Here is one of my essays relating to the 6 Strengths, or Shad Bala ... The Moon and three strengths from Shad Bala
Introduction The Moon is the ‘planet’ that reflects the light of the Sun. In vedic thought, the Sun and Moon can be used to help us understand the nature of consciousness and the ‘soul’: We can think of the Sun as being ‘pure consciousness’. The blinding nature of the Sun’s direct light is an analogy for how impossible it is to ‘see’ complete consciousness, it is beyond our ability to process so much light through our eyes. The Moon, however, reflects only a small portion of that sunlight and is an analogy for the ‘Jiva’ soul or the individualised, unique aspect of pure consciousness that each breathing being here on Earth is. ‘Shadbala’ is a term in Vedic Astrology that means six strengths. In Shadbala, the specific position of each planet is taken into account to reveal information about the strength of that planet. Each strength (or Bala) considers different coordinates such as longitudinal, temporal, cardinal or it can relate to the position of exhaltation or position in various vargas or many, many other placements. The strengths or Balas to be considered in this paper are Dig Bala, Ayana Bala and Chesta Bala. Dig Bala Dig Bala means ‘Directional Strength’. It is calculated using the cardinal directions of North, East, South and West. It reveals how a person is ‘directed’ in their life. It also shows whether the person will be able to hear the unique call of the planet to take action. The closer the Moon is to the North position or the 4th House, the more Dig Bala strength it will have. The 4th House relates to happiness, home, the mother and the heart. When the Moon is strong in Dig Bala in a chart, the person is able to listen to their heart. They can hear the call to action that comes from inside their unique experience. Even when there is ‘noise’ coming from the culture, the society, friends and family about what the person ‘should’ do, a strong Dig Bala Moon will allow a person to hear and follow their own voice. They will also have the ability to imagine or hold an image in their mind because of the Moon’s reflective nature. This image can guide the person to find what they want in real life. If the Dig Bala of the Moon is weak in a chart, the person will find it more difficult to hear their inner call to action because the ‘volume’ is so low. They accidentally ignore their own voice and miss the opportunity to act. They will feel that they don’t have an inner guidance system. It will also be difficult for this person to imagine a different reality or choice. Low Dig Bala Moon could lead to depression because a person cannot imagine a different reality, that is, they cannot see hope. To remedy a low Dig Bala Moon the following two approaches could be tried. First, encourage the person to practice developing their imagination. This will require withdrawing from the distractions of life to give time and attention to listening to the heart. They could practice breathing in and out through the heart with the eyes closed while listening for sensations or images. The person could also try creating a Vision Board to make their imagination more concrete. The person should also be discouraged from looking to others for advice on what action they should take. A second approach would be to tap into the person’s ability to evaluate decisions. This is ruled by the planet Venus. Venus is the Moon partner in Shadbala because Venus is a planet that also speaks the language of emotions. If the Moon is weak in Shadbala, Venus might be able to compensate. Venus can help a person evaluate whether past decisions led to fulfilment. If the answer was ‘no’, the feeling of regret associated with that, can help the person commit to changing their approach to decisions about taking action. We all know the old adage – “if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got”. The regret may galvanise the person into risking taking a different approach in the future (i.e. listening to their own inner voice). Ayana Bala Ayana Bala is the strength a planet gets from being in the Northern or Southern course of the Sun (as seen from Earth). The Bala reveals how a person deals with conflict. Planets that gain strength when above the Earth’s equator (equinox to Tropic of Cancer and back), deal with conflict through ideals and righteousness. Planets that gain strength when below the Earth’s equator (equinox to Tropic of Capricorn and back), deal with conflict by focussing on doing whatever it takes to address or navigate the conflict. The Moon is a planet that gains Ayana Bala strength in the southern course. This is because the Moon is a receptive planet. It is not in its nature to ask for the situation to change or impose ideals on reality, instead, it wants to accept the situation and adapt to it. By doing this, the Moon is at peace with reality because it has become one with it. When a person has a weak Ayana Bala Moon they will use the Northern course approach of values and ideals in a conflict that is gritty and raw (Southern course). This will cause a clash of realities and will not allow the person to be at one with the situation. They will feel intolerant to the conflict. When the Moon is not being receptive, it has no power, so it will be frustrated, pouty and show poor sportsmanship. In this situation, it may be useful to turn to Venus for support. The Moon can ‘pick fights’ when it becomes intolerant. Venus can help a person evaluate whether a fight is worth getting into and therefore avoid unnecessary, unproductive conflict. However, it should be noted that the Moon and Venus are the hardest planets to obtain an effective Ayana Bala score (they both require 40 out of 60 points). If both planets are weak, the practice of remaining open and receptive during conflict, even if that feels counter-intuitive, could be helpful to strengthen a weak Ayana Bala Moon. Chesta Bala Chesta Bala is about the motion, speed and brightness of a planet. The planets that shine the brightest in a chart are the ones that behave with their best qualities. Strong Chesta Bala shows where a person will have natural confidence in their abilities. Unlike Ayana Bala, in Chesta Bala, the Moon and Venus are the easiest planets to get an effective score (they only need 30 points out of 60). The Chesta Bala of the Moon is stronger the closer the Moon is to full. When full, the Moon is beautiful in its own right. Nothing in its environment can take away its brightness because that comes from another source. It also gently radiates its light to everything around it, making whatever it lights beautiful too. Therefore, a person with a high Chesta Bala Moon is confident in themselves. They are comfortable with who they are and don’t need to dim in order to fit in. At the same time, their light is not threatening to others and the person can be naturally themselves while still being well liked. When a person has a low Chesta Bala Moon, they feel insecure in themselves. The Moon is all about being receptive and when Chesta Bala is low, the person cannot receive the light or the love that life has to offer (just as the new Moon cannot receive the light of the Sun). Without that source of light and love, the person can believe that their own needs are not important. This can cause the person to be introverted, hide their needs from themselves and others and lack the confidence to be strong in their unique identity. The recommendation here would be to look to Venus for support. High Chesta Bala Venus gives confidence in one’s own value and a healthy sense of pride in oneself. This can compensate for a low Chesta Bala Moon by giving the person a sense of dignity even when they feel that they don’t have a shining personality. The person might also consider meditation to develop a sense of radiance from within by connecting with a higher source. Conclusion By examining the Moon in three individual Balas, we have seen how valuable Shadbala can be in understanding a person’s birth chart. We can also see that no matter what the circumstances of a planet, there are practices available that can help a person compensate for any Shadbala weakness.
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AuthorI'm an Ayurvedic Life Coach, Teacher and Massage Therapist living on the 'Linha de Cascais' in Portugal. I love sharing Ayurveda and appreciation of Life with others. Archives
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