Indian Marriage in Modern, Urban, Educated Society- An Astrological Analysis

Email

Whatsapp

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Copy link

The truth that must be told at the very beginning is that I did not guide the author, Deepak Bisaria, in writing this brilliant book. He has done enough research of his own after understanding very clearly the traditional astrological approach to marriage among the Hindus mostly. He advises them, guides them, predicting very successfully for more than a decade Deepak has the attitude of a noble, well-meaning intellectual astrologer as contrasted with the run-of-the-mill-quacks and crooks who now dominate the astrological scene in India, in the television channels and websites and frighten people with the fanciful and fraudulent Kaal Sarpa Yoga.

Marriage is a stable, socio-religious institution of Hindus with such sacred theories, mantras and rituals that it fascinates everyone if it is done honestly according to the tradition. It is so even in the changing India of twenty first century.

Social institution
Yet, let it be understood first that it is the greatest social institution which affects directly, as far as astrological consultation is concerned, at least forty crores of Indians and therefore it is the one question which no astrologers can escape answering whatever his training and knowledge.

Through some cases, let me Illustrate what I have stated here.

First type: the social institution
In 1989, a young woman who had studied astrology in the Bharitiya Vidya Bhavan told me that she would not match her horoscope with the man chosen by her father in a traditional manner and would make her marriage a success. I admired her determination. In 2008, I know that inspite of the difficulties of initial years, her marriage, with two children, a house of her own, is a big success with both she and her husband earning sufficiently to lead a good and prosperous life.

In a majority of cases of successful marriages of Hindus, we do not hear of their horoscopes having been matched. It is only now when astrologers have spread their net wide greedily to earn money and lawyers have made it a rich source of their income that marriages are breaking down faster and are leading to complications.

It is a tribute to the Hindu couples, particlarly the Hindu woman, who knows, determined and succeeds in making marriage a success whatever the problems.

The deeper one delves into astrology, the stronger one comes away with the conviction that it is karmas alone that shape destiny: not only of our present life but also of the lives to come. The sins of marriage are lasting and chase a person, perennially. Our mythology conveys this lesson emphatically. The great epics the Ramayan is about the kidnapping of a wife by fraud and all its attached consequences. The Mahabharta is about the wrong done by men in power to a woman, also a wife. Such stories were meant to demonstrate the need for discipline in marriage. Indian marriage is seen as a symbol of permanency, the world over, thanks to our rich cultural heritage. The institution of marriage enjoys a place of pride in India. The loss of repute for this institution in modern Indian urban educated society has prompted this book. The loosening of social bonds and the movement towards freedom with no fear of repercussion of a bad karma has been identified as one of the major causes of sufferings in the modern society. The book traces the institution of marriage from its origin and covers the time when sati was practiced and girls were married at ages of 4 to 10 years. We have a recorded case of a girl married at the age of four, widowed at the age of five who then lived all her life as a widow. Such was the discipline and sacrifice in marriage. The vow of Brahmacharya (celibacy) of Bhishma Pitamah of the Mahabharta Fame and of scores of rishis as also the discipline of Ram and Sita in exile are exemplary. This is quite a contrast to the freedom that modern society offers.

The book has more than a hundred horoscopes analysed by applying fundamental principles of astrology. The statistical tests and observations are sure to help astrologers in adopting a methodology to predict more accurately. Some astrological parameters, that are extensively used to predict time of marriage and gauge married life, have been tested. The findings of the group research, published as the book. Astrology and Timing of Marriage, under guidance of Shri K.N. Rao have been used. The second and the seventh house, indeed, play the most important role in timing of marriage. Presently, all sorts of complex astrological techniques are in vogue to decide on sultability - Kundall Milan. We have guna milan tables in panchangs. In websites the matching meters decide suitability of a couple and declare the score with a few clicks. This book presents a module for a quicker and better assessment of marriage prospects, like timing and quality of marriage and offers a short, crisp and comprehensive method to decide suitability of horoscopes for matching. The scientific approach of statistical testing under the guidance of Shri K.N. Rao has made it possible to achieve finer predictive techniques which are being presented in this book.

The Mangal Dosha With the presence of Mars in the first, second, fourth, seventh, eighth or the twelfth house, a person is branded as a Manglik. How valid is this? What are the misconceptions? All this has been thoroughly explored and the findings have been presented in this book as the Mangal dosha is one of the most discussed and exploited areas of astrology. Combinations like Venus in the seventh house has been taken up in this book. The importance of navamsha has been discussed. There is a chapter on selection of spouse and a separate chapter on Marriage Muhurta.

This book has been structured to cater to the requirement of beginners and the practicing astrologers. Kundali milaan and Marriage Muhurta have always been important facts in choosing a partner and choosing the date and time for the marriage ceremonies. We explore these in depth an additional Table for Guna Milaan, from Panchang has been inserted for our English readers.

Importance of Marriage
The institution of marriage in Indian urban educated society is facing a crisis which is being, unscrupulously, exploited by lawyers, astrologers and psychologists. The increase in rape, murder, suicide, divorce, separation, marital tension and HIV cases are its visible symptoms. How grave is the problem? Has it taken a monstrous proportion and what we see is just the tip of the iceberg? What are the causes and where are its roots? These are some of the questions that should concern us all as marriage is a sacred institution, and its protection is essential to the strength of our society. For the well-being of children, healthy marriage is necessary. Research has shown that, on an average, children raised in households headed by married parents fare better than children who grow up in other family structures. Many schools give maximum weightage to the marital status of parents, while admitting children as behavioural problems are largely linked to children of single parents. Tensions in marriage result in tensions and unhappiness in homes. Unhappiness in home bring unhappiness to the mind which prompts one to act unsocially. irrationally impulsively and immorally.

It's high time we adopt the slogan, 'Save Marriage to Save Society' and start contributing towards it.

It has become necessary to understand the causes from the perspective of astrology and help the society by giving guidance and meaningful solutions.

Origin & Development
History, Anthropology and Sociology reveal that the holy institution of marriage, of two souls was sacred to every society. It originated, perhaps, at the time when the human beings started to live in a group the earliest of human existence. It was the requirement of woman for care and protection during her pregnancy and childbirth that led to the bond of marriage. The ego of man, the emotions of woman, sexual instincts, love, possessiveness and the pleasure of parenting are other bonding factors that made marriage a basic need in the primitive society also. Findings are that in the primitive culture also sexual relations between man and woman were not promiscuous. The development of religious and astrological consciousness made people believe that one is reborn in the same family again and again and therefore the Hindu society emphasized that through marriage alone, one could pay off one's ancestral debt, by producing children. Such bellefs made society treat marriage as a must and the most important junction in human life. The influence of societal norms over the individual desires, in decision making became more pronounced with the developments towards a cultured society. The concept of ashrams to time the alarm for changing the course of life from bramhacharya (celibacy), to grihast (householder) and from grihast to vanprastha (pulling out of worldly life for spiritual progress) was religiously followed. There is a mention of marriage ceremonies in rigveda and atharvaveda. Be it Greek or Roman, Israel or India, Hindu or Christian every society encouraged people to get married and produce children. The Hindu dharamsutras and grihasutras defined the role and duties of a householder and considered it an essential sacrifice. The institution of marriage survived the onslaughts from within and from outside the society. It kept on changing its norms to suit the situation around. India was invaded and conquered by foreigners, many a times, which increased the incidents of kidnapping and forceful marriage, the society changed over to child marriage to reduce such incidents. There is enough evidence to prove that child marriages were a later development. In ancient India and during the Ramayana and the Mahabharta eras marriages took place after puberty. In Gupta period also marriages were performed after the girl had grown-up. Out of fear from foreign invaders, the society adopted child marriages to secure women. Four years to ten years was considered the proper time for a girl to get married. Child marriages continued for a long time. We still have child marriages in spite of it being made illegal with promulgation of the Sharda Act or the child marriage restraint act in 1929. Gandhiji and Kasturba got married when they both were thirteen. In 2008, according to a newspaper report, a boy In Barmer got married at the age of 11 and became a father at the age of 15. It is difficult for customs and traditions being followed for a long time to be erased in decades. Sati - burning of the widow on the husband's pyre is also a banned custom and laws to prevent it have been made more strict but we get the news of It being followed, though rare.