Hindus trace their religious wisdom back to seven ancient sages known as the Rishis. The word rishi means “to shine,” and the original Rishis were the seven stars of the constellation Ursa Major (Big Dipper). Hindu religion literally began with the stars.
Vishnu, the reigning god of Hinduism, is the Sun incarnate, their most divine being. Sometimes, when the world is in discord, Vishnu takes various forms and visits the Earth. Some of the shapes he takes on are the Ram, the Bull, and the Lion, and carvings of these shapes are found on temple walls dating back 7,000 years. In modern astrology we still use those three symbols: Aries the Ram, Taurus the Bull, Leo the Lion.
The Hindus divided the sky into twenty-eight equal parts, called Lunar Mansions, each part representing a passage of the Moon through its twenty-eight-day cycle. The lunar cycle, in fact, is a basis of Eastern astrology. Western philosophy is founded much more on the solar cycle. As a result, astrologers often refer to the Western world as children of the Sun and to the Eastern world as children of the Moon.
The Indian zodiac has twelve signs, the same number our zodiac has. However, in India there is a concept not found in Western astrology. This is the doctrine of karma and reincarnation. Karma is the journey of the soul through various lives (incarnations). A person’s karma is based on three things: 1) the influence in this life of acts committed in previous lives; 2) the influence of one’s present acts on the next life; 3) unrealized acts. The practice of astrology in India is often linked to the discovery of what stage a person’s soul has reached.
Vishnu, the reigning god of Hinduism, is the Sun incarnate, their most divine being. Sometimes, when the world is in discord, Vishnu takes various forms and visits the Earth. Some of the shapes he takes on are the Ram, the Bull, and the Lion, and carvings of these shapes are found on temple walls dating back 7,000 years. In modern astrology we still use those three symbols: Aries the Ram, Taurus the Bull, Leo the Lion.
The Hindus divided the sky into twenty-eight equal parts, called Lunar Mansions, each part representing a passage of the Moon through its twenty-eight-day cycle. The lunar cycle, in fact, is a basis of Eastern astrology. Western philosophy is founded much more on the solar cycle. As a result, astrologers often refer to the Western world as children of the Sun and to the Eastern world as children of the Moon.
The Indian zodiac has twelve signs, the same number our zodiac has. However, in India there is a concept not found in Western astrology. This is the doctrine of karma and reincarnation. Karma is the journey of the soul through various lives (incarnations). A person’s karma is based on three things: 1) the influence in this life of acts committed in previous lives; 2) the influence of one’s present acts on the next life; 3) unrealized acts. The practice of astrology in India is often linked to the discovery of what stage a person’s soul has reached.