panaecea

Bengalis have an unreasonable belief in astrological predictions. It’s only a Bengali that you’d find wearing ten different stones in ten fingers along with amulets of different shapes and sizes all over the body called tabeej in Bengali or tabeez in Hindi/Urdu. Incidentally, there is a sprawling market in Kolkata which only sells barks, twigs, seeds, roots, leaves, stems of countless trees, bushes, shrubs used as and for astrological ameliorative.

Indian astrology is different from the western requiring long mathematical calculations based on algorithms, planetary positions during birth time and latitude and longitude of the birth place. Of course, now the computer has made the process easier and less time consuming. A lacuna in the birth chart can supposedly be plugged in or cured by various methods – wearing specific gem stone is one of them.

Those who believe in astrology swear by it and those who don’t smirk at it. Amongst many other, my father had a deep interest in astrology. He read extensively and had long discourses with men knowledgeable on the subject. But he never practised it professionally. He would only look into birth charts only on very personal requests.

Interestingly,  father’s inquisitiveness about astrological predictions and antidotes started with questioning and disbelief. Father’s maternal uncle was deeply spiritual who had the ability to decipher ancient manuscripts like the Bhrigu Samhita. Father often visited him and once playfully wore a blue sapphire ring which was in possession of his uncle in spite of his dire warnings.

Sapphire is said to be a very powerful and sensitive stone which should not be worn if not astrologically recommended. If suitable it can make a pauper king. If it’s unsuitable it can bring in irrepairable disaster. My father wanted to test it himself.

He drove home wearing the ring. Reaching as he knocked on the main door something huge crashed inside. It was my maternal grandmother’s photograph which fell off the hook shattering the glass frame into shards. That night she suffered her first cardiac stroke. Father returned the ring the very next day.

Inarguably, sapphire did not suit my father. He inherited a ring studded with nine precious stones one of which was a small sapphire. Unbeknownst to him the sapphire fell off the ring while the other stones remained intact. However, father never got the fallen stone replaced.

Wearing a sapphire, or for that matter, any stone in Indian astrology, has its rules. The day, time and ways of first contact with the body are advised by the astrologer. For sapphire, especially, there are stricter instructions. Firstly, it is to be kept under the pillow to see whether it has any bad effects (like nightmares, illnesses, freak accidents etc.) on the person who is to wear it. If everything goes well then it is to be worn as per scheduled date and time.

The colour of the rays emanating from the stone has special significance. A blue sapphire may not suit everyone. Legend has it that a priceless sapphire with a red tinge had always wrought havoc whoever possessed it. It travelled through history from king to king and from kingdom to kingdom. However, wherever it went it caused destruction and death.

My paternal uncle, perpetually suffering from mental and physical illnesses, was advised to wear a sapphire ring. The weight, size and colour of the stone are also required to be as per the needs of the birth chart. My aunt often recounted the strange stories associated with the ring that uncle wore the rest of  his  life. A family friend who had taken upon himself to personally hand over the stone to my uncle met with an accident on the way. Apparently, the stone was not suitable for the bearer bringing him ill luck. My uncle, however, had narrow escapes a number of times to the credit of the stone. 

Certain stones have effectiveness for a limited period. I used to wear an oval shaped yellow pearl which one fine day just dropped off the ring never to be found again. When I was crying over the loss my sister told me not to as it had left on its own accord because it’s time to be on my person was over.

Indian astrology is an inexact science. It is inexact because the ways it works cannot be proven. It’s a science because it is based on astronomy and mathematics. The debate continues though there is more to it than can be fathomed by logic and rationale. It is said that the accuracy of prediction depends much on the intuitive power of the astrologer – an x factor – than the exactness of the calculations that goes into the making of the correct horoscope or birth chart. It’s this twilight zone of knowing and not knowing, understanding and not understanding and believing and not believing that lends the aura of intrigue and mystique to it.

However, my personal experience says that there is more beyond everything that humans tend to cling to in times of desperation. More about that later perhaps on some other day some other time.