Indian Astrology- An Interesting and Useful Science

The history of Indian astrology can be traced back to the Vedic times of 1500 BC. Parts of Atharvaveda deals with traditions of Indian astrology. The influence of planets on human life is the basic mantra of Indian astrology. The ancient saints and sages of India have spent years to study the influence of the planets and formed the science called Indian astrology. It came into being long before the advent of western astrology. This science is interesting, instructive and useful to the moral and material advancement of mankind. Interpreting the planetary movements, Indian astrology foretells the future of individuals, nations or other events. Indian astrology figures out what it envisages about the future of a man as shaped by his previous karma or birth and by the planetary positions at the time of his birth.
There are mainly three branches in Indian astrology, namely-Siddhanta, Samhita and Hora. Siddhantas are those who deal with the astronomical study of heavenly bodies. Samhitas devote themselves in mundane astrology like that of earth quakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, rainfall, whether conditions, economic conditions. The Hora predicts the proper timing of the events in our daily lives. Indian Astrology believes in twenty seven Nakshatras. The movement of the two luminaries Sun and Moon, the five major planets- Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mercury and the two nodal points of the Moon i.e. Rahu and Ketu are considered to be of profound importance. The planets like Pluto, Neptune and Uranus are not recognized by Indian astrology as they were discovered much later.
Indian astrology is hugely popular in India for predicting the birth, nature of marriage, compatibility of the bride and groom, career, finances, diseases and also death of people. Day by day Indian astrology is gaining popularity all over the world. The zodiac used by the Indian astrologers and that of the western astrologers different in nature. The popular sciences in Indian astrology are Palmistry, Sade Sati and the Nadi Shastra. Palmistry or Hasta rekha Vigyan is the most popular form of astrology in India. In this form the shapes of the hand and the lines are interpreted by the astrologers in order to understand the nature of a person as well as to predict his future. The Sade Sati deals with an important aspect of reading horoscope. It refers to a time period of seven and half years dominated by the influence of Saturn in human life. Originated about 2000 years ago the Nadi Shastra is a unique form of astrology. In it an individual can read his destiny inscribed on Palm leaves thousands of years ago. It’s an ancient method of recording data.