13.Visha in a curative capacity.
Chandra (Moon): I pay respects to Chandra, whose complexion is likened to pearls, conch and curds. Born to Atri and Anasuyā, he is the king of stars (Nakshatras) and medicine, granting wealth and prosperity to those who make offerings to him.
4
CHANDRA (Moon)
Śrī Laṅkān Sadu Chandra Navagraha Yantra deemed effective for the propitiation of Moon, warding off negative graha aspects, removing fear from the mind and grief from the heart. This yantra appeases the Moon god, granting longevity, health and wisdom. Its use protects one’s home, happiness and heart. Sadu Chandra Navagraha Yantra brings fame, beauty and wisdom to its wearer.
The Moon is phlegmatic and windy in constitution and is given to rambling, his speech is soft. He has fine eyes and limbs that are firm and exceedingly lovely. He is always sensible, discriminating and of slim (yet rounded) of figure.
Jātaka Pārijāta by Vaidyanātha Dīkṣita
Chandra is considered the queen of the grahas, beautiful and feminine. Sattwika in guna, her taste is salty, her caste Vaiśya.1 The complexion of the Moon is tawny, her dosha Kapha. Her element is water. Chandra is often depicted dressed in finely embroidered white silk. She has a magisterial manner, but one softened by emotive caring tendencies. The effects of the Moon mature in the 24th year of life, when strong Moon indicates clear thinking and emotional maturity, abundant blood, clear complexion and untrammelled vision. The Moon is representative of mind, that is, the apprehender of the senses. It is said that Brahmā Prajāpati crowned the Moon both lord of the lunar constellations and master of all medicinal (herbal) arts.
A powerful Moon lifts one toward poignant social interaction, perhaps bringing fame or at the very least a deep respect for their level of expertise. The Moon is considered representative of Chitta2 (consciousness); she reveals our ability to digest impressions, emotions and thoughts. Moon is also representative of the digestive system, primarily the stomach, mucosa and gastric juices. The Moon gains strength in Earth signs and is exalted in Taurus (specifically 3°); she is equally debilitated at the same degree in Scorpio. Moon is comforted by the gemstones pearl and moonstone, her metal is silver. Moon is said to prosper in the fourth house of the home; she also rules Muhūrta (increments of forty-eight minutes).
Chandra rides in a three-wheeled chariot, each wheel born of one hundred red spokes. Ten white horses bear her across the heavens, racing with the speed of the mind. When transiting the heavens she emits a whitish ray that falls upon the Earth and ocean3 as a light dew. Both Deva and Pitris alike were known to accompany the Moon. In her masculine personification, Moon fell nightly into the embraces of ‘his’ twenty-seven lunar brides or Nakshatras (see Chapter 25).
Jyotish regards the Moon as ‘special’; its relatively swift motion not only marks the passage of time and season, but was deeply interconnected to Vedic rituals and the performance of magic. As Sûrya is lord of the (solar) zodiac, so Moon reins supreme over the lunar zodiac, better known as Nakshatras.
Somewhat overpowered by Sûrya’s intensity, she receives nourishment from the great luminary via sushumna, the name of the Sun’s rays emitted during her opposition. During her subsequent waning period both Deva and Pitris feed hungrily upon her transmuted nectar called soma, accumulated during her waxing.
Note: When viewed from a locale close to the Earth’s equator our Moon seems to ride upon its back, passing almost directly overhead. From this vantage point its ‘seas’ or ‘maria’ appear akin to that of a hare,4 birthing a host of legends tying the exploits of such an animal to the god of the Moon. Shifting geographically northward, observers tend to envision apophenic markings upon the same lunar surface, birthing a host of ‘Man in the Moon’ legends.
Favourable Chandra: Rejuvenates the body and nourishes the vital organs and tissues. Moon helps in retaining moisture/integrity through aqueous/synovial fluids, salts and secretions. One may see an increase in personal wealth through the trading of fine silks, silver, pearls, ghee, milk, cattle, rice, herbs and cooling spices. A comfortably placed Moon in the horoscope incurs favour from the goddess Pārvatī (Śiva’s consort), Durga and Apas (see Section 27.2).
Unfavourable Chandra: One may be forced to suffer at the hands of a cruel mother, or seek to project sickness upon one’s mother. One may incur the anger of powerful feminine figures (such as queens), enmities from relatives or immediate family. One may undergo mental anguish, emotional turmoil, excess blood toxins or reduced longevity by association with women of ill repute.
Bala (strength): Chandra is considered well disposed if the following are applicable: falling on his own day (Monday) or in the 4th house, occupying Cancer in Hora, Drekkana or Navamsha Vargas or exalted in Taurus. Moon gains strength during Dakshināyana, periods of darkness (night time), toward the close of Rashis, when aspected/conjunct by a benefic graha.
Undertakings on Monday: Sacrificial offerings on Mondays were considered fruitful/auspicious for those wishing to receive benefit from Chandra. These acts or undertakings include: the attainment of pearls, mother of pearl, conch, moonstone, ornaments, lotus flowers, moon-water, milk to aid in the manufacture of soothing (rejuvenating) medicines or those which reduce phlegm (Kapha), wearing of new clothes, perfumes, the arrangement of flowers, bathing, fertility of lands, horned cattle and excellence in all manner of agricultural pursuits.
| Alternative names for Chandra | |
| Soma | Rasāyana drug/elixir of youth and immortality |
| Indu | Changing reflection and cooling effects |
| Vidhu | Strong, intelligent and wise |
| Himanshu | One who is filled with or reflects cooling white energy |
| Anushnagu | Absence of heat, that which transforms hot into cold |
| Nakshatra-nâtha | Lord of Nakshatras |
| Niśeśa | Lord of the night |
| Śítáṁśu | Of cooling rays |
| Oshadhi-pati | Lord of herbs and healing |
| Śiva-sekhara | Adorning the forehead of Lord Śiva |
| Sasī | Marked like a hare |
4.1 ASTRONOMICAL
Second only to the Sun, our Moon is the nearest and brightest object in the sky. Moody and enigmatic, it slowly rotates and librates5 through its various phases over the lunar month, showing but one face to Earth’s inhabitants. The length (or period) of a lunar cycle may be determined both sidereally (fixed star to fixed star) = 27.32 days or synodically (full Moon to full Moon) = 29.53 days. Moving about us in an elliptical orbit, less than 238,000 miles distant, its daily momentum is some fourteen times greater than that of Earth. For every twelve months spent by Earth orbiting the Sun, our Moon makes an additional thirteenth revolution about us – travelling at speeds in excess of 2200 miles per hour. Being almost one-third of the Earth’s mass, its relationship to its primary is unique.
As with the Sun, the ancients witnessed the Moon’s power over vegetation, fertility and agriculture. Its cooling rays were deemed equal to those of its fiery consort. When first imaged via telescope, astronomers likened its highlands to the Alpine regions. Its plains were thought to be littered with great rivers and lakes. In truth the Moon is largely a rocky body (not unlike