ARUDHA LAGNA FROM SRI JAGANNATH CENTER

Introduction to the Arudha Lagna

A sign has a reflection in its ruler planet. The planet acts as a mirror giving the same importance to the corresponding reflection as the original sign. As the light of the Moon is a reflection of the Sun so is the Arudha (Moon) a reflection of the Rasi (Sun). As important as the Moon is in Vedic Astrology, the Arudha is of up most importance along with the Lagna itself. Therefore we must understand the Arudha and what it represents.

There are three levels of perceptible ‘reality’. The first level is the Atma, which is Truth beyond all manifestation, often called Reality with a capital ‘R’. The next level of reality is the material world we live in. If you don’t eat you get hungry and die, the body has some reality to it, reality with a lower case ‘r’. It is impermanent and goes away, in that way it is less real that the Atma level of Reality. The third level of reality is the reality that exists within our heads, our perception. This is often called delusion more than reality, as our perceptions rarely meet with the reality of the material world. But this reality that exists in our heads is often more influential in our behavior than the material world itself. Most people don’t buy the soap that will get their clothing the cleanest, they buy the one that has had the best effect on their mind through commercial advertising, graphic design of the box, and other such marketing aimed at one’s perceptions. A boss doesn’t always pick the most capable person, they pick the one that presents themselves the best, and is ‘perceived’ as the best employee for the job. The perception, the perceived aspect of oneself, is very influential with ones interaction with reality. This is especially pertinent when dealing with how a person relates to others and the public. The Arudha (AL) is what isdistinctly visible , it is that which catches the mind .

What an individual may know about themselves (Lagna) may not be what others think of them (AL). Looking at a chart from Lagna verse Arudha Lagna will tell these two different stories. A person may know they are sick but it only becomes known that they are sick when it is perceived by others due to certain symptoms or going to the hospital. The Arudha Lagna tells about the illusion perceived by others, what people believe about you, which varies from what really is. A person may be a crook, but with an exalted AL lord they will still be well liked and rise in popularity. To compare it to the Upapada, if the UL is strong people will believe the marriage is fine, even if partners have been separated. Or even if the marriage doesn’t work and the couple wants to separate, in the public eye it will remain a marriage. There are cases of people waiting 12 years to get a divorce because of the strength of the UL.

The whole world is Maya, the world is created by the mind, the world is perception. Though it may be illusion in the mind, it is still effectively acting on the manifestation of reality. The Arudha is not just seen as a perception, for what is perceived is what is making things move, making things turn and happen. The Arudha Lagna showsthe person and how they are perceived. To compare, if Venus is in Scorpio with A10 of a person born on Nanda tithi, the person will have an extra-marital affair with their boss or someone from work. The A10 shows who, it is showing a person, and how that person is perceived, where they are being perceived from. If the A5 is damaged it can hurt the manifestation to have children [1]. In this way, the AL represents the individual (Lagna) and how it is perceived. The circumstances of death are seen from the 3 rd house from AL , it does have a physical reality to it. As a special ascendant it will give results both in the mind of others and how their minds react with the reality of the individual. Both mental (perceived image) and physical results (interaction) are seen from the Arudha Lagna.

The AL is how people see you and interact with you within the material world called Maya.

The Lagna is like the Sun, the Arudha lagna is like the Moon, and the Paka Lagna is like Jupiter. They are the three eyes; the Sun (right eye), Moon (left eye) and Jupiter (third eye). They are the three aspects purified with the mantra Hare Rama Krsna; Hare (Jupiter), Rama (Sun) and Krsna (Moon).

Introduction to the Houses from Arudha Lagna

mm yaeinmRhdœ äü tiSmNgÉ¡ dxaMyhm!, sMÉv> svRÉUtana< ttae Évit Éart. 14 – 3. 
mama yonirmahad brahma tasmingarbhaà dadhämyaham | sambhavaù sarvabhütänäà tato bhavati bhärata || 14 – 3|| 
For Me great Brahman is the womb. In it I place the seed, the origin of all beings exists from that, Arjuna.

svRyaein;u kaENtey mUtRy> sMÉviNt ya>, tasa< äü mh*aeinrh< bIjàd> ipta. 14 – 4. 
sarvayoniñu kaunteya mürtayaù sambhavanti yäù | täsäà brahma mahadyonirahaà béjapradaù pitä || 14 - 4|| 
In all wombs, forms come to be of which Brahman is the great womb. I am the seed-sowing father.

sÅv< rjStm #it gu[a> àk«itsMÉva>, inb×iNt mhabahae dehe deihnmVyym!. 14 - 5,
sattvaà rajastama iti guëäù prakåtisambhaväù | nibadhnanti mahäbäho dehe dehinamavyayam || 14 - 5|Sattva, rajas, tamas, thus the gunas[2] born of material nature, bind down in the body the Imperishable Embodied One (atman).

The origin of all beings exists from the seed placed in the womb of Brahma as the seed placed in the womb of any other creature creates that creature. The Atma (soul) is placed in the womb of Brahma (the Creator) to take on physical form. That soul having taking on a body made of prakrti (material nature) is then bound into that body by the gunas. Liberation is said to take place when the gunas, which originate in the body, are transcended[3].They no longer are able to bind down the soul. How the gunas are transcended is the story of the Gita. How to understand the gunas and there effect is the story of Jyotish and the Arudha.

The Grahas each have their respective Guna as clearly mentioned by Rishi Parasara.

jIvsUyeRNÔv> sÅv< buxzu³aE rjStwa,
sUyRpuÇÉrapuÇaE tm>àk«itkaE iÖj. 22.
jévasüryendravaù sattvaà budhaçukrau rajastathä |
süryaputrabharäputrau tamaùprakåtikau dvija ||3. 22||

In this verse Parasara says that Jupiter, Surya and Moon are sattvic, Mercury and Venus are rajasic, Saturn and Mars are tamasic, and then he uses the word prakrtikau, which means ‘all that manifests’. He is saying that everything manifests from these gunas. The gunas need to manifest before their result manifests. This agrees directly with the Bhagavad Gita:

àk«te> i³yma[ain gu[E> kmaRi[ svRz>, Ah»arivmUFaTma ktaRhimit mNyte.3 - 27
prakåteù kriyamäëäni guëaiù karmäëi sarvaçaù | ahaìkäravimüòhätmä kartähamiti manyate ||3 - 27 
Actions in all cases are performed by the gunas of material nature.

So one of the most important atributes of the grahas is their guna, which manifests everything. Creation, sustenance and destruction are the three interactions of Purusha and Prakritti, they are the three shaktis. Brahma (rajas) creates, Visnu (sattva) sustains, and Shiva (tamas) destroys.

Visnu sustains through the sattvic planets, Jupiter (Hare), Sun (Rama), and Moon (Krsna). Jupiter (akash) is the sustainer for both living and non-living world, it permeates everything and everything exists within it. It is like Narayana, everywhere, in everything, every thing in it, supporting all life. It is the grace of god (Jupiter is god in all signs) that can overcome Yama (death). It is the aspect of Jupiter that can stop a shoola dasha from killing. It is the aspect of Jupiter that allows one to cross the nodes in the saptamsa. It is Jupiter that keeps the jiva (individual soul) in the body, in this way the sattva of Jupiter sustains all life.

The Sun relates to the availability of resources which it gives through the signs. The Rasis are the dwadashaditya, the 12 Suns. They give the fruits in this world, they are the environment that is either bountiful or barren. This is why many poverty mantras work with the Sun. This is why physical ability to have children is seen from the Sun Arudhas, the physical ability. It is a strong Sun that ignites raja yoga because the availability of resources is available for raja yoga to start. That which gives the fruits, the resources in this world, is related to/sustained by the sattva of the Sun.

The Moon is the mother nurturing, needing the resources. This can be seen from the Hora Chart, ruled by Sun and Moon, which shows resources available and needs to be met (Jupiter shows using the resources). The Moon Horas show the need and Sun Horas show the availability, Jupiter shows your intelligence in using the resources available to your needs. The sattva of the Moon is the nurturing and the caring that is needed to sustain.

Brahma creates through the rajasic planets of Venus and Mercury. Venus is Jala (water) which is the base of all creation, the base of the living world. The 7 th house from Venus brings a partner for procreation. Mercury is Prthvi (earth) and is therefore the creator of the non-living world. His rajas rules over the solid state changes. The 7th lord from Mercury will show the partner you need for creating non-living things: business and the creation of goods to market or use. Mercury and Venus should be in a Kendra from AL for a person to enjoy the creation and the creation process.

The rajasic planets consume large amounts of energy (agni tattva) to be able to create. Sanyas is renunciation of energy for the cause of creation (rajas). Therefore renunciation is of Mercury (business) and Venus (procreation). A true sanyas must be able to give up these two things.

Shiva destroys through the tamasic planets Mars and Saturn. Mars is Agni (fire), it breaks things down, transforms them into something new. Things don't go away they just change, everything is just changing shape and form. Mars destroys non-living world, that which needs to be broken. A chair is useful as long as it works, when it breaks it is thrown away, transformed into something else.

Saturn is connected to Dharmaraj Yama, the Lord of Death who comes for all beings when it is their time. Saturn is the tamas that makes vata invades every cell till the body deteriorates, which is called aging. As Saturn rules aging he is what destroys the living world. Saturn is what makes us renounce, he is renouncing Mercury and Venus. When choosing Muhurta of something non-living one must be careful of Mars. For a Muhurta of the living one is to be careful of Saturn's placement, for example, if Saturn is 3 rd from AL or aspecting it shows disease at time of death. Mars and Saturn are both significators of death and destruction, and are best is in apoklimas and worst is in kendras.

Bhagavan is the sustainer. Creation and destruction are continuous, but when sustenance stops, it is the end of a mahayuga, and the living world is destroyed, called pralaya. Saturn is a cleansing process, a destroying process: disease is part of the destruction process. A new creation without the proper destroying is called cancer. Destruction without equal creation is called degenerative disorders.

In Ayurveda, there are 3 main doshas (problems) of the body which are Vata, Pitta and Kapha. These are what cause physical imbalance. When the body is treated the main remedy is herbs, diet and asana. There are 2 main doshas of the mind which are rajas and tamas. When the mind is treated the method becomes the increasing of satva, the balanced state of mind.

sÅvaTsÃayte }an< rjsae laeÉ @v c, àmadmaehaE tmsae Évtae=}anmev c. 14 - 17. 
sattvätsaïjäyate jïänaà rajaso lobha eva ca |
pramädamohau tamaso bhavato'jïänameva ca || 14 - 17 Bhagavad Gita|| From sattva knowledge is born, and from rajas desire,
negligence and delusion arise from tamas and ignorance too.

So when we talk about mind (Moon) the gunas become very important. It is the Mind that is creating your reality, it is doing this through the gunas which manfest everything. The gunas of the mind attract your reality to you. A sattvic mind will find itself in a clean spiritual setting gaining knowledge, a rajasic mind will need to occupy itself with Rahu sense stimulation and will chase after this and end up in rajas company, rajasic situation, and all the time increases the samskaras of rajas[4]. These gunas rule the mind and bind the soul into the body. The body goes where the gunas of the mind lead it, and the soul follows. The gunas rule your body, and they rule your mind which is your perception. The mind is the organ percieving your sensory reality, therefore the guns are ruling how you are percieving your reality and how others are percieving you.

Who you really are at the soul level and at the level of lagna verse how you are percieved at the level of Arudha are two different things. Do the people at your work really know “you”. No they only know what they percieve of you, what you consciously let them know, what you unconsciously let them know, what you pretend to be, and all that muddied up through another indivuals own mind perception. The image of you becomes far from the Truth, it is an image,a reflection that will change according to the mirror. A clean mirror (uccha lagnesh) giving a better reflection or a dirty mirror giving a worse reflection. It is these perceptions that govern you interaction with reality. These perceptions are in the mind, a mind ruled by rajas, tamas and sattva. A mind ruling the body. “Actions in all cases are performed by the gunas of material nature”.

I hope this has clarified the importance of the gunas in manifesting reality, and how the gunas relate to the mind which therefore relates to the Arudha Lagna. With this understanding, one can preceed to look at the Arudha Lagna at the level of the gunas, and the gunas of the planets interacting with it. We now understand that the AL is more than just a perception, it is a point of relating to the world. Therefore the houses from the AL can be understood to affect both the perception of the individual as well as how they actually act and are treated in the world.

The houses from the Arudha Lagna all have their guna: