If you are a self-respecting western rationalist with a university education, consider that you have probably accepted the post-Enlightenment intellectual taboos against astrology & divination at face value, without legitimate inquiry.
Virtually every highly educated modern world citizen rejects astrology. But has there been compelling research which proves the absence of significant correlation between Jyotisha predictions and the actual events? No, this disproving has not occurred on any type of sustained scientific basis. Educated folks reject astrology and most other forms of divination (except economics :)) because it is the custom to do so.
In any culture, not following the popular custom causes embarrassment. One may be laughed out of the room for being superstitious or succumbing to a debased, vulgar, un-scientific mentality. Astrology is intellectually unfashionable, that is true. However, avoiding critical inquiry into any subject is social conformity behavior - not science.
Jyotisha has not been subjected to adequate post-modern rational inquiry, and it has yet to be systematically disproved.
Our modern scientific method for discovering the world depends on a mechanism of forming hypotheses and testing them according to various methodological standards.
Have astrological assertions been tested against contemporary truth standards? Does the native achieve education, wealth, or fame; marry; produce heirs; attain leadership; and leave their body at the time Jyotisha would predict?
Typically, Jyotisha claims are rejected out of hand, under pressure of social conformity within westernized intellectual culture. It would be more consistent with actual modern truth standards test these historic Vedic assertions, in a systematic program of scientific inquiry, to determine how well the predictions hold up. The predictions should use specific language and rely on as few "black boxes" as possible.
In several decades of Jyotisha practice, I have been intellectually rewarded with a very positive correlation between prediction and outcome. However I look forward to large scale studies which can be undertaken as soon as educated people abandon the "scientific" taboo against traditional divinatory practices.
updated: 05 May 2008
