Vedic Astrology: Authors names beginning with B

Authors appearing on this page include Bala Bhadra, Kevin Barrett, K. Baskaran, M. Ramakrishna Bhat, Sage Bhrigu, Narayana Bhatt, Andrew Bloomfield, Ebenezer Burgess.

	HORA RATNAM, part 1 - Bala Bhadra, translated by R. Santhanam, $40.00 Contents: Preface; Introductory chapter; 1. Signs, their properties & divisions, impregnation, delivery, etc.; 2. Blemished births & remedies, effects of births in various astrological phases, etc.; 3. Planetary effects in bhavas, various divisions, aspects, dignities, avasthas, etc.; 4. Effects of planets with different divisions, dignities, strengths, etc.; 5. Evils, raja yogas & their cancellation, pancha maha purusha yogas, graha kiranas, etc. Speculum (eg, tables): 1. Limbs of time personified; 2. Signs & nakshatras; 3. Nakshatras in regular order; 4. Signs & appearances; 5. Signs as biped; 6. Houses & directional strength; 7. Day & night signs; 8. Rising manner of signs; 9. Nature & sex of signs; 10. Moveable, fixed & common signs; 11. Signs & directions; 12. Signs & lords; 13. Rulerships of navamsas; 14. Rulerships of dvadasamsas; 15. Decanates; 16. Horas & their lords; 17. Trimsamsas; 18. Saptamsas; 19. Short, medium & long signs; 20. Exaltations & debilitations of planets; 21. Moolatrikona & own signs; 22. Signs & colours; 23. Planetary cabinet; 24. Planetary colours; 25. Planets & directions; 26. Planets & tutelary dieties; 27. Primordial elements; 28. Robes & primary elements; 29. Planets & seasons; 30. Natural relationships of planets; 31. Compound terms (Panchadha sambandha); 32. Tripushkara yogas denoting illegal births; 33. Mula vrikshakara chakra: Mula nakshatra as a tree & effects; 34. Mula purushakara chakra: Mula as male & effects; 35. Mula kanya chakra; 36. Birth in mula nakshatra: A source of destruction; 37. Mula as male; 38. Aslesha as a male. References consulted by Bala Bhadra (some 101 individual entries); Glossary; Translator's bibliography. Comment: Hora Ratnam is a compilation of nearly 7300 Sanskrit slokas, taken from over a hundred sources, published by Bala Bhadra (son of Damodara Daivagna) in 1650. Part 1 comprises the first five chapters & 3200 slokas (included in the text). To the 101 original sources, Santhanam has added an additional 29, for a total of 130. The remaining five chapters were to follow, but Santhanam's untimely death ended the project. Part one is a valuable addition to the study. Perhaps someone will translate & publish the rest? R Santhanam Associates, 949 pages.

	UNDERSTANDING THE MOON'S NODES, RAHU & KETU, ancient astrological Vedic wisdom - Kevin W. Barrett, $15.00 Contents: Introduction; Mythology of the nodes; Basic rules for Vedic interpretations; The nodes - Rahu & Ketu; The nodes's exaltations & rulerships; Rahu's influence on the planets; Nakshatras the 27 lunar mansions; Rahu & Ketu in house polarities; Rahu in signs; Combination of nodal axis in houses; Transiting nodes; Dasa progressions; The natal node yogas; The natal nodes in the moon chart; Chart interpretations. Appendices: A. Moon mansion constellation rulers; B. Navamsa conversion tables; C. Ayanamsa conversion tables; D. Progressed dasa system calculations; E. Benefic, malefic & neutral planets; F. Planetary relationships. Dictionary - Hindu words to English. Comment: Kevin Barrett is an Australian who has studied Vedic astrology since 1976. This book is intended for western astrologers. All the charts in the book are in the western round format, though the planetary positions in them are Lahiri ayanamsa. As a Vedic book, it's elementary. As a western book, it's pretty solid. He had previously self-published this book, which made it both expensive & hard to get. I was happy to see the Sagar edition. Sagar, 213 pages.

	PRINCIPLES OF CUSPAL INTERLINKS, an advanced reader in astrology - K. Baskaran, translated by S. Gnanasambandan, $18.00 Contents: A step forward; Acknowledgements; 1. Introduction; 2. Karam yoga & cuspal beginnings; 3. What is a cusp; 4. Cuspal interlinks; 5. Classification of karakas; 6. Inner thread; 7. 1st bhava; 8. 2nd bhava; 9. 3rd bhava; 10. 4th bhava; 11. 5th bhava; 12. 6th bhava; 13. 7th bhava; 14. 8th bhava; 15. 9th bhava; 16. 10th bhava; 17. 11th bhava; 18. 12th bhava; 19. How to use cuspal interlinks; 20. Epilogue. Comment: This is a book of Krishnamurti astrology, one of the rare ones to escape the Krishnamurti publishers. Sagar, 208 pages.

	BE YOUR OWN ASTROLOGER: Vedic Astrology Made Simple - Pandit Ajai Bhambi, $20.00 Contents: Foreword by Bepin Behari, Preface; 1. What is astrology; 2. The zodiac; 3. Interpretation of horoscope; 4. Nature of the zodiac; 5. Symbols in astrology; 6. The significance of the planets; 7. Importance of dasa; 8. How to interpret a horoscope yourself; 9. Importance of transit Comment: An introductory book intended for lay persons. There is a lot of general theory & structure about planets, signs & houses. Wisdom Tree (of India), 318 pages.

	ESSENTIALS OF HORARY ASTROLOGY, or PRASNAPADAVI - M. Ramakrishna Bhat, assisted by B.P. Nair, $25.00 Contents: Foreword Abbreviations Preface 1. Introductory 2. Astrologer & querist 3. Planets & signs 4. Astamangala Prasna 5. Deva-prasna 6. Matrimony 7. Progeny 8. Diseases 9. Fructification of karma 10. Span of life 11. Demise 12. Travel 13. Rainfall 14. Water resources 15. Lost articles 16. Lost horoscopes 17. Decanates & stars 18. Transits 19. Miscellaneous Appendix Bibliography Index Comment: This book was inspired by a close study of Prasna Marga (available in an English translation by B.V. Raman), there are many references to it. Like Prof. P.S. Sastri, M. Ramakrishna Bhat brings great wisdom & scholarship to his work. Motilal Banarsidass, 446 pages.

	FUNDAMENTALS OF ASTROLOGY - M. Ramakrishna Bhat, $24.00 Contents: Preface to the first edition (1967); Preface to the second edition (1978); Preface to the third edition (1988); 1. General principles; 2. Planets' characteristics; 3. Lagna & other houses; 4. Planetary strength; 5. Moon's states & constellations; 6. Rectification of birth time; 7. Span of life; 8. Rasi effects; 9. On bhavas; 10. Conception & birth; 11. Ududasas; 12. Yogas; 13. Rajayogas; 14. Issue; 15. Matrimony; 16. Female horoscopy; 17. Disease; 18. Description of decanates; 19. Death; 20. Profession; 21. Transits; 22. Ashtakavarga. Appendix: What is Pancanga?; Index. Comment: This book has been in print for nearly 40 years, the author is the translator of the classic Brhat Samhita. In the preface to the first edition, the author writes, In the pages that follow I have in my own humble way attempted to bring to the fore not only the rationality of astrology but also the nature and structure of the correct knowledge that our forefathers possessed regarding the predictable influences of planets on human beings, and to give a spiritual bias to astrology. The reader is taken step-by-step in this work from the rudiments viz. the distribution of constellations in the Zodiacal belt which is divided into twelve Signs, and the planetary hierarchy, through the method of calculating the ascendant and other houses of the natal chart, assessment of the strengths, infuences, aspects, afflictions, mutual relations etc. of the planets, to the final stage of reading the brighter and darker sides of the subject's life, his chances of success and failure, their periods, ingress of the Soul into the mortal coil and exit therefrom as well as its departure to other worlds according to its Karma. I am sure the illustrative charts, appended to explain different rules will be of special benefit to students and lovers of astrology. (pg. ix) A detailed & demanding book. Motilal Banarsidass, 326 pages.

	BHRIGU SUTRAM - Sage Bhrigu, translated by Dr. G.S. Kapoor, $20.00 Contents: Part 1: Significations of the planets & houses: 1. Zodiac & the 12 signs, astrological nature, influence, characteristics, functions of Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, Rahu & Ketu. Their signs of exaltation & debilitation; their own signs; their friends, enemies & neutrals. 2. The significations of the 12 houses of the horoscope. The 12 houses termed as: Tanu, Dhana, Sahaja, Sukha, Suta, Ripu, Jaya, Ayu, Dharma, Karma, Labha & Vyaya, according to their significance. Part 2: Bhrigu Sutram: 1. Effects of Sun in the 12 houses. Dispositions when Sun in spite of being a malefic gives very beneficial results & gives rise to Raja yoga. Difference of effects when Sun is in own sign, sign of exaltation, enemy sign, etc. 2. Effects of Moon in the 12 houses. Difference in effects of Moon when posited in a house in different signs; difference of effects of a waning & waxing Moon; dispositions when Moon produces Rajayoga, difference in effects when Moon is in own sign, sign of exaltation, sign of debilitation, etc. 3. Effects of Mars in the 12 houses. How a great malefic like Mars becomes a yogakaraka. Difference in effects of Mars in different houses when in own sign, sign of exaltation, sign of debilitation, etc. Dispositions when Mars produces Ruchaka yoga, Dhana yoga & Raja yoga & their results. Special yogas for sexual perversions. 4. Effects of Mercury in the 12 houses. When a benefic Mercury can become a malefic. Difference in effects of Mercury in different houses when in own sign, sign of exaltation, debilitation, etc. Dispositions when Mercury produces Bhadra yoga, Amla yoga, Dhana yoga & Raja yoga & their results. 5. Effects of Jupiter in the 12 houses. Difference in effects of Jupiter in own sign, sign of exaltation, sign of debilitation, etc. Dispositions when Jupiter produces Hamsa yoga, Amla yoga, Dhana yoga, Raja yoga & their results. When lords of 6th, 8th & 12th houses become yoga karaka planets. Jupiter good even when is lord of 3rd & 12th houses. 6. Effects of Venus in the 12 houses. Difference in effects of Venus in own sign, sign of exaltation, sign of debilitation, etc. Dispositions when Venus produces Malavya yoga, Amla yoga, Dhana yoga & Raja yoga & their results. Venus gives yoga effects when posited in the 6th & 12th houses. 7. Effects of Saturn in the 12 houses. When a great malefic like Saturn gives very beneficial results & functions as yoga karaka planet. Saturn gives long life when posited in the 8th house. Effects of Saturn in own sign, sign of exaltation, sign of debilitation, etc. Dispositions when Saturn produces Sasa yoga, Dhana yoga & Raja yoga & their results. 8. Effects of Rahu & Ketu in the 12 houses. Controversy about the roles of Rahu & Ketu in a horoscope & different views in that regard. Comment: This book includes the original Sanskrit slokas, translated & with commentary. Further commentary is provided by Brihat Jatak, Phaladeepika, Saravali, Chamatkar Chintamani. For its limited scope, this is a very nice book. Ranjan, 176 pages.

	CHAMATKAR CHINTAMANI of Narayana Bhatt - translated by S.S. Sareen, $10.00 Contents: 1. Introduction; 2. Manglacharan; 3. Sun; 4. Moon; 5. Mars; 6. Mercury; 7. Jupiter; 8. Venus; 9. Saturn; 10. Rahu; 11. Ketu. Comment: From the introduction: Bhatt Narayana has written his Chamatkara Chintamani in 108 slokas which he claims to have collected out of an ocean of four lac Jyoti Shastras [that's a lot]. These Slokas or Sutras deal with all the nine planets from the Sun to Rahu-Ketu when they are posited alone or jointly from the 1st house to the 12th in a particular chart. There are 9 planets & 12 houses. Hence the 108 slokas. Each sutra or sloka reads the influence of a particular planet in a particular house. For example, the first bhava phal is that of the sun in the first house. He has not made any reference of the 12 signs from Aries to Pisces which might rise in the same house in different births. Thus the bhava-phal which he has given are in a general way & not specific. None the less, an advanced scholar, for whom this book is the best companion, can easily discriminate the distinct personalities represented in each bhava phal-sutra. Reading & rereading of these sutras would be most rewarding to our readers. (From page i) The result is a bit choppy. The planets through the houses, with notes on signs & aspects. The introduction is some 40 pages in itself. Sagar, 164 pages, paper.

	HOW TO PRACTICE VEDIC ASTROLOGY, a beginner's guide - Andrew Bloomfield, $29.95 Contents: Introduction; Part 1 - The basics: Birth time adjustment, The chart, Step 1 - The nature of the rising sign, Step 2 - Planets in the first house, Step 3 - No planets in the first house, Planets & their meanings, Aspects, Planetary exaltation & debilitation, Retrograde planets, Planetary friends & enemies, Mahadasha - the major cycle of the planets, Another method of prediction - transits, Navamsha, Remedial measures, Astro-locality, Summary. Part 2: Reading Charts: 1st house: The body; 2nd house: Wealth; 3rd house: Creativity; 4th house: The mother; 5th house: Children; 6th house: enemies; 7th house: Marriage; 8th house: Transformation; 9th house: The father; 10th house: Career; 11th house: Opportunity; 12th house: Actualization. Appendix: Vedic astrology resources; Glossary; Index; About Parasara's Light vedic astrology software (CD included). Comment: For each house, there are example charts- 18 for the 7th house, 6 charts for the 9th (which is a more typical number), more than 100 in all. Like many beginner books, you should ideally find this in a store, skim through it & love it or not, as it speaks to you (or not). It is a nice book. The best thing about it is the free CD Rom of Parasara's Light software in the back. It's Windows-only (sorry Macs!). This will let you do basic on-screen chart calculations & pretty much everything described in the book. It is otherwise a tease for the full program, which is $299. Which is a lot for a limited-use specialty program of any kind, frankly. Destiny Books, 264 pages.

	THE SURYA SIDDHANTA - translated by Ebenezer Burgess, edited by Phanindralal Gangooly, $65.00 Contents: Note; Introduction; Life of Rev. E Burgess; Introductory note; 1. Mean motions of the planets; 2. True places of the planets; Directions, place, time; 4. Eclipses, lunar eclipse; 5. Parallax in a solar eclipse; 6. Projection of eclipses; 7. Planetary conjunctions; 8. Asterisms; 9. Heliacal risings & settings; 10. Moon's rising & setting & elevation of her horns; 11. Certain malignant aspects of the Sun & Moon; 12. Cosmogony, geography, dimension of creation; 13. Armillary sphere & other instruments; 14. Different modes of reckoning time. Appendix: Footnotes & corrections to the text, calculations of eclipses, stellar map (folds out nicely); Sanskrit Index (in Roman characters); English index. Comment: Born in 1805, Ebenezer Burgess was an American missionary who spent 15 years in India (1839-1854). During his time there he found a need for a good text on Hindu astronomy, and so made this translation, first published in 1860. Mr. Burgess died in 1870. This is a reprint of the 1935 reprint by Calcutta University. Burgess concludes the Hindu civilization dates back to 2000 BC, and no earlier. Their knowledge of astronomy was therefore not derived from the Greeks. Among many other analysises, he carefully compares nakshatras to Arabic & Chinese lunar mansions. I can find no astrology in this book, but it will be a useful resource for the serious student. There are no Sanskrit slokas in this book. Motilal Banarsidass, 409 pages.

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