Tropical versus Sidereal Zodiac

The following is an excerpt from an e-mail sent to Sign Show from Howard Beckman, Director, Vedic Cultural Fellowship (www.vedicworld.org)

We Vedic astrologers only use the “sidereal zodiac” to calculate the orbits of the planets in our solar system. It is accurate astronomically and is the same zodiac and method of calculation used by each and every astronomer in the world. It is based on science in that regard. Most western astrologers (although not all and more and more are now using the sidereal) use the tropical zodiac. This is basically an equinoctial system. It’s premise at its inception was that the Sun would be in the exact same place at the vernal equinox each spring astronomically as it was 1700 (approx) years ago when this astrological system was created. Therefore the premise was based on the earth orbiting the Sun in exactly 365 days. We all know that it takes an extra 1/4 day for the earth to orbit the Sun. This is why we add a day to the calendar every 4 years (leap year) to make up for this to allow our calendar to always agree with the seasons. Right?

Western tropical astrologers never did this and still at the spring equinox every year they say “the Sun is now at 0 degrees Aries, the beginning of the zodiac”. You can ask any astronomer anywhere where the Sun was this past year at that time and they will tell you “at about 6 degrees Pisces”. Therefore using the sidereal zodiac (meaning that for most people alive today all planets in the horoscope will actually be 23 to 24 degrees back from the positions calculated by most western tropical astrologers) gives accuracy. So for say the sign of Leo, going from July 23rd to August 17th in the tropical zodiac, the dates for the Sun’s being within it runs from about August 17th to September 16th. Plain and simple. An experienced and dedicated Vedic astrologer can actually predict many events of a person’s life and easily can pinpoint “spot on” personality traits, likes and dislikes, directives, emotional and physical attributes and much more. I have been doing compatibility comparisons for years and when I have correct birth data can guarantee my accuracy.

Add a comment January 12, 2009