5/25/2017 InterviewwithVinayAdityaJyotishStarJuly2016byVachaspatiChristinaCollins

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JyotishStaroftheMonth

VinayAditya
ByVachaspatiChristinaCollins
InterviewDate:06/14/2016

ChristinaCollins:ThankyouformeetingwithustodayVinayitisanhonortointerviewtheexpert
ontheAshtakavargaSystem!

VinayAditya:Thankyouforsettinguptheinterview.ItistruethatAshtakavargaisasubjectvery
closetomyheartandIhavewrittentwobooksonit,butIdonotclaimtobeanexpertonthe
system.Thereismuchmoretoitthanhasbeenbroughtoutbyvariouswritersonthesubject
includingme.Thereisamassiveneedforresearchinthesubjectnotonlytostraightenoutsomeof
thecontroversiessurroundingthesubjectbutalsotobanishsomesimplisticexplanationswhich
havegainedpopularitycurrently.Anysimplisticapproachultimatelybringsbadnametothesubject
becauseitdoesnotwithstandthetestoftime.

Christina:Yes,verywiseadvice,somethingmustbetestedoverandovertofindthesubtlety!Tell
us,didyougrowupinafamilywhereyoulearnedJyotish?

Vinay:No.Myfamilyhadnoparampara(tradition)ofJyotish.Infactthey
belongedtoAryaSamaj,asubsetamongstHindus,whosefounder
advocatedthatPhalit(Predictive)Jyotishshouldnotbepursued.Therefore,
beforeIjoinedtheJyotishclasses,Iwenttomyfather,whowasaprominent
andwellknownmanofthatsubset,toaskforhispermission.Iwas
independentand+40yearsofageatthattimebutIdidnotwanttohurthim
lestheshouldcometoknowofmyjoiningtheJyotishclassesfromsomeone
else.Buthewasaveryliberalman,notatalldogmaticinreligiousmatters.
Hegavemethepermissionandhisblessingssayingthatthistoowasan
ancientIndianVidyaandIshouldgoaheadandlearnit.Inlateryearshekept
atabonmyprogressinJyotishandwasveryhappywhenIwasappointedas
ateacheratBharatiyaVidyaBhawanclasses.

MyparentsandalotofothercloserelativeswereSanskritscholarsandwouldconverseinSanskrit
anddiscussvariousshastraswhenevertheywouldmeet.IthinkIinheritedshraddha(faith)inthe
classicsfromthem.IwishIhadlearnttheirSanskritskillstoo.

Christina:Thatissohonorableandhowwonderfulthathestartedyououtwithhisblessingsgiving
youpeaceofmind!Now,Iunderstandthatyouhaveanengineeringbackgroundaswell,right?

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Vinay:Yes,IamaB.Tech(Civil)byeducationfromIITKanpur,oneofthemostreputedinstitutes
ofthecountry.ButIdidnotpursuethatasaprofessionevenforaday.TheclosestIcametobenefit
frommydegreewaswhenChakrapaniUllalintroducedmetotheaudienceinSedonaatACVA
Conferencein2001sayingthatVinaywoulddojusticetohispresentationonAshtakavarga,a
mathematicalsubject,becausehehasanengineeringdegree.ThatwasonetimeIwasproudof
mydegree.

Christina:Oh,thatissosweet.Althoughmygrandfatherwasmyfirstsiderealastrologyteacher,
ChakrapaniintroducedmetoJyotish,andweareallgratefultohimforhisteachings!Whatelseled
youintothestudyofVedicastrology?

Vinay:Mustbemystars,whatelse!IamaLeolagnawithJupiter,Mercury,MarsandSuninthe
5thhouse.AtthetimeIjoinedtheclasses,IwasabouttostartmyJupiterSundasha.Intransit
Jupiterwasaspectingthe5thSaturnandSunwerevisitingthe5th.

Thatisonthelighternote.Whathadreallytranspiredwasanunfulfilleddesirethatcametosurface
fromthesubconsciousattherighttime.IhadstartedstudyingPalmistryfrommyteens.Asenior
friendoncetoldmethatPalmistrydoesnothaveasmuchdetailandaccuracyasastrology.ButI
waspursuingademandingengineeringdegreeatthattimeandtherewerenoschoolsaround
whichofferedastrology.So,manyyearslater,themomentIheardthatthereisaschoolteaching
astrology,Ienrolledimmediately.

Christina:Doyouhavechildrenwhoyouwillpassyourknowledgedownto?

Vinay:Iwouldlovetodothat.Myoldersonwhoisa
professorofOrganicChemistryinoneoftheAmerican
Universitieshasnotshownmuchinterestinthesubject.
Lately,nevertheless,hehasstartedtrackingretrograde
Mercuryanditsdeleteriouseffectsonpeoplesjudgments
andqualityofdecisions.

Theyoungersonisalreadyaverykeenstudentofpalmistry
whileheispursuingPh.D.incomputers.Iamsurehewill
gravitatetoastrologyonceheisnotburdenedwiththe
academiccommitments.

Christina:Youaresoblessedtohavesuchaccomplished
sons!WhenyouwroteyourfirstbookonAshtakavarga,what
broughtyourattentiontothisfieldandinspiredyoutowrite
yourbrilliantbookDotsofDestiny?

Vinay:ItwouldbefactuallyincorrecttosaythatIwrotethefirstbook
onAshtakavarga,thoughyes,itwasmyfirstbook.Mr.CSPateland
Mr.BVRamanwerethetwoauthorswhowereseniortomeby
miles.IdrewheavilyontheirbookswhenIwaswritingmybook.But
Imustadd,thatbeforemeauthorsweremostlysatisfiedwithjust
statingtheprinciplestherewasnotmuchtraditionofillustratingthe
principlesthroughanactualhoroscope.

Mybookhaditsgenesisinacoincidence.Mr.KNRao,myteacher
atBharatiyaVidyaBhawan,wastospeakonAshtakavargawhenhe
wasfirstinvitedtoUSAaround1993.Heaskedmetopreparethe
notesforhispresentationwithaprovisothatlateritcanbe
expandedintoabook.So,thechoiceofwritingonAshtakavarga
wasnotmydoing,itwasproverbiallygodsent.ThoughIhavebeen
teachingvariouskindsofsubjects,butitisAshtakavargathathas
stucktomeasmyidentity,notthatImindit.
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Christina:Thatissocool!Mr.K.N.RaoisthereasonthatIteach.WhenImethimatthat
conference,hetoldmeyouhavetoteach!Iaskedhimwhy,hesaidifyoudontteach,youwont
knowwherethegapsareinyourknowledge!Getstudentsaroundtheageof20,thenwhenthey
areyourage(42atthetime)theywillknowwhatyouknownow!SoIgivehimkudostoo!

YoualsocoauthorthebimonthlypublicationVedicAstrologywithDr.K.S.Charak,wouldyoutell
usmoreaboutthatpublicationandthelinkstoit?

Vinay:Intheyear1997,DrKSCharakandRajeevJhanji(authorofYoginiDasha)decidedtostart
aJyotishjournal,VedicAstrology.DrCharaktookontheresponsibilityofeditingit.Igotcooptedas
theAssociateEditorsinceJhanjiwasmybusinesspartnerthosedays.JhanjiandIstartedwriting
articlesforit.JhanjilatermigratedtoUSAanddidnotcontributemuchtothejournal.Intheyear
2007,themagazinehadtobestoppedforvariousconstraints.

Duringthe11yearsofitspublicationthejournalreceivedwideacclaiminIndiaaswellasabroad.
Theboundannualvolumesofthejournalarestillwellsoughtafter.

IwishtoputallthosearticlesthatIwroteoncontroversialtopicsthosedaysonmywebsite
someday.Nearlyadecadelater,Istillcherishthosedaysofintensebrainstormingthatpreceded
thechoiceofatopic,collectingthematerialandthenactuallysubjectingoneselftothedisciplineof
sittingdownandwritingthearticle.Itisverygratifyingtorevisitthosearticlesaftersomanyyears
andfeelinglikepattingyourownback.

Christina:IrememberthoseJournalsandgreatarticlesandIamsureourreadingpublicwillbe
gratefuloncetheyhavemoreaccesstothoseJournals!IveheardthataJyotishitoldyouexactly
whenyouwouldmeetyourwife,whatcombinationsindicatedthat?Transits,Dasas,acombination
ofboth,orsomethingelse,likepalmistry?

Vinay:Yes,IwastoldbyaJyotishiinMumbaithatmywifewouldhaveacrossonhermountof
Jupiter.SowheneverIwouldmeetaprospectivebride(pleaserememberthatinIndiathereusedto
bemostlyarrangedmarriages40yearsback)Iwouldlookatherpalmfirst.Iknewfrommyforays
intoPalmistrythatacrossisbadmarkinapalmexceptwhenitisonthemountofJupiter.The
momentImetagirlwhohadacrossonhermountofJupiter,Idecidedthatwasthegirlforme.

ThisJyotishiusedtobecalledaChhayaShastri.He
madethechartbymeasuringtheshadowoftheclient
intheSun.Isurmisethathefixedthelagnaofthe
horarychartthroughmeasuringtheChhaya(shadow).
Ialsogatherthathewasgivinglifepredictionsfrom
thehorarychart.
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Manyyearslateranastrologeraskedthenakshatraof
my7thlord.ItisMagha.Heaskedmetoconfirm
whetherthehousewhereIfirstmetmywifewasrather
longish.Hewasright.Thisistheswaroopa
(geometricalshape)ofMagha.

Christina:BecauseyoualsobringastrongknowledgeandexperiencewithPalmistrywheredid
youfirstdiscoverthatteachingandwhathasbeenyourgeneralexperiencewithit?

Vinay:HavingaHastaMoonitwasprobablynaturalformetotakeearlyinterestinPalmistry.Iwas
readingmyfirstbookonPalmistrywhilereturninghomefromcollegebytrainduringthesummer
holidays.Iwasaloneinthecompartment.IhadanirresistiblefeelingthatImustendmylifeby
jumpingoutofthetrain.Ihadconcludedthatmypalmwasverybad.Butasaneadvicerangaloud
bellatthebackofmymindthatoneshouldnotreadonesownhandandthattoowhenonehasjust
startedlearning.

SincethenIstartedreadingwhatevercamemyway.Irememberthebookthatimpressedmemost
atthattimewasTheLawsofScientificHandReadingbyWilliamBenham.Ofcourse,theCheiro,
StGermain,NoelJaquinandahostofotherscamealongbyandby.

Somebodysmisfortunebecameawindfallforme.Oneofmyastrologyfriendshadhadadivorce
andwasthrownoutofthehousebyhisestrangedwife,alongwithallhisbooksonastrologyand
palmistry.AndIhappenedtobearound.Forcedbythecircumstances,myfriendbecamevery
generousandofferedmetotakeanyorallthebooks.IpickedonlythechoicestbecauseIhadto
carrythembacktoIndia.TwoofthosebookswerewrittenforthewesternaudiencebyanIndian
palmistGhanshyamSinghBirla.Ihaveyettoseebooksbetterexplainedandillustratedthanhis.

Christina:Yes,averygreatmanweinterviewedhimfortheJyotishStaryouknow,in2014!
(http://www.jyotishstar.com/jyotishstarghanshyamsinghbirladecember2014.html)Sowhat
experienceshaveyouhadusingPalmistryinlife,givingconsultations?

Vinay:MyjourneyofpalmistryhadallbutstoppedbeforeIwenttoparticipateinanInternational
ExpoinHannover,Germanyintheyear2000.ThoughIwenttheretoofferastrological
consultationsasapartofIndianpavilion,buttherewerenotmanytakers.Insteadtheyshowed
goodinterestinpalmreadings.Iimmersedmyselfinpalmreadingsheadlong.For5longmonthsI
readacoupleofthousandhandsfromallnationalitiesfrommorningtilllateevenings.Thiswasa
veryvaluablelifetimeexperience,probablynotavailabletoevenprofessionalpalmists.

BackinIndia,DrCharakaskedmetoserializemywritingsonpalmistryinourmagazineVedic
Astrology.LaterwhenIstartedtakingpalmistryclassesforICASstudents,thesearticlesbecame
thebackboneofmylectures.

Christina:Sinceyoupracticeboth,astrologyandpalmistry,whatareyourviewsontheirpredictive
utility?

Vinay:WhatIcanseefromapalminafewsecondsIcannotseefromthecharteveninanhour.
Readingthecharacterandtemperamentfromthecharttakestime.Itissoeasyfromthepalm.By
lookingatthepalmIdecideonthepsychologicalcontentandtoneofmyconsultation.Iusethe
chartforfixingandtimingtheevents.Whatdrivesanindividualiseasytograspfromthepalm.To
deciphertheinnermotivationsisverycomplexfromthechartforme.Butithastoberemembered
thatpalmistryenteredmylifeinmyformativeyears.Astrologycamemidway.Somypreferencefor
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palmistrytounderstandtheinnerdriversofapersoncouldbemypersonalquirkandnot
necessarilyapplicableuniversally.

Christina:HaveyouwrittenanybooksonPalmistry,ordoyouplanto?Andspeakingofbooks,do
youhaveanynewonescomingoutsoon?

Vinay:Iteachpalmistryfrommyspiralboundnotes.IhaveputinthesenotesthebestIfound
anywhere.Thesehaveyettobepublishedintoabookformat.Iamalsowritingabookonastrology.
Ihopeitpicksupsteaminnearfuture.

Christina:Wellthatisexciting!Iknowwewillallbeinterestedtoknowwhenyoupublishnext!We
knowyoufrequentlyspeakattheJyotishconferencesinPennsylvania,doyouhaveanytoursor
speakingengagementscomingupthatwecanletourreadersknowabout?

Vinay:Ihavebeenteachingastrologyformorethantwodecades.HavebeenvisitingArshaVidya
GurukulaminPennsylvaniaregularlysincetheyear2000.BesidesICASinIndia,Ihavetaughtwith
ACVA,BAVAandEEVA.ThenextsummershouldfindmeactiveontheGermanUScircuitonce
again.

Christina:Thankyousomuchforawonderfulinterview,ithasbeenatruepleasuregettingto
knowyou!

Vinay:Ithasbeenentirelymypleasure.

VinayAdityaBiography:

Hewasbornin1948inDelhi,Indiainamiddleclassfamily.Hisfatherworked
inanewspaperintheeditorialdepartment.Hisfather,ahighlyrespected
man,hadaspeakingengagementonpracticallyallSundaysinoneArya
Samajtempleoranother.Thehousewasalwaysabuzzwithsocioreligious
activities.Discussionsonclassicalknowledgeandliteraturewerealwaysin
theair.

VinaystudiedforaBachelorsdegreeinCivilEngineeringfromaprestigious
institution,IITKanpur.Duringthecollegedaysitselfitbecamecleartohim
thatengineeringwasnothiscalling.Heoptedtomakeacareerindesigning
andphotography.Hewasluckytohavefoundhisfirstjobinaprintingpress
wherehissuperiorsgavehimafreehandtopursuehisinterests.Theprinting
linestucktohimforlife.In1981hebecameanentrepreneurandstarteda
designstudiowhichherantillhetookretirementinMarch2016.Heneverpursuedastrologyasa
profession,thoughhiscreativejuicesalwaysflowedinthedirectionofastrology.

Hestartedstudyingastrologyintheyear1990atBharatiyaVidyaBhawanandsoonstarted
teachingthere.AfterbeingmadetopartwayswithBVBin1997,hehasbeenteachinginIndiawith
ICASclasses.Sincetheyear2000,hegotmanyopportunitiestoteachastrologyinvariouspartsof
theworld.HegotparticularlyassociatedwiththeArshaVidyaGurukulaminPennsylvania,USAand
EEVA,theEuropeanInstituteofVedicAstrology,wherehehasbeenvisitingalmosteveryyear
since2000and2005respectively.

Alongtheastrologicaljourney,theteacherswhohaveshapedandsharpenedhisastrologicalskills,
tonamejustafew,areMr.KNRao,JusticeSNKapoor,Mr.JNSharmaandDr.KSCharak.He
hashadtheoccasionsandopportunitiestodiscussastrologicaldictaandgreatlybenefitfromthese
discussionswiththesegreatmastersofastrologyinthemodernera.

HehaswrittentwobooksonAshtakavargaDotsofDestinyandPracticalAshtakavarga.Dotsof
DestinyhasbeentranslatedandpublishedinHindiandRussianlanguagestoo.Practical
AshtakavargaisunderpreparationinRussian.HehasbeenassociatedwithDrKSCharaknotonly
forthepublicationoftheVedicAstrologybimonthlybutalsoforholdingAstrologyintheHimalayas
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program.Inthisprogramstudentsareinvitedfromvariouscountriesandweeklongastrology
workshopsareconducted.ThisactivityisundertakentoraisesomefundsforSOSMT,themedical
trustrunbyDrCharakthatconductscompletelyfreeMedicalcumSurgicalcampsintheremote
partsofIndia,4timesayear.ThelasttwosuchprogramsweredonewithRussianandUkrainian
studentsexclusively.

BesidesAstrologyandPalmistryhetakeskeeninterestinPhotography,Trekking,Transactional
Analysis,Vipassana,AlternativeMedicine,Meditation,PastLifeRegressionandtheNewageSelf
developmenttechniques.

Contact:D81GulmoharPark,NewDelhi110049,India

Cell:9811063505,email:vinay.aditya@gmail.com

ChristinaCollinsBiography:

ChristinaCollins,JyotishVisharada,CVA,JyotishKovid,ICASandCVA,
JyotishVachaspati,ICAS,JyotishMedhaPragya,ICAS,JyotishMahasagara
fromRamanandRajeshwariFoundation2013,JyotishNavaratnaACVA,2014
isathirdgenerationAstrologerspecializingintheVedicsystem.

ShereceivedherhonorarytitlesfromthelateDr.B.V.Raman,formerPresident
oftheICAS(IndianCouncilforAstrologicalSciences)inNewDelhiand
Bangalore,India,fromCVA(CouncilforVedicAstrology,USA),fromtheICASin
Bangalore2012,fromtheRamanandRajeshwariFoundationin2013andfrom
ACVA(AmericanCollegeofVedicAstrology)2014.

Asafoundingmember,shecurrentlyservesontheBoardofDirectorsofthe
AmericanCollegeforVedicAstrology(ACVAonline),andwasformer
EditoroftheACVANews.PresidentofCelestialResource(TheTimingCoach)sheserves
corporateandprivateclientsfromstudentstocelebrities.FortheJyotishStaryoucanreachherin
BoulderCOateditor@jyotishstar.com:

Christina'sConsultationContactinformation:

ChristinaCollins,J.K.,J.V.
EditorinChiefTheJyotishStar
Lafayette,(BoulderCounty)CO,USA
website:http://www.christinacollinsastrology.com
email:jyotish@indra.com
phone:3036659996

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