Spirituality 1
Shri Aurobindo

Aravinda Ackroyd Ghosh

• Freedom Fighter for India

• (then later) Spiritual Teacher

1872 - 1950

Shri Aurobindo could justifiably be included with the political nativities.

However, Shri Aurobindo was ultimately more famous for his spiritual teachings and cultural leadership (when Guru finally got the upper hand to Kuja!)

The great 20th century seer, poet, and prophet Aravinda Ackroyd Ghosh -- known worldwide as "Shri Aurobindo" -- was loved and respected around the world for his daring and radical truth-speak.

• Mrigashira lagna

• uchcha Guru in dhana bhava, the 2nd house of knowledge, tradition, blood ties, and speech

The one aim of [my] yoga is an inner self-development

by which each one who follows it can in time discover the One Self in all

and evolve a higher consciousness than the mental, a spiritual and supramental consciousness

which will transform and divinize human nature.

"Indian religion has always felt that since the minds, the temperaments and the intellectual affinities of men are unlimited in their variety,

a perfect liberty of thought and of worship must be allowed to the individual in his approach to the Infinite. "

-- Aurobindo quoted by A. B. Vajpayee, Hindutva is Liberal

Distinctive features of nativity:

• Uchcha Guru = most excellent speech; the wisdom nature is advanced through charitable (Guru) acts in past lifetimes.

• Lagnesha Budha is politicized in Simha-3. Shri Aurobindo's accomplishments include revitalizing the ancient Indian literary traditions in the service of the Indian Independence Movement.

• He was a noted political radical who spent a year in Jail (Ketu in 6, Ketu in navamsha lagna) under the oppressive regime of the colonial Raj.

• Kuja-2 for speech = in youth, is verbally aggressive and prone toward inciting violence. Kuja matures after age 28.

• L-5/L-12 Shukra in Simha shows a love of celebrity, politics, and parties; but also an appreciation (Shukra) for the relationship between political action (5) and meditative (12) reflection.

  • The psychic image must be established in prayerful collaboration with the ancestors (12) before dramatic action (5) can be successfully energized toward its goal.

• "Lifetime sade sati" in domain-7 = Shani + the risk-taking Mula Moon indicates much trouble with marriage relationships.   Emotional resistance to harmonious marriage and distrust of fixed human-to-human contracts.

• Celibate lifestyle may be easier, esp considering the Ketu + Shani + atmakaraka Budha in navamsha.

Vimshottari Dasha timeline

Shukra mahadasha - age 5-25

• Shukra = L-5 for intelligence, literature, and performance arts

• yuti the powerful writer's L-3 Surya

• yuti lagnesha Budha the karaka for communication

• yuti L-4 Budha for education

Shukra brings young Aravinda to astonishingly high levels of privileged classical western education AND superior performance within those traditions. Young Ghosh is a recognized prodigy.

As L-12 however the lord of foreign countries, dissolution of the ego, and losses of all kinds - Shukra imposes the sad isolation of life in a foreign country, far from the love of family. The amazing literary prodigy does exceptionally well in studies, but may have been emotionally bereft.

• Shukra/Shukra, tiny 7-yr-old Aravinda and his 2 older brothers are shipped off to England to receive a classical literary education. In the home of a classics scholar-clergyman friend of his father's, Aravinda skillfully learns Latin.

• Still young, Aurobindo joined the prestigious St. Paul's School outside of London, where the headmaster noticed his genius and promoted him rapidly.

• Mastering classical Greek, young Aravinda received important prizes in literature and history including a Cambridge scholarship.

• L-5 Shukra/L-4 Budha - completed university studies with high distinction, age 21.

Surya mahadasha - age 25-31

• Consistent with L-3 Surya being swakshetra in the radix 3rd house of mentality and communications media, whilst uchcha (exalted) in 6th navamsha, Aurobindo spent most of the 7 years of Surya mahadasha writing, writing, writing about political activism. Advertising his ideas. Marketing ideas. Promoting ideas.

• Sun in dwadamsha [12-part division of each house] of "sensual pleasure and merriment" suggests that in addition to the rather serious ideological and political issues young Aravinda was articulating in the press, Surya mahadasha was also the host of six highly social years with many small-group enjoyments.

• The 6th-navamsha placement may indicate inherently adversarial positions, description of or incitement to criminal activities, other unseemly matters of Ari Bhava - the house of enemies. However, his brilliance was recognized by friends and enemies alike. Lord Minto wrote about him: I can only repeat that he is the most dangerous man we have to reckon with.

The planetary periods of childhood and young adulthood form the foundation of each person's productive, socially worthy enterprises in later life. After this strong foundational period, Aurobindo's communicative powers were so well established that millions were inspired to relearn and reapply the ancient truths of their ancestral spiritual traditions by hearing his speeches, reading his newspaper editorials, and absorbing his astounding poetry.

Two other dignified planets - lagnesha/L-4 for education Budha and L-5/L-12 for charisma and meditation Shukra - are yuti with Surya. Therefore Surya's powers manifest not only with each Surya bhukti, but also every time  Budha or Shukra bhukti occurs.

• The tri-yoga of Surya/Budha/Shukra = extremely auspicious for writings.

• From the looks of the 3rd radix house, this young man is an amazingly prolific writer.

Surya L-3 and Shani L-9 are both empowered in shad bala, suggesting that he will publish practically everything he writes. Writings will be, due to the auspicious 5/9 Surya/Shani angle, well respected,  even when adversarial or extreme.

• Surya = rising and swakshetra in dashamsha = extraordinary political leadership confidence through the vehicle of the Word.

• Strength of Surya in D-10 shows the energy of the first life phase in politics (political drama) where he was shrewd and confident.

• Then Surya assists the second life phase in pursuit of divine intelligence when Suraja's mahadasha had passed.

Chandra mahadasha - age 31-41

Chandra is the lord of Speech (2nd house) and would be a fierce early-death maraka if not for being dominated by L-9 Shani in a higher degree.

• Chandra is also unfortunate due to occupying Mula nakshatra. Soma in Moola brings trouble to the native because they are psycho-emotionally attuned to the galactic Sun rather than our earth-system Sun (the two suns are twins).

• Thus Mula people are deeply and unshakably sure they are right, and they are normally willing to undertake any extreme action in order to put their convictions into practice.

• The spiritual nature of Mula (root) is legendary but in real life this is an emotionally constricted person, consumed by inner chaos and a passion for violent expressions of truth. Fundamentalists and ruthless ideologues live here.

True to Chandra, Aurobindo age 32-40 became a leader of Indian nationalist "Extremists" famous for their willingness to use violence. He advocated the radical move of outright independence for India, which was a frightening thought not only for the British colonial administration but also for many Bharati nationals who believed that independence would create a massive bloodbath as warring ethnic factions exploded into disaster. (They were right.)

Aurobindo/Ghosh edited a nationalist pro-independence Bengali-language newspaper, and often angered the ruling government of the Raj.

• Soma/Guru where Soma is L-2 and uchcha Guru his splendidly convincing and articulate tenant, gave Ghosh tremendous charisma of speech and high credibility. In 1907 he was famously elected leader of the nationalists at a passionate convention.

But - here is Guru in action - at this time he also met his root Guru, who convinced to enter upon a yogic path.

• Soma/Shani :

  • Moon/Shani are yuti in the powerful yuvati bhava

  • Shani is L-8/L-9

  • Chandra is lord of the dashamsha

  • Chandra is Lord of Shani in dashamsha

  Apowerful shift in his sense of appropriate leadership role. 1908-1909 - Prison deepens his yoga practice, and he is visited by famous and potent guru in meditation. L-8 Shani both destroys him and as L-9 rebirths him in wisdom.

Mangala mahadasha - age 41-48

Mangala is not such a wonderful planet in radix. As L-6 he encourages the presence of enemies, debts, and disease; but as L-11 he brings gains of income, and large networks of profitable association.

Mangala has good strength in D-10 especially for religious matters; therefore no matter the personal conflict and illness, Mangala will guide the native to a priestly expression of competition, ritualized energy of Mangala.

During Kuja mahadasha Shri Aurobindo needed to steer clear of Indian legal authorities, as the threat of imprisonment weighed over his head for all the years until India's full Independence in 1949. No doubt he had other adversaries and perhaps some financial concerns as well.

• Kuja/Kuja - Kuja/Rahu: Most significantly however was the strong beginning of his international community of followers, marked by the appearance of his Great Friend: Mother Mira. "The Mother" arrived in Pondicherry at onset of Shri Aurobindo's Kuja mahadasha. This is the strong effect of Kuja as L-11, builder of networks within the marketplace. Aurobindo's Kuja benefits from dominant uchcha Guru, who makes the networks spiritualized and international.

Kuja is very strong in swakshetra in the 9th dashamsha, suggesting that Kuja mahadasha was a period of religious wisdom - regardless of any undertow created by Kuja's role as L-6 in radix. Kuja is equally strong in 10th navamsha, indicating a political career which matured into theatrical arts.

Rahu mahadasha - age 48-66

Rahu giving the results of his Lord Shukra who as L-5 gives authorship, and also with the lagnesha Budha and swakshetra Surya is empowered for sustained, beautiful writings, the Rahu period lived entirely in Pondicherry was dedicated to Aurobindo's sustained literary output.

• Rahu/Shani, where Rahu gives the results of his lord the sanctuary-seeking L-12 Shukra while Shani as L-8 destroys public ego and as L-9 creates priesthood, Aurobindo enters seclusion.

• Rahu-Shani holding an inauspicious 6/8 angle, there would have been plenty of stressful tension between the demands of seclusion versus the demands of religious leadership, as well as the tantric implications of Shani as L-8

However he continues to generates, under the power of L-5 Shukra for literary performance, a huge correspondence with his spiritual students -- as well as (in the earlier years of the mahadasha) direct philosophical and poetic production, marked these years of meditative withdrawal - Rahu being of course in Vyaya Bhava, the house of ashram, sanctuary, and meditation.

Guru mahadasha - age 66-78

Guru is exalted in radix, fallen in navamsha, and moderately strong in dashamsha due to the pleasurable influence of swakshetra Shukra in D-10.

Guru is L-7/L-10 in radix suggesting that Aurobindo's leadership powers, important collegial relationships, and public dignity remained intact and functioning at a high level, even during his voluntary seclusion.

Guru also indicates a period of extraordinary wisdom, a grasping of ancient traditions at their most awesome, and a huge-scope-vision of human history - all functions of dhana bhava, the house of ancient traditions.

• Guru/Chandra: Death in the period of L-2 Chandra, 5-Dec-1950.

"an increasing ability to serve is the only reliable sign of spiritual progress"