rule the

Brahmins, the men of wisdom, the scholars, the savants. I advise.

I talk. I think. I plan. I let others act and fight and struggle.

 

Worship me. I am Divine Brihaspati.

 

Om shri Gurave Namaha.

 

 

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4. Planetary Potency

By Alison Nielsen (premavratini)

 

Jyotish has some intensely complex systems for assessing planetary

strength or potency. Many of these involve numerous tedious

calculations that produce a number: this number does less for you

than your credit score. In practical, hands-on 21st century Jyotish,

several components of planetary strength can be assessed simply by

glancing at a horoscope. The more of these factors that co-exist,

the stronger that planet is. If that planet happens to also be

influential and one runs its dasha or the dasha of an associated

planet, then there will be no need to ask, "Where's the Viagra?"

 

Factors of strength can be divided into two main categories: those

that are evident through observing the sky directly, and those that

are made evident through the system of meanings applied in

astrology's symbols. An instance of the first category would be a

very bright or full moon. The potency of Chandra can be felt by all

who look up at her alluring beauty on a full moon night. Babies

blessed to be born on such a night usually possess an abundance of

the positive traits associated with the moon. All other factors

being equal, they tend to be more mentally resilient than those born

with a dark moon; they tend to assimilate life's opportunities

better and to recover from its difficulties more easily. An example

of the second category of strength lies in the concept of planetary

dignity, where a planet's capacity to deliver results is weighted by

what its placement in a given constellation represents. This is a

symbolic construction that is not directly observable in the sky.

 

The most important factors of planetary potency are the following:

1) Exaltation

2) own sign

3) retrogression

4) digbala

5) vargottama

6) the absence of malefic aspects and/or weakness of planet or

dispositor (e.g. combustion, debilitation)

7) For the moon, brightness and the waxing phase

 

Both exaltation and own sign pertain to what constellation a planet

occupies. Although systems contain many nuential gradations, such as

sign of a friend, sign of an enemy, sign of a great enemy, etc. –

the two most important for strength are exaltation and own sign.

Each planet has one constellation in which it is thought to function

with supreme potency, known as exaltation. An exalted planet is said

to be able to deliver things that a person wants even of they are

normally outside that planet's scope. The planet becomes like a rock

star's screaming, giddy groupies – the groupies are anxious to

fulfill the native's every desire. In order for an exaltation to

deliver full results, the dispositor of the exalted planet should

also be strong and ideally, the planet should be near its point of

maximum exaltation, a particular degree within the constellation.

 

The following is a list of planets, their sign of exaltation and

degree of maximum exaltation.

Sun – Aries – 10 degrees

Moon – Taurus – 3 degrees

Mars – Capricorn – 28 degrees

Mercury – Virgo – 15 degrees

Jupiter – Cancer – 5 degrees

Venus – Pisces – 27 degrees

Saturn – Libra – 20 degrees

 

The next best thing for strength and sometimes better for results is

own sign. The sun and moon each own one sign and the five true

planets each own two signs. When they are in their own sign, they

are both strong and comfortable, just as we are when we find

ourselves in our home. A planet in its own sign, if unafflicted,

will always take good care of that sign whether it is malefic or

benefic. The Achilles heel of own sign planets is that when they are

afflicted, both the house and its lord become afflicted, which

creates a double effect for potential trouble with that house. This

is something people are often deceived by, and they end up expecting

better results than are delivered by the own sign planet. If such a

planet is only influenced by benefics, it becomes quite potent.

 

The third category of strength is retrogression, which is when a

planet appears to be moving backwards in the sky. Retrograde planets

are considered especially strong in Jyotish for two reasons. In the

case of the outer planets, they are the furthest away from the sun

and therefore closest to the earth, which causes them to shine more

brightly in the sky (just as the bright moon is a noticeable object,

so is any bright planet). The second reason is that any retrograde

planet is moving more slowly than usual. In Indian thought, anything

done slowly and thoroughly gives a stronger and more lasting result.

 

Fourth is digbala or directional strength. Directional strength

applies to diurnal, or daily motion. Each planet will occupy its

position of digbala for an hour or two every day because it is a

position in the heavens as related to the spinning of the earth.

Mercury and Jupiter achieve digbala in the first house. Mars and Sun

in the tenth. Saturn in the seventh, and Moon and Venus in the

fourth. The first house is the eastern horizon, the tenth is

directly overhead, the seventh is the western horizon, and the

fourth is directly below our feet. Because the earth rotates 360

degrees in a day, each planet occupies its position of digbala for

some time every day.

 

Fifth is vargottama, varga + uttama, which means "best division." A

planet is said to occupy the best division when it occupies the same

constellation in the navamsa as it does in the birth chart. It is

sort of like having only one lover. That person becomes the sole

focus of your energies. Just so the planet's energies are focused

twice in the same place, producing a deeper result.

 

These five forms of strength can be read easily in a horoscope, as

can the brightness of the moon. Jyotish is often about confluence.

When these factors begin to conjoin, then one has a potent planet

indeed that should give very strong results for the things it rules

in an individual's horoscope.

 

One small example is the chart of an extremely wealthy man. His

Venus sits in Pisces at its exact degree of exaltation where it

happens to also be vargottama. Because this Venus rules his fourth

house of vehicles and is a significator of vehicles itself, he owns

a fleet of both custom-made and antique Rolls Royces, Ferraris, and

Mercedes.

 

 

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5. Review of Mahatma Gandhi's Autobiography

By Michael Laughrin (Michael)

 

I have just finished Mahatma Gandhi's "An Autobiography: The Story

of My Experiments with Truth." Of the 10,000 books I have read,

Gandhi's autobiography is, quite simply, the most uplifting book I

have ever read (excluding scriptures and 'holy' books).

 

What impressed me the most was Gandhi's extreme clear-mindedness. He

was a master of prioritizing; he almost always did the most

important task first. Although he took exception with a few

specific applications of "The Law," he was devoted to the general

principles of British law. Gandhi was non-judgmental. He understood

the other side and continued to see the opposition as people.

 

Always on the path of self-improvement, Gandhi was committed to

principle. He virtually always "walked his talk." His personal

discipline and integrity were matched only by his desire to serve

and his commitment to non-violence and to Truth itself.

 

The inner development of Mahatma Gandhi's life is wonderfully

educational. The book clearly shows what one man can accomplish

through will -- coupled with integrity.

 

The royalties from the sale of this book are donated to the

Navajivan Trust, a charity founded by Gandhi for perpetuating his

work.

 

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Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter

http://www.jyotish.ws

Michael Laughrin, Michael, business phone: (440) 582-

9848; cell phone: (440) 263-2159

To , send an email to: jyotish_ws-

 

Articles from past issues of this newsletter are archived at:

http://www.jyotish.ws/wisdom

 

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