The celestial forecast....

sujathaumakanth · May 20, 2010

“If the people were a little more ignorant, astrology would flourish - if a little more enlightened, religion would perish”
-Robert Green Ingersoll

[JUSTIFY]My mother used to dabble in astrology while I was a kid. There is no doubt that the Indian society is truly well under the influence of this branch of science (if I might brave the cynical laughter of my so-called scientist husband, Anna), however I never understood what sparked her interest in this particular field. It would have been easier to comprehend if she had spent her money on knowing her own fortune but instead I used to find books strewn around and she engaged in demystifying the celestial complexities or deciphering their impact on one’s destiny. Besides, this was before the publishing success of "anything for dummies" age, so I indeed pitied her for subjecting herself voluntarily to the tyranny of such a complex field.

She started off by holding court in family gatherings, marriages, but very soon I found neighbours flocking to our house for her parlour tricks. Well, I could never have said this directly to her face…..er anxious of being deprived of our next meal, my dad and I used to snigger behind her back treating it as our own private joke. It was hard to figure out if her predictions came true, but perhaps being a shrewd and smart woman, she probably had her bases covered quite well, so she always had people coming back for more (or perhaps she always read for free ). I would have supported her probably if she had extended her kindness in reading my fortune but perhaps out of her deep-rooted fears in prophesying the future of her progeny, I was always left out of the loop. Perhaps, call it the "these grapes are sour" syndrome or my own scepticism at this divining art, I soon lost interest in her pursuits and hoped her own interests will fizzle out once she gets caught up in her yen for something else. Does anyone wonder where I got my own restlessness from

However, to my immense surprise, after I had got married and moved away, I found that she indeed took astrology quite seriously and soon attended courses and became a registered astrologist. I was indeed impressed for someone with very little formal education, she persevered and mastered this art, given its basis for some serious computation. Contrary to her old behaviour, perhaps fuelled by her new found confidence and infallible credentials, I now discovered she was more forthcoming when it came to me. My mother was on a roll here especially when it came to forecasting my future.

To my dismay, I have been finding out her predictions are taking place but sadly with a reciprocal effect. The day she says I will have a brilliant presentation, I find despite my natural skills at excelling in presentations, I fumble and make a very dismal show. A reunion with a long-lost friend almost ends up in a falling-out and silent treatment from a beloved mate; tidings of good news turns out to be a rejection letter from a job that I was almost sure to land with. Last September, towards the last week, she predicted I will be entering a period of emotional well-being and peace and I found quite to the contrary, I hit a big bout of depression and the period can truly be remembered as one of the worst periods of trauma I had encountered in all my 34 yrs of my life. To cap it all, she now has declared within the next few days, my stars will indeed shift position and I am going to be flooded with job offers. I hastily bite a retort, grit my teeth and attempt a dry run at humour telling her the only way I can be employed in this town is if I start my own business.

Sometimes, given the bleak and dull routine my days seems to take lately and no trace of immediate hope in the horizon, I am tempted to dwell on her prophecies and would like to take comfort in knowing if Lady Luck will indeed bestow her kindness on me. But then reality kicks in and I know if anything is going to help me during these dark moments of my life, it is indeed my own self-confidence and the support I am going to garner from my family and friends – and not some haphazard course of the stars. Oh yeah, somewhere all the academic qualifications with outstanding results (that I have collected over the years), my professional experience and my own go-getter personality ought to get a mention......anyway the truth is I make my own destiny.

Meanwhile I still humour my mother and listen to her celestial banter cheerfully, relieved that with her heavenly support system in place, she does not need me to offer her empty words of solace; my own feeble attempts at flippancy and light heartedness in maintaining the mask of well-being and normalcy, atleast where she is concerned, is already stretched beyond limits. Atleast I make her day even if her stars dont make mine [/JUSTIFY]

knot2share · May 20, 2010

Good one :thumbsup. I think possibly your mother's forecasts are a wee bit "jet lagged" maybe.......heheh. Also one celestial day = a few earthly days. So that answers why they have not been in line with the predictions. Don't you worry gal! Job offers are surely in the pipeline for you. I can see them brewing in there.

Arunarc · May 20, 2010

You should be happy about her so confidently she predict and people believe her and she having interest in that field goes and studies about it and helping the believers of astrology.
One day her stars will also make your day
i don't trust astrologers:hide:

Padmini · May 20, 2010

Dear Sujatha,
In a humoros way you have brought out your mother's
efforts and her anxiety in becoming an astrologer and also her enthusiasm in forecasting your future . Poor lady !All her calculations became futile.Probably her motherly concern surpassed her profession!
How did astrology grow into this huge industry and where did it start? Why do people turn to astrology everyday?A lot of confusion surrounds astrology and what is considered part of astrology. Personal astrology is basically fortune telling, love compatibility, life readings, and things along those lines. The key component to astrology is that it is based on the day you were born, your birth month, your birth time, or anything like that. Another part of astrology is the position of the planets, moon, and sun on the day that you get your reading or the day that you are asking about. But astrology isn't all about personal readings.
Throughout history astrology has been used to determine if a king should go into war or if a country will have a financially successful year. Historically if the astrologer was wrong, they would be killed or suffer some horrible punishment either way their astrology career would be over.
According to me,Astrology is a tool to help you get control of what by nature would hinder your growth. Astrology is also a tool to gain more self-confidence in the great things in your nature you should expand on.Astrology is the theme, zodiac signs are the variables Astrology is the study of the stars, how they influence you and the world around you. Astrology illuminates, Zodiac signs are what Astrology shines light on. within that theme.
Sorry for my long feed back. With this I conclude mine.
with love
pad

sujathaumakanth · May 21, 2010

Hey dear Knots

We are both in the same boat, hope we both get the jobs we aspire for )

Miss u heaps !!!
Suja

sujathaumakanth · May 21, 2010

Dear Aruna,

Yep, my mother definitely has won my respect in this aspect ( wow, that rhymes ).......I do believe as dear Padmini says, my mother's concern for her daughter is probably vying with her professional wisdom......and perhaps she is injecting her own hopes into my prophecy

No worries, I do believe in the law of averages ) my luck will even out someday.

Cheers,
Suja

sujathaumakanth · May 21, 2010

Dear Padmini,

As always reading your feedback is always quite interesting and enlightening too in some cases Really appreciate when you give us tidbits about the topics that we post......it sure helps us gain a better understanding of some of the topics.

Please keep it coming,
Have a lovely day,
Sujatha

Mindian · May 21, 2010

Dear sujatha,

That was a humorous read.:thumbsup
Do continue to keep mamma happy and one day you shall be rewarded. Hahhaha. After all, the law of probability does hold true.
Meanwhile I do hope her latest prediction comes true and you are indeed flooded with job offers. It would surely compensate for the other predictions going wrong, no?

Cheeniya · May 22, 2010

Dear Suja
My Chemistry Professor always began his lectures saying ‘Science is in everything and everything is in Science’. On those days when he felt very possessive about Chemistry, he would substitute the word Chemistry for Science in his famed quotation! Even as far back as 1958, he would give us the example of cooking and show how it was a science where Chemistry played a major role. He would write on the board all the chemical reactions that took place when we made Vegetable Kuruma! Had he been alive now, he would tell Anna that there was no need for any derisive laughter merely because astrology was being called a Science.

Dabble in astrology is the right phrase. Even the most serious astrologers are usually content with merely dabbling in them. They do all their calculations on the back of a used envelope, a practice in austerity that Mahatma Gandhi introduced to the teeming millions of the country but practiced only by the amateur astrologers. When they try to figure out our future destiny, they rely on some charts on paper rather than the real ones on the sky. Ask them to show you the position of Saturn in the Sky and they’ll merely blink. You would expect the astrologers to be a wee bit inquisitive about the position of the planet in the sky when it is going to affect our lives for the next seven and a half years so that the affected persons can fall on his knees in front of it and pray fervently as a damage control exercise. Instead, the astrologers direct the victims to go to places like Thirunallaru and the like to offer obeisance with a view to mitigate their sufferings!

The planets have their own problems. When they go about their routine, they are blamed for most of the human sufferings. Half the time, they have to take sojourn in their enemies’ houses. Though they are just nine in number, they have strong likes and dislikes for others. They invariably go by the rule than an enemy’s enemy is a friend. You would be really surprised how there could be so much of politics among just a handful. The fact is that the usual trouble makers are a minority but they are strong enough to obscure the benevolent majority. Despite millions of years of co-existence, they never seem to be able to make it peaceful!

When humans tremble like a leaf in a storm at the mention of malefic planets, I have no doubt the planet themselves must be getting worried sick about our predictions of their interactions with each other! Now this is a real story. A famous astrologer of Chennai who was rolling in millions committed suicide one day. The entire city had a shock of its life. We came to know that he had predicted the date of his death and given it in a sealed cover. As nothing really happened even remotely suggestive of his end on the appointed day, he was worried about his reputation taking a beating. So he ended his life by hanging himself from the ceiling fan!
Sri