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Relevance of Astrology to Modern Times* DR. B. V. RAMAN
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HE MORE SCIENCE PROVED the mysteries of space influences the more apparent it becomes that astrology, held in scorn so long, is due for a serious and impartial re-assessment,” observed Prof. B. V. Raman, Editor, THE ASTROLOGICAL MAGAZINE, Bangalore. He was delivering a lecture at the United Nations (Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium), New York, on 9th October 1970, on “The Relevance of Astrology to Modern Times”. Prof. Raman said that in recent times, scientists who began an enquiry to disprove the validity of astrology by means of statistical probability had begun to discover to their own amazement the extraordinary link between planetary rhythms and human activity. “Reluctant to admit on the basis of their own statistical findings that the vision of astrology is a scientific and not a mystical one, some of the scientists are seeking to establish the existence of what they call planetary heredity since they feel that ‘the connection glimpsed between mankind and planets would then become attached to a recognised field of knowledge (genetics) and would be more easily reconciled within the framework of modern science’. As Gaqueline says, ‘the hour of birth could be explained as a kind of biological reaction to a spatial effect obtaining at the moment,” said Prof. Raman. Prof. Raman continued that “there is no longer any doubt that extra-terrestrial forces have a powerful unseen effect in all areas of existence, individual and collective. Links have now been securely forged between living organisms and the fluctuating electro-magnetic forces of their environment. Geophysicists are now busily engaged in unraveling the ways in which variations in atmospheric forces are related to the activities and movements of the earth, the Sun, the Moon, planets and even distant stars. The version of astrology created by ancient civilizations, particularly India, which was! hitherto scorned by scientists, is now considered to be obscuring important scientific facts. Astrology is more than a science”. * Lecture delivered at United Nations on 9th October 1970 THE ASTROLOGICAL eMAGAZINE
Statistical studies, said Prof. Raman, had clearly established that the month of birth served as an indication of the child’s future constitution and even intellectual abilities. Huntington in 1933 tabulated the intelligence quotients of thousands of school children in or near New York and found on an average that children born in May and June and also September and October had a slightly higher intelligence than those born at other times. Of 17,000 children investigated, the average intelligence was lowest among the January and February born. Huntington had but proved an ancient astrological truth, he said. Prof. Raman referred to recent investigations by psychologists that confirmed the diagnostic power of astrology. They had discovered to their amazement that tension built up in human systems at an angle which was a function of the Moon’s phase, i.e., the angle between the Sun and the Moon. Major part of one’s nature and temperament depended upon the particular lunar phase one was born in. Obviously this was direct confirmation of what Hindu astrologers noticed thousands of years ago. Another important field of great significance to modern life, Prof. Raman pointed out, was the lunar influence on conception. If the Hindu astrological views were examined in the light of researches made by Dr. Jonas, a gynecologist of Slovakia, one would be amazed at the foresight, of Indian sages in intuitionally sensing that a relationship existed between human reproductive functions and lunar phenomena. Suitable days for conception and for getting the child of the desired sex based on the angular disposition of the Sun and the Moon were clearly given in ancient astrological works. According to the Slovak gynecologist, the time of a woman’s maximum fertility in each synodic lunar month was the point at which the Moon reached exactly the same relationship with the Sun in degrees and minutes as it had at the time of her own birth. This knowledge, is of paramount importance to family planning. Quoting other instances, Prof. Raman said that according to Dr. J. B. Blizard of Denver University, solar activity AUGUST 2012
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was related to positions of Mercury, Venus, Earth and Jupiter when jointly affected the tidal force of the Sun. Astronomer Michef Trams has produced evidence that the gravitational effects of planets modulated the 11 year solar activity cycle. G. Piccardi observed that since planets could affect the Sun, it must be admitted that they affected the earth as well. American Scientist Brigg proposed that Venus and Mercury had their effect on the magnetic storms blowing on the earth Prof. Raman said that the problems facing the new astrologers were now these planetary effects were to be integrated into the total picture of modern science. Dealing briefly with the relation of history to planetary movements, Prof. Raman gave a whole series of historical events that related to patterns of planetary configuration. Several important events happened in India whenever Saturn was in Cancer and also when Jupiter was in Pisces. If the two series - Saturn in Cancer and Jupiter in Pisces - happened to intersect each other, something of very great importance could be expected to happen. Such a planetary intersection would occur in 1975-76 as it did in 1857-58. That would be a very significant period in Indian history. Prof. Raman pinpointed the relevance of astrology to modern times by saying that “world events and destinies of nations are shaped to a large extent by the physical and mental health of those who occupy the seats of power. The psychological changes characteristic of certain diseases may have influenced key decisions by world leaders. Though modern democratic governments may have built-in processes of discussion and safeguards, the final decision rests with a single person. Every person, including, of course world leaders, go through periods when their outlook is apt to be colored by personal psychological pressures. How do such psychological pressures come ? Where do they come from ? It is only astrology that can say that these pressures do not come by chance but follow a pattern laid down at birth. Take the case of Kaiser Wilhelm. That side of personality which was strongly
influenced by Mars—aggression—came to the fore in his 56th year. This could have been worked out years in advance by the simple process of astrological mathematics and steps taken to prevent this misnomer. Concluding his talk on a philosophical note, Prof. Raman said that the question of human freedom would not rise in regard to astrological claims of predicting events. If the future of man is determined by the planets and stars, there is nothing that he can achieve by his own effort. His fate would be reduced to that of a puppet which has to make every movement in mechanical obedience to the pulls of the operator. Astrology reveals only general tendencies, good times and bad times for certain kinds of choice. The real situation is that man is partly free and partly determined. His parentage, heredity, social position, his nationality, his temperament and other natural endowments are determined. They are his capital. He can use this capital to rise or sink. Man has enough freedom to make or mar himself. Only he has not enough freedom to command nature and history to suit his fancies,” he said. Prof. Raman wanted the diplomats in the world organisation to put astrology to proper use by establishing an astrological cell so that they could get in advance a picture of how the minds of the statesmen at the helm of affairs in different nations worked and how best a threatened aggression could be tackled by the peace-makers. Earlier, introducing the speaker, Mr. C. V. Narasimhan, Chef-de-Cabinet, United Nations said : “Prof. Raman, who is now in the United States, is not a professional astrologer. He is a well-known scholar and a scientist. His contribution to the revival of a healthy interest in astrology is indeed considerable. He has been crusading to find for astrology an honoured place in the comity of other sciences. He is not only editor of a leading monthly — THE ASTROLOGICAL MAGAZINE, which has a worldwide readership but author of innumerable works on astrology. This evening Prof. Raman will speak to us on the Revelance of Astrology to Modern Times.”
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Tribute to my Grandfather Dr. B. V. Raman RAMAN SUPRAJARAMA
“Suprajarama. It's 4 o' clock. Get ready”. It was a quite afternoon, and I was playing my umpteenth match of the day. It was a lucky day for me as I had won most of the matches. The wickets were a wall with three lines drawn from a chalk on one side and the other, a half broken wet brick with traces of algae. I was batting first and had scored quite well. I was determined to score my first half-century for the day. As soon as I heard those words from Appa, I threw my bat into the bushes and went inside “Sri Rajeswari” to wash and tidy up. I didn't think twice. All of sudden, the half-century target became trivial. Here I was, all set and determined to make my first half-century of the day, and few seconds later, not interested anymore. I have to ask Appa about the Gayatri mantra today. Appa was going for his usual 4.00 pm walk on the railway parallel road and he used to take me along. Dr. Raman, or Appa as we called him had a very different relationship with all the family members. He treated all his children and grandchildren equally, helped everyone and blessed everyone. Every family member regarded him as GOD. We seized every opportunity to touch his feet and take his blessings first. The other gods like Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara had to wait in queue for their turn. Thanks to my Karma, I got to spend most of my time with Appa. My school, timings, interest and hobbies had somehow magically adjusted to Appa's routine. This way, I was with Appa always, as his sidekick. The previous day, I was reading about Gayatri mantra, its meaning and its importance and had discovered that Gayatri mantra was called so because of the meter in which it was constructed, 26
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and not because it invoked Goddess Gayatri as I had assumed. I was all excited about my discovery and was eager to tell this to Appa. On our walk, I said to Appa, “Appa, do you know that Gayatri mantra is not to invoke Goddess Gayatri. It is actually because it is constructed in that meter.” Appa quietly smiled and listened. I went on telling him about how I discovered, what god it invokes and what meaning it has. Appa didn't interrupt till I was done. When I finished he said, “Yes. Correct. Nice work”. When I heard these words, I was filled with pride. He didn't stop there. He continued, “The meaning you told is what the words literally translate to. There is a deeper meaning to it”. He then went to explain the true meaning and finally said “Chant it as often as you can. Always have a count of the number of Japas you do. Remember, Diyo Yonah Prachodayat means 'influence my intellect'. So it will make you a better person”. There were a lot sessions like these where I enquired, debated and enjoyed with Appa. I observed in him a lot of qualities, which I try to inculcate in myself. Appa was highly disciplined. The secret of his success was partly due of his disciplined life. Appa's schedule started around 5.00 a.m. in the morning. The day began with sipping hot South Indian coffee, chat with me for sometime, read the newspaper, and later doing Sandhyavandhanam. His day was perfectly planned and his discipline was unmatched. He never missed performing Sadhyavandhanam twice a day, go for a walk daily at 4.00 pm, read the entire newspaper or clean up his table before going to bed. There wasn't a day that I can remember of where he skipped them. Discipline existed even in his diet. He used to have one and half servings of rice, one cooked and one uncooked THE ASTROLOGICAL eMAGAZINE
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