The universe is constantly changing. The sun, the moon, the earth and the many constellations as well as you and me – each is undergoing a process of transformation. It is this transformation that has brought us from satyug, through treta and dwapar, to kaliyug. With every change in yug there is a change in the tilt of earth’s axis, as also the relative positions of sun, moon and the nakshatras, all of which govern the events and occurrences in the life of an individual and creation as a whole. Since there is a change, so what held true for satyug is not true of kaliyug, the reason why beings, the environment, needs and thought-patterns in kaliyug are very different from those of satyug.
We all know that the earth spins on its axis and revolves around the sun. We also know that the axis of the earth is tilted at an angle of 23°30´ but very few know that this tilt of earth’s axis is changing with time and presently it is close to 23°26´. The 4 minute shift in the axis might seem trivial given the size of our universe, but its implications are profound. Let us find out…
Because of the tilt in earth’s axis, our sun appears to move from north to south to north in a period of one year, causing a change in seasons. The northernmost latitude that the sun reaches being Tropic of Cancer (the phenomenon is called summer solstice for northern hemisphere and falls on June 21/22) and the southernmost point being Tropic of Capricorn on the day of winter solstice (December 21/22). Twice in its apparent journey the sun crosses the equator, what we call as the spring and autumn equinoxes. In high school we were taught that the two tropics lie at 23°30´N/S respectively, you will now appreciate that the position of the tropics too changes with time, currently being close to 23°26´N/S.
When the vedic seer told us that uttarayan (northward movement of sun) begins on makar sankranti (when sun enters the capricorn constellation), it was because he observed this phenomenon. When the sun reached its southernmost point (23°30´S), it was directly in line with the Capricorn constellation as seen from the earth – the reason why later scientists called the latitude of 23°30´S as the Tropic of Capricorn, or why dakshinayan was said to begin with kark sankranti because the sun entered Cancer Constellation. This however was the case many thousand years ago. In present times the kark sankranti falls close to July 15 while the southward movement begins mid-June, when the sun is in Gemini constellation (If one approximates the zodiac into 12 equal parts of 30° each – as done by most astrologers) and in Taurus constellation if one goes by actual observation of the position of sun.
That is to say, that all the astrological charts and figures, that the modern astrologers rely upon and base their “predictions” and “upays” upon, are actually outdated. The rishis of yore were aware of the laws of creation, and used them to forge through the changing times, men of today have forgotten the laws, what remains is the incomplete knowledge of the vedic ways translated into mere rituals and a profit making business, the science of astrology being a perfect example. The science of astrology as laid down by the vedic seer is perfect and precise, all the nakshatras, planets and other heavenly bodies do have a major role to play in our lives, but present times call for fresh observations and calculations. This can only be done by the one who is in sync with creation and understands the laws of creation, laws of nature, which requires to follow niyamit adhyayan (discipline, and constant practice/study of the subject). You can’t miss out a single day, for what nature teaches you, books cannot. You don’t know what you miss when you skip even a day. There lies the relevance of niyam and importance of Guru. The practice which the Guru gives, when followed reveals the secrets of creation which one experiences, which is not possible by reading books, gyan is imbibed with experience.
It has been clearly laid in our shastras that the moment we commercialize the ancient sciences, they will lose their efficacy, which is what is happening right now. There are thousands of astrologers in the market these days and each will have a hundred and one million upays to your life problems…Yet there are very few who actually understand the subject and I can assure you that this minority will not offer solutions, for they know better.