What is Vedic Astrology?

Vedic astrology is an ancient system of astrology originated in India. This ancient science has been practiced in India for more than eight thousand years. It is called "Jyotish" in Hindi, which means the knowledge or science of light. Since Vedic astrology or Jyotish is a part (Vedanga) of Vedas (ancient Indian Hindu scripts), it is known as Vedic astrology.  

There are many differences between Vedic astrology and Western astrology, but the main difference is that the Vedic astrologers use the Sidereal system or fixed zodiac while Western astrologer use the Tropical system or moving zodiac. The difference between both zodiac (Ayanamsa) is now roughly 23 degrees which is almost a whole sign. This means that your Sun-sign that you see in the Magazines or Newspapers usually is not the same as your Vedic Sun-sign. In most cases it is one sign back. For example, if your Sun sign is Taurus according to a Newspaper, which uses Western astrology, it is most likely that you will be an Aries when a Vedic astrologer does your chart using the system of Vedic astrology.

Another important difference is that Western astrology mostly deals with one's psychological patterns and personality while Vedic astrology deals with more of practical matters and one's karmic patterns.

The Basic Components of Vedic Astrology

The most basic elements of Vedic astrology are the nine planets or heavenly bodies and the twelve signs of the zodiac and the twelve houses of the chart. When studying Vedic astrology, it is important to become familiar with the Sanskrit words for all the main components. To begin with, let it be known that the words planets and "grahas" are synonymous. The twelve signs of the zodiac are called "rashis" and the houses are called "bhavas" or "sthanas" .

The nine planets used in Vedic astrology are:

Common Name      Sanskrit Name

Sun                         Ravi

Moon                     Chandra

Mars                      Kuja or Mangala

Mercury                 Budha

Jupiter                    Guru

Venus                     Shukra

Saturn                    Shani

Rahu                      Raahu

Ketu                       Ketu