Lal Kitaab Part II

ASTROLOGY vis-à-vis EXPERIENCE:

Our ancestors, after a great ordeal, discovered about the rotating planets of the universe e.g. Sun, Moon etc. They also found out about their colours, effect on our lives and distance from our earth planet. The findings were printed in our astrological reference documents called Zantris and Pattras. These documents contain the information like: at what time on a particular day sun shall set and moon shall rise, at what time in future on a particular date Sun or moon eclipse shall happen, when on a particular date and time a particular planet shall be dormant or shall be active and more so at what particular day and time which planets shall come closer and ‘meet’ etc. etc. According to the orbit position of a planet its impact on our lives was recorded and this information acted as a base to calculate that when a particular planet shall be at a particular orbit position how shall it effect - good or bad. And when the said orbit position of the planet took place and it did cause the anticipated effects it was given the name of prediction. Therefore, the prediction is based on the previous experience. Through the same process when the orbit positioning of each planet at a particular given time was defined and also their effects on the lives of living masses on the earth planet were predicted – it was called Astrology. In other words, astrology is nothing but prediction about future that is based on the past experience about effects caused by orbiting planets at different point of times at various orbiting positions in the lives of living masses. The experience of the past became the basis of astrological prediction for future – whether it is going to be good or bad.

Fortune Vs. Karma:

Everyone says whatever God has written in our destiny shall happen anyway. If everything has to happen as per our fortune then what is the need for doing any karma or job? Let the things happen at their own – if someone falls sick, if his or her fortune permits him or her to recover it shall happen automatically. What is then the need to treat that person with medicines etc? If someone has been destined to be wealthy – he will be so some day. So where then is the need to toil hard the whole day and night?

However, the things do not go like this. It is imperative to have both fortune and karma. Without fortune one cannot perform any karma and without karma there is no fortune. If a poor person is lucky enough to win a lottery of one lakh of rupees, people shall say it was in his or her fortune. Just because he or she has got this hefty amount does not mean that no further hard work shall be required. We have to agree that still that person needs to do hard work and karma. Karma or efforts shall be needed to collect the money as well as to keep it in house or else to get it deposited into a bank. Further karma or efforts would also be needed to spend that money. Isn’t it? Let us take an example. If someone is lucky to get a gift of television, the fellow at least needs to plug it on to electricity to turn it on. The point being made is that one cannot benefit from anything that has been so kindly granted by fortune unless the person performs karma. Therefore, to sum up - happiness can only be attained with the mix of both fortune and karma.

It is a cycle – a cycle of fortune and karma. Without karma fortune cannot be built up and without fortune no karma can be initiated. The act of performing Karma needs one’s intellect and that also is bestowed by fortune only. If fortune is good, intellect shall also work properly. Therefore, it is said ‘During a bad patch the intellect also takes a back turn’ (Vinas Kale Vipreet Budhi). If some loss or any damage has to happen to a person, his or her intellect first gives a ditch. At the same time if someone is to be bestowed with some gain or happiness, his or her intellect starts thinking in a right direction motivating the person to act wisely. At the same time the hard fact remains that no one wishes the intellect to take a U turn but it just happens. Ironically no one accepts the fact that his or her intellect is not functioning okay. And when the person takes a cognizance of this fact, he or she becomes restless and anxious to find out as to what should be done now to take care of the situation. At this juncture, if that person gets hold of such a person who can help and guide him to put back his or her intellect on right track then the affected person can get relief from problems and sufferings. Still the fact remains that getting hooked to such a ‘guide’ shall only be possible if luck prevails.

Through foregoing discussion, we arrive to same conclusion i.e. fortune is nothing but karma only and karma in turn build the basis of our fortune. No body yet has resolved whether chicken came first or the egg. Which one of the two is important – chicken or the egg.? The answer is obvious, both are important. Similarly, both fortune and karma are important – without fortune karma cannot be initiated and without karma there shall be no building up of fortune.

Changing fortune through Karma:

Fortune is the outcome of our mixed karma – karma of this birth and that of previous birth. If due to previous birth karma one is destined to undergo lot of sufferings, he or she can reduce this suffering substantially through karma of this birth or alternatively can enhance his or her endurance power in current birth so that the impact of undergoing such sufferings is minimized or almost neutralized. However, the impact of our previous birth karma shall dominate. Let us take an example. Supposing in a factory four machines have been manufactured of various horse powers viz. ten, twenty, thirty and forty H.P. Alongwith the machines, the manufacturer has sent a full narration sheet as to how the machines should be run and for how many days the machines are guaranteed. If the operator of the machine is skilled one, he can keep those machines in a good condition for a longer period and take full advantage out of these. Contrary to it, if the operator is unskilled one and not wise enough he will spoil the machines within no time. Similarly, a person through his or her own karma can spoil the good effect of his or her birth horoscope planets or can turn bad effects of planets into good one. It is the choice of the person.

To repeat, the effects of previous birth karma shall pervade dominantly. A skillful worker can repair a machine and enhance its performance and efficiency but can no way increase its H.P. If this could be done, astrologers could have corrected the graha-dosh ( bad impact of planets) themselves and would have added wealth for themselves and for their relatives. Let us take a bucket of muddy unclean water. If we keep on taking out a jar of water from this bucket continuously and also keep on adding jars of fresh water into the bucket, surely a time will arrive when there would be only pure and clear water in the bucket instead of muddy unclean water. Same way if we keep on changing the parts of a machine one by one as an on-going process, at a point of time the H.P. of the machine shall also change. Today, if a child is born in a millionaire family, he becomes millionaire from the day one without doing any karma. On the other hand, a child who is born in the family of have-nots, he or she is born in the sorrowful poor family because of previous birth karma. The child who was born in the rich family did not do any karma but still enjoyed the luxury of ancestors’ property and money. But when the money and property all exhausted, he becomes so helpless that he can not venture to start a business or even any other work and was is left with no means at all. The child who was born in a poor family did face lot of difficulties and obstacles but with a dedication he kept on doing the hard work. Alongwith his duty he kept on adding to his skills. His fortune kept on changing. Like he had to undergo the effects of previous birth karma in this birth, he shall have to undergo the effect of this birth karma in his next birth. This is what the horoscope explains to us. In other words, what deeds or karma the child has done in his or her previous birth and whatever sufferings or pleasures are destined for him or her in this birth are elaborated through birth horoscope. The nature provides indications about the person about the previous birth karma based on the orbit position of planets at the time of his or her birth i.e. the time when a child is born the birth horoscope shall reveal about the previous birth karma. It is a game of nature that orbiting planets record the karma of a persons.

Previous births’ karma and horoscope:

A man takes birth and re-births. He performs some karma in each and every birth. Nature does record his karma into an account. He has to bear the fruits of all these karmas. If he cannot undergo results of all the karmas in a particular birth, which is phenomena, the remaining resultant karmas are carried forward to his next birth or births account by nature. And this process continues. The person who bears the effect of these karmas cannot know which life’s karma he is bearing. This process resembles the example that curd converts the milk into curd and this curd further coverts the milk into curd and the process goes on endlessly. In Muslim countries there is a tradition to prepare dough chapatti. After preparing chapattis, some part of dough is preserved for next day for converting flour into dough. So in certain homes one can find dough which is virtually hundred years old, but one cannot make out how much quantity of dough of a particular date is mixed up in the kneeled flour. Similarly, it cannot be made out how much quantity of karma of each birth one has to undergo in this birth. People say that horoscope is prepared after the birth of a child, while the fact is otherwise. The nature has made the horoscope according to the previous karma and accordingly decided the time of birth of the child. This way horoscope gives narration of karma of previous births i.e. the always orbiting planets keep on recording the karmas of a man and thus the horoscope’s planets position does speak about the person’s previous births karma. The orbiting planets watched every activity of the person and they are watching these now too. The planets note down the life story of a person and by taking the position in the horoscope they narrate the story in the next birth. But to understand this the knowledge about the planets is a must.