Some people are under the impression that Vedic sidereal astrology is better than Western tropical astrology. In short, neither are better than the other. They are simply different systems, like different languages. You have to view them through the lens of the culture from which they originated. The Western tropical system is solar based, it originally focused on personality and psychology. The Vedic sidereal system is a lunar system, and they use a lunar or sidereal calendar. Their focus has been more upon the soul and reincarnation. The latter was not well-received in Christian cultures which do not include reincarnation or the concept Karma or Dharma in their theology. They felt the soul and spirituality was the church ‘s domain not astrologers.
Western astrology adapted in order to preserve the art form. Instead of a focus on the soul growth and spirituality, which was the domain of the church. It was reserved for the nobility and used to align kingdoms, plant crops, assess the outcome of conflicts and grow their wealth. There were even Popes who used astrology; Popes such as Sixtus IV (1471-1484) and Alexander VI (1492-1503) employed astrologers, and Pope Leo X (1513-1521) established a chair of astrology at the Sapienza University of Rome. At the same time astrologers and many others such as Galileo were persecuted or imprisoned by the church for views the church deemed as a threat. So, with this environment, Western astrology did not dive into the realm of the human soul as Vedic astrology did. It can but it didn’t, for fear of being labeled a heretic.
I should also mention Western astrology uses a tropical calendar we know as the Gregorian calendar put into effect in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII to replace the Julian calendar. This is how we got a leap year because it doesn’t divide evenly. There is good argument for how silly this is and why a patriarchal culture didn’t use a lunar calendar, but I digress.
One criticism opponents have of Western tropical astrology receive is it doesn’t account for the shift of the constellations. The constellations were conceived by the Babylonians way before astrological systems existed. The ancient astrologers used constellations as a method of grouping stars so they could more easily calculate where the planets, the wandering stars as they were referred to, transited. Like dividing the sky into sectors. Astrology is not dependent on the constellations, we could literally call Aries, Alpha and Taurus, Beta; it wouldn’t matter. The zodiac (meaning zoo of animals) is a concept in our minds, mythology not physically up there in the sky! It is a language to describe energy, based on the aspects which are harmonics. Harmonics are frequencies, they are sound. We know there is no sound in space, because sound has to be carried on atoms or molecules. There is nothing to stop sound but there is also nothing to carry sound. The planets however have sound, each one has its own hum. Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWq_sfQedmU I do not pretend to be a physicist but I can’t help but wonder, if someday science will be able to prove how astrology works. They never seem to grasp the entirety of astrology in their attempts to debunk it. I have yet to see one of their ‘studies’ that wasn’t biased and flawed. Astrology is way more complicated than a Sun sign. They approach it with prejudice and don’t include all the variables it entails. Religion doesn’t like astrology, science doesn’t like astrology, but it works. I don’t know how, but it proves itself over and over again.
Returning to aspects, if the Mars is in Aries and the Moon passes through the part of the sky where Mars is in Aries, this is a conjunction and is the 1st harmonic. If Mars is in Aries and the Moon is passing through the part of the sky, we call Libra this is an opposition and the 2nd harmonic. Again, with Mars in Aries and the Moon passes through Leo this is a trine and the 3rd harmonic. It is the nature of the planet and the geometry between the planets that create a dynamic, a conversation between the celestial objects we call aspects, and they are a harmonic. [Refer to my handout on harmonics to see the rest in my additional resources.] Think of the galaxy as a party and the planets are people at the party and some are flirting, some are arguing, others aren’t paying attention to each other at all. When planets make an aspect they are in a conversation at the party.
An astrological chart is like a clock or a compass with 360°. Western tropical astrology is correlated with the seasons. We begin with Aries at 0° Aries and the spring equinox. At 90° is Cancer and the summer solstice. Libra shows up at 180° (directly opposite of Aries) at the autumn equinox. Finally, at 270° is Capricorn and the winter solstice. These are the cardinal points and are determined by your time of birth. The ascendant and descendant is where the Sun rises and sets. Which is the first house Aries and the seventh house Libra being the horizon, to divide the chart into north and south. Then the midheaven (top of the sky) and the Imum Coeli (Latin for bottom of the sky) is the tenth house Capricorn and the fourth house Cancer dividing the chart into east and west. This is a solar based system following the path of the Sun.
Vedic sidereal astrology also uses a 360° chart but it isn’t seasonal, and it doesn’t start with 0° Aries. It starts at 7° Pisces instead adjusted for the movement of the fixed stars (7 degrees), which is extremely slow. That (7 degrees) is how far it has shifted from 2000 years ago when they codified it. Sidereal uses the Moon transit instead which divides 360° by 13° 20’ to get what they call the 28 nakshatras. Nakshatra (or a lunar mansion) is a section of the Sun’s path or the ecliptic through which the Moon passes while it orbits around Earth. The Moon transits through a sign about every 2.5 days. The Western system uses the Sun which transits through the 12 months of the year.
The nakshatras (lunar mansions) are very important in Vedic astrology, they even recommend naming their children based on which nakshatra the moon is traveling at the time of birth. Each nakshatra has four sounds that are associated, and the name should include the sound. I’m not an expert on this topic, but that is what I’ve read. I find this interesting that in sidereal astrology they are also considering sound – harmonics.
Vedic astrologers believe the chart is a recording of the soul traveling lifetime to lifetime. The emphasis is on reincarnation, but the aspects and the house meanings are the same.
Eastern (sidereal) astrology can be somewhat negative and deterministic, which doesn’t bode well with western concepts of freewill. For example, they see the planets as either benefic or malefic. Mars and Saturn are never good, and the 6th, 8th and 12th houses are seen as evil, the term they use is dusthansas. One book stated a man with Saturn in the 5th house will have a wife afflicted with serious disease. My husband has Saturn in the 5th, and I’m very healthy. In Western astrology it wouldn’t be so absolute. I would interpret this, differently, after 30 years of marriage, I know him pretty well. His Saturn in the 5th means he finds his joy (5th house) in working (Saturn). He is happiest when he is tinkering around in the garage and building stuff. His 5th house has nothing to do with my health. For the record, I did adjust for the sidereal vs tropical calculation of the chart. That is not to say all Eastern astrologers are focused on gloom and doom, there are many more modern Eastern astrologers that are less traditional.
In the Western mindset, what happened in the past is in the past, the focus is in the now and in the future. It is fun to consider my Leo Moon and South Node in the first house. I might have been a warrior queen, like Boudicca, but what does that do for me? How do I apply that in the context of surviving the daily grind of existence today or making the most of an opportunity? The Western approach is more psychological; how do I better handle a tough aspect in my chart or between me and my partner? I’ve been so depressed, when will this mood move away? It is just a different approach based on cultural diversity.
Both systems work, they are simply different languages that get to the same result. There is a lot of misunderstanding in regard to the two systems. The systems should not be in competition; they are both accurate. I have great respect for Vedic sidereal astrology. For me personally, it is difficult to add the Hindu terms, such as navamsa, karakas, avasthas, for myself and my clients because it not my native language and I am sure I miss some cultural understanding. In a consultation, I’m already trying to translate the astrology terms for it to make sense to someone who hasn’t studied astrology. The added Vedic terms make that even more complicated. The most important thing is following the needs of the client, informing them of the current energetic environment, and empowering them to take the best course for them.
Western tropical astrology and Vedic sidereal astrology are both evolving. Western astrologers are adding a more spiritual approach, now that they have more liberty and don’t have to fear heresy labels and burning pyres. I think Eastern astrology is becoming a little less deterministic. I mean how do you separate psychology from the soul? You can’t! I like how Pierre Teilhard de Chardin put it, “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” Either system of astrology will feed your soul. I choose to use Western tropical astrology.
If you are interested in exploring Vedic sidereal astrology I recommend Kapiel Raaj at https://krschannel.thinkific.com/ or Joni Patry at https://www.galacticcenter.org/
