TRANSITS 1

Analysis of a chart tells us the trends that would appear in the life of an individual. Whether a person would keep good health, he would have good education, he will marry well, he will have children, he will be prosperous, he will have good status in life, etc are questions that could be addressed through this analysis. This whets the appetite for more information. The consultant wishes to know the stages in life when these trends would manifest themselves over the years. Herein comes the use of Vimshottari dasa, transits and annual charts. Vimshottari dasa is a superb means to determine a span of time in which a happening could be predicted for an individual. Brihat Parashar Hora Shastra has given an array of dasas through which events in life could be fixed but many of these dasas are conditional. These dasas do not apply to all charts across the board. Some other dasas are difficult to apply. They need intricate calculations. Vimshottari dasa does not suffer from these drawbacks. It is easy to comprehend. It is easy to apply. Its results are consistently correct. These are the reasons why Maharshi Parasar himself has singled it out and has recommended it as the most appropriate one for our age. Vimshottari dasa gives us a span of time, usually of a few months, in which an event may occur. For closer approximation of time recourse is taken to annual chart and transits. An annual chart is the chart for a particular year. It depends on the movement of the Sun. A chart is drawn for the moment when the Sun reaches the exact location that it occupies in the birth chart and it is analysed for developments that are likely to happen in that year. The annual chart gives amazingly accurate results but it has to be read in conjunction with the birth chart. Events that are not indicated in the birth chart cannot happen even when the annual chart shows them. Transits are many a time taken in lieu of annual chart. Having determined the span of time for a particular happening in the life of an individual through Vimshottari dasa the astrologer takes up transits of planets in that span to determine the day when the event could happen. Transit therefore plays a great role in astrological analysis. It is an extremely useful tool and has been stated in many different ways. We need not get lost in the labyrinth of theory. We should stick to the methods that work and give results. The usefulness of any astrological concept lies in its applicability. An elegantly described concept is of no use if it does not work. There is a good number of such concepts but we need not be judgmental about them. Astrology need be a practical science and only those concepts should be propagated that work. This should be our sole criterion. In the next several instalments we will pursue the enquiry on these lines. To be continued......