r a world 25 billion years old, a life of 50 or 100 years is a blink of the eye.

There are millions of Suns and perhaps billions of earth like planets in our universe. Quite possibly, also a few earths with human beings like us. Where do we go after our body is exhausted and burnt? May be to the much dreaded black hole or heaven or hell or paradise or simply remain suspended for the soul to recover from the captivating body experience. Surely, we never do return in the same form and shape. Who springs back to a physical life and who cannot, remains unanswered? But, to the open minded there is an evidence to support that there is indeed a life after death. Birth and death are dramatic events in an individuals eternal life. They cannot be experienced and recalled except perhaps through past life regression methods which in any case give only faded reflections. To a Vedic astrologer it is easier to relate to these events as astrology is a science that delivers subtle messages of eternal truth. Perhaps on wearing away, the body and mind leave their imprints on the soul. Is death a liberation for the soul? Is it that the soul gets its freedom and an opportunity to mend the wrongs done and cherish the rights? These questions often vex. The search is on. This letter attempts to address some of the mysteries of life that have intrigued us forever. Perhaps, according to the design of the Almighty, we ought to be a distance away from the truth and reality. Man has been in quest of the grand design of our creator from the time perhaps he started to think. Still, to reach the final answer remains a distant dream. Through science and the depth of thoughts in scriptures like the Bhagavad Gita we could go some distance in unraveling the cosmic mystery of our existence. The Traditional from the Eighth House Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra: Longevity, battle, enemies, forts, wealth of the dead, and things that have happened and are to happen (in the past and future births). Phaldeepika Mangalaya: (the living of the husband during the life time of the wife), Randhra, filthiness, mental pain, defeat or humiliation, longevity, sorrow, blame, death, impurity, impediments and slavery. In Mundane Astrology the eighth house governs: Death of national rulers, presidents, prime ministers, kings or dictators, end of governments, destruction of the state, any set back to cabinet like death of important ministers, trouble to the people through famines, epidemics, mortality, death rates. Scientific organization, legacies, capital gain, taxes and death duties, pensions, hidden things, scientific investment, discoveries and death rate. Ayu (Longevity) Traditionally the eighth house is the exit door to the unknown and of entry into life as well. In a horoscope ayu (longevity) is merely seen as a span of ones present life which is followed by lives after lives perhaps in different forms. The soul continues to live after each death. The death deletes the memory of the present. It is like waking up in another world. The difference between sleep and death is only that after sleep you retain your memory but after death you do not. The sperm that creates life, a beginning is seen from the eighth house as this house also rules the private parts. The Eighth House Ushers Changes

To terminate a phase or an era, the Eighth house is seen with its significator, Saturn. Many things happen unexpectedly and suddenly that change life. Be it a train accident, carnage, lottery, death, unearthing of financial irregularities, a word uttered or a statement made could be interpreted as seditious without your realizing when spoken. One should reflect on the eighth house for such happenings. We have had a fatwa issued that called for the death of Salman Rushdie for his remarks on God. A word or a statement can drive the whole civilization against you with rage and you could become the most hated overnight. Attribute this to the eighth house. Politicians have the eighth and tenth connection in their horoscope, clearly showing a career that has many ups and downs. The mysterious unreliable politician, the death of democracy and reincarnation of communism are also the areas governed by the eighth house. Rage and riot that bring sudden and expected changes also fall under the eighth house. Anything that brings change lottery too and rumors also. The explosive sex scandals from sting operations that bring surprises and turn around should also be seen from the eighth house. The eighth house is not only the exit and entry door for life but of life phases as well. It heralds a chapter, a phase, a decade and an era. For major turnarounds astrologers should scrutinize the eighth house as it has been found bringing about the changes both negative and positive. Both during promotion and transfer the eighth house has found activated in horoscopes. Whether it is a change of house, a job, a city or a partner the stamp of the eighth house is always found. The Eighth is the house of Samadhi and Moksha For the spiritually inclined crusades, depth of the eyes and the depth of the heart, the thinking, the thinker, research, the hind sight of philosophers and saints, intuition, the underground, the hidden, the mystic, are all seen from the eighth house. The thoughts that meet the atma and then the paramatma are also seen from the eighth house. Saturn governs the alarm bell that tolls for all. Its logical why ayu karaka (significator of longevity) for the eighth house is Saturn and not Sun or Mars, the eighth lord of the natural zodiac. Saturn has been clearly described as kaal (time) in our shastras and represents time limits as well; and the Sun is universally known as the atma which is timeless. It cannot die, at least for billions and billions of years till Sun becomes a cold star. Mars is the energy. Its force is required the sudden unexpected happenings. Can we Conquer time? Time machines are fiction. Most of us do not get even a hint of what is in store in the time that perennially ticks by our side. An astrologer should keep referring to the eighth house and its significator to reduce the intensity of shocks of changes the consultant is likely to receive. Death, sudden and unexpected happenings, surprises and other such matters are seen from eighth house. Everything created by God has a purpose and a reason behind. Why are we born in this life with this form is to be reasoned to get to the answer we are seeking. Why are some born blind and some struck by polio in early childhood? Why are some born in palaces and some in slums? They could have done nothing in this life that could make them deserving of a destiny created during birth and early childhood. Surely, the criteria of allotment are not on the basis of the karmas of our present life! Each of such lifes facets when probed deeply led us to the theory of reincarnation. Whether it is rinanubandhan (debt of past lives) the reason of our pleasures and pains of this life and for choice of people who surround or it a fresh opportunity showered on us under a scheme of God is a question that we always consciously or subconsciously debate within and outside. But what can be easily concluded is that justice for the soul is available only in Gods court.

BHAGAVAD GITA REACHED THE FARTHEST IN KNOWING WHO WE ARE 5000 YEARS AGO No interpretation of life is anywhere near in the depth, reached in Bhagavad Gita. The eighth chapter of this scripture is not merely about spiritual practice but reminds one to keep in mind, at the time of death, the thoughts that decide the quality of salvation and rebirth. For Bhagavad Gitas interpreters it is the toughest chapter, just as the 8th house of a horoscope is for an astrologer, as it is from here that spirituality and reaching the ultimate goal is seen. In this chapter through the answers of God the ultimate truth is revealed for the humanity in Bhagavad Gita. Did God design only Hints for Humanity: Arjuna asks Lord Krishna in the Chapter Eighth Bhagavadprapti? What is universe? What is Atma? What is Sakam karma? What is this physical earth all about? Who are devtas? The Lord Shri Krishna replied The Supreme Spirit is the Highest Imperishable Self, and Its Nature is spiritual consciousness. The worlds have been created and are supported by an emanation from the Spirit which is called the Law. Matter consists of the forms that perish; Divinity is the Supreme Self; and He who inspires the spirit of sacrifice in man, O noblest of thy race, is I Myself, Who now stand in human form before thee. Whosoever at the time of death thinks only of Me, and thinking thus leaves the body and goes forth, assuredly he will know Me. On whatever sphere of being the mind of a man may be intent at the time of death, thither he will go. Therefore meditate always on Me, and fight; if thy mind and thy reason be fixed on Me, to Me shalt thou surely come. He whose mind does not wander, and who is engaged in constant meditation, attains the Supreme Spirit. Who so meditates on the Omniscient, the Ancient, more minute than the atom, yet the Ruler and Upholder of all, Unimaginable, Brilliant like the Sun, Beyond the reach of darkness; He who leaves the body with mind unmoved and filled with devotion, by the power of his meditation gathering between his eyebrows his whole vital energy, attains the Supreme. Now I will speak briefly of the imperishable goal, proclaimed by those versed in the scriptures, which the mystic attains when free from passion, and for which he is content to undergo the vow of continence. Closing the gates of the body, drawing the forces of his mind into the heart and by the power of meditation concentrating his vital energy in the brain; Repeating Om, the Symbol of Eternity, holding Me always in remembrance, he who thus leaves his body and goes forth reaches the Spirit Supreme.

To him who thinks constantly of Me, and of nothing else, to such an ever-faithful devotee, O Arjuna, am I ever accessible. Coming thus unto Me, these great souls go no more to the misery and death of earthly life, for they have gained perfection. The worlds, with the whole realm of creation, come and go; but, O Arjuna, who so comes to Me, for him there is no rebirth.