Words of Destiny: Practicing Astrology in North India

Contents
Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
	Approaching Astrology: Standpoints
	Astrology in South Asia: The Current State of Research
	Astrology in Banaras: In the Field
	Note on Transliteration, Translation, and Terminology
Part I Institutions
	Chapter 1 The Many Branches of a Tree: Jyotiṣa as a Scholarly Tradition
		An Auxiliary Discipline
		Cosmological Associations
		Division into Branches
		The Unity of the Discipline
		Local Knowledge
	Chapter 2 Professors and Prophecies: Astrology at Universities in Banaras
		Debating “Useful Knowledge”
		Astrology as a Vedic Science
		Departments at Work
		Research and Rewriting
	Chapter 3 Sacred Specialists, Modern Professionals: Astrologers between the Temple and the Office
		A Syncretic Professional Identity
		Pandits and Doctors
		Temple, Home, and Office
Plates
Part II Readings
	Chapter 4 Horoscopes and Truth: Divinatory Techniques and Their Applications
		The Horoscope
		The Question
		Auspicious Times
		The Hand, the Body
		Truth of the Horoscope, Reality of Facts
	Chapter 5 Karma and Bhāgya: The Idea of Destiny in Astrological Consultations
		Astrology and the Theory of Karma: Antagonism and Complementarity
		The Allotted Share: The Semantics of Bhāgya
		Finding Out the “Lot”
		Destiny’s Fluctuations: Daśās (Periods) and Yogs (Planetary Conjunctions)
		Human Mistakes, Cosmic Flaws
	Chapter 6 Shared Destinies: Kinship Connections in Horoscope Reading
		Brothers and Sisters
		Parents and Children
		Husband and Wife
		Saṃbandhit Jyotiṣ, “Connected Astrology”
Part III Treatments
	Chapter 7 Astrology and Possession: Planetary Influence and Middle-Class Afflictions
		Idioms of Suffering
		Quarrels and Marriage: Mars and the Maṅgal Doṣ
		Sāṛhe Sātī and Saturnian Business
		Of Snakes and Demons: The Kāl Sarp Doṣ
	Chapter 8 More or Less Effective: Remedies and Efficacy
		Price and Efficacy
		Gods and Planets
		Tantric Remedies and the Astrologer’s Siddhi
		“Vedic” and “Tantric” Methods
		The Power of Stones: Rays and Radiations
Conclusion
	The Future of Astrologers
Annex: Bachelor’s and Master’s Syllabi in Jyotiṣa at Banaras Hindu University (BHU)
	Bachelor’s (Śāstrī Parīkṣa) in Jyotiṣa
		Teaching Program (Pāṭhyakrama)
			First Year (Prathamavarṣa)
			Second Year (Dvitīyavarṣa)
	Master’s (Ācārya Parīkṣa) in Jyotiṣa
		Teaching Program (Pāṭhyakrama)
			First Year (Prathamavarṣa)
			Second Year (Dvitīyavarṣa)
Glossary
Notes
Bibliography
Index