Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter February/March 2007

[Guest guest]

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Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter February/March

2007

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Contents

-- Jyotish 101

-- Music: As Above, So Below

-- The Deep Meaning of Music

-- The Path into Shastra Part II: Beginnings And Endings

 

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, go back to basics with a juicy article for beginning

Vedic Astrologers: Jyotish 101. Deborah Allison and I each contribute

an article on music. And enjoy a profound Part 2 of Deborah's

series "The Path into Shastra" on beginnings and endings.

 

Please visit my website at www.jyotish.ws at your convenience. The

best articles I have written in these newsletters are archived on

this site. I offer access to an excellent yagya program.

 

- Michael Laughrin (Michael (AT) jyotish (DOT) ws )

 

 

 

Jyotish 101

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By Michael Laughrin ( Michael (AT) jyotish (DOT) ws)

 

To me, astrology is, essentially, wonderfully simple. For beginners:

forget the yogas, the exceptions, the different dasha systems. It all

boils down to several simple rules:

 

1. The good houses are 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 and 11. If the ruler of a

good house falls in any good house, that house brings good results.

For example, if the ruler of the 1st house (the house of the self)

falls in the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 9th, 10th or 11th houses, the

health and self-confidence of the native will tend to be good -- all

other things being equal.

2. If the ruler of a "bad" (3, 6, 8 or 12) house falls in a "bad"

house, the results will be good.

3. Natural benefics (the Moon, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter) in a house

bless that house.

4. Natural malefics (Mars, Saturn, Rahu and Ketu) in a house hurt

that house.

5. Pay attention the significator of the issue being studied. For

example, Jupiter stands for children. Jupiter being strong in the

chart will significantly increase the chances of having children and

deriving happiness from children.

6. Functional benefics (the rulers of houses 1, 4, 5, 7, 9 and 10)

placed in a house help the affairs of that house (even if that

functional benefic is a natural malefic). For example, Saturn in the

11th house in a Taurus Ascendant chart helps the finances and career

prospects more than it hurts them because Saturn rules the 9th and

the 10th houses for Taurus Lagna. That Saturn does more good than

harm.

7. Functional malefics tend to hurt the house they are placed in even

if they are natural benefics.

 

To judge the strength of a house in the simplest way:

1. Is the ruler of the house strong? If yes, that covers 40% of the

story.

2. Look at the planets in the house (or aspecting the house). If they

are benefic, either natural or functional, that will tend to lift up

the affairs of that house. Another 40% accounted for.

3. Finally, look at the significator of the house in question. For

example: marriage. First, look at the ruler of the 7th house. Next,

look at the planets in the 7th house (or aspecting the 7th house).

4. Last, but not least, how is Venus doing? If the ruler is well

placed, perhaps in the 9th house, and we have the Moon in the 7th

house, and Venus is in its own sign in the 5th house, we can

confidently predict early marriage, happy marriage, fulfilling

marriage.

 

If you stick to these few simple rules, AND REALLY MASTER THEM, you

will be able to amaze people with your astuteness and accuracy.

However, there is a price for everything. First, you must memorize

which planet owns each sign and where each planet is exalted and

debilitated. Second, you must know the simple meaning of each house.

Third, you must know the most important things ruled by each planet.

 

AND, MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, FORGET ALL THAT FANCY STUFF YOU'VE BEEN

FILLING YOUR HEAD WITH AND STICK TO THE BASICS! Please note that this

only applies to the beginning stages of Jyotish. It's kind of like

music: practice the scales and arpeggios and the rest will tend to

take care of itself.

 

 

 

Music: As Above, So Below

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By Deborah Allison

Note: The charts for this aricle are posted at

http://www.jyotish.ws/materials

 

Man's music is a sublime expression of the harmony of the cosmos. The

seers of the Vedic tradition cognized the very essence of creation

and the operation of the laws of nature in verse form with a melody

and meter. These are perhaps the oldest verses or "hymns" that are

known to man. The significations for love of and proficiency in music

are therefore explicitly given in the classical texts of this

tradition.

 

As time progressed, music evolved into the myriad of forms we know

today, but the significations of old still apply. It is up to the

intuition of the Jyotishi to properly apply these combinations to a

particular individual in a particular society.

 

Venus is the most important planet for proficiency in the arts and

music. Mercury gives skill with the hands and, properly configured,

can transfer that skill to an instrument. The third house signifies

the classical arts in general and as it represents hands, it too

indicates playing a musical instrument. The fifth house is also

correlated with music and poetry and the second house can

specifically indicate a singer as it can give a beautiful voice. The

constellations that are the strongest indicators of the arts and

music in particular are Gemini and Taurus. There is also an important

yoga for arts and communication named for Goddess Saraswati. It is

formed by Jupiter, Venus and Mercury. All three must occupy the

kendras, trikonas or the second house and Jupiter especially should

be strong in its own sign, exalted or a friend's sign.

 

Let's check out the charts of three prominent musicians and see how

the combinations apply. The first is the chart of the world-famous

pianist Van Cliburn - Chart C1 http://www.jyotish.ws/materials

 

Van Cliburn won the Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow, which

launched his career. This event happened in his Mercury dasha. Note

that Mercury is the lagna lord high in the mid heaven of the chart

(the 10th house). It is creating a powerful Bhadra Yoga as it is not

just in its own sign but simultaneously retrograde. Along with

Mercury in this packed career house are Sun and Mars - both of which

are strong by having directional strength. Mars is the lord of the

third (hands) and is with that powerful lagna lord in the house of

career. Note that the entire combination takes place in Gemini, one

of the two rashis that happily support music. Venus, the planet of

the arts, is in its own sign of Taurus where it aspects the third

house. Taurus is the other sign that indicates the arts. The entire

chart is exceptional in that seven planets are powerful - Jupiter,

Sun and Mars with dig bala, Moon and Venus in their own signs, and

Mercury and Saturn not only in their own signs but retrograde as

well. The icing on the cake is the Saraswati Yoga. Note that Jupiter,

Mercury and Venus are all in kendras or trikonas and all of them are

strong.

 

The second chart is the composer Carl Orff - Chart C2:

http://www.jyotish.ws/materials - who is best known for his stirring

composition Carmina Burana. However, he is even more significant as a

music educator, having established a global movement through his

work "Music for Children." Teachers worldwide embrace the Orff method

and materials and it is the core music method for some of the most

progressive children's education programs such as Waldorf and

Montessori schools.

 

Here again is a very powerful Mercury as lagna lord, this time

sitting in the lagna in the sign of Gemini. It is three times as

powerful because it is in its own sign, retrograde and with dig bala.

Like the previous chart, it forms a Bhadra Yoga. Mercury represents

dexterity and skill with the hands and is placed in the lagna with

the 3rd lord Sun. The lord of career, Jupiter with dig bala, joins

the combination, forming a powerful raja yoga. Venus is in the third

house of the arts while owning the fifth house of creativity and

music. Both the third and fifth houses are houses of publishing.

Orff's musical compositions and works for musical education were

published and performed.

 

The third chart is of the famous folk singer and guitarist Judy

Collins - Chart C3: http://www.jyotish.ws/materials . She got her

start as a classical pianist debuting with a symphony orchestra at

the tender age of 13. However, the call of the 60's and the beat

generation transformed her into one of the leading voices of those

times and indeed, she continues to perform actively today.

 

There could not be a more outstanding chart to illustrate some of the

combinations outlined in this article. First and foremost, the third

house in this chart is completely highlighted. A very powerful bright

Moon as the lagna lord goes to the third house where it is aspected

by all the other benefics, including an exalted Venus and Jupiter in

its own sign. Her skill with musical instruments and her career in

the arts is assured. Her beautiful voice is well indicated by the

lord of the second, the Sun, exalted and with dig bala in the 10th

house of the career. This chart also contains a Saraswati Yoga. This

time it is formed by all three benefics in the 9th house, anchored by

the powerful lord of the 9th Jupiter and supported further by the

aspect of the very bright Moon, who is the all-important lord of the

lagna for a Cancer chart.

 

 

 

 

The Deep Meaning of Music

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By Michael Laughrin (Michael (AT) jyotish (DOT) ws)

 

Music is the language of the heart, of the soul. Music, at least to

me, more accurately shows us how the Universe works than all the

wordy studies - philosophy, religion, poetry, etc. - ever engaged in

by the mind of Man. For me, music is largely polluted by words. Music

is the perfect emotional language. Words just get in the way.

 

A poem may be given wings by music, but the words tend to keep music

earthbound. One can say that a poem is a song for those who cannot

sing, yet poetry is perhaps the finest of the "wordy arts."

 

Why, and how, does music portray reality more perfectly than "wordy

studies?"

 

Life is ephemeral. Music is ephemeral. For both of them, blink and

the situation is changed. Art, architecture, and books give a false

sense of solidity, of permanence that, ultimately, has no basis in

reality.

 

For those of us who have not yet permanently crossed the River of

Enlightenment, life is Maya (illusion). Music gives us the true

flavors of that wonderful illusion while yet touching the Soul with

intimations of liberation, heaven, and/or enlightened reality.

Just as the absolute, unchanging aspect of creation underlies all we

perceive, so the notes accompanying the melody are often ignored.

Yet, they form the structure of the wonderful flights of spirit by

the melody.

 

Everything is rhythm -- breathing, heartbeats, walking, talking,

wars, marriage, birth, death, even the rise and fall of

civilizations. Music is the king of rhythm. Therefore, we could say

that all of life is a gigantic piece of music that, perhaps, only

mystics, seers, (and spaced out musicians!) can perceive.

Music can be infinitely complex -- just like life itself. For

example, five part fugues by Bach, or Renaissance pieces for two

choruses, organ and orchestra.

 

Music is perfectly orderly and mathematical, yet it is the most

perfect means of soul expression ever invented. One might say, "Aha!

Then mathematics is the real ultimate reality." Perhaps, but you

stick to your numbers and I'll keep my guitar and CD player, and

we'll see who is more emotionally fulfilled.

 

Sound is primordial, according to the ancient Hindus. The Universe

was sung into being. All the other senses derive from sound. Even

books and philosophy and religion are nothing but frozen sound.

Name and form -- there is a word in Sanskrit: Namarupa. It means name

and form. The idea is that the true name of an object (in Sanskrit)

has the same vibrations as the object itself. That implies that just

saying the name of a thing will give you the essential energy of the

thing itself.

 

Applying this to instrumental music, I have come up with the idea

that each note creates a "thing" in the subtle worlds. Therefore, a

well composed piece of music is actually a whole small universe unto

itself. Perhaps this means that to create music, or even just to play

good music, takes us closer the Creator than, perhaps, any other

activity, as we become creators (or, if playing someone else's

music, "re- creators") ourselves. Herein, perhaps, lies the

profundity, the joy, and the uplifting quality that music brings.

Concerning music and astrology, both are mathematical and rhythmical.

 

There are seven true planets in traditional astrology and there are

seven notes to the scale. There are twelve signs of the zodiac and

there are twelve notes to the chromatic scale. Each planet, and each

note, has its own unique flavor, its own special color that musicians

can taste and see. The laws of physics and the rules of musical

composition seem to suggest each other to the wise.

To me, astrology is the music of the spheres -- but one must have the

ears of spirit open to hear it.

 

Thanks to my spiritual teachers for inspiration. Thanks to music for

a taste of reality.

 

 

 

The Path into Shastra Part II: Beginnings And Endings

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By Deborah Allison

 

Notes: Part I appeared in the October/November 2006 issue of Michael

Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter. It is archived online

at the Jyotish_ws group. The charts for this aricle are posted

at http://www.jyotish.ws/materials

 

Every good orator, lecturer, lawyer, author, composer and teacher

knows: You have to start with impact and end with impact. If you are

really good at your craft, you also know that what you say or write

or compose must have internal consistency. You cannot contradict what

you have stated at the beginning or end.

 

A good example of this principle comes from the world of music.

Almost everyone is familiar with Beethoven's fifth symphony and its

powerful but unsettling opening notes. This opening motif is written

in C-Minor, creating the "storm clouds" that give the composition its

emotional impact. Everything that follows is magnificently woven into

and integrated with that opening theme. It is a masterpiece with no

note out of place -- everything belongs and works together. The pure

genius is reflected even more in the ending. Beethoven resolves the

whole angst of the work when he modulates the key to C-Major. It is

as if the storm clouds have parted and the human hope and spirit

triumphs having garnered wisdom from the journey. The first golden

key to understanding not just Jyotish shastra (precepts and

principles) but of all the works in the Vedic tradition is exactly

the above principle. Shastra will state something at the beginning of

the work or a chapter or a group of verses, and that statement should

cause the alert reader to sit up and take notice. It is the signal

that this is a seminal idea that carries great weight. The same

careful observance should be given to the ending statement. Those who

scan through a chapter or book and never get to the close will likely

miss the emphasis and priority the sage who authored the work intends.

 

It is important to remember that shastra is written in Sanskrit and

in a script that does not have italics, underlining, capitalization

etc. Emphasis had to be created in other ways. If we are

not "initiated" into the ways emphasis is structured in shastra, we

are impoverished in our ability to understand and utilize it

properly. Unfortunately, this is often the state of Vedic Astrology

as it is practiced in the West. (See Part I: Understanding Shastra

from the October/November 2006 issue). All too often, the importance

of the root principles as signaled by the golden keys of

understanding the structure of shastra is not reflected in the

interpretations of the charts.

 

A couple of examples will be helpful to clarify this idea. All

shastra in the Jyotish tradition opens with an invocation. The deity

may vary but an acknowledgment of the divine source is invariably

there at the outset. If we check out the end of these works, we also

find the same. This is a flat out statement that Jyotish is a divine

subject whose purpose is to help relieve human suffering. Anyone who

states that Vedic Astrology is simply "mundane" or just "predictive"

misses the boat entirely.

 

Understanding what is a priority principle or idea, as indicated by

its placement at the beginning or end of a work or section, is

critical to proper chart interpretation. In Brihat Parashara Hora

Shastra, a work that is considered to be the root material for

Jyotish, the sage gives us the names of the planets following the

brief opening two chapters on the origin and cosmology of the world.

As soon as Parashara states their names, he immediately gives a

shloka defining which ones are the natural benefics and which are the

natural malefics.

 

In "modern" Jyotish, it has become the trend to emphasize a concept

known as functional benefics and functional malefics. A particular

planet is categorized as benefic or malefic not based on its inherent

nature but rather based on the particular rising sign or

constellation under consideration.

 

Where does Parashara explain this concept of functional benefics and

malefics? Depending on what edition of this work one owns, it is

somewhere around chapter 34! Without knowing this first golden key, a

Jyotishi could be haphazard about what they primarily use as a

benefic or malefic in chart interpretation. Unfortunately, that is

the case not only in the chart readings but in the books and

teachings by primarily Western Jyotishis who do not have direct

access to the oral tradition and Sanskrit.

 

A concrete chart example of the difference this could make in an

interpretation should drive the importance of this principle home.

Here is the chart of Christopher Reeve, the muscular actor who played

Superman in his 20's, and died in a weakened condition a few years

after a spinal injury in his 40's - Chart D1:

http://www.jyotish.ws/materials . Note the beautiful Venus in his

fourth house which is in its own rashi of Libra and also has

directional strength (dig bala). It is forming a powerful Malavya

Yoga (beauty, arts, wealth, refinement) as well as Raja and Dhana

yogas (fame and wealth). In the classification of natural benefics

and natural malefics, Venus is a first rate benefic. However, if you

consult chapter 34, you will see that Venus is a malefic for a Cancer

ascendant. If you prioritize incorrectly, you have no way to explain

salient features of his life. It was in his Venus dasha that he rose

to dizzying heights of fame through his Superman movies and made his

fortune. He was born in a wealthy family with a society mother who

was beautiful and was herself well versed in the arts. Furthermore,

he had an excellent education at private schools, Cornell University

and Julliard -- all shown by the beautiful placement of Venus in his

chart.

 

If we consider the chart of Carl Orff (Chart D2:

http://www.jyotish.ws/materials and also featured in another article

in this issue of Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish

Newsletter), we find a very powerful Mercury in the ascendant with

the Sun and a powerful Jupiter. Consulting Parashara, we find that

Jupiter is the best of the natural benefics. Mercury is also a

natural benefic in this chart as per Parashara's definition and when

a strong Jupiter influences Mercury, it elevates its benefic

tendencies. However, if we consult chapter 34, we find that the only

auspicious graha for a Gemini ascendant is Venus! Moreover, Jupiter,

which powerfully influences the ascendant and ascendant lord, is

regarded as a malefic. How can this account for a man who is famed

for his music teaching (Jupiter) methods that have influenced

countless children (Jupiter) all over the world? He has written and

published music and books (Jupiter, Mercury). How can this account

for his brilliant career (Jupiter) and the fact that he lived to 87

years old with such a "malefic" Jupiter in his ascendant?

 

Clearly there is a gold mine of information about how to prioritize

the material in shastra that one can glean from using this first of

the six keys for understanding shastra. Watch for the others in

newsletters to come.

 

Contact Information

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email: michael (AT) jyotish (DOT) ws

business phone: (440) 582-9848; cell phone: (440) 263-2159

web: http://www.jyotish.ws

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