Dear GBC Members
Please, accept my most humble obeisances . . . All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
My name is Bhaktivinode Thakur dasa, a disciple of Srila Harikesa Maharaja. I formally joined ISKCON in 1986 in Poland and was initiated in 1988. I started to study western astrology in 1985, but gave it up after one year. I considered it a huge speculation based on the remnants of the old and forgotten tradition. I was waiting until I find a source of a bona fide Vedic astrology to further my studies. I have got a book written by HG Nalini Kanta Prabhu How To Read Your Horoscope - The Basics of a Bona Fide Astrology, in the very beginning of 1988. Since that time I have been studying astrology from numerous books from India, and with casual help and assistance of HH Prahladananda Swami, HG Nalini Kanta Prabhu, HG Bhudhara Prabhu, and HG Shyamasundar Prabhu. My relation with HG Shyamasundar Prabhu is most fruitful as I am also a member of his Link-Com conference about Jyotisha. Beside studying Vedic astrology I have been also teaching the basics of Vedic vaisnava philosophy and astrology in a New Age school for three last years.
I have been asked by HG Shyamasundar Prabhu and also by HG Hrsikesananda Prabhu to write a report for the GBC concerning Srila Prabhupada’s birth chart. It is especially connected with a controversy between two proposed charts (Capricorn and Saggitarius rising signs) that were presented by HG Shyamasundar
Prabhu and HG Nalini Kanta Prabhu. I have read the two reports and would like to make some comments. I will not go into technical area of the charts as these were sufficiently dealt with already. I will try to share with some of my experiences of practicing astrologer and a teacher that might be valuable in judging this case.
I would like to humbly suggest that it is one thing to have a sincere desire to glorify Srila Prabhupada and another it to master the tool by which one wants to do it. For example there might be an effort to sing some song in the temple for the pleasure of the Deities, but one can do it by singing a proper or improper song, with a proper or improper melody, etc. Thus here we should rather judge a quality of an astrological skill and work of the two devotees. The chart should reflect the glories and life events of Srila Prabhupada. But there are tools of different difficulty in mastering them. Astrology is a very complex one, just like it is difficult to master sanskrit language. One can do it on levels of an amateur, student, western scholar who doesn’t understand Vedic philosophy, Indian sanskrit scholar who knows Vedic literature and philosophy, but it might be also of the quality of HDG Jiva Gosvami in his Sat-sandarbhas. We should keep it in mind while approaching Vedic astrology.
One can have some doubts if it is at all possible to make a judgment. Is really astrology applying to the devotees and especially pure devotees, or what to speak of Krsna? These are valid questions that should also be answered by referring to Srila Prabhupada’s books and his other teachings. Those of you who have some doubts like that might ask HG Shyamasundar Prabhu to deliver a complete set of quotes from the sources on that subject. For now I would like to append a quote from Srimad Bhagavatam 1,12,12:
TRANSLATION
“Thereupon, when all the good signs of the zodiac gradually evolved, the heir apparent of Pandu, who would be exactly like him in prowess, took birth.
PURPORT
Astronomical calculations of stellar influences upon a living being are not suppositions, but are factual, as confirmed in Srimad-Bhagavatam. Every living being is controlled by the laws of nature at every minute, just as a citizen is controlled by the influence of the state. The state laws are grossly observed, but the laws of material nature, being subtle to our gross understanding, cannot be experienced grossly. As stated in the Bhagavad-gita (3.9), every action of life produces another reaction, which is binding upon us, and only those who are acting on behalf of Yajna (Visnu) are not bound by reactions. Our actions are judged by the higher authorities, the agents of the Lord, and thus we are awarded bodies according to our activities. The law of nature is so subtle that every part of our body is influenced by the respective stars, and a living being obtains his working body to fulfill his terms of imprisonment by the manipulation of such astronomical influence. A man's destiny is therefore ascertained by the birthtime constellation of stars, and a factual horoscope is made by a learned astrologer. It is a great science, and misuse of a science does not make it useless. Maharaja Pariksit or even the Personality of Godhead appear in certain constellations of good stars, and thus the influence is exerted upon the body thus born at an auspicious moment. The most auspicious constellation of stars takes place during the appearance of the Lord in this material world, and it is specifically called jayanti, a word not to be abused for any other purposes.
Maharaja Pariksit was not only a great ksatriya emperor, but also a great devotee of the Lord. Thus he cannot take his birth at any inauspicious moment. As a proper place and time is selected to receive a respectable personage, so also to receive such a personality as Maharaja Pariksit, who was especially cared for by the Supreme Lord, a suitable moment is chosen when all good stars assembled together to exert their influence upon the King. Thus he took his birth just to be known as the great hero of Srimad-Bhagavatam.
This suitable arrangement of astral influences is never a creation of man's will, but is the arrangement of the superior manage-ment of the agency of the Supreme Lord. Of course, the arrangement is made according to the good or bad deeds of the living being. Herein lies the importance of pious acts performed by the living being. Only by pious acts can one be allowed to get good wealth, good education and beautiful features. . . .”
From that quote we see that we have to respect the time of appearance of such great souls like Srila Prabhupada. A horoscope made by a learned astrologer on the basis of such respected birth time should reveal Srila Prabhupada’s activities. Also we read that ”this suitable arrangement of astral influences is never a creation of man's will, but is the arrangement of the superior management of the agency of the Supreme Lord”. Just like the words of Guru are respected as they carry the transcendental message not to be gained in any other way, similarly we should respect a knowledge about Guru’s appearance given by Himself.
In my astrological practice I have found that people don’t understand the importance of the exact time of birth. That’s why about 50% of people who contacted me didn’t know the exact time of birth. Or were giving me wrong time due to some mistake of the parents, their own bad memory, etc. Therefore before I agree to look into somebody’s chart I strongly insist that he should do everything possible to check the actual time of birth. Otherwise it is just a great speculation on the part of astrologer. It is because in our culture there is no tradition of using astrology. Thus for example doctors of one devotee here in Poland changed his time of birth to the previous day because they considered it would be more auspicious if he takes birth in the day presided over by one of christian saints! Not only doctors, but also some neophyte astrologers who don’t understand the position of the Supeme Personality of Godhead as the Time, tend to speculate about people’s time of birth before they try to check all possible sources of such information.
There are some books containing hundreds of charts of some historical persons. Times of birth are not authentic there (difficult to get, especially in the West), but are speculated on the basis of very superficial assumptions that could be made only by uneducated and inexperienced people trying to be astrologers.
Knowing that from my experience (and my own mistakes), I purposefully introduced into my astrology lessons in the school a procedure of finding unknown time of birth. I have done it not to actually teach them that, but to give them experience how difficult it is. And how great speculation is involved if one doesn’t know what he is doing. That’s when they understood how limited their abilities are.
For example, I was giving them a date of birth of John Paul II (they know him well, he is Polish) and ordered to find out a time of birth. You get 12 basic charts a day (I mean 12 ascending signs of the zodiac) and they had to analyse them and show the proper one. Usually everybody went into wide ocean of speculation and couldn’t get the point. See the higher level of difficulty. Here you have to choose only Saggitarius or Capricorn. But they had to choose from 12 charts!
Another exercise of even higher difficulty involved two personalities widely known in karmi world:
Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin. They were born on the same day, but on different continents and at different time of the day. Here the students had to match two charts out of 12 to two life pictures of those men. Very difficult!
The procedure requires that you have to know a lot of details from their life: dates, events, characteristics, qualities, actions, failures and accomplishments. From many spheres of life. And then you have to analyse all the charts from many points of view. It’s a lot of work! But it is a typical part of education of an astrologer. But it is also an advanced techinque. It is not sufficient to only check few basic elements.
Astrology is complex as the life is complex. Otherwise it could not function.
Conclusion
1. We should respect the arrangement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in his form of Kala (time) that allowed us to get unlimited benefit of associating with Srila Prabhupada by his appearance amonst us.
It does not only include his birth, but also life events that lead him to come to the West to save us. His time of birth should be respected as it is an integral part of his life of a great devotee of the Lord and a preacher of unlimited capacity.
2. Srila Prabhupada’s own testimony on the time of his birth is final and any efforts to undermine his own opinion are not proper. In our parampara we see other great acaryas-astrologers like Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, or Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. The grandfather of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur was also predicting his future, and Srila Bhaktivinode Himself was acquainted with the science to some extent. It is difficult to expect that Srila Prabhupada would not take any interest in that subject when so many of his predecessors did. Many references about astrology and astronomy in his books, lectures, letters and conversations indicate it clearly. Also as a person coming from a Indian culture had to consult with astrologers and had to know the time of his birth.
3. If the time of Srila Prabhupada’s birth wouldn’t be known exactly then we could start speculate and try to find out a proper time of birth.
A. In such a case the chart submitted by HG Shyamasundara Prabhu is brilliant and completely satisfying a mind of an astrologer. I mean here not only general interpretaton, but especially a detailed study of all inherent strenghts and weaknesses (like family life, etc.). Also his presentation of planetary periods and their connection with Prabhupada’s life events is impressive. I would say it was a good lesson of astrology. His comparative study of the Capricorn and Saggitarius charts is very solid, detailed and based on sastric principles. I completely agree with his opinion on that matter.
B. Arguments of HG Nalini Kanta Prabhu for changing Srila Prabhupada’s time of birth are based on unsubstantial assumptions. I mean both his attempt to question Prabhupada’s opinion on that subject and astrological tools used by him. The tools were invalid (as shown by Shyamasundara, Nalini made several basic mistakes in the art) and the way he used them was also improper (he mainly tried to emotionally impress his own idea on others, instead of performing an impartial analysis based on proper astrological principles).
At the end I would like to mention that I initially learned some basic elements of astrology from HG Nalini Kanta’s book. Thus I feel indebted to him for introducing me into that science. But later I had to refuse some of the principles I learned from him after comparing his teaching with standard books on astrology written by the acarayas like Parasara and Varaha Mihira. It is especially related to his method of calculating planetary periods, connection of zodiacal signs with the varnas, and a very simplistic approach to very complex atrological problems. Initially I have also learned from him that Srila Prabhupada has Saggitarius rising. But after some time of studying and receiving some informations about a proper time of birth of Prabhupada I changed my opinion. Now I completely accept Capricorn chart as the only proper one.
Thank You for allowing me to serve you.
Your humble servant Bhaktivinode Thakur dasa