3/7/16, 3:44 PMFinancial Astrology: the essentials of predicting the stock market | Modern Vedic Astrology

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5 March 2016

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Financial Astrology: the essentials of predicting the stock market

Can astrology really predict the movement of the markets?Skeptics would answer that the only thing astrology canpredict is a person's gullibility. While many believers ofastrology do tend towards the naive "New Age" stereotype,an impartial review of the historical correlation between stockprices and planetary motion clearly suggests that predictionis possible, if only under certain conditions. One of thedifficulties in assessing the relationship between prices andthe planets is the large number of variables involved. Mostastrologers work with at least 9 planets, 7 aspects (i.e. the

angular separation between two planets), 12 houses and 12 constellations, to say nothingof asteroids, fixed stars, nakshatras or whatever other supplementary parameters onechooses to mention. Taken together, this produces a huge number of possible permutationsthat can be correlated with market trends. In the absence of strong transit contacts to theparticular first trade chart of a stock exchange or company, it is very hard indeed to discernwhere the market will go. In those conditions, astrology may fare no better than chance.But where close angular contacts are made between current planetary positions and thosein the first trade chart, prices will follow set patterns as described by the establishedsymbolism of the planet and angle involved. We will examine how this works in more detailbelow.

There are several basic strategies for using astrology with stock market investing. The first,and most important is obtain the first trade data of a stock, ETF, currency, etc. and cast ahoroscope for that time and place. Over time, this chart can then be analyzed with respectto transits, progressions, and dashas in order to ascertain the likely price movements of thestock. Essentially, the basic rule of financial astrology is: Favourable planetary alignmentsthrough transit contacts with benefics during the dasha periods of well-placed planets willtend to yield price increases, while bad aspects from bad planets -- a square (90 degree)aspect from Saturn for example -- will usually push the share price down. As already noted,situations where unambiguously good or bad planetary patterns predominate occur most ofthe time. This is the main reason why many astrologers run into trouble. They extrapolatetoo far on the basis of thin or ambiguous data. A more prudent strategy is to refrain frommaking predictions at times of conflicting data and only take firm positions when thevariables are more clearly defined.

For example, a situation may arise in which there are apparently offsetting influences ofplanetary transits from benefic Jupiter and malefic Saturn to key natal planets. In thoseinstances, an astrological analysis is perhaps better off deferring judgement until otherplanetary influences come in to tip the balance. In this way, the best approach is for aselective application of astrological insights at critical turning points in the market. So whileit may not be clear just how a stock will move over a period of days, weeks or evenmonths, the astrologer will be able to identify critical time windows that have a muchgreater likelihood of ups or downs. Knowing these times of probable market outcomes cancome in very handy to the trader, even if they only occur sporadically.

The basic astrological elements for forecasting the stock market are no different fromstandard astrology. The constant motion of the planets through the houses and zodiac signssupply the framework for an astrological model. The table below lists the relevant"variables" for our consideration.

Key Astrological Factors

Planet Sign House Price Bias

Sun Leo 1st/10th Neutral

Moon Cancer 4th Neutral

Mercury Gemini/Virgo 3rd Neutral/Positive

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Venus Taurus/Libra 2nd/7th Positive

Mars Aries/Scorpio 6th Negative

Jupiter Sagittarius/Pisces 9th/11th Positive

Saturn Capricorn/Aquarius 8th/12th Negative

Uranus (Aquarius) n/a Neutral

Neptune (Pisces) n/a Neutral

Pluto (Scorpio) n/a Neutral

Rahu(N.Node) n/a n/a Neutral/Negative

Ketu(S.Node) n/a n/a Neutral/Negative

As we can see, the majority of planets here are listed as "neutral". That doesn't mean,however, that they have no effect on the markets. It just means that all things being equal,they do not have an intrinsic bias in regard to sentiment and prices. All planets, even themore clearly positive or negative ones, can exhibit a variety of price effects depending onthe other planets and chart factors they are interacting with at any given time. Although allplanets and houses possess certain natural inclinations, how they will eventually effect themarket is more dependent on their temporary condition. For example, a positive planet likeVenus if transiting over a malefic planet like Ketu in a malefic house like the 8th is morelikely to coincide with a drop in the market. That's because the natural 'bullishness' ofVenus has been corrupted, so to speak, by its temporary negative situation. Conversely,although Saturn is the planet most closely associated with pessimism and bear markets, ifit forms a favourable alignment with positive aspects (e.g. 120 degrees) involving beneficplanets, it often marks an upswing in prices. This is why it is crucial to take into account thewhole chart rather than the motion of a single planet. Boolean Analysis and the Financial Markets

Many astrologers like to characterize their method of reading a horoscope as "holistic", inan effort to escape criticisms from mechanistically-oriented skeptics. I prefer to think ofchart analysis in terms of Boolean logic, where multiple factors must be present for aparticular situation to occur. For example, we cannot expect stocks to inevitably rise whenbenefic Jupiter conjoins the natal Sun of the chart we are working with. Such a favourablepattern may be thought of as a necessary, but not sufficient condition for price increases.There must also be an absence of negative factors hitting the key chart points. These wouldinclude few close aspects from malefic planets, no planets transiting malefic houses (6th,8th, 12th) and so on. Given the large number of variables every chart contains, there willbe several significant operating planetary contacts and influences at any given time. Thesemust all be evaluated for their relative effects of prices according to the principles ofBoolean analysis. If we are trying to assess if the conditions are in place for a bull market,for example, we could construct a table that more clearly reflects this logical process.

Essential Conditions for Bull and Bear Markets

Chart FactorFavourable

(bullish)

Unfavourable

(bearish)Comments

Dasha lords

Strong, associated withbenefics; no link tonatural or temporarymalefics

Weak, linked to houses6,8,12 or malefic planets

Benefics in soft aspectto dasha lord are best;Malefics in hard aspectto dasha lords are worst

Transits todasha lords

Jupiter, Rahu or trineaspects from Outers

Saturn, Ketu; hardaspects from Outers

Slow-moving planets aremore influential because

Transits tonon-dashalords

Ascendant/Moon/Sun tr.Jupiter and free ofaffliction by Saturn andKetu

A tight Saturnsquare/opp toAsc/Moon/Sun

Less important thandasha lords, but stillkey, esp if stationing

Transits ofOuters --UranusNeptune,Pluto

Trines are the onlypotentially favourableaspect

Square and oppositionaspects linger formonths and years

Conjunctions can goeither way but willintensify other extantinfluences

ProgressedMulti-planet patternswith at least one soft

Any square or oppositionSecondaries exert longerinfluence; trines

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configurations aspect and includingJupiter or Venus

involving Saturn, Ketu orOuters

between Jupiter and oneof the Outers is mostbullish

Solar, LunarReturn charts

Conjunction or trineinvolving Jupiter orVenus and at least oneother planet on anangle(Asc/MC)

Square or oppositionbetween Saturn, Ketu orOuters and any otherplanet on an angle(Asc/MC)

Overlay with natal chartfor both sets of angles

If most or all of the favourable conditions are in place, then a bull market is more probable.Where a more mixed situation obtains, the market will only deliver mixed results. Inaddition to the above factors, I use a variety of techniques including current transit patternssuch as planetary ingresses, the phases of the Moon, and mundane aspects. All can beused as signals to help discern the prevailing market direction. Since none of these arereliable indicators on their own, I typically use up to 20 different measurements to compilea sort of moving astrological index that reflects changing investor sentiment. In addition, Imake use of the first trade charts of key stocks, stock indices, and stock exchanges.

The Horoscope of the New York Stock Exchange

Perhaps the most important of these is thehoroscope of the New York Stock Exchangewhich was founded May 17, 1792. There areseveral times out there for this chart, withdifferent astrologers making a case foreach. After much testing, I find the 10.30am chart to be the most accurate. I haverectified to 10.34 am in order to makebetter use of the smaller chart vargadivisions in Jyotish. This is quite a powerfulchart, although one needs to stand outsideof the Vedic tradition to fully appreciate it.Uranus, the planet of unbounded energyand sudden change, rises within one degreeof the ascendant while Venus, the planet ofmoney and luxury, culminates very near theMidheaven. Venus and Uranus togetherspell "fast or accelerated money" betterthan just about any other planetarycombinations I can think of and therein perfectly describe the rapid movement of money onthe trading floor. However appropriate that symbolism, it is more important that the chartadequately reflect major price movements over its long history. It does this well indeedregardless if one uses Western or Vedic techniques, as I do. This ability to see the dynamicof both bull and bear markets regardless of one's operating paradigm is a sign of therobustness of this chart.

To see how this chart works in practice, let's look at how we might have made sense of theplanetary influences that were operating at the time of the October 1987 stock marketcrash. The NYSE chart was running Jupiter-Mercury dasha. Although both of these planetsare natural benefics and therefore biased towards price rises, a planet's temporarycondition in the chart at hand is a more important determinant of its promise. Jupiter'sdasha lasts 16 years to it is only a background influence. More significant is Mercury.Although fairly well-placed in the 11th house of gains in Taurus, it rules the 12th of loss andthe neutral 3rd and is also closely combusted. So far, this is a fairly mediocre Mercury.However, what tips the scales towards the negative is that it forms a tight square withPluto. Hard aspects with any outer planet are never good, and this creates a natal tendencyin Mercury that will tend to manifest in lower prices during its dasha periods, as we will seein a separate discussion below.

Transitwise, Jupiter opposes its natal position and is conjunct the Moon. This will tend to bea positive influence. Other potentially favourable longer term influences include Uranuswhich trines the Moon. However, there are a greater number of negative transits here.Neptune precisely squares the nodes, while Saturn is applying to square Mars in the 2ndhouse of wealth. Perhaps more bearish is that Ketu conjoins natal Rahu and therebyaspects 2nd lord Sun, which is natally conjoined with Mercury. The most bearish transitinfluence is Pluto (powerful destruction) which sits on the IC and opposes Venus (money).This is a very clearly negative aspect. Moreover, tertiary progressed Mars was tightlysquaring the very malefic conjunction of Ketu and Neptune, while P3 Mercury (trading)conjoined P3 Saturn (loss).

Planets are the mostimportant factors inassessing the horoscope.Depending on where theyare placed in relation toeach other, a person'splanets can decide very

basic issues in life, such as happiness inmarriage, the number of children they willhave, and the kind of career they will pursue.Read more...

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On the basis of just these small handful of factors, it was clear that the Fall of 1987 wouldbe a bearish time for the market, with the high probability of a significant sell-off.

The Vulnerability of Mercury Periods

One of the interesting features of the NYSE horoscope is the afflicted nature of Mercury.This is ironic in a way since Mercury is the planet of trading. Nonetheless, one compellingway to judge the effects of this troubled Mercury is to assess its effect on marketperformance over the years. Since the antardasha (aka subperiod, or bhukti) period isshorter, we can find several instances over the past 100 years or so and thereby correlatestock prices during the time it was subperiod lord.

Dasha PeriodDates inEffect

Dow Jones-Begin

DowJones-End

NetEffect

Simple annualrate of return

Mercury5/23/1896-5/24/1913

41* 54 +32% +1.9%

Ketu-Mercury5/28/19 -5/24/20

109 92 -16% -16%

Venus-Mercury5/24/36 -3/25/39

155 140 -10% -3.4%

Sun-Mercury3/12/44 -1/16/45

140 154 +10% +12%

Moon-Mercury3/24/52 -8/23/53

268 272 +1% +1%

Mars-Mercury11/23/59 -11/19/60

675 610 -10% -10%

Rahu-Mercury5/9/71 -11/25/73

932 854 -8.4% -3.3%

Jupiter-Mercury1/25/86 -5/2/88

1537 2043 33% +14.3%

Saturn-Mercury5/30/00 -2/7/03

10,527 7864 -25% -9.3%

Mercury5/23/2016-5/24/2033

? ? ? ?

Average (inc 19thcentury data)

+0.2%

Average (ex 19thcentury data)

-1.7%

*At its inception on May 26, 1896, the Dow was computed differently and was comprised ofonly 12 companies. This makes its early data less reliable for historical comparisons.

We can see that Mercury dashas do not generally correlate with higher prices and fall wellbelow the +6%/year historical norm for stocks. The best performing period occurred duringJupiter-Mercury but even there, Mercury revealed its bearish tendencies since it marked thebiggest crash in history. The overall positive price effect from 1985-1988 was largely theresult of Jupiter's overriding influence. It is perhaps no coincidence that the greatest bullmarket in history occurred during the Jupiter dasha from 1981 to 1997. The only otherstrongly positive period occurred during the Sun dasha. Here we can see the combinedeffect of two 11th house planets (gains!) fending off whatever bearish influences theyencountered. Looking ahead to Mercury's next major dasha period which begins in 2016,it's hard to be optimistic about the stock market's performance.

Related articles of interest:

Shanghai Stock Exchange Meltdown -- 2008

London FTSE Bear Market -- 2008

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Mumbai's Magnificent Monday -- 2009

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