HOW ACCURATE IS MY HOROSCOPE ?

                                        ARUN ROY MUKHERJEE

It is said that unless the birth time is recorded correctly, horoscope reading will also not be perfect. The watch recording the event must also give correct time. We all know that. But even when the watch gives perfect and accurate time and the time of birth is recorded accurately, will it give the position of stars and planets with the same accuracy ? I was born as the Sun rose on the horizon. In my horoscope the Sun is in the same line as Aries and at 9.45 degree of Aries. It is said that Sun is exalted in my horoscope. Everyone in my family was very happy. But the question is that did the Sun rise on the horizon exactly at that time as noted in my horoscope at the place of my birth on that date? After taking into consideration the Standard time, Local time. Sidereal time etc. etc. and calculations normally required to arrive the time of my birth for the purpose of calculating the ascendant and for casting my horoscope, I still think that the Sun did not rise on the horizon at the moment and time as noted in my horoscope and as recorded by the time shown on the watch. We know that we see an object when the light either directly or reflected from the object, hits our eyes. Therefore the time taken by light to travel from that object to the eyes of the observer should also be taken into account. Do we consider the time taken by light to travel from the object to the observer also into account when noting the time of happening of the event ? In the case of Sun it takes about 9 minutes for the light to travel from Sun to the earth. Therefore when we see Sun rising and touching the horizon and note the time as per our watch, the actual event happened about nine minutes before that. And when we see the event of Sun rising on the horizon, the Sun actually moves a little higher on the sky. Those having knowledge of Astrology will confirm that such difference of 9 minutes in the time of birth may actually make a difference in ascertaining the Ascendant in some suitable cases. Thus the Sun, in my horoscope, is not at the position shown but a little ahead. My horoscope does not accurately reflect the position of the Sun.  In fact not only in my case but  for everyone else too the same rule applies. Their actual birth times are nine minutes prior to those recorded by watches and also as in their horoscopes. So it can be said that their horoscopes are faulty as a result of a sheer misconception. In case of Sun, it may be matter of a few minutes but we must also check how it reflects in cases of other planets.

My brother’s horoscope is much better. It has exalted Saturn at 19 degrees in Libra and exalted Jupiter at 4 degrees in Cancer. It was a cause for great jubilation. Then I somewhere found that the four major stars which constitute the Libra constellation 1) Alpha Librae or Zubenelgenubi is 77 light years,  2) Gemma Librae or Zubenelakrb is 152 light years, 3) Iota Librae is 377 light years and  4) Mu Librae is 235 light years away from the earth. It means that when my brother was born and Saturn was seen as in the zodiac sign of Libra, those stars forming the Libra sign may or may not have been at that position and/or Saturn was not in Libra at all. This is because when we saw those stars of Libra constellation it was the light emitted by those stars about 77 years to 377 years prior to the time of birth of my brother and as seen in the sky. Those stars were there so many years ago and not exactly at the time we saw those at the time of my brother’s birth. The same thing happened with Cancer. The 3 major stars comprising Cancer constellation are Beta Cancri or Al Tarf, Iota Cancri and Alpha Cancri which are 290, 158 and 173 light years respectively away from the earth. Therefore, Jupiter was not actually in Cancer at my brother’s birth time. But one point is sure that those stars will be at that very spot when we saw them during my brother’s birth but only after 77 years, 152 years, 377 years and 235 years respectively in case of those stars belonging to Libra and 290 years, 158 years and 173 years respectively in case of those stars of Cancer constellation. But Saturn and Jupiter will not be on the same spot at those times. But why not ? We all know that Saturn covers the 12 zodiac signs in 30 years. If it is in Libra today, it will come back to Libra after 30 years again. So, Saturn will not be in Libra after 77, 152, 377 or 235 years as none of those years are multiples of 30.   In case of Jupiter, it covers all the 12 zodiacs in 12 years. If it is in Cancer on a particular day it will again be seen on Cancer after 12 years. Therefore, by a simple calculation we find out that Jupiter will not be in the same place as the Cancer after 290, 158 or 173 years.

What happened with mine and my brother’s horoscopes happens with everybody else. In fact the position of planets vis-à-vis the zodiac signs at a particular point of time as seen from the earth, is never accurate. It just appears that a planet is in line with a star and/or a zodiac when we see it but their relative actual positions in the sky is not the same. What appears before our eyes is not the true position. Yet, we cast out horoscopes on the basis of what appears before our eyes, which is an illusion in fact. We also depend on it for prediction of events in our lives and also use it as a guide in our lives. 

                                                  ___________________________________