Mohan Koparkar, Ph.D.  - "Prioritizing Your Planets & Predictive Techniques In Astrology"

By:  Ivan Halvorson

Mohan Koparkar is a graduate of the University of Rochester.  He received is Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1972.   Surprisingly his interest in engineering began to disappear as he continued his graduate studies.  Beyond a certain point, he realized the dryness of the subject and decided to do something uncommon for a change.  Being highly serious about astrology, he concentrated his efforts in that direction.  Things happened very fast and in a matter of a few years, he finished six excellent texts on astrology.  Besides his usual teaching, lecturing and writing activities, he is busy with his individual and corporate clients.  Mohan can be contacted through Mohan Enterprises, P. O. Box 8334, Rochester, NY 14618

Friday's Lecture: 

Mohan began with a brief explanation of how the planets relate to the signs and the houses. He said the planets represent the force. The signs represent the medium through which that energy flows. The houses internalize that energy in your personal chart.

Dispositors:  "In the chart you are trying to figure out which planets are collecting the most rent," Mohan said. Knowing the amount of rent collected allows you to arrange the planets in order importance.  There are three principal landlord-tenant arrangements.

First is the 'final depositor'. Mohan explained it this way, "When a planet is in a particular sign, if it happens to own or rule that sign, it will be the 'final depositor' because it's paying rent to that sign, which goes into its own pocket." Here the planet is paying rent to itself.

Second is 'mutual reception'. "Here one planet is in another sign, and the ruler of that sign is in the sign ruled by the first planet," Mohan said. For example, Sun in Cancer and Moon in Leo. They are both living in each other's signs. In this situation they pay rent to one another.

Third is 'ring of dispositors'. Mohan described this as follows. "(This occurs) when planet A is in another sign and the ruler of that sign is in another sign and you keep on going until the last sign goes back to the first." So cumulatively they form a consortium and they all share the rent. It's like owning a condominium. They all live at each other's place.  An example would be, Venus in Gemini, Mercury in Cancer, Moon in Capricorn and Saturn in Taurus. This forms a ring of dispositors.   This arrangement points to a chain of events. One thing leads to the next, and so on, because all the planets are connected through the ring.

"The dispositors represent the energy by possession. This is what you have or what you wish." Mohan said, "Whether you actually get it or not, we do not know that yet." We must take other things into consideration. For example, the Oriental planet will play an important role. 

The Oriental planet:  Mohan said, "The Oriental planet is the planet rising just before the sun in your chart." Find your sun in your natal chart and move clockwise to the first planet. That is your Oriental planet.  The oriental planet represents the spiritual foundation of this particular life. It is what you must graduate from and go beyond. Areas associated with your Oriental planet have to be completed. There are certain minimal requirements that your Oriental planet demands of you.

"You can not leave this existence until the Oriental planet has preformed its function," Mohan said. "For your soul, which is the sun, to be known, to enjoy its completeness, your Oriental planet has to perform its duty, positively, negatively, or in any other way," Mohan said.

Aspect considerations:  The aspects represent your relationship with the rest of the planets.  The most aspected planet: "If you don't have the support of your neighbors, of the people around you, you are not going to be successful," Mohan said. The most aspected planet will have considerable priority because it becomes like an elected representative. This planet gets a lot of action.   The least aspected planet: This planet will get the least amount of action and, consequently has a lower priority.  The best aspected planet: This planet is prioritized in a positive way.  It could be you gain recognition by rubbing elbows with the rich and famous. This will allow you to move upward with ease. It has a positive quality.  The worst aspected planet: This planet is prioritized in a negative way. It could be the person is recognized for keeping bad company. It has a negative quality and may point to things you are forced to do.  Even if a planet ranks high on the priority scale it may not contribute to your success. Mohan said, "Prioritization, if it is not aspected by any other planets, is not going to get a lot of results. It becomes a Lone Ranger who is not able to produce any good results."

See if any of your planets repeat. For example see if your 'final dispositor' happens to be your 'Oriental planet' and/or happens to be the best or most aspected planet. This will be a planet that deserves highest priority in your chart. If you have no planets that repeat, don't panic. In Mohan's words, "Not everybody has to have only one planet being a priority in their life." Some people will have many different things to accomplish. "It just so happens that some people will have a focused life, whereas some people will have to do multiple tasks," Mohan said.

If the priority planet happens to be retrograde, ruling an intercepted house, in a intercepted sign, or not in a sign of its own, you will have to make a value judgement.     

Chart Patterns:  The Splash: Here your planets are scattered all over the chart, they form no pattern.  The locomotor: Here the planets are like a train. The planet assigned the position of locomotor in your chart has tremendous power. Mohan said, "That planet will receive all the accumulative energy" The most aspected planet will get the support of other the planets, good, bad, or indifferent. The locomotor gets the power or force. As with people, the most popular person is not necessarily the most powerful. The Bucket: Here all the planets form a curve, with one planet outside, on the opposite side of the chart, forming the handle. This planet (the handle of the bucket) planet will become a tremendous responsibility.  With most of the planets on one side, the single planet on the other side must juggle, balance, maintain, and convert the energy. If the handle is in the center of the planets forming the body of the bucket, balance is easy. If the handle is off center it can throw the person to extremes.   Speed of the Planet: If the planet is moving faster than normal it will produce exaggerated results and vice versa.  Void of Course Planets: If the planet is at 29 degrees, you may find the issues about that planet are 'been there-done that'. So in this life void of course planets do not produce a lot of activity. "A planet at the end of a sign indicates that area has been completed in a previous lifetime so it is not emphasized in this life.

Mohan shared a unique and ingenious view on the planet Saturn. Saturn may give us pain and sometimes difficulties, however, this is also the area where we give pain to others. So if Saturn is in the sign of Scorpio, you may enjoy causing pain to people when they are doing something Scorpionic. Not that you are likely to be successful. But you enjoy pointing out the error of their ways. If your Saturn is in Leo you will enjoy giving pain to the people in power. Saturn in Capricorn could indicate your older relatives did not treat you as well as you would have liked, and now it is your turn to get-even so to speak. Saturn in Cancer could indicate the family is a little bit of a burden, but you get rewards from giving a little pain back to them.

Predictive Techniques in Astrology

In doing predictions, first study the natal chart. Before anything can happen, it must be there. As Mohan's grandmother said, "If there is nothing in the well, you can not get anything in the bucket. " Your natal chart is precious to you. It is your personal road map.  In Vedic astrology the individual is more controlled by society, while in the western Astrology the individual has more self-control. Therefore in the west we have what is called a person centered Astrology. Since the sun represents the ego, the west has moved toward Sun sign Astrology.

Mohan went on to describe progressions. "This simply takes into account the speed between earth's rotation around itself to the earth's rotation around the sun." Using this technique, one day forward in the natal chart equals approximately one year of life.

Another method of interest is called the 'Factor Seven Method'. Here is how it works. Take the most important aspect in your chart. Calculate how far this aspect is off the orb and multiply that number by seven.  This result indicates the age an event will manifest. Use one or two aspects only.  For example, if the aspect, Sun sextile Moon, is off by 7degrees, a significant event will occur near your 49th birthday. The event will be related to the planets, signs, aspects, and houses involved.

Mohan said, "Just the transits alone may or may not make the event happen. And just the progression alone may or may not make the event happen. You require an integration of the transits, the progressions,  plus a willingness from the natal chart."