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Origin and Meaning of Horoscopic Houses
ORIGIN & MEANING OF BHAAVAS (Horoscopic Houses)
There are 12 houses in horoscopes in Indian, Chinese, European and ancient Egyptial and Mesopotamian horoscopes. Names of these houses are also highly similar, pointing towards some common origin of astrology. There is a dearth of external evidence for tracing this common origin, but internal evidences are galore. Let us discuss some. According to Surya-siddhaanta (the bedrock of mathematical portion of ancient Indian astrology), LAGNA (ascendant) is defined as that point of the ecliptic which touches the eastern horizon at any given moment. Other eleven mansions are defined with respect to Lagna. Hence all mansions are parts of the ecliptic. Since the ecliptic is elliptical, all twelve mansions should be unequal. Therefore, the mansions of Indian astrology should be reckoned from Bhaava-chalita and not from the Raashi-chakra.
The Raashi-chakra is a circular disc running along the zodiac with all 12 Raashis being exactly equal to 30 degrees, while the measures of twelve bhaavas (dvaadash-bhaava) change with time and place ; that is why it is called Chalita (i.e., movable or changeable). It takes some time and energy to compute the bhaava-chalita. Exact method of computing the bhaava-chalita according to traditional Indian Siddhaantas has been long forsaken and forgotten. An overwhelming majority of astrologers use the Raashi-chakra for making predictions for saving time; most of not-so-learned astrologers do not even know that Raashi-chakra should not be directly used for making predictions, its only use is to determine places of exaltation (uchcha), debility(neecha), friendship or enmity among planets, heliacal setting (asta), aspects (drishti) and similar phenomena. In both Rashi-chakra and Bhaava-chalita, lagna is always placed at the centre of first mansion. But in Raashi-chakra, successive mansions are computed by merely adding 30 degrees to the lagna, whereas in the bhaava-chalita bhaavas are reckoned independently.
In the picture below, some bhaavas make larger angle with the centre while others make smaller angles due to ellipcity of the ecliptic (in this picture bhaavas 1 or 7 are shown as being less than bhaava 10 or 4, but at other times the reverse may be true). It is because of the Keplerian law of equal area in equal time : all bhaavas must have equal areas and not equal angles. Europe (Johannes Kepler) discovered this law much later, but Indian astrologers possessed the mathematical method of computing bhaavas of the ellipse millenia before Kepler. Method of computing declination of the Sun was also well known, which is also an attribute of ellipse. Rectified path-lengths of epicycloidal and hypocycloidal paths of planets and moon is given in Surya-siddhaanta, while Europe discovered it in modern times.
Twelve Bhaavas were conceived according to a well designed logical plan which has never been elucidated in any ancient or modern treatise of any country. Here, some of these ancient secrets are being explained for the first time. As pointed above, Lagna is that portion of the ecliptic which lies in the east. The entire house of Lagna is approximately 30 degrees (plus or minus few degrees), half of it remains below the horizon (see Medini kundalis in other pages of this website). Tenth House (Dasham bhaava) lies at the zenith. Seventh House lies in the west, and Fourth House lies below the onlooker. Hence, Fourth House came to signify Land, Mother (Earth), Vehicle, which lie below. Tenth House signifies Father (God the Father or Dyaus-Pitr symbolised the Sky in Vedic and PIE) and glory. First House symbolises birth into this world, and therefore first house represents life, body, health,etc. Rebirth into body is the result of Kaama (libido), hence Seventh House represents Kaama. All twelve houses exhibit this cause-consequence relationship, as shown below :
| House | Subject | Opposite House and its subject |
| 1 rst | Body, life, health | 7 th : Kaama (libido), spouse : Body is a result of Kaama, moksha is a result of Nishkaama living. |
| 2 nd | Wealth,Lord of death | 8 th : Death : Bhaava-2 symbolizes death and Bhaava-2 symbolizes its cause,i.e, Maarakesha and Wealth ( aparigraha leads to moksha, i.e, permanent liberation from death and rebirth) |
| 3 rd | Paraakrama(valour, stamina, vigour) | 9 th : Fortune, religiousity : Fortune is a result of Paraakrama |
| 4 th | Land, Mother | 10 th : Father,honour,career : 4th symbolizes land, 10 th gives honour, kingdom, etc. Mother-Father contrast between these two houses should be noted. |
| 5 th | Knowledge(Vidyaa) | 11 th : Income : Income is a result of worldly accomplishments. |
| 6 th | Enemy,disease | 12 th : Expense, loss : Subjects of 6 th and 12 th houses have a cause-consequence relationship. |
Thus, all twelve bhaavas can be grouped into six pairs having cause-consequence or contrasting relations. These six pairs can be further reduced to two contrasting divisions. Bhaava-10 lies towards the zenith. Adjacent to it are 9th and 11th houses. These three houses can be clubbed together as houses of 'Fortune,honour,rise,income'. There is close affinity in subjects of these houses. All symbolize 'RISE' towards the sky, which is the meaning of houses which lie towards the sky.
Similarly, 3rd and 5th houses are neighbours of 4th. These three houses symbolozes bases or causes of the subjects of sky-houses(9,10,11). Vigour, land and knowledge provide the foundation upon which one may rise towards the sky and gain money or honour. Hence, 9-10-11 symbolize SKY or Protector (Fortune-Action-Income nurtures and protects like a father), and 3-4-5 symbolize EARTH or BASE or FOUNDATION. Both triplicities have a strong mutual cause-consequence relation.
In a similar manner, houses 12-1-2 and 6-7-8 form remaining two triplicities, both being detrimental. The malevolence of 6,8 and 12 are well known. 2nd house is the cause of death and determines the lordship of death. But it is also the house of wealth and eyes, which strengthen bondage to this-worldliness and cause recurring death-rebirth cycles. 7th house is also the cause of death and bondage : Kaama(libido). Brihat-Paraashara-Horaashaashtra clearly states that planets residing in 6-7-8 houses determine whether a person should go to heaven, hell or be reborn into this world.
Horoscope is the result of actions of past lives. Sum total of all actions of all past lives do not contribute into the horoscope. Actions which bears results conducive for a birth into human specie join together, and if they overwhelm non-human traits, birth into human specie in ensured. Other actions remain dormant, bearing no result in the present human life. But if a human being accumulates sins, these bad acts will combine with similar dormant acts and may cause a non-human rebirth if such acts surpass human traits. If Saturn and Mercury reside in 6-7-8 houses and auspicious planets do not reside there, the person should go to Hell. Hell has two meanings in Indian tradition. One hell is birth into some animal or insect form. Another hell is real hell : torment without getting any birth at all, till the sins are purged.
The afore-mentioned four triplicities are repeated in the plan of Aarudha-padas as describrd in BPH. Houses 12-1-2 and 6-7-8 are never allowed to become aarudha-padas; only 3-4-5 and 9-10-11 can become padas. Pada means the steps or means through which a work is done. If the means is bad the task can not be accomplished. Hence only good houses are allowed to become aarudha-padas.
3rd and 11th houses were found to be auspicious in mant respects, and 1rst and 7th houses were auspicious in a majority of instances. Hence, in the end of Kaarakadhyaya (BPH), Sage Paraashara said that houses 2,3,6,8,11,12 were inauspicious. According to this classification, we can present the following modified picture of bhaava-chalita. The symmetry between upper and lower halves is remarkable.
A simplified view has been presented here. But it is sufficient to convinve anyone that the concept of twelve mansions did not originate without any logical plan. Moreover, this overall plan behind the concept of Twelve Houses is based upon ancient Indian philosophy of the Vedic tradition. it is impossible to believe that that such a system was imported into India from some non-Vedic society. Nowhere in world we can find a society in ancient times which believed in such concepts which contributed in the evolution of the ideas behind Dvaadash-bhaava, Kaama causing death, bondage and rebirth and renunciation of Kaama leading to emancipation; Sky symbolizing Father, Earth as mother, wealth as a companion of Killer (Maarkesha),etc.
This plan of horoscope was stylized into following form in remote antiquity, which is suggested by names like Kendra for Houses 1, 4, 7, 10 and
Trikona for 5, 9, because Houses 1, 4, 7, 10 actually reside in the Kendra (central region) and Houses 5 and 9 actually are triangular (Trikona) in shape. Other designs for horoscope popular in India or elsewhere do not fit such definitions. This design of Kundali (horoscope) is traditionally popular in the region which was known as Aryaavarta in ancient times, and is in consonance with definitions found in most ancient Indian treatises of astrology. The directional notions East, West, Zenith and Nadir is not used because it is not needed in horoscopic astrology. In national astrology we will discuss another type of directional design of zodiacal signs. In the left hand side picture, first house in the house of ascendant or Lagna.http://www.ChangingLINKS.com
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Latest page update: made by vinay_jha
, Apr 3 2009, 4:07 AM EDT
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