Hey everyone!​

I hope everyone had enjoyable and productive eclipse experiences. I recently read an interesting article about how eclipses affects plants - scientists observed that rates of photosynthesis and respiration declined almost to night time levels during the eclipse, and that when the Sun reappeared, it stressed the plants out. Poor plants! 

Just a quick announcement - I’m going to be in India for most of September, so if anyone needs any astrology in the next few weeks, please let me know soon so we can schedule something. India is going to be a bit of an adventure. I’m planning to visit a few remote temples deep in the Himalayas, and if all goes well, you’ll be reading about it in the next newsletter some time in October. Stay tuned! :)

I wouldn’t be able to leave without giving you an update on what’s happening in the skies, so back to our regularly scheduled astrology - Venus is going to be in Virgo from Sep 10th to Oct 3rd (Sep 9th to Oct 2nd for Americans). Virgo, being the sign of analysis and organization, is not a natural place for the loving and creative Venus to be in. This placement of Venus gives us a tendency to be a bit analytical with our relationships, and perhaps even a little critical. Many relationship counsellors and psychologists have their Venus placed in Virgo in their birth chart, and during this transit, we will all be able to experience some of this energy. In general, this is a good time to feel your emotions, experience it fully, and let it go.
​
For an example of this in a person, let’s look at John Mayer’s chart, whose Venus is in Virgo:

This is a special edition of my newsletter focused on the upcoming two eclipse. Eclipses are generally not a good time to start something new, but are great for spiritual endeavors. This is especially true for the 3 days before and after an eclipse, and is also true regardless on whether you can see them or not. In addition to this, eclipses can affect certain individuals for up to 6 months if the eclipse happens to take place over one of the person’s birth / natal planets. To learn more about eclipses, please click here. 
​
The first eclipse’s maximum point is on July 3rd, 5:23AM AEST (July 2nd 12:23PM PST in the US). This is a total solar eclipse, visible only in parts of South America:

There is a story about this. Once upon a time, all the higher beings in the universe were competing on who could ride around the universe fastest. All the Gods had their mighty mounts ready - Indra ascended his powerful elephant, Murugan took his place on his magnificent peacock, Ganesha sat on his mouse, etc. Well, after Shiva said "ready, set, go!", all the Gods took off and left poor Ganesha on his mouse. Ganesha realized he couldn't catch up, and so he went to his mother Parvati for some company. As he was walking towards her, Shiva said "the boy's got it!" ​

Ganesha didn't get it initially, but after thinking about it for a while, he rode around his mother and told her she was the entire universe. Because Parvati is the embodiment of Shakti, the universe's divine energy, she is the universe personified. By the way, we have this same energy (and the entire universe!) in the Kundalini energy in our spine. 

As a prize, Shiva said that every Vedic ceremony will begin with Ganesha. So back to the eclipse - because this eclipse will disrupt the energy in Uttara Ashadha, it makes the 3 days before and after July 17th especially bad for starting anything new. It is however a good time to meditate and release internal blocks in your physical and astral body, and let go of things that cause obstacles in your life. If you don't already have a meditation practice, this is a good time to experiment with a Ganesha mantra like Om Gum Ganapatayei Namaha. 

Hey everyone!

How has your practice of relaxing and letting go of frustrations gone during this Saturn / Mars transit? I hope you are enjoying this wonderful opportunity to surrender to the universe! And if not, don’t worry, everything will get better in a couple of weeks :)

On June 4th (June 3rd in the US), Venus joined the Sun in Taurus. Taurus is the sign of material comfort, and as Venus is the planet of sensual material pleasures, Taurus is one of Venus’ home signs. This means, just like how you are probably more comfortable at home expressing your true nature, Venus is more comfortable expressing its energy and delivering you enjoyable experiences from Taurus. 

In addition to this nice situation, Jupiter is looking at Venus, giving it a big positive boost through this period. Venus is also with the Sun till June 15th (June 14th in the US), making Venus even more expressive. All these planets combine to bring love and light into your life. 
​
However, this combination is happening at the same time as the Saturn / Mars transit. This can be a little confusing - will this month be pleasurable like Venus, or frustrating like Saturn / Mars? Well, my teacher always says everything in the chart comes out. Life is messy and there are always multiple things happening at the same time. Take for example model Miranda Kerr - her birth chart has Jupiter looking at Venus, her Venus is in Taurus, and her Saturn and Mars are also looking at each other (exactly what is happening in the skies right now):

Miranda married Orlando Bloom in 2010, and later divorced him. She is currently married to the Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel. Her Jupiter and Venus form a powerful wealth combination, and since Jupiter is in Anuradha (a constellation related to devotional relationships), this gives her material comfort especially after marriage. At the same time, her Saturn rules her house of relationships, and being involved with a conjunction with Mars, gives her some frustrations related to her partner. So, everything in the chart comes out - she married wealthy men but has has had a divorce. 
​
So, back to your life - how does this Venus / Jupiter combination affect you? I’ve written out some mini-predictions to try and answer this question. Of course, there are many other things that fill out the picture of your life (most of it individualized from your birth chart), but this transit will show one small perspective. I have arranged these mini predictions according to your Vedic Sun signs; you can find your Vedic Sun sign by finding which date range includes your birthday. Please read the birth times carefully as your Vedic Sun sign can be different from your Western one (reason here). If you know your Vedic Ascendant sign or your Vedic Moon sign, the predictions corresponding to those signs are also applicable to you.
​

Aries (April 14th to May 14th): Venus is in your house of food and family, giving you pleasurable experiences related to both. You may have a desire to eat nice food, and this is a good time to enjoy your loving family relationships. 

Taurus (May 15th to June 14th): This should be a period of good health for you, so if you were ill in the last few months, you can look forward to a period of better health. This transit will also make you express your charisma more easily, and people may like you more. 

Gemini (June 14th to July 16th): Venus is in your house of spirituality, so this is a good time for you to go deeper in practices of devotion like Bhakti Yoga. If you are feeling overworked, this is also a good time for you to go on a nice holiday, far away from where you live. 

Cancer (July 17th to August 16th): This placement should help you achieve your goals, and is also a transit that encourages socializing with groups of friends. Networking, meeting new people, or just seeing old friends are all appropriate activities for this period. 

Leo (August 17th to September 16th): You may experience an uplift in your creativity during this period. It's a good period for brainstorming, or if you're in a design-oriented career, you might be especially productive during this period. In general, you will receive a boost in your career. 

Virgo (September 17th to October 16th): This is a good period for traveling, learning, and general wealth. If you are studying, you might develop a closer relationship with your teacher. If you are feeling overworked, this is also a good time for you to go on a nice holiday, far away from where you live. 

Libra (October 17th to November 15th): This period may bring a bonus or some additional income from your business partners or clients. It's also a good time to do some debt collection if anyone owes you money. You will also have good experiences if you choose to indulge in a therapeutic massage or other relaxing treatments. 

Scorpio (November 16th to December 15th): Venus is in your house of relationships, so this period should bring you pleasurable experiences with your partner. If you're single, it might be time to go on some dates. 

Sagittarius (December 16th to January 14th): This should be a period of good health for you, so if you were ill in the last few months, you can look forward to a period of better health. This can also bring you pleasurable experiences related to pets, or bring you a positive boost in your employment. 

Capricorn (January 15th to February 12th): If you have an investment idea in the next few weeks, this might be time to give it a go as Venus should bring you pleasurable experiences related to investments. This can also bring you nice experiences related to children and learning. 

Aquarius (Feb 13th March 14th): This will bring you nice experiences related to your home. If you've wanted to start a renovation or remodel a part of the house, this is a good time to seek some advice about the project. 

Pisces (March 15th to April 13th): Venus is in your house of communication, so you will have a tendency to speak more charismatically and lovingly during this period. If you have siblings, this may bring pleasurable experiences related to them. Venus is also in the house of short distance travel, so a nice road trip might also be an appropriate way to celebrate Venus in Taurus. 


Venus is in Taurus till June 28th (June 27th in the US), just before the start Eclipse Season 2 of 2019. So, hope you all have a pleasurable rest of June and go into July ready for a more introspective and meditative month. Stay tuned - I’m planning on sending out a special eclipse edition of this newsletter later this month. 

Her Rahu is in her first house, and describes a key part of her personality. As mentioned earlier, Rahu in Gemini brings an obsessive desire to communicate, and this has materialized clearly -  she is an actress, and wants to express her creativity and communicate it with the world. ​

Specific to Elisabeth’s first house and general life, and not necessarily related to how the transit will affect you, Rahu in the first house can make a person an outsider and have a different belief system to society. This is because in the above story, Rahu was an outsider and had a different belief system to the Devas. So, it is perhaps appropriate that in Elisabeth’s Mad Men and Handmaid’s Tale roles, she plays an outsider to the society she lives in. Outside of her acting roles, she also has a different belief system to our society, as she was raised a Scientologist. 

Ms. Moss’ Ketu is in her house of relationships, and this gives her chronic disappointments related to her relationships. This tendency to be disappointed is emphasized by her Ketu being in a Nakshatra called Purva Ashadha, which is symbolized by a winnowing basket, a symbol of separation. In fact, she separated from her first husband after only 8 months, and described the marriage as "extremely traumatic and awful and horrible". Ketu in Sagittarius brings disappointments related to dharma and truth, and her ex-husband’s infidelity is an expression of this. 

Back to transit starting on March 24th - how this transit affects you depends on your chart, shown below. Of course, there are many other things that fill out the picture of your life (most of it individualized from your birth chart), but this transit will show one small perspective. I have arranged these mini predictions according to your Vedic Sun signs; you can find your Vedic Sun sign by finding which date range includes your birthday. Please read the birth times carefully as your Vedic Sun sign can be different from your Western one (reason here). If you know your Vedic Ascendant sign or your Vedic Moon sign, the predictions corresponding to those signs are also applicable to you. 


Aries (April 14th to May 14th): This transit will bring a desire to communicate with everyone, and especially with people from different cultures or different countries from you. It may also cause disappointments in wealth, so this is a time to be conservative with investments. On a more positive note, it might be a good time for you to go on a quiet backpacking trip or a religious pilgrimage. 

Taurus (May 15th to June 14th): This period may give you strong desires to eat and drink, and it is beneficial for you to abstain from drugs and alcohol. The reason for this is once you start, the desires will become obsessive, and may result in adverse health effects. Meditation and yoga can help bring you detachment so you have a bit more self-control. 

Gemini (June 14th to July 16th): You may have some disappointments related to your relationships. This is a good time to spiritualize your relationship, and develop a meditation practice with your partner. Being disciplined with this practice will allow both of you to go deeper together, and overcome any obstacles. 

Cancer (July 17th to August 16th): This is a period where you may develop a greater interest in spirituality, especially new or esoteric spiritual topics. On a more negative note, it is important during this period to seek a second opinion if any health issues surface as Ketu is covering up the true nature of your diseases. To offset this, maybe you can be more disciplined with your exercise routine. 

Leo (August 17th to September 16th): This is a period where you may develop intense and obsessive desires related to your goals. Try to be more detached when pursuing your goals in life - focus on your actions and not on the end result. You may also experience some difficulties in learning things during this period - maybe your mind is going through your textbook in a stream of consciousness, and you are getting a little lost in your mind. Take a step back and relax, and that will help you see the whole picture. 

Virgo (September 17th to October 16th): You may have some disappointments and delays related to your home or vehicles. If you are trying to buy a house or a car, you may have some delays and feel a bit lost during the process. On the plus side, this is a good time to focus on your career, especially if your career has anything to do with new or unconventional things like technology etc. 

Libra (October 17th to November 15th): This is a good period to work on improving your communication. Be conscious if you are communicating in a stream of conscious because people may find difficulty following you. There may also be a tendency to be evasive or lie - be careful as it might come back to bite you in the butt! You might also be interested in new or alternative spiritual paths during this period. 

Scorpio (November 16th to December 15th): Be careful with finances during this period. It’s a good idea to be a little more conservative with your spending and try and save more. This is also a period where you should be a bit more careful about your health, especially related to your diet. Try and eat more sattvic and healthy foods. 

Sagittarius (December 16th to January 14th): During this period, there is a tendency for you to be overly obsessed about your relationship, especially if the person you’re with has a similar background or personality to you. If you are single, there is a possibility for you to start dating someone that’s a little different from you - perhaps they are from overseas or from a different culture. If you feel you are becoming a little too clingy, take a step back and breathe. 

Capricorn (January 15th to February 12th): During this period, if you are in any competitive situations like legal battles, sports, business, or if you’re trying to get a promotion over someone else, there is a higher possibility for you to win. This is also a good time to travel overseas, especially if it’s a spiritual pilgrimage. 

Aquarius (Feb 13th March 14th): You may have some disappointments related to goals or promotions during this period. There is a tendency for you to be sucked into bad investments - remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! During this period, it may be better to invest in conservative, more slow moving financial instruments. 

Pisces (March 15th to April 13th): This is a good time to remodel your home or living situation, maybe with some smart home devices or anything related to technology. At work, there is a tendency to feel a little lost. If this happens, just relax and go with the flow, and if you find that difficult, maybe try and meditate a little more. 

​
I hope you find these mini-predictions useful, till next month! :)

Your Vedic Sun sign may be different from your Western Sun sign because Jyotish is a visual system that uses the sidereal zodiac, whereas Western Astrology is a symbolic system that uses the tropic zodiac. I know what most of you are thinking - what does this mean? 

Well, Western Astrology uses the first day of Spring to symbolize new beginnings. So, the Western system says that on the first day of Spring every year, the Sun enters the first sign of the Zodiac, Aries. From that date, the rest of the planetary movements are calculated. However, if you looked up in the sky, the Sun actually entered Aries on April 14th this year, not on the first day of Spring (March 20th). This is because as our Earth rotates, it wobbles a little bit, causing the the Sun to enter Aries at a slightly later time every year. For reference, the last time the Sun first entered Aries on the first day of Spring was about 1500 years ago. 

Jyotish, on the other hand, is a visual system, so it uses fixed stars to calibrate the date and time when all the heavenly bodies move across signs. These have been verified through modern astronomical observations. Said another way, if you looked into the sky when you were born, your Sun would be in your Jyotish Sun sign, but may or may not be in your Western Sun sign. ​

Having said all this, Western Astrology works well in isolation, and so my general advice is to not compare astronomical details across astrology systems. Both systems should tell you similar things, and generally the universe guides you to the astrologer that can tell you what you need to know.

If you would like to learn more about Vedic Astrology, please click here :) 

Hi everyone!

In the last two newsletters, we talked about how eclipses aren’t the time to start something new. Well, when do you start then? In Jyotish, there is a technique called Muhurtha, where an astrologer picks a good time for you to start something. This is a time consuming process, as the astrologer (me!) has to go through charts calculated from many different times to find the best one. Imagine if you could pick your own birth time - what would your chart look like? What qualities would you give yourself? How would you offset the weaknesses in the chart? Muhurtha gives you this freedom on a smaller level, letting you pick the “birth time” of many things in your life, for example, your wedding, your business, your house purchase, your new job, or even an important trip or journey. 

As a brief example, let’s look at the marriage chart of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. They were married on November 18th, 2006 shortly after sunset, and divorced in August 20th 2012. Here is the chart of their marriage:

Back in the day, the teacher was the most respected person in society, and the Devas would seek Brihaspati’s advice for all things, including their questions related to their spirituality. He is also the universe’s first astrology teacher - he taught Jyotish to the Devas. Brihaspati was an orthodox teacher, and his teachings were based on the very traditional Vedic body of knowledge. Having Pushya’s energy disrupted in our world means that the leaders and advisors of our world have a tendency to break out of the conventional way of doing things, degrade societal norms, and may even lead us away from universal law. To do your part in restoring Brihaspati’s energy in the world, and to offset the negatives of this eclipse, you can say the mantra for Pushya during the eclipse a few times: Om Sri Pushya Nakshatra Devataye Namaha.​

The material energy is disrupted intensely 3 days before and after any eclipse. This affects the whole world and all its inhabitants. In addition to this, eclipses can affect certain individuals for up to 6 months if the eclipse happens to take place over one of the person’s birth / natal planets. For example, this eclipse is taking place over Donald Trump’s natal Venus, one of his career planets. This will affect his career negatively for the next 6 months. His natal Venus is in Punarvasu Nakshatra, which is symbolized by a quiver of arrows. This is a war symbol and shows he won’t be following convention in matters related to war, which has actually already begun with his decision to pull out of Syria (against the advice of most military leaders). This eclipse could also detract from his ability to combat the many battles he fights with people closer to home (border wall, Russian investigation, etc).

Going back to August 21st 2017, there was another eclipse that also affected Trump. This eclipse was in Magha Nakshatra, which is symbolized by a throne room. The eclipse disrupted Trump’s desire to be treated like a king, and it marked the start of real consequences to his past actions - his associates started going to prison for crimes. On October 30th 2017, George Papadopoulos (foreign policy guy) pled guilty, and Paul Manafort (campaign manager) and Rick Gates (political consultant) were indicted. Also within 6 months of the eclipse, on December 1st 2017, Mike Flynn (National Security Advisor) pled guilty.

Trump entered his Saturn sub-planetary period on January 3rd 2019. He had been in his Jupiter sub-period since Nov 14th 2016 (it started within a week of the US election!). Jupiter represents a chunk of exceptionally good Karma he brought into this life. Saturn, on the other hand, is a more difficult planet for him, and compounded with the eclipse on January 21st, you would expect a more difficult time for him in the coming months. ​

On that note, I hope all of you are doing well, and that you will be able to use this eclipse to serve your higher purposes. Next month, we move on from eclipses, and so please drop me an email if you have a special request for the newsletter. Political feedback about Trump, however, should be posted on the relevant angry Facebook thread ;)

Hi everyone! 

My friends have always joked about the newsletter sign-up on my website, which says that the newsletter is “really low volume”. The joke here is that there’s never been a newsletter… until now. Welcome to the first edition of the Ken Reads Jyotish newsletter!

I think it's time to address the elephant in the room - he's Ganesha! Ganesha is the remover of obstacles, and the ruler of Vedic Astrology. His mantra is traditionally the first mantra done in Vedic ceremonies, so it's appropriate to have his photo appear in the first newsletter. I have made a very subtle change to the painting to make it fit with the Christmas theme (Photoshopped it all by myself), let me know if you aren't able to find it.*

So this being the very first edition, feedback is of course welcome, but I thought I would try and make this newsletter as useful as possible. So, I’m going to tell you about an upcoming eclipse.

There is a partial solar eclipse happening in early January, and is only visible in the North Pacific and East Asian region: ​

Photo taken from here (link).

The eclipse's maximum point takes place at 12:41 PM AEST on January 6th (9:41 PM EST on January 5th). 
​
Even if it isn’t visible where you are, eclipses are an important cosmic event. A Solar Eclipse is where the Moon covers the Sun. In Jyotish, the Moon represents your emotional mind, and the Sun represents your soul. The covering or blocking of your soul by your emotional mind makes the eclipse day (and the 3 days before and after it) not a good time to start anything important. The only thing that eclipses are good for is inward reflection and meditation. 

In India and other parts of Asia, when an eclipse is taking place, people will stay in their homes or go to a temple, and close the blinds to the outside world. It is seen as inauspicious to look at an eclipse. This is an external representation of what we should do inwardly - we should be closing the blinds to the external world and going deeper within ourselves. During eclipses, the material energy of our world is disrupted, making it easier to meditate deeply, and so we should take advantage of these eclipse times. 

The eclipse is taking place in a Nakshatra (constellation) called Purva Ashadha. The Nakshatra’s desire is to gain the ocean upon wishing for it, and it is ruled by Apas, defied water. So maybe if meditation isn’t your thing, an alternate way to spend the eclipse day would be to go on a quiet hike or backpacking trip to a lake or ocean. 
​
Eclipses always happen in pairs, and so there’s a second eclipse coming up later in January, so stay tuned for more information! In the meantime, I hope you all have wonderful holidays with your families.