Solar Eclipse on 22 July 2009 - India and World Forecasts

There will be a complete Solar Eclipse on 22nd July 2009. According to Hindu date it will be on Shravan month Krishna paksha (dark half) 30, Wednesday, Samvat 2066. This eclipse will be visible throughout India. According to Indian Standard Time, Solar Eclipse will be seen between 5:31 AM to 7:25 AM. This eclipse will be on Pushya Nakshatra and Cancer Sign (Karka Rashi).

Eclipses are of four types - total, annular, hybrid and partial (see the box). Interestingly among 224 solar eclipses in 21st century, this solar eclipse on 22nd July will have longest duration of totality. As a side note, the longest annular eclipse of 21st century will be on January 15, 2010. So we are going to observe some of the rarest eclipses of this century.

There are four types of solar eclipses:

1. A total eclipse occurs when the Sun is completely obscured by the Moon.
2. An annular eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon are exactly in line, but the apparent size of the Moon is smaller than that of the Sun. Hence the Sun appears as a very bright ring, surrounding the outline of the Moon.
3. A hybrid eclipse (also called annular/total eclipse) transitions between a total and annular eclipse. At some points on the surface of the Earth it is visible as a total eclipse, whereas at others it is annular. Hybrid eclipses are comparatively rare.
4. A partial eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon are not exactly in line and the Moon only partially obscures the Sun. This phenomenon can usually be seen from a large part of the Earth outside of the track of an annular or total eclipse.
   (Source: Wikipedia)

Different sources give slightly different time for start, mid and end time for eclipses. For the upcoming Solar Eclipse on 22nd July, I am getting following details for New Delhi -

NASA Solar Eclipse Calculator
Start: 5:39, Max: 6:26:35, End: 7:24:36

Shri Brajbhoomi Panchang
Start: 5:34, Max: 6:27, End: 7:25

Chintaharan Panchang
Start: Grastodit (eclipsed while rising), Max: 6:27, End: 7:25

From this we can see that there is slight difference in calculation for eclipses. Though for all practical purpose all three times should be good enough. Above eclipse times are for New Delhi, India. Exact start, max and end time for solar eclipse vary slightly for each city. If you want to find out exact time for the solar eclipse for your city, please use NASA Solar Eclipse calculator.

Max effect time for 22nd July solar eclipse is somewhere between 6:20 (Salem, Trivendrum, Mysore, Maduri, Tiruchirapalli, Cochin, Coimbatore etc.) to 6:30 (Imphal, Srinanagar). Overall eclipse time is somewhere between 5:31 IST to 7:25 IST.

We should also note that eclipse at the time of sun-rise (grastodit) is considered worst astrologically and it is happening in Allahabad, Indore, Guwahati, Jabalpur, Patana, Bhopal, Badodara, Varanasi, Siliguri, and Surat cities to name a few. Please see the eclipse google map and the eclipse chart for India for knowing the cities where sun will rise eclipsed.

Sign-wise astrological forecast for Solar Eclipse on 22nd July 2009
As I mentioned earlier, eclipse doesn’t have any significant effect on individuals and are more related to Mundane astrology (branch of astrology used to predict world affairs and world events, as opposed to individual's events). In my opinion, the eclipse predictions for each sign that we are seeing everywhere do not have much astrological value and hence I am not writing any predictions here.

For the readers who are here only for the astrological predictions for their sign, I do not want to disappoint them. Hence, I am borrowing short predictions from Chintaharan Panchang as follows -

1. Aries - Agony
2. Taurus - Financial Gain
3. Gemini - Physical Problems
4. Cancer - Hurt
5. Leo - Financial Loss
6. Virgo - Gain
7. Libra - Happiness
8. Scorpio - Defamation
9. Sagittarius - Fatal Pain
10. Capricorn - Pain to/ due to Female
11. Aquarius - Happiness
12. Pisces - Worry

(These predictions are based on Moon sign and NOT Sun sign. If you do not know your moon sign, please check our moon sign calculator here.)

Mundane Predictions for Solar Eclipse on 22nd July 2009 (India)
According to late J. C. Luthara, "the eclipse of Sun are usually followed by events which mainly concern the ruler of the country, the government of the country, high government officials, ministers, administrators, nobility, top political personages, judiciary, bureaucracy, top business magnates, high religious persons etc. but normally, it is the ruler of the country who is mainly affected. Other personals mentioned may or may not be affected."

For New Delhi, Max Time for this solar eclipse is 6:27 AM. During this time, Ascendant will be Cancer 15 degree 8 minutes. Both ascendant and Sun will be passing through Pushya Nakshatra. Sun will be in first decandate (drekkana) of Cancer and Ascendant will be in 2nd decandate of Cancer.

Cancer is a watery sign. If the eclipse falls in Cancer sign, sedition, diseases, epidemics, extreme changes in weather leading to drying up of rivers and canals etc. are indicated. More specifically, extreme change in weather is associated with the first decandate (first part) of Cancer where as "increase in prostitution, rivers and canals dry up" are results associated with second decandate (second part) of Cancer. The ascendant is rising at the time of max eclipse in New Delhi, so no wonder we are already seeing drought like situation in India. Some of these results may be applicable to the whole world, but will affect India because total eclipse will be seen in India.

According to Varahamihira, if Sun rises eclipsed there will be danger to autumnal crops as well as to the king. So the rulers (Prime minister, President, Ministers of Ruling parties) can be hit by this eclipse and they should be careful this year. As the Patna and Bhopal are two state capitals where total eclipse can be seen, rulers, top officials and ministers of these states can be affected as well. Beware Manmohan Singh, Nitish Kumar and Shivraj Singh.

Astrologically Eastern India - Bihar, Jharkhand, Bangadesh, Meghalaya, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura etc. are some of the regions that are governed by Ardra, Punarvasu and Pusya Nakshatra. As we know that the eclipse is on Pushya Nakshatra, we can observe some problems related to Eastern India. As Bihar is a part of Eastern India as well, it gives doubly indication of problems in Bihar in upcoming period.

Independence chart of India has Taurus ascendant. This eclipse is falling in Cancer sign which is the third house in the chart of India. Third house signifies communication, transportation, neighbors, and railway ministry. Eclipse in 3rd house indicates that India will not be having good relations with neighbours. We can also expect some serious border crashes this year. Mamta Banerjee’s newly formed railway ministry can also face some hardship. There can be some rail, road, air, and water accidents in general.

Mundane Predictions for Solar Eclipse on 22nd July 2009 (International)
According to Western astrology Scotland, Holland, New Zealand, North and West Africa, Isle of Mauritius, Paraguay are some of the countries related to the sign Cancer. These places, and more specifically the places which are close to sea (due to eclipse in Cancer sing) may be affected by this eclipse. Same results that are ascribed for India can also be mentioned for these countries like danger to crops and rulers, drying up of water sources etc.

Routine to be followed During Solar Eclipse
Solar Eclipse has given a lot of importance in Hinduism. At the time of the eclipse, people are suggested to observe fast, bathe in the sacred rivers. They should do charitable acts. They should donate cows, money and gold. One is suggested not not to take food during the eclipse. One should take food only after seeing the sun free from the eclipse. Pregnant women are advised not to see the eclipse otherwise the child born may have some kind of defect. Householders are forbidden from sexual intercourse on the day of the eclipse, for the same reason. Eclipse time is also considered very auspicious for sadhana (spiritual practice).

Related Articles

• Three Eclipse in a Row - Good or Bad

References

• Eclipses in 21st century
• NASA Google Eclipse map for 22nd July
• NASA Eclipse World Map
• NASA Eclipse Map for India

Three Eclipses in a Row - Good or Bad?

Whenever there is an eclipse astrologers find some method to term it as rare as well as disastrous. Upcoming three eclipses are no exceptions. We are hearing all sort of scaring predictions and prophesies for the upcoming eclipses. TRP hungry and ignorant electronic media due worsening the whole scene by showing all sort of different stories.

One article on Rediff says, "The world will witness a rare astronomical event- a series of triple eclipses starting July 2009. The fist in the series of triple eclipses will be a lunar eclipse on July 7 which will be followed by a solar eclipse on July 22 and then a lunar eclipse on August 6." The same article quotes D K Hari and his wife Hema Hari mentioning events like Kurukshethra war, destruction of city of Dwaraka, World War I, and World War II - all were followed by triple eclipses.

The first eclipse will occur on July 7, 2009, which will be visible in Australia, the Pacific and Americas. The solar eclipse on July 22, 2009 will be visible in India, Nepal, China and Central Pacific and the lunar eclipse on August 6, 2009 will be visible in America, Europe, Africa and West Asia.

Eclipses are very significant in astrology especially Mundane astrology (branch of astrology used to predict world affairs and world events, as opposed to individual's events). Generally eclipses give indications of bad happenings and that is the reason astrologers haste in predicting mishaps and destructions. For the present eclipses, we must note some very important point before we reach to any conclusion. Firstly, both the lunar eclipses on 7th July as well as 6th August are Penumbral which means partial and not fully darkening the Moon's light. Penumbral Lunar Eclipse is not regarded as eclipse for astrological as well as religious purpose, so should not be used for any astrological predictions. Any astrologer making lunar eclipses of this year as a basis of his astrological predictions is making a mistake. Also the magnitudes of Lunar eclipses are so less that it is almost insignificant even for astronomical purposes.

What will be the impact on me?
Nothing measurable. Firstly, the magnitude of lunar eclipses are insignificant. Secondly, eclipses makes noticeable impact on nations and not on individual. I'll write more about only significant eclipse on July 22nd, 2009 here so don't forget to subscribe.

Will I have to follow religious daily routine (din-charya) prescribed for eclipse?
For Lunar eclipse, No. For Solar eclipse on 22nd July, Yes. You can know more about the daily routine needs to be followed on the day of eclipse here.

Related Articles
1. Solar Eclipse on 22 July 2009 - India and World Forecasts
2. PDF of NASA's graphic illustration of visibility of Lunar Eclipse on 7th July
3. When is the Next Solar Eclipse
4. Solar Eclipse (Surya Grahan) Calculator & Daily Routine
5. Lunar Eclipse (Chandra Grahan) Calculator
6. My articles on Mundane Astrology

Jyotish Tutorial

People keep asking me about free resources on Internet where they can learn astrology. This blog has lots of astrology articles whereas related website www.AstroSage.com provides all the necessary tools to create a horoscope. I have written tutorial but that is on KP System which is advanced system of astrology and can be slightly confusing for beginners. There are also plenty of free e-books available on Internet, but those as well not that well suited for beginners. As we know there are many resources on Internet, but it is difficult to find a systematic tutorial on Vedic astrology for beginners.

Having said that, Now-a-days, I generally recommend these two online tutorials to Jyotish enthusiasts -

• http://www.scribd.com/doc/3923061/KN-RAO-S-Astrology-Lessons
• http://community.compuserve.com/n/docs/docDownload.aspx?webtag=ws-newageliving&guid=10a9cc5f-55f7-4d32-92f0-8a948fdd94ee

Both the tutorials are from scribd, so can be downloaded in PDF format for later reference. The first tutorial based on KN Rao's PAC DARES methodology which is a nice way to explain some important Jyotish concept. The second tutorial is comprehensive enough to give a good start to a beginner.

I must tell here that there are too many systems in Vedic astrology and no tutorial and no book can cover them all. At the end of the day, an astrologer has to devise his own methodology which suits him most. These tutorials will just help you getting basics and you should refer to the e-books mentioned in the related article section to improvise your knowledge further.

Related Articles:
1. Free Vedic Astrology E-Books
2. Krishnamurti Paddhati Tutorial
3. Vedic Astrology Books and Authors for Beginners

Web.Bot 2012 - Best Method for Future Predictions or a Scam

Web.Bot project caught public attention when History channel telecasted a program on "end of the civilization in year 2012". Web.Bot predictions, being in line with previous predictions made by ancient "seers" and civilizations, caught public eyes quickly. Also unlike older methods of predictions, web.bot predictions are said to be based on search engine algorithms combined with natural language processing which makes it attractive for scientific brain.

Web.bot project claims to predict Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy, 9/11 attacks, present ecomomic crisis and many many more such events in advance.

For those of you who do not know, the web bot technology uses a system of spiders to crawl the Internet and search for keywords, much like a search engines like Google. In a simple language, crawling means going to a list of web locations in an automatated fashion by a software program. When a keyword is located, the bot program takes a snapshot of the text preceding and following the keyword. Though unlike search engine, this snapshot of text is sent to a central location and processed using some astrology-like algorithm known to the developers of web.bot project only. Based on the limited information available on Internet, the algorithm uses theories similar to I Ching (Chinese Astrology) combined with the physics theory of time. The idea is to tap into the "collective unconscious" of the universe by the use of Internet and using it for predictions.

From the 'web.bot project' website – “What becomes obvious when reading about the technology is that it sometimes reads a bit like the I Ching (the Chinese Book of Changes) because the technology doesn't come out and say "go look for a terrorist attack over there" What it does is gives phrases that would be associated with how people talk about an event, or more accurately, how they change their speech to reflect their thought processes because of an event (after). The web bot technology apparently taps in to an area of preconscious awareness.”

They claim to predict Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy, 9/11 and many such events in advance. It seems they also predicted end of the civilization in year 2012 on Hisotry channel that has given them popularity. Here I quote from their website -

“The Global Consciousness Project registered what appears to have been a disturbance in "the force" or the regularly orderly operation of life associated with 9/11. Supposed "random" numbers generated all over the world appeared to become less random immediately prior to 9/11.”

Is it possible to predict future with this kind of technology? Being a software engineer, having knowledge of astrology and IChing, and having knowledge of search engine web bots, I seriously doubt the whole theory. I have my reasons for that. 

Web.Bot predictions are primarily based on the assumption that ‘we know a little bit in advance’ about the future. In other words, suppose somebody is going to attack you, you will be ready to defend yourself few seconds before the first move made by the attacker. The physics' theory of time is stated behind the reasoning of theory of 'preconsciousness'. In other words, you consciousness tells you in advance that something is going to happen. The web.bot claims to gather that collective consciousness from the Internet and process using some inhouse developed software.

This theory has some serious flaws though. No doubt that the Internet is the best place (so far available to us) to gather “collective consciousness”. There are people participating in discussion forums, writing blogs and contributing to Internet in some way or another. That information is available for web crawler to crawl and interpret using their own formula.

There are no scientific proof available to support preconsciousness theory used by the project. Assuming that the preconsciousness theory is correct and we get some clues for future in advance, I wonder why they are seeing clues shaping only few months ahead of the event? Why they are not getting it in much advance time period, especially if we see from the universal perspective (on which time theory is based), 3 months seems to be a very small period. This suits to the astrologer, but I am not able to understand why it is suiting to the universe. Similar theory, like astrology, never claims that these start getting indication of an event just three months before the time. If 'preconsciousness' theory is based on the light speed and the theory of time, whatever be the prediction, a web bot should be able to see it only few seconds ahead of event and not months ahead.  

Also are these clues provided by Internet is enough? The project is claiming success since 1990. That time there was very little community participation/ blogs/ discussion forums on Internet. From where this project was gathering information to predict that accurately that time? How that “collective human consciousness” was being gathered that time?

Also any branch of science takes some time to develop. Astrology took thousands of years before it come to the present shape and still developing. Similar to the development process of any science, astrology also requires hit and trials. The time taken by this theory to develop doesn’t look inline with the natural knowledge development process.

Then why a channel like History channel telecasting such a program on a hoax at very first place? History channel guys are the right people to answer this question, but I feel that History channel is not behaving responsibly in this case. After studying information available on Internet, it invites serious questions. The person behind the web.bot project is hidden and not disclosed his identity. Most of the sections of the website are taken down. The payments are taken using Paypal probably to maintain anonymity. There is no name of the company on the website. I wonder why they want to hide all this information.

I would also like people to read this post available on History channel’s discussion forum - http://boards.history.com/topic/Decoding-The-Past/Is-The-History/700011099. This post also suggests that whole web.bot project is a hoax/scam and created to manipulate the stock market. It seems that the History channel is knowingly/ unknowingly playing in the hand of those manipulators which is very unfortunate. Please stay away from the web.bot project. 

When is the Next Solar Eclipse

Eclipse has religious and astrological importance in our life. Hindu religion advises observing a different daily routine (din-charya) on the day of eclipse. Astrology, especially Mundane astrology (branch of astrology used to predict world affairs and world events, as opposed to individual's events), uses eclipse as one of the most important tools for predictions.

Generally we rely on Panchang for knowing the exact date and time of eclipse. I have talked about eclipse calculators available on Internet and now there is another very good tool named Wolfram announced that can help us in finding eclipse related information. Wolfram is a new search engine technology that uses natural language processing to give results of query which are more than just keywords and answers graphically. I'll not talk more about Wolfram because that is not purpose of this post, rather stick to our topic of getting date and time for the next eclipse.

You can go to http://www.wolframalpha.com/ and search for "Next Solar Eclipse" to get the details of the upcoming eclipse. You can also simply click on this link and it will show you the date and time of the next eclipse. It will not only show you the date and time of the eclipse but also other important information like duration, countries where visible, graphical view (see image above) etc. I am sure it will be a very useful tool for astrologers as well as general Indian public.

Of course, Wolfram is not limited just to finding eclipses and it can be used for many other scientific, mathematical and astronomical purposes. You can try out following queries as well (just click the link) -

1. Compute Next Lunar Eclipse
2. Compute Next Solor Eclipse
3. Compute the location of Venus on 17th May 2009

Just to save your time, here are the dates and times for upcoming eclipses given by Wolfram-

Next Lunar Eclipse
3:09 PM IST on Tuesday, July 7, 2009 (Note: this is Penumbral Lunar Eclipse and doesn't regarded as eclipse for astrological as well as religious purpose)

Next Solar Eclipse
8:05 AM IST on Wednesday July 22, 2009 (Starts: 6:23 AM, Maximum: 8:05 AM, End: 9:47 AM)

My Panchang (Chinta Haran) tells following information about the complete eclipse on 22nd July -

"There will be complete Solar Eclipse on 22nd July 2009, Hindu date - 'Shravan Krishna 30, Wednesday, Samvat 2066.' This eclipse will be visible throughout India. According to Indian Standard Time, the entry time of this Solar Eclipse will be 5:28 AM. Mean time for Solar Eclipse will be 6:23 AM and the exit time will be 10:42AM. This eclipse will be on Pushya Nakshatra and Cancer Sign (Karka Rashi)."

As we can see there is slight variation in the start, maximum and end time of my Panchang and Wolfram data. I cross checked with Nasa utility and found that my Panchang calculation is little more closer to the Nasa calculation than the Wolfram calculation. Still I believe that Wolfram calculation is good enough for most proposes, also graphical representation is something that can not be found anywhere else.

If time permits, I'll also write about the forecast for this solar eclipse for everybody. Please subscribe to this blog to keep updated and get articles in your email.

Related Articles
1. Solar Eclipse (Surya Grahan) Calculator
2. Lunar Eclipse (Chandra Grahan) Calculator
3. My articles on Mundane Astrology

Shrapit Dosh/ Shrapit Yog/ Shrapit Yoga Explained

Shrapit Yoga is also called Shrapit Dosha. Literary meaning of the word "Shrapit" is somebody who is cursed. Talks on "Shrapit Yoga" seems to be increasing on Internet and the public is very much confused due to the lack of authentic information.

Shrapit Yoga is said to be formed when Saturn and Rahu are together in a single sign in a horoscope. Some astrologers also suggest that Saturn's aspect on Rahu also results in Shrapit Yoga. The result of the combination is told that the horoscope is cursed due to the deeds of the past life. It is suggested that even there are many good yogas in a horoscope, good results can not be obtained in the present birth, if "Shrapit Yoga" exists in the horoscope.

I have written about some of the similar doshas like Kaalsarpa Dosha in the past and my opinion is no different on this yoga. First of all there is no classical reference to this yoga. In my opinion, "Shrapit yoga" like "Kalsarpa yoga", is another factious yoga created by astrologers to make money. Scaring people is an easy way to make money and pundits very well know this fact. What a well chosen name "Shrapit Yoga" to scare people!!! Truly speaking there is nothing to fear about Shrapit Yoga.

In my opinion, a birth chart should be analyzed in totality and the results should be predicted by synthesizing various good and bad yogas in a horoscope. No single yoga can take control over the whole chart. We need to judge planets involved in the yoga and also see the strength of those planets. For example in the case of Shrapit Yoga, if Saturn and Rahu are well placed, why there will be any malefic affect?

Moreover, Rahu and Saturn are two friendly planets and the overall general result of the conjunction is positive rather than negative. This is simple Vedic astrology principle that two friendly planets go well with each other and give positive results.

In Lal Kitab, Saturn and Rahu together are called Nagmani (Snake's Jewel) and regarded to give positive results. In Lal Kitab, Saturn is taken as snake and Rahu as a Jewel which sucks snake’s poison.

According to the Nadi astrology, a person having this combination "amass money secretly even without knowledge of government (black money)". There are no malefic indications in Nadi as well.

Finally, Rahu stays for one and the half years in a sign and Saturn stays for two and the half years in a sign. So generally this combination stays for a long time. For example, you will find this combination in majority of horoscopes of the people born in year 1978/1979/1980. Are they all cursed? Was those years cursed? This is ridiculous. The astrologer who tells you that you have "Shrapit Yoga" and you have to perform costly remedies for Shrapit Yoga to get rid of its ill effect, please understand that the astrologer is a cheat and you need to look for a good knowledgeable astrologer. There will be pundits who will try to sell all kind of pooja, yantra and gems etc. to you. Beware of such cheat astrologers. I would again reiterate that there is nothing to fear about "Shrapit Dosha or Shrapit Yoga."

A quick off-topic note here. I am now a days writing on IPL astrology on a website http://www.IPLkhabar.com. Please visit the website to read articles on IPL astrology by me and some other astrologers.

Related Articles:

1. Kaalsarpa Dosha

2. Shani Sadhe Sati

Hindu New Year 2066 Forecasts (Vikram Samvat 2066)

The Hindu New Year starts from the next day after Amavasya (No moon) in the Chaitra month i.e. Chaitra Shukla Pratipada. This calendar in more popular in Northern part of India like Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himanchal Prdesh, and Maharashtra etc. In Maharashtra, starting of new year is celebrated as Gudi-Padwa. In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh this day is celebrated as Ugadi. Sindhis celebrate this day as their New Year day Cheti Chand.

This calendar is based on luni-solor system and generally followed for all religious purpose. According to English date, in this year 2009, Hindu Nav Samvat (New Year) started on March 27th. This embarks year 2066 according to this calendar.

Starting of Hindu New Year is an important astrological event. Starting time of the new year is considered important to get overall idea of the upcoming year. Astrologers calculate planetary cabinet of the coming year and read upcoming year from that. Astrological planetary cabinet consists of king of the year, prime minister of the year, lord of the paddy crops, lord of fruits and vegetation, lord of mineral kingdom, lord of clouds, lord of corns and lord of fluids etc. Each planet is responsible for telling us about the respective aspect as suggested by its name.

The name of this year which started from 27th March 2009 is "Shubha." the King of this year is Venus and the Prime Minister is Moon. Venus is exalted in the varsha pravesh chart and well placed. A well placed Venus kinf of a year suggests good rains and crops, prosperity and power to women, progress of arts, victory of virtue over vices, new treaties and agreements signed. Looks like finally some soother after recession. As the year is Shubha, which is generally considered good and the kind is Venus, we can expect some good results. Last year we have seen terrorist attacks, increase in military tension, economic slowdown and recession, crash of the share market etc. I hope it will improve from now onwards.

Moon as the prime minister suggests good rainfall, growth in luxury, improvement in health, general well being and prosperity, contentment to the people etc. As both the king and the prime minster and female planets, we can expect more women gaining power and position.

Wish you all a very very happy new year.

A note of caution is required here. Mundane predictions like this requires analysis of various aspects and charts. For example, this prediction based on only "planetary cabinet of Hindu year" should be supplemented by various other anlysis e.g. charts of the nation under consideration, solar ingress charts, lunation charts, annual horoscope of nation etc., before more conclusive forecasts can be made. Hence this forecast must be taken just as an indicative prediction and should be treated that way only.

AstroSage on Facebook

I am a big fan of social networking. I already have presence on most of the social networking websites. Though most of those profiles are my personal profiles as these social networking websites don't allow profiles for the websites. Though Facebook allows the same, so I thought it would be a good place to have a profile for AstroSage on Facebook. If you are on Facebook, you can join AstorSage fan club here -

http://www.facebook.com/pages/AstroSagecom/126920215157

There are two reasons why you should join AstroSage on Facebook. First, you can get all AstroSage related updates from within Facebook. Second, you can also show your love and support to AstroSage to the world.

Apart from this, you already know about my personal profiles and everybody is welcome to add me on their friend's list. Here are my profiles on different Social Networking websites -

• Orkut
• Twitter
• MySpace

Which is the best reference Lal Kitab?

Long back I had written an article by the name of "Which Lal Kitab Book" to tell Lal Kitab students which are the good and the bad books available on this subject. The article was written in year 2004 and since then, much water has flown through the Ganga. One very important development is that now almost all five editions of Lal Kitab are available in Hindi, which gives Hindi readers more options. Today, somebody asked about Lal Kitab reference books in my Lal Kitab discussion forum and this was my answer (with some enhancements) -

Lal Kitab is not a name of one single book. There are five books published during year 1939 to 1952 written by Pt. Roop Chand Joshi. One need to read all those books to understand Lal Kitab fully. In my opinion 1952 edition is the most exhaustive and must be the first book to be read by all Lal Kitab enthusiasts. 1952 edition also covers most of the content in previous editions and hence kind of super-set of all Lal Kitab editions. The best transliteration so far for 1952 edition is available in the form of "Arun Samhita", published by Hare Krishna Trust, Chandigarh. Due the nature of language used in Lal Kitab, it is very difficult to understand in one single reading. My suggestion to Lal Kitab students is that one need to read and reread Lal Kitab to understand it.

For further reading, I would suggest reading books in following sequence -

• 1942 edition (Lal Kitab - Tarmeem Shuda): Hindi transliteration of 1942 edition by Pt. Beni Madhav Goswami is available from Durga Pocket Books.
• 1940 edition (Lal Kitab ke Armaan): Hindi transliteration by Pt. Beni Madhav Goswami available from Himalaya Publications/ Sagar Publications
• 1941 edition (Lal Kitab - Teesra Hissa, also known as Gutka): Hindi transliteration by Yograj Prabhakar available from Rahul Computers, Patiala
• 1939 edition (Lal Kitab ke Farmaan): Hindi transliteration by Pt. Beni Madhav Goswami available from Himalaya Publications/ Sagar Publications. This is primarily a book on Palmistry aspect of Lal Kitab.

Two other recommended books are -

• Lal Kitab Prishthabhoomi Aur Vyakhaya by Pt. Krishna Ashant
• Lal Kitab Aur Kashta Nivaran by Sumat Prasad Kalka

Both of the above books are good introductory books, but have some serious shortcomings. For example, reasoning behind remedies is flawed in both the books. So wherever these authors have explained the working of Lal Kitab remedies, those sections should be ignored. Also Pt. Ashant book's section on background of Lal Kitab does not seems to be correct where he questions the authorship of Pt. Roop Chand Joshi. Probably both the books -Krishna Ashant's book and Arun Samhita - questioned the authorship to avoid copyright issues. Sumat Prasad Kalka's book has listed remedies for all nine planets in twelve houses. That is not only incorrect but also risky. Remedies should always be suggested by analyzing the overall chart and should not be given for individual planet position. Lal Kitab has given detailed grammar (rules for analyzing chart) and the cause of problem should be identified using the grammar and the remedies should be suggested to solve that particular problem. In other words, last two books should be used with caution.

Note:

• One can find a list of astrology book stores here.
• If you are looking for the book in English, you will have to rely on the old article for some information on the Lal Kitab books in English. Nothing much has changed on English landscape.
• I have a dedicated blog on Lal Kitab at http://www.lalkitab.in/. If you are mainly interested in Lal Kitab, you can subscribe that blog.
  

Today I have created an "AstroSage.com Fan Club" at Facebook. If you are on Facebook and love AstroSage, please join the fan club at http://www.facebook.com/pages/AstroSagecom/126920215157/

Valentine Day Muhurta - Best Time to Express Love

All set for Valentine day. You want to express your feelings, your love this day. But you fear losing him/ her. Don't worry, Vedic astrology is here to help you. I would like to share some time that can help. But first before that, let us understand what can be classified as best yoga for expressing your love according to Vedic astrology -

• Venus is the planet for love. Other than Venus, Moon, Mercury and Jupiter are also OK. One should avoid Sun, Mars, Saturn, Rahu and Ketu
• Check out the lord of your 5th sign and 9th sign. Choose time period of these planets.
• Also choose the time when Venus is in Ascendant.
• Choose the time when these planets rule of Ascendant, Hora or Moon Sub Lord

Ascendant (lagna) and Hora are city dependent. So you need to check the exact time for your city. I'll give you a URL from where you can check the good time for your city.

Before listing out good time for all signs, here are two slots which are good for all signs -
1. 10:44 AM to 11:39 AM
2. 5:15 PM To 6:10 PM

Sign	Planet of Love for You	Time period of the planet on 14th February
Aries	Jupiter	14:27 - 15:22 19:15 - 20:19
Taurus	Mercury	11:39 - 12:35 23:31 - 00:35 Night
Gemini	Venus	10:44 - 11:39 22:27 - 23:31
Cancer	Jupiter	14:27 - 15:22 19:15 - 20:19
Leo	Jupiter	14:27 - 15:22 19:15 - 20:19
Virgo	Venus	10:44 - 11:39 22:27 - 23:31
Libra	Mercury	11:39 - 12:35 23:31 - 00:35 Night
Scorpio	Jupiter & Moon	14:27 - 15:22 19:15 - 20:19 12:35 - 13:31 00:35 - 01:39 Night
Sagittarius	Jupiter	14:27 - 15:22 19:15 - 20:19
Capricorn	Venus & Mercury	10:44 - 11:39 22:27 - 23:31 11:39 - 12:35 23:31 - 00:35 Night
Aquarius	Mercury & Venus	11:39 - 12:35 23:31 - 00:35 Night 10:44 - 11:39 22:27 - 23:31
Pisces	Moon	12:35 - 13:31 00:35 - 01:39 Night

To find out exact time of these planets for your city, please note planet for your sign from above table and check time at http://www.astrosage.com/hora.asp