The Manson Family murders in the summer of â69 seared a hole in the American psyche. The Family was a cult of hippie nihilists led by Charles Manson, a frustrated singer-songwriter on the fringe of the LA music industry. In what was to become one of the first acts of social-class terrorism to date, Manson […]
Hugh Hefner: Playboy of the western world
Author’s note: I know at first glance this might seem inappropriate, posting an article on Hugh Hefner the week after the Harvey Weinstein scandal, revealing the latter’s systemic sexual harassment and assault upon young women in the film industry. Bad timing for this article, perhaps, but good timing for Hefner to have died just three […]
Jim Carrey: Man on the Moon?
Every now and again, Jim Carrey gives an interview which causes people to wonder out loud, Is this guy playing with a full deck? Admittedly, Carrey has never been shy about voicing his opinion on matters he considered important. While still partners with Jenny McCarthy, he campaigned publicly against vaccinations, going so far as to […]
Season of the Serpent
Take cover. It’s Kala Sarpa season. While everyone was focused on the solar eclipse of August 21st, another significant phenomenon was taking place on the same day. Ever since the Rahu/Ketu axis had shifted into Cancer/Capricorn on August 17th, only one other element remained to put things in play. So when, in the early hours […]
Mathematical Frequency of Common Yogas
As Vedic astrologers, we routinely scan a chart to note the presence of yogas, ie, the planetary combinations that portend one effect or another for the person under consideration. These anticipated results derive, typically, from the houses the participant planets own, the signs and houses they occupy and, sometimes, the basic nature of the planets […]
Mutual Reception: Book review by Mary Plumb, The M...
Mutual Reception by Alan Annand, Sextile.com, 2016. Softcover 340 pp. $19.95 (ISBN 978-1-927799-24-6). Available from Amazon. Alan Annand is an experienced Vedic astrologer who has written two previous books from that tradition. His new book, Mutual Reception, takes a different approach; he begins with a survey of theories of mutual reception from the Western tradition […]
The Mathematics of Yogas, part 6: Viparita Raja Yo...
Viparita Raja Yoga Not every cloud has a silver lining, but when it does, it provides an example of how Viparita Raja Yoga works. This yoga operates on the principle that, effectively, two wrongs make a right. For the mathematically-inclined, this is like multiplying two negative numbers and getting a positive, as in (-2) x […]
Chuck Berry: Reelinâ and Rockinâ
Like Pablo Picasso, Stephen King and several others, Chuck Berry is proof positive that having three debilitated planets in your birth chart is no impediment to reaching the top of your game. But Americaâs iconic rock ânâ roll pioneer was frequently in trouble, and we can only credit his chart â not his parents or […]
Mutual Reception: Book review by Donna Van Toen, I...
Mutual Reception by Alan Annand, Sextile.com, 2016. Paper 339 pp. Price: $6.99 digital, $19.95 paper. Mutual reception has been around for 2000 years or so, and yet very little has been written about it. Sure, youâll see mention of the fact that two planets in mutual reception will âhelp one another out,â but thatâs about […]
Kala Sarpa Yoga
Kala Sarpa Yoga is not discussed in classical shastra. Rather, it arises from an oral tradition, probably with roots in South India. Some say itâs Tantrik in origin and, perhaps because of that, is subject to significant differences in interpretation. Some describe Kala Sarpa as a major flaw in a birth chart, a dosha which foretells loss […]