Calculations of Life Span – II by Iranganti Rangacharya

Article by Iranganti Rangacharya

In this article, I would like to make an exposition of the subsidiary methods of ascertaining longevity and the calculation of life-span.

Method – 1

Aphorism-19 in the 1st pada of 3nd chapter. If the lord of the 8th house from Lagna, is in a Kendra from Lagna, long life is indicated. If he is in a panapara, middle life is indicated. If he is in an apoklima, short life is indicated. Ascertain similarly from the lord of the 8th house from the 7th house of Lagna. Decide the term of life indicated by the stronger of these two lords.

Method – 2

The 2nd part of the aphorism-19: If the lord of the 8th house from Atmakaraka is in a Kendra from Atmakaraka, long life is indicated. If he is in a panapara, middle life is indicated. If he is in an apoklima short life is indicated. Ascertain similarly from the lord of the 8th house from the 7th of Atmakaraka. Decide the term of life indicated by the stronger of these two lords.

Method –3 (Vriddha Karika)

Factors for ascertaining longevity

1. Lagna lord and 8^th lord
2. 8^th house and 8^th lord
3. Chandra Lagna and 8^th lord from Chandra Lagna

Examine the above three factors by chara (movable), sthira (fixed) and dwiswabhava (common) signs and ascertain longevity indicated from any two factors of the three. If the three factors differ, declare middle life.

Method – 4

This method is applicable only when Lagna lord becomes an  Atmakaraka. Treat the sign occupied by Lagna lord as Lagna. Treat the sign occupied by the 8th house lord as Hora Lagna. If Lagna is stronger than Hora Lagna, count the number of signs from Lagna to Hora Lagna and divide this number by 4. If the remainder is 4, long life is indicated. If the remainder is 3, middle life is indicated. If the remainder is 2, short life is indicated. If the remainder is 1, very short life is indicated. If the Hora Lagna is stronger than Lagna, count the number of signs from Hora Lagna to Lagna. Divide this number by 4,  and ascertain longevity from the remainder as mentioned above.

Assess correctly the term of life by judging the subsidiary methods, exposed above besides judging the principal method of ascertaining the longevity from the factors, viz., Lagna lord and 8th house lord, Lagna and Moon, and Lagna and Hora Lagna.

Judge whether there is Kakshya Vriddhi (increase of the term of life) or Kakshya Hrasa (decrease of the term of life). Then calculate the life-span with the help of Kakshya years of the planets in Kakshya houses, given again in this article for the ready reference to the readers.

Conditions for Kakshya Vriddhi:

1. Occupancy of Jupiter in Lagna or its 7^th
2. Occupancy of the natural benefics only in both Lagna and its 7^th house or in its Trikona places.
3. Natural benefics with Atmakaraka or in the 7^th, 5^th or 9^th.
4. Atmakaraka should be exalted.
5. Jupiter should be Atmakaraka,

Conditions for Kakshya Hrasa:

1. Saturn should become Yogakaraka. This interpretation of “sanau yogahetau Kakshya hrasah” is not clear and does not seem to conform to the spirit of Jaimini. Hence I give alternate interpretations which are valid to Kakshya Hrasa. If Saturn is associated with Lagna lord or with Hora Lagna lord, Kakshya Hrasa exists. If Saturn occupies the 8^th house of Lagna or Hora Lagna, Kakshya Hrasa exists. If Saturn is associated with the 8^th house lord of Lagna or of Hora Lagna, Kakshya Hrasa exists (see my previous article “Calculation of Life-Span 1” for the reckoning of Hora Lagna).
2. Both Lagna and its 7^th house should be occupied by natural malefics only.
3. The 5^th and 9^th of Lagna should be occupied by natural malefics only.
4. The 5^th, 9^th and 7^th of Atmakaraka should be occupied by natural malefics only.
5. Malefic Atmakaraka should be debilitated.
6. Malefic Atmakaraka should be associated with natural malefics in the signs other than the exaltation sign.

Kakshya years of the planets:

Sun = 3, Waning Moon = 1, Full Moon = 6, Moon in own house or exalted = 6, Jupiter = 6, exalted Jupiter = 12, Mercury = 3, Venus = 6, Saturn = 5 or 6 or 7, Mars = 2 or 3.

Kakshya places:

1. Lagna and its 7^th
2. The 5^th and the 9^th houses of Lagna and its 7^th.
3. Sign occupied by Atmakaraka and its 7^th
4. The 5^th and 9^th houses of both Atmakaraka and his 7^th
5. The 7^th, 5^th and 9^th houses of Jupiter and the sign occupied by Jupiter.

Add the years of the benefic planets in Kakshya places. Subtract the years of the malefic planets in Kakshya places. Add if the malefics are in own house or exalted, etc., in Kakshya places. Subtract if Atmakaraka is a malefic or debilitated. Add if Atmakaraka is a benefic or exalted. Benefics: Jupiter, Venus, Moon, Mercury (though associated with malefics) Malefics: Saturn, Mars, Waning Moon (on Chaturdasi and Amavasya), Rahu and Ketu.

Illustrations:

Chart – 1 :

Birth Ascendant – Aquarius; Atmakaraka = Moon.

Method 1 : In Chart – 1 lord of the 8th house of Lagna is Mercury. He is in the 7th house, Leo, a Kendra from Lagna. Hence, long life is indicated. Saturn, the specific 8th house lord of Lagna is also in the 4th house, Taurus, a Kendra from Lagna, to confirm long life. The lord of the 8th house of 7th of Lagna is Jupiter who is in the 4th house, Scorpio from the 7th house Leo. So long life is indicated.

The Moon, the specific 8th house lord of the 7th of Lagna, is also in Taurus, the 10th Kendra from 7th house, Leo, to support long life.

Method 2 : Jupiter the 8th house lord from Atmakaraka, Moon, is in the 7th Kendra from Atmakaraka, Moon. Hence long life is revealed. Mercury is the specific 8th house lord from the 7th from Atmakaraka. Mercury is also in the 4th Kendra from Atmakaraka Moon supporting the long life revealed above. Mercury, the 8th house lord from the 7th of Atmakaraka is in the 10th Kendra from the 7th of Atmakaraka. Jupiter, the specific 8th house lord of the 7th of Atmakaraka, Moon, is in the 7th of Atmakaraka supporting the long life revealed above. Thus all the factors in Method 2 also reveal long life in Chart 1.

Method 3 :

1. Lagna lord, Saturn in Taurus (sthira) – short life. Mercury, the 8^th lord in Leo (sthira) – short life.
2. 8^th house, Virgo (dwi) – long life. Mercury, the 8^th lord in Leo (sthira) – long life.
3. Chandra Lagna, Taurus (sthira) – short life. Jupiter, the 8^th house lord in Scorpio (sthira) – short life.

Hence short life is ascertained from the two factors of the three. Short life is increased to the middle life, since Atmakaraka, Moon is exalted.

Method 4: It is not applicable to Chart 1 since Saturn, the lord of the Lagna, is not the Atmakaraka.

Short life is indicated by the principal method of ascertaining longevity from the factors Lagna lord and 8^th house lord and Lagna and the Moon. Short life is increased to middle life due to the exaltation of Atmakaraka Moon. But the long life is decided as revealed from all the factors of the first two methods.

Calculation of life-span :

66 + 3 (Mercury) + 6 (Venus) + 6 (exalted Atmakaraka Moon) + 6 (Jupiter) = 87. Now add 5 years of Saturn in friend’s house, associated with the exalted Atmakaraka Moon, and two years of Mars in friend’s house associated with two benefics. Now the total number of years is 94. Deduct 3 years of the Sun (in the 9th house from the 7th of Atmakaraka or from Jupiter). So life-span comes to 91 years.

Chart – 2: N. Sanjeeva Reddy.

Birth Ascendant = Sagittarius; Atmakaraka = Moon.

Method – 1: The Moon, the 8th house lord of Lagna is in the 11th (panapara) from Lagna. Hence middle life is indicated. Saturn, the 8th house lord of the 7th of Lagna is in the 12th (Apoklima) from the 7th of Lagna.

Hence short life is indicated. These two factors differ in ascertaining the term of life.

Method – 2:  Venus, the 8th house lord of Atmakaraka, is in the 7th (Kendra) from Atmakaraka, Moon. Hence long life is indicated. Mars, the 8th lord from the 7th of Atmakaraka is in the 12th (Apoklima) from the 7th of Atmakaraka. Hence short life is indicated. These two factors differ in ascertaining the term of life. Thus from Method – 1, middle life is obtained by the Moon who is stronger than Saturn, as the Moon is the Atmakaraka. Middle life is increased to long life, since Jupiter occupies Lagna, and two benefics are in the 7th from Atmakaraka. From Method – 2, long life is obtained by Venus who is stronger than Mars, as Venus is associated with Mercury.

Method – 3:

1. Lagna lord, Jupiter in Sagittarius (dwi) – short life. Moon, the 8^th lord in Libra (chara) – short life.
2. 8^th house, Cancer (chara) – long life. Moon, the 8^th lord in Libra (chara) – long life.
3. Chandra Lagna, Libra (chara) – long life. Venus, the 8^th lord in Aries (chara) – long life.

Thus long life is obtained from the two factors out of three by Method – 3. Hence the long life is concluded in Chart – 2 though the principal method reveals short life increased to middle life.

Calculation of life-span:

66 + 6 (Jupiter) + 6 (Venus) + 3 (Mercury) + 6 (Atmakaraka Moon) = 87 years. The Sun, Saturn, Mars, Rahu and Ketu are not involved in Kakshya places.

Chart – 3: 21-5-1927 at 6:30 p.m.

Birth Ascendant = Scorpio; Atmakaraka = Mars.

Method 4 is applicable to Chart 3, since the lord of Lagna, Mars, is Atmakaraka. Mars, the lord of Lagna is in Gemini. So Gemini is deemed as Lagna. Mercury, the lord of the 8th house of Lagna Scorpio is in Taurus. So Taurus is deemed as Hora Lagna. Between Lagna (Gemini) and Hora Lagna (Taurus), Lagna (Gemini) is stronger than Hora Lagna (Taurus) since Gemini is occupied by three planets and is a dual sign. So counting from Gemini to Taurus we get 12. Divide this number by 4. We get the remainder 4. Hence long life is ascertained. The same term of life is revealed from subsidiary Method – 3, and the principal method as well. Atmakaraka, Mars is associated with a benefic Venus and a malefic Rahu. Hence Kakshya Hrasa does not exist. Both Lagna and its 7th are occupied by malefics. The resulting Kakshya Hrasa is cancelled by the association of the benefic Mercury with the 7th house. Besides, Jupiter alone in the 5th, gives Kakshya Vriddhi which can cancel Kakshya Hrasa.

Calculation of Life-span:

66 + 6 (Jupiter) + 3 (Mercury) + 6 (Venus) + 1 (Moon) = 82 years.

82 – 5 (Saturn) – 3 (Sun) – 2 (Mars) = 72. So life-span comes to 72 years.

So far I have given an exposition of calculating life-span for middle life and long life. For short life add or subtract Kakshya years of the planets to 12 years.