Astrologers busy as Prez poll approaches

Top astrologers in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are busy as the election for the country’s highest office is fast approaching. Interestingly, even people who pontificate the scientific temperament and urge people not to get carried away with the prophecies or predictions of astrologers are lining up in front of them to find out what the stars are predicting about the possibilities of going to Rashtrapathi Bhavan.

“A gentleman from Tamil Nadu calls me every other night asking about his chances of being nominated and the prospectus of his victory in the election. Although I told him not to get carried away with what the rulers say policies, he is ready to taste defeat in the event of a contest,” a prominent Kerala astrologer told The Pioneer, insisting that the client’s name be kept secret.

The astrologer was hesitant to talk about who would be sworn in as the next president. “The names of the candidates have not yet been announced. Once the name is announced, we need to study details like the date, time and place of birth of the candidate. Only then can we say for sure if the person will succeed. in the race,” said the astrologer.

A Guruvayur-based astrologer said that although politicians and intellectuals criticize the science of astrology, they are particular to consult the astrologer before any major decision is made. “They launch satellites and test launchers after learning the position of the planets and they give us their horoscopes. I don’t mind that they talk about scientific temperament because astrology itself is a branch of science,” the Guruvayur-based astrologer said.

Sanskrit scholar and Harijan leader Acharya MK Kunhol had asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to form a panel of astrologers to understand the reasons for the series of unrests unleashed by various forces in the country. “There have been instances of political leaders in the country seeking divine intervention to know in advance what the stars are predicting about the country. N Sankaran Nair, former head of the research and analysis wing, said wrote in his memoirs on how the services of astrologers were used by the country to find out the future of former President Nkrumah of Ghana After reading Nkrumah’s birth chart, Indian astrologers were unanimous in saying that Nkrumah would be deposed and die in exile in a foreign land,” Acharya told The Pioneer. A few months after this prediction, Nkrumah was overthrown as president in a coup and he fled to Guinea from ‘where he was taken to Romania where he lasted.

He said that many heads of state regularly consult Indian astrologers and we should take this as a recognition of the Indian system of knowledge and traditions.