| |
|
ASTROLOGY
|
Vedic astrology is a neologism for the traditional astrology of the Indian subcontinent,
other Otherwise known as Hindu astrology or natively as Jyotisa.
The purpose of the adjective "vedic" is to presume upon the social prestige of the Vedas, as a form of branding. Strictly speaking, however, "Vedic astrology" is a misnomer, as historically, astrology in the Indian subcontinent post-dates the Vedic period
History of the term
The term "Vedic astrology" occurs in occasional usage during the 1960s and 1970s, but it only enters common usage from the 1980s in self-help publications on Ayurveda or Yoga. "Vedic astrology" appears as a name for Hindu astrology in dedicated works on the topic from the 1990s, beginning with David Frawley's The Astrology of Seers: A Comprehensive Guide to Vedic Astrology (1990),followed by numerous other authors. By the 2000s, the term had become a common synonym for Jyotisha in astrological literature. The term replaces "Hindu astrology", which had been in use as the English equivalent of Jyotisha since the early 19th century.
Astrology is a group of systems, traditions, and beliefs which hold that the relative positions of celestial bodies and related details can provide information about personality, human affairs, and other terrestrial matters. A practitioner of astrology is called an astrologer.
There are no set definitions for the meaning of specific digits. Common examples include
Astrologers believe that the movements and positions of celestial bodies either directly influence life on Earth or correspond to events experienced on a human scale.Modern astrologers define astrology as a symbolic language, an art form, or a form of divination. Despite differences in definitions, a common assumption of astrologers is that celestial placements can aid in the interpretation of past and present events, and in the prediction of the future. Scientists consider astrology a pseudoscience or superstition.
Numerous traditions and applications employing astrological concepts have arisen since its earliest recorded beginnings in the 3rd millennium BC. Astrology has played an important role in the shaping of culture, early astronomy, the Vedas, and various disciplines throughout history. In fact, astrology and astronomy were often indistinguishable before the modern era, with the desire for predictive and divinatory knowledge one of the motivating factors for astronomical observation. Astronomy began to diverge from astrology after a period of gradual separation from the Renaissance up until the 18th century. Eventually, astronomy distinguished itself as the empirical study of astronomical objects and phenomena, without regard to the terrestrial implications of astrology.
The word "astrology" comes from the Latin term astrologia ("astronomy"), which in turn derives from the Greek noun astron ("constellation" or "star") and -logia ("the study of").
Vedic and Western astrology share a common ancestry as horoscopic systems of astrology, in that both traditions focus on the casting of an astrological chart or horoscope, a representation of celestial entities, for an event based on the position of the Sun, Moon, and planets at the moment of the event. However, Vedic astrology uses the sidereal or fixed or constellational zodiac, linking the signs of the zodiac to their original constellations, while Western astrology uses the tropical or seasonal zodiac. Because of the precession of the equinoxes whose cycle is ~25,686 years long, during which the extensions of the polar axes describe circles, over the centuries the twelve zodiacal signs in Western astrology no longer correspond to the same part of the sky as their original constellations. In effect, in Western astrology the link between sign and constellation has been broken in approximately 222 AD, whereas in Vedic astrology the constellations remain of paramount importance. Other differences between the two traditions include the use of 27 (or 28) nakshatras or lunar mansions, each 13 and 1/3 degrees wide, which have been used in India since Vedic times, and the systems of planetary periods known as dashas.
Astrology is a group of systems, traditions, and beliefs which hold that the relative positions of celestial bodies and related details can provide information about personality, human affairs, and other terrestrial matters. A practitioner of astrology is called an astrologer.
There are no set definitions for the meaning of specific digits. Common examples include
Astrologers believe that the movements and positions of celestial bodies either directly influence life on Earth or correspond to events experienced on a human scale.Modern astrologers define astrology as a symbolic language, an art form, or a form of divination. Despite differences in definitions, a common assumption of astrologers is that celestial placements can aid in the interpretation of past and present events, and in the prediction of the future. Scientists consider astrology a pseudoscience or superstition.
Numerous traditions and applications employing astrological concepts have arisen since its earliest recorded beginnings in the 3rd millennium BC. Astrology has played an important role in the shaping of culture, early astronomy, the Vedas, and various disciplines throughout history. In fact, astrology and astronomy were often indistinguishable before the modern era, with the desire for predictive and divinatory knowledge one of the motivating factors for astronomical observation. Astronomy began to diverge from astrology after a period of gradual separation from the Renaissance up until the 18th century. Eventually, astronomy distinguished itself as the empirical study of astronomical objects and phenomena, without regard to the terrestrial implications of astrology.
The word "astrology" comes from the Latin term astrologia ("astronomy"), which in turn derives from the Greek
noun
astron ("constellation" or "star") and
-logia ("the study of").
Vedic and Western astrology share a common ancestry as horoscopic systems of astrology, in that both traditions focus on the casting of an astrological chart or horoscope, a representation of celestial entities, for an event based on the position of the Sun, Moon, and planets at the moment of the event. However, Vedic astrology uses the sidereal or fixed or constellational zodiac, linking the signs of the zodiac to their original constellations, while Western astrology uses the tropical or seasonal zodiac. Because of the precession of the equinoxes whose cycle is ~25,686 years long, during which the extensions of the polar axes describe circles, over the centuries the twelve zodiacal signs in Western astrology no longer correspond to the same part of the sky as their original constellations. In effect, in Western astrology the link between sign and constellation has been broken in approximately 222 AD, whereas in Vedic astrology the constellations remain of paramount importance. Other differences between the two traditions include the use of 27 (or 28) nakshatras or lunar mansions, each 13 and 1/3 degrees wide, which have been used in India since Vedic times, and the systems of planetary periods known as dashas.
|
|
|
