It was around the year 1998, that I had a friend named S, who was well versed in astrology. He had bought a device similar to a palmtop computer for Rs.10,000 way back in those days and used it for generating charts and studying them. He had a room full of books which was his library. He was not a Brahmin. I vaguely remember him mentioning to me once that he belonged to the weaver caste. He used to research astrology day and night.
I was surprised by his keen interest in astrology. I never ask my friends what their caste is. Only recently did I come to know the caste of some of my friends, when I attended their marriage ceremony. Our friendships were thus beyond the borders of caste and based more on the subject.
Coming back to the topic, S used to chant Ganesh mantra in the evenings, after taking a bath. Neither did I ever ask him nor did he mention from whom he had taken initiation. He used to follow the Krishnamurthy method of astrology. Krishnamurthy was a practitioner of Uchishta Ganapati, so I knew that most people following his method chanted the Ganesha mantra. Therefore, I too did not ask him. But, as soon as it was night, he’d partake of meat and alcohol. I came to know of his habits only when we went for an astrology conference in Kolkata, where I happened to stay with him in the same room.
Upon seeing this, I asked him why he indulged in alcohol and meat while on the other hand, he was studying astrology and chanting mantras.
He did not answer my question, but instead replied, “Why, isn’t meat eating and alcohol consumption permitted in Tantra?”
By then, I already had strong experience in Tantra. I knew many people who used to fool themselves into believing their ‘lack of restraint’ to be Tantra. Realizing that he was not in a position to understand what I was saying, I simply smiled and remained quiet, to avoid unnecessary arguments.
Nevertheless, I told him one thing, “The practitioners of astrology must observe strict discipline and stay away from such habits. Otherwise, one cannot gain mastery over this science. Even if one comes to have strong interest in astrology by virtue of his association with it from previous births, it does not come to proper utility, and the remedies too, will not work. Let alone suggesting remedies to others, one cannot clear his own karma.” To which he quietly smiled but said nothing. I knew that he would not care for my advice since he had already gone beyond the stage of giving up such habits.
One day, while looking into his horoscope, we determined his atma karaka based on the Jaimini principle - ātmādhika kalādhibhiḥ and Sage Parasara’s principle - sa bhavedrāśi kalayō rādhikyā dātmakārakaḥ and continued to further discuss his chart. He was not familiar with the Jaimini method, so he used to ask me about it.
In those days, we used to rigorously study various methods of astrology, apply them to different horoscopes and discuss them. However, he did not practice traditional remedies. Instead, everyday, he used to experiment with different articles available in the market such as pyramids, dollars, rudrakshas as remedies, some per his own ideas and some from the books. I used to warn him not to fall prey to those but he never listened. He never practiced the remedies that were passed down through generations.
As soon as I saw the karakamsa in his chart, the Jaimini principle - samē vāhanā duccācca kramātpatanaṃ instantly flashed in my mind. If the karakamsa is dhanus, there will be a danger of either falling off the vehicles or from elevated places. The same combination was visible in his chart. Immediately, we examined jaiminiya charadasa and gochara. My heart palpitated as soon as I saw the current dasa. After great hesitation, I told him, “No matter what happens, do not ever drive fast”. He nodded his head as if in agreement.
Perhaps a month later, while he was returning to Tadepalli on a bike from Vijayawada at around 11 in the night, a fast car approaching from the opposite direction, at a turning near Saibaba temple lost control and hit him. He fell from his bike and rolled into a ditch beside the road, resulting in a fractured leg. After staying in the hospital for a week, he died of a heart attack on the operation table. He was only 33 years old.
Vāhanā duccācca kramātpatanaṃ - ‘Accidents due to falling off a vehicle and rolling down from heights is indicated’, a principle stated by Sage Jaimini, thousands of years ago, came literally true in his case. However, we cannot fathom the intelligence of the sages, who could prove such combinations through extensive research and record them as aphorisms. This event astonished me and also fostered greater interest in me to perform deeper research in the science of astrology.
Even though it was a very tragic incident, it is one of my unforgettable past predictions.
All rights reserved. This article has been translated by Ranganath D, which was originally posted in teluguyogi.net on September 18, 2010. The content or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express permission of the publisher.