ASTROLOGY FUNDAMENTALS - PART 5

(a) What Are Maasas ?

Maasas are Months in a yearly Hindu Calendar (Panchang). Each Hindu Maasas consist of 30 Tithis (Lunar Days). There are 12 (Twelve) Maasas in a yearly Hindu Calendar & the Maasas are :-

(1)  CHAITRA  (March - April) 

(2)  VAISHAKHA  (April - May) 

(3)  JYESHTHA  (May - June) 

(4)  ASHADHA  (June - July) 

(5)  SHRAVANA  (July - August) 

(6)  BHADRAPADA (August - September) 

(7)  ASHWIN  (September - October) 

(8)  KARTIKA  (October - November) 

(9)  MARGASHIRSHA  (November - December) 

(10)  PAUSHA  (December - January) 

(11)  MAGHA  (January - February) 

(12)  PHALGUNA  (February - March)  

(b)  What Are Ritus ?

Ritus are seasons in a Hindu Calendar (Panchang). Each Ritu consists of approximately 2 (Two) Maasas (Months). There are 6 (Six) Ritus or Seasons in a Hindu Calendar and the Ritus are :-

(1)  VASANTA  RITU - Spring (February - April)

(2)  GRISHMA  RITU - Summer (April - June)

(3)  VARSHA  RITU - Monsoon (June - August)

(4)  SHARAD  RITU - Autumn (August - October)

(5)  HEMANT  RITU - Pre Winter (October - December)

(6)  SHISHIRA  RITU - Winter (December - February) 

(c)  What Is Horoscope Matching With Regard To Marriages In Vedic Astrology ?

In the traditional & conservative Hindu society, since the last 1000 (thousands) of years, from the perspective of mainly arranged marriages, the Horoscopes or Birth Charts of both the boy & the girl were and are being matched using some Vedic Astrology calculations & methods in order to determine whether the association of the boy & girl from a marriage perspective is appropriate or not in all aspects of the future of a married life. This Horoscope Matching is known as ASHTAKUTA MATCHING  / ASHTAKUTA  MILAN  /  GUNA MATCHING  /  GUNA MILAN.

The 8 (Eight) key components matched between the horoscopes of the boy and the girl are as follows :-

(1)  VARNA  KUTA  (GUNA) - Varna Kuta represents mutual love, comfort and obedience. Grade of spiritual development also depends on Varna Kuta. 

(2)  VASHYA  KUTA  (GUNA) - Vashya Kuta represents mutual control or dominance. It also shows friendship and amenability between the couple. 

(3)  TARA  KUTA  (GUNA) - Tara Kuta represents luck, auspiciousness and transmission of mutual beneficence between the couple.

(4)  YONI  KUTA  (GUNA) -  Yoni Kuta, as name suggests, represents sexual aspects including sexual urge and copulatory organs. 

(5)  MAITRI  KUTA  (GUNA) -  Maitri Kuta represents psychological disposition, mental qualities and affection between the couple. 

(6)  GANA  KUTA  (GUNA) -  Gana Kuta represents nature, longevity, wealth, prosperity and love. 

(7)  BHAKUTA  KUTA  (GUNA) -   Bhakuta Kuta represents children, wealth, comforts, good luck and growth of the family. 

(8)  NADI  KUTA  (GUNA) -  Nadi Kuta represents temperament, nervous energy and affliction.

NOTE : 

(1)  Despite the fact that Horoscope Matching is more prominent in the arranged marriage domain, in the traditional and conventional Indian Hindu Society, Horoscope Match has also gained prominence in the Love Marriage or Live-In Relationships domain in the modern Indian Hindu Society.

(2)  Generally & to a moderate extent, the Love Marriage or Live-In Relationships domains society of traditional & conventional Indian Hindu Society does not give much importance to the Horoscope Match Concept of Vedic Astrology., since the post era of the millennium, 2000.

(3)  However, since the Love Marriage & Arranged Marriage domains are facing a very high volume of marriage failures, there is also a tendency & sensitivity in an another direction from a very large number of people to go back to Horoscope Match in the Love Marriage & Live-In Relationships domain.

(c)  What are the key differences between Western Astrology & Vedic Astrology ?

(1)  Western Astrology has evolved from the Astrology practice of ancient Greece, ancient Egypt & ancient Babylonian civilisation whereas Vedic Astrology has evolved during the Vedic period in the Indian Hindu Civilisation.

(2)  Western Astrology is primarily based on the position and movement of the planets with respect or relative to the Sun whereas the Vedic Astrology is primarily based on the position and movement of the planets with respect or relative to the Moon.

(3)  Western Astrology takes planets such as Uranus, Neptune & Pluto into consideration in addition to the other planets in the solar system whereas the Vedic Astrology takes planets such as Rahu (Dragon's Head) & Ketu (Dragon's Tail) into consideration in addition to the other planets in the solar system.

(4) In Western Astrology, the size of all the Zodiac Signs in degrees are not fixed or standard whereas in Vedic Astrology, the size of all the Zodiac Signs (Rashis) is fixed to 30 degrees.

(5) In Western Astrology, the planetary owners or planetary lords of every Zodiac Sign are different from the planetary owners or planetary lords of every Zodiac Sign (Rashis).

(6) In Western Astrology, the predictions mainly are inclined towards the strengths and positive elements and aspects of a person's life whereas in Vedic Astrology predictions are inclined towards both the good/positive & the bad/negative elements and aspects of a person's life.

(7) In Western Astrology, the predictions are also primarily based on the transit or travel of planets from one Zodiac Sign to another Zodiac Sign whereas in Vedic Astrology, the predictions are equally based on various parameters such as transit/travel of planets from one Zodiac Sign to another Zodiac Sign, Dasha (Planetary Season), Varga Charts (Divisional Charts) and thousands of other concepts/criteria/principles of Vedic Astrology.

(8) In Western Astrology, the constellations/group of stars are not taken into account during prediction whereas in Vedic Astrology, the constellations/group of stars which are known as Nakshatras are taken into account with high importance during prediction.

(9)  Western Astrology is simpler and addresses a few matters & concerns of a common person's life, whereas Vedic Astrology addresses very large diversified areas at all fronts of a common person's life.

(10)  Western Astrology contains the essence of largely optimism, softness & diplomacy, whereas, Vedic Astrology contains the essence of straightforwardness, bitter truth and harsh realities long with optimism, softness & diplomacy with hopefulness towards positive change and positive development.

(11)  Western Astrology does not involve much of spirituality and philosophy, whereas, Vedic Astrology involves Spirituality, Philosophy, Yoga, Meditation, Worship, Ayurveda Etc..