The origin of astrological knowledge can be traced to the times of the creation of humanity. This knowledge was developed and used to answer uncertainties, future and the way human beings can come out of difficult situations in life. This ancient knowledge was also used by wise people to not only chart the course of life of individuals and nations but to harness the potentials of individuals and nations under the patronage of kings and royal people. It is a pity that the ancient scientific knowledge is brushed aside by the so called modern scientists. We often come across persons, who have to see frequent changes in their lives, encounter misfortunes and rarely get settled in their lives. The author had taken up a project for studying and analysing the common astrological factors in this regard. After empirical study of horoscopes having such history, the author came to the conclusion that mostly children born in the ending parts of constellation of Mercury, Venus and Ketu fall under this category. The main reason is that in all such cases the children have to undergo dasa of a number of planets having different temperament e.g. Mercury-Ketu-Venus-Sun-Moon-Mars-Rahu etc. The only long spell of dasa is that of Venus and in case Venus is strongly placed in the chart, the child gets base for settlement in life. Apart from the operation of dasa the factors responsible for giving a good start in life for accomplishments are strong lord of the ascendant or unafflicted ascendant, the Sun, the Moon, the lords of the fourth and ninth houses. On the other hand if Venus is also weak along with the weak ninth house, the whole life of the native remains troublesome. The best charts are those where functional malefic planets - Rahu and Ketu - do not form exact or close conjunctions or aspects with functional benefic planets and the most effective point of various houses.
The vital role in creating trouble is played by the dasa of Ketu, which gives a start to the series of troubles because of the fast changing sub-periods. Shri Vanket Sharma, the author of 'Saravarth Chintamani' attributes the results to dasa of Ketu as under:
'The native loses his wife and son; suffers on account of misunderstanding with the king; suffers loss of education, relatives, wealth and friends; dangers from disease, fire and friends; fall from a conveyance; dangers from poison, weapons, going to distant places. The native likes to pick-up quarrels and finds trouble with the physical health. When Ketu occupies and influences an angular house, actions do not give results, one loses ruling powers, son and wife and encounters other dangers. During its dasa Ketu gives dangers, fevers, loose motions, loss of semen, boils and cholera, if it occupies the ascendant. He attributed good results to Ketu only when it is under the aspect of benefic planets."
This is possible when the functional benefic planet aspecting Ketu is strong and the aspect of range is between two degrees to five degrees. However, if the planet is weak then Ketu will afflict the functional benefic planet.
Sant Tulsidas wrote in Ramcharitamanas that the dasa of Ketu is always troublesome. In fact while writing in the context of conduct of evil persons, he stated that the birth of evil persons is always for harming the lives of others as is the rise of planet Ketu meaning thereby that the dasa of Ketu is always troublesome. In experience, we notice that whenever Ketu is under benefic influence, it gives spiritual advancement and not material advancement. As we are examining the results of Ketu dasa in the childhood, we can safely infer that the Ketu dasa in childhood mostly produces malefic results as it hampers the material advancement, destroys or troubles the sources of material advancement of the child, for example his parents. The best way to propitiate Ketu in its dasa is to feed street dogs, if possible, or reciting the mantra 'Om Sri Ganeshaye Namah'. The recitation of mantra can be done in the morning after bath and before breakfast. A minimum of 101 recitations daily during the sub-period of Ketu would be good to ward-off the evils. The propitiation of Ketu becomes necessary in view of the fact that Ketu destroys the significations of the house occupied by him if close to the most effective point, of the planet, with whom it is closely conjunct with and the houses closely aspected by it.
If the Sun and the most effective point of the ninth house are closely afflicted, the native loses his father or it causes severe troubles to the father affecting thereby the comfortable growth of the native. If the Moon and the most effective point of the fourth house are weak and are under the close affliction of Ketu, the native is denied the care of parents especially that of the mother. The multiple weaknesses of planets, and at the same time being closely afflicted by the functional malefic planets, are worst.
In contrast with it where a native completes major period of Rahu by the age of 12 to 14 years of age and has a strongly placed functional benefic Jupiter, enjoys the fruits of life in time and gets settled well. If other planets are also suitably well-placed then it gives an extra-ordinary lift to the native.
Let us now examine some charts of natives born in the ending parts of main periods of Ketu, Mercury and Venus.
Birth: Male born March 5, 1947, at 3.13 AM 77E04 28N37 Time Zone 5.30 hours.
The following period of Ketu saw the death of the mother of the native. The sign Sagittarius rises in the ascendant and the Moon, Rahu and Ketu become functional malefic planets. Ketu afflicts the fourth house by way of close aspect from the twelfth house. The lord of the ascendant is posited in the twelfth house. During the main period of Ketu, the native had frequent fevers, sluggish liver, bronchitis and unsound health. This resulted in set backs in studies. The close affliction of the most malefic planet, the Moon, on the most effective point of the second house also caused obstructions in the education and denied the native the happiness of a male child. In Sapthamsa, the sign Aries rises in the ascendant. Jupiter is the significator for male progeny. The lord of the fifth house of D-I Mars, is also weak in D-I. The weakness of Mars and Jupiter and the close affliction to the most effective point of the second house could not bless the native with male progeny. Rather, he had four male children, two of whom expired shortly after birth; one was a still birth and one premature dead delivery.
Birth: August 11, 1971, 0545 HRS.
The operating main period at birth was that of Mercury. Mercury is well-placed in the second house, is not suffering from combustion or affliction from functional malefics. Mercury is weak due to the weakness of its dispositor. Therefore, the balance of Mercury period did not prove to be significantly unfavorable for the native. The sign Cancer rises in the ascendant and Jupiter, Saturn, Rahu and Ketu are the functional malefic planets. Rahu-Ketu axis is close to the most effective points of the houses occupied and afflicts the houses occupied and aspected. Ketu also closely afflicts the Sun and combust Venus by way of close conjunction. Venus rules the fourth house, the house of parents. Whenever the lord of the fourth house is weak and the Sun is also afflicted it is the father who has a short life in place of the mother signified by the fourth. The death of the father causes numerous miseries to the mother of the native. In this case apart from Ketu's affliction to the Sun and Venus, Ketu aspects very closely the most effective point of the ninth house. During the main period of Ketu and sub-period of the Sun, the native lost his father at a very young age. Ketu occupies the navamsa ascendant. Ketu's close conjunction with the most effective point of the ascendant and its close aspect to its lord, the Moon, caused serious health problems to the native and troublesome conditions in life. The exaltation of the Sun in D-XII could not liberate it from the close affliction of Ketu in the main chart.
The operating main period at birth was that of Ketu. The native had acute health problems in life. He is a diabetic from very young age, he suffered from loss of comforts of life, his father lost status in life after his birth, his education was just average, he could not get good job although his father had been a very senior military officer. The sign Sagittarius rises in the ascendant and the Moon, Rahu and Ketu become functional malefic planets. The lord of the ascendant, Jupiter, is debilitated and is in the state of infancy. Ketu is closely conjunct with the most effective point of the tenth house and afflicts the same. The following period was of Venus, who is weak due to its being in mritavastha (extreme old age) and its dispositor being weak. The badly placed weak Sun is closely aspected and afflicted by Rahu. Jupiter is lord of the navamsa ascendant and is debilitated in the navamsa, as well. The main periods of Ketu afflicting the nativity and weak Venus gave problems mentioned above. Though Venus occupies its own sign in dasamsa (D-X) yet it could not help the native for acquiring good education in its period due to its weakness in the main chart.. Birth: Male born September 18, 1951, 9.16 AM 77E13 28N39.
The native of this chart had operating period of Ketu at the time of birth. Venus, who is the lord of the ascendant and next main period lord, occupies eleventh house in weak state and is closely afflicted by the functional malefic planet, Mercury. Mercury in turn is also closely conjunct with Ketu. The weakness of the lord of the tenth house did not allow him to settle in his work and Mars sub-period in the main period of the lord of the tenth house took him to a foreign land where he could not earn anything because of continued ill health. Birth: Female born December 26, 1971, 0035 hrs.
The sign Virgo rises in the ascendant and Saturn, Mars, the Sun, Rahu and Ketu are the functional malefic planets. The native lost her father at the age of 13 years in the main period of Mercury ruling since birth. Mercury is the lord of the ascendant. In this case Jupiter becomes weak due to its being in the state of old age. The Sun, the lord of the twelfth house, closely afflicts the most effective point of the fourth house. Rahu closely afflicts the most effective point of the ninth house. Rahu-Ketu axis is close to the most effective points of the houses occupied and afflicts the houses occupied and aspected. In dwadasamsa the lord of the ascendant, Saturn, occupies the sixth house and the significator for father is under the aspect of Ketu. In divisional charts the aspects are not categorized as close, exact or wide but are treated as close aspects. During the sub-period of Saturn, who is lord of ascendant of the dwadasamsa, the native lost her father. The following period of Ketu proved full of struggles. The onset of the period of Venus, who is having affliction of Rahu being lord of the second house, is creating hurdles for finalization of marriage of the native. Birth: Male born November 11, 1980, 1930.
The sign Taurus rises in the ascendant and Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Rahu and Ketu are the functional malefic planets. The lord of the twelfth house closely afflicts the most effective points of the seventh, tenth, first and second houses. The lord of the sixth house is in its sign of debilitation and had its main period after the operating period of Ketu at the time of birth. The lord of the fourth house, the Sun, who is also significator for father, is also debilitated and occupying the sixth house. Mercury ruling the fifth house is placed in the fifth house and is weak. Ketu closely aspects and afflicts Venus. Navamsa ascendant lord is suffering from the influence of Rahu-Ketu axis in Navamsa. In dwadasamsa (D-XII) except the position of Mercury all other planets occupy good signs and houses. The ascendant of dwadasamsa is aspected by its own lord, Mars. Yet the dwadasamsa placement of planets could not supersede the weak position of significator planets in the natal chart. During the dasa of Ketu, the mother of the boy had deep mental anguish as the Moon is posited in the eighth house. The father, who had kept a keep, tortured the native and his mother. Finally the mother of the native secured divorced in the sub-period of debilitated Sun in the main period of debilitated Venus.
The native was born with a balance of main period of Mercury approx. twelve years. Mercury primarily ruled the tenth house and is weak due to combustion. The early part of life of the native was full of health problems, which hampered his education.
Male born August 14, 1949, 5.18 PM, 76E40 31N18 Time Zone 5.30 Hrs.
The sign Libra rises in the ascendant and Mercury Rahu and Ketu become functional malefic planets. All the functional benefic planets are weak. In navamsa Venus is in the sixth house and in shashthamsa it is in the twelfth house. Saturn, the lord of the fifth house is in the twelfth house in the state of combustion in the natal chart. Saturn is in its sign of debilitation in navamsa. In Shashthamsa the planets, the Sun and Jupiter occupy their signs of debilitation. In view of these combinations, weak position of significator of vitality in Shashthamsa (D-VI) and the operation of main periods of Ketu, Venus and the Sun in life consecutively, the native's health base had been quite weak. Besides, whenever the lord of the ascendant is weak and afflicted, the native suffers from chronic diseases. Rahu/Ketu's close conjunction or aspect with weak planet(s) make chances of a cancerous disease very bright. The native suffered from prolonged illness before death at the age of 35 years.
