Myths and the reality of Lal Kitab : Attn Amar Puri ji

July 17, 2003

Dear Amar Puri ji,

You have asked me four questions concerning the Lal Kitab .

I will try to answer them to the best of my ability. At the outset

I must make it very clear that I am neither enamoured by the book

nor wish to belittle it. My interest in astrology is entirely

academic and my approach therefore objective and detached .

Question 1. What is the basis of this scripture ?

There are quite a few astrology paddhatis prevalent in India today,

be it KP , System's Approach , Krushna's ashtakvarg etc. they are all

either elaborations or modifications upon the traditionally accepted

Vedic astrology. Across all these paddhatis the basic parameters are

the same . They differ either in approach or emphasis , the aim being

the same in all cases.

Lal Kitab also draws its basics from the Vedic astrology , but it

differs in approach or what the book calls " grammer " ; and the

emphasis is not so much on predicting the future as on

solving the problem of today , hence the importance of Upaya.

Therefore Lal Kitab is seldom used for long term predictions

although it could well be. The very first page of the book states

the two purposes the Lal Kitab is meant for : (a ) to help remove

the blockage in the flow of fortune's water and ( b ) to help erect

an obstacle in the path of adversity thus saving the native from

misery . Therefore I believe that the Lal Kitab is as much a part

of tradition as any other paddhati .

Q.2 When and where it came into existance ?

There are FIVE separate publications with varying length :

1939 ed of 383 pages, 1940ed of 156 pages;1941ed of 428 pages,

1942ed of 384 pages and finally the1952ed of 1171 pages.

Surprisingly the name of the author has not been mentioned

in any of these editions , instead they carry the name of the

publisher , shri Girdhari Lal Sharma and his photograph.

If it were an original work by any author , he definitely

would have got his name on it. Therefore I believe that

this book is a documentation of then prevalent thoughts

and beliefs in that area.

There are so many myths and legends about this book that it

is really very difficult to sieve out the facts. Let me take them

up one by one.

{ a } ... that the book was revealed in a dream .

Never heard of dreams in installments and that too spreading

over a period of twelve years. Because that is what alone

could justify five publications. Not many takers for this fiction.

{ b }... that the book was received as ilham , kind of through

akash-vani , thus adding mystical sanctity to the book. This

was an effort to make it appear as sacrosanct so that there

could be no criticism or scientific evaluation of the book.

Well no body is going to believe that story either.

{ c } ... that this book was written by Arun the charioteer of Sun

god. Later Ravan took it away to Lanka and from there it

reached the middle east. It traveled back to India. This was an

effort to get the book into the Samhita ranks , like other

astrological samhitas in the name of rishis ,while at the same

time trying to justify the use of urdu and persian words.

Not many people believe that either.

The fact is very simple : this is a book of astrology and that

it was first published in 1939 by shri Girdhari Lal Sharma

All subsequent publications are elaboration / explaination

of the original. Every thing else about the book is irrelevant.

All these books are available with some individuals or in the

libraries.

Q.3 Which Vedic parampara it comes from ?

Of course from the same parampara as Sanket nidhi , Jatak

Parijat ,Sarvarth Chintamani etc. You have to bear in mind that

this book is a result of collective wisdom of a society which

had lived in isolation of the northern hills for centuries . This

tradition is still in use all the way from Kashmir to the

Garhwal hills of Uttaranchal. In the Punjab it came to be known

as Lal kitab , because of its first documentation appeared in the

red binding, where as in the plains of Uttar Pradesh it is known

as Pahari Jyotish. As the societies living in isolation grow their

own idiom , culture and points of references , similarly this

tradition of astrology had also developed its own idiom and

'grammar'. But the difference of idiom or the grammar does not

make it come from any other parampara . You know the growth

of Indo-European languages.

Q 4 . Has this Lal Kitab knowledge been recognized by the

Vedic Spiritual masters ?

Do we really need that ? We are the end users and it is we

who have to recognize the validity of an empirical tool. To

me astrology is just a tool , nothing sacrosanct about it . I

don't care who manufactured the device so long it is useful

to me.

I hope I have been able to answer your questions.

With regards,

Upadhyay

" fas fas " <foreignersassistance

upadhyay_iitd

Lal Kitab

Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:29:25 +0000

Dear Upadhyay Ji,

Hare Krishna !

Thank you for your fascinating answers which I find very

interesting. It

looks that you believe in the reading of Lal Kitab.

[ a ] I wonder what are the basis of this scripture ?

[ b ] When and where it came in to existence ?

[ c ]Has this Lal Kitab knowledge been recognized by the Vedic

Spiritual Master ?

[ d ] If so, which Vedic Parampara it comes from ?

I live in Montréal, Canada. So, it is very hard to find the

authenticity of this knowledge. My guess is that you live in

Bharat (The land of Vedic knowledge) . Therefore, you may shed some

more lights about the authentic knowledge of Lal Kitab. I heard that

there are many translation by unauthorized (Commercial point of view)

people. But you seem to know what you are talking about and believe

in it. I wonder what is the source of your believe ????????

More later.

With best wishes and regards.

..Amar Puri.

July 20, 2003

Dear friends,

1)'that the book was revealed in a dream .Never heard of dreams in installments and that too spreading over a period of twelve years'

I would like to add the following.

You may like to refer to the following two who had dreams/contacts with entities through which knowledge was chanelled for long durations.

Madam Blavatsky of Theosphical Society fame.

Secret Doctrine Vol I and other Vol were written over a long time.

http://www.blavatsky.net/

Jane Roberts author of 'Seth Speaks' and about 10 other books in the series were also written over a long period .

http://www.sethcenter.com/

The only diffrence is that the above two are known

cases of Western origin and the same have been documented where as Lal Kitab's Author's Case has not been documented properly.

Also if I understand properly I think all the five books are not diffrent.But again I have been told that he received this information for only about 2-3 years.I have got nothing to prove it though.

2)'Surprisingly the name of the author has not been mentioned in any of these editions , instead they carry the name of the publisher , shri Girdhari Lal Sharma and his photograph. If it were an original work by any author , he definitelywould have got his name on it.'

My father was in Govt. service in Punjab.He retired in 1988.He wrote books under my Uncles name.Same was done by Pandit Roop Chand Joshi as he was also in Govt Service.Govt Service rules in India till now I think do not allow a person to have earnings from sources other then ancestor land.Therefore he could have got the books published under his cousin Girdhari Lal's name.

3)'In the Punjab it came to be known as Lal kitab , because of its first documentation appeared in the red binding'

In 1952 edition,it is written ,"Jyotish kee neev per lal khuni rang(jo ki chamkilla na ho)shubh ho eske illava sabhi rang manhoos honge"In foundation of Jyotish blood red color(which should not be shining)is auspicious)

I feel this book was printed with red cover for the above reason.

With regards,

Jagmeet