atmakaraka
TRANSCRIPT
Atmakaraka- Knowing the Souls Desire
What we desire and do not get, all this we find by going in within ourselves. For
here indeed are the true desires within the covering of the false. Just as those who
do not know the field, walk again and again over the treasure of gold and do not find
it. In the same way most of us go into the world of Brahma and do not find it; for we
are carried away by our false desires and fail to recognize the true ones even though
they are hidden within. Chandogya Upanishad (chapter 3: verse 2)
Atma means the soul and karaka means significator. Atmakaraka is the significator
of the soul’s desire. According to the Vedic philosophy a soul is reborn because it
has unfinished desires that were left unfulfilled in the previous lives and it is born
again to get another opportunity to satisfy them. What are these desires? Will they
be fulfilled or will you struggle with them? This revealed by the Atmakaraka planet.
In my view the Atmakaraka is one of the most important planets in the natal chart.
The natural Atmakaraka is the Sun in all charts. The Atmakaraka of this article is
the chara Atmakaraka. Usually when we refer to the personal Atmakaraka, we mean
the Chara Atmakaraka. Chara means movable and one of eight planets (Sun, Moon,
Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn and Rahu) can take over the mantle of Atmakaraka
depending on its degrees in the natal chart. The planet that has the highest degree,
ignoring the signs, is considered the chara Atmakaraka. Due to its perpetual
retrograde motion, Rahu Ketu degrees are calculated by subtracting from 30º.
(However other retrograde planets are calculated in the usual way) For e.g. if Rahu
Ketu are 15º 24’ in a chart, you minus this from 30º and the remaining degrees will
be 14º36’. If this degree is greater than of any other planet then Rahu Ketu will be
considered the Atmakaraka.
There is a disagreement regarding the use of Rahu as Atmakaraka. Some scholars
only use 7 planets excluding Rahu, while others use 8, including Rahu. Ketu as the
significator of moksha does not form part of the scheme of chara karakas. Moksha is
the destination of the soul, the ultimate aim, it is not important in revealing the on
the soul’s more worldly desires. As Rahu and Ketu form part of the karmic axis,
Rahu will show Ketu’s desire for spiritual fulfillment. For many years I used 7
karakas only but now I am convinced of the need to include Rahu in this scheme. As
Rahu links so strongly to the past lives and unfulfilled desires. Rahu’s role is
invaluable in the search for answers in this life and the turmoil this causes as well
as the soul’s ability to ultimately triumph over those uncontrollable desires.
The Atmakaraka reflects the spirit within us. But its outer expression does not
always appear to be spiritual. We can be taken in by the illusionary natures of the
desires and think that the satiation of the worldly desires is all what the soul wants.
But it is important to understand that the fulfillment of the worldly desires is part of
the process of unveiling of the true soul. The soul is treading the wheel of desire as
the fulfillment of one set of material desires can create an ever-increasing appetite
for more and more. These desires never become fulfilled. The true desire of the soul
is to get off this wheel and find self-realization, peace and eternal happiness. The
struggle between the real and the false has to be understood. The false desires are
those we search for in the outside world. The true desires are satisfied from within.
The basic struggle of the soul is to differentiate between the two and its inability to
differentiate is the reason why it takes birth again and again.
Atmakaraka planet personify these struggles but also shows the path through life
lessons (usually delivered during Atmakaraka dashas and bhuktis). Identifying with
the materialistic goals is essential and we must not underrate these needs. The fact
that the soul is born to earth shows that there is a worldly mission for the soul to
complete before it is ready to understand the higher self. Experiences teach us to
look for our higher self. There cannot be a fast track to moksha or self-realization.
So it is important to recognize and complete the material goal- both the pleasant
and the unpleasant. Without that achievement, you cannot go into the inner world
and find your personal treasure of happiness. Atmakaraka will show you both the
soul’s material goals and the spiritual ones. Not all of us can find the ultimate
realisation but we can get slowly enlightened.
The truly revelation of the soul has to be a personal experience. Atmakaraka shows
us the true desires of the soul, whether we recognize them or not depends on us.
Atmakaraka Analysis
Prince William
21 June 1982, 21:03 GMT, Paddington, England
The Planetary Grid
Planet Sign
Sun 6º29’Gemini
Moon 11º21’Gemini
Mars 15º35’Virgo
Mercury 15º21’Gemini
Jupiter 6º52’Libra
Venus 2º03’Taurus
Saturn 21º53’Virgo
Rahu 20º28’Gemini
Ketu 20º28’Sagittarius
1. The quality and strength of the Atmakaraka planet Saturn has the highest
degrees, so it is the Atmakaraka for Prince William. Saturn’s quality of facing up to
responsibility and taking your duty seriously are already evident in the young
Prince. The soul lesson of Saturn as an Atmakaraka is loneliness as well as facing
harsh lesson of life. Things he may already be familiar with.
2. The house where it is placed- for this you should evaluate both the Rasi chart and
the Bhava charts. Dusthana (6th, 8th and 12th) house placement is usually difficult.
Saturn is placed in the house of it’s friend Mercury and in the 10th house in both
rasi and bhava where it is very powerful and in Dikbala.
3. The house the Atmakaraka rules shows the area from where you can find
fulfillment or where you experience the life lessons/pain. When the Atmakaraka
planet rules two houses, pay extra importance to the house which is it’s mooltrikona
position. Saturn rules the 2nd and 3rd house. Its mooltrikona is the 3rd house
(Aquarius) therefore William’s soul needs would be fulfilled from taking
responsibility for his own actions. But this can be frustrating for him as he is part of
the institution of monarchy where tradition and custom play an important part. His
personal freedom can be restricted. But Saturn also rules the dhana bhava, the 2nd
house. So the family wealth and inheritance are also important to him. He may
compromise one to gain the other.
4. The aspects (planetary and rashi) and conjunctions – they can either aggravate or
enhance the qualities. Saturn is placed with Mars, the auspicious 5th house ruler, so
this quality of Mars will enhance Saturn. But Mars and Saturn have an inherently
difficult relationship so they will be a conflict as well. There are no planetary
aspects, the rashi aspects are from Rahu, Ketu, Sun and Moon. Rahu Ketu show the
karmic nature of his life and they can create turmoil within his soul. The turbulence
of the soul is usually buried deep and not always outwardly visible so there is no
way of evaluating them. Sun as the 9th house ruler is giving its divine blessing to
the Atmakaraka and Moon as the 8th house ruler shows that this soul will learn
about itself through death and transformation.
5. Karakamsha- the position of the Atmakaraka in the navamsha. Saturn is placed in
Cancer navamsha; therefore the karakamsha is Cancer. Saturn in the 3rd in
navamsha is a good position and Saturn is also aspected by the karakamsha lord
Moon and the navamsha ascendant ruler Venus.
6. The chart with Atmakaraka as the ascendant. When you turn the chart around to
view the planets from Atmakaraka’s point of view, it explains the soul’s desires. This
chart’s strength or weakness can change the quality of birth chart. The birth chart
reflects the outer conditions of this birth; the Atmakaraka chart shows the
obstructions and the support for the soul for fulfilling its duty. Atmakaraka is in
Virgo and its lord Mercury is placed in the 9th house from it with the equally
auspicious 9th lord, Venus. Sun, Moon and Rahu are in the 10th; Jupiter is in the
2nd house. All these are positive and supporting the soul on its path. Ketu’s position
in the 4th house is the difficult one, showing the loss of his mother and the huge
psychological effect it has had on William. This loss would have made him closer to
his soul and made him differentiate from the real and the unreal desires. (this
aspect of the soul can only be analyze but is difficult to confirm in a celebrity chart,
but discussion with friends or clients about the effectiveness of the Atmakaraka
chart will reveals its impact)
7. The chart with karakamsha as ascendant. Cancer is the Karakamsha, so you turn
the rasi chart with Cancer as the ascendant. Here the soul’s sorrows are clearly
indicated. The ruler of the karakamsha ascendant Moon is placed in the 12th house
from itself. This is a new Moon, so it is considered weak. It is conjunct it’s greatest
enemy Rahu, therefore it is further weakened. Moon is placed in Gemini- Moon is a
friend of it’s ruler Mercury but Mercury does not like the Moon so this can be a
difficult position. On the positive side, the Atmakaraka Saturn is placed in an
upachaya house (3rd from the Karakamsha lagna) where it is strong. Venus and
Mercury are in another upachaya (11th house) and Jupiter in the 4th house, shows
that despite all the problems; he could find inner peace and happiness. But the
karakamsha suggests that he can make mistakes where he creates his own losses.
With Rahu in the 12th from karakamsha lagna in rasi, he should not allow his
desires to overcome his otherwise strong and pragmatic self.
8. The connections between the lagna lord and the Atmakaraka in the ascendant and
navamsha. The lagna lord Jupiter is placed in the 11th house and Atmakaraka is in
the 10th house. They are in 2/12 house positions from each other. This position
shows a lack of understanding between the path of this life and the soul’s desires.
Because the lagna lord is placed in the 2nd house from the Atmakaraka, William
would be able to profit from life lessons. But he may need to compromise. In the
navamsha chart Lagna lord Jupiter and Atmakaraka Saturn are in the 6/8 house
position from each other- again showing a conflict within the soul’s desires and the
direction this life is taking him. William’s life as a Prince is not what his soul desires,
but it is part of his soul experience to learn from it. Maybe he can use the qualities
of Saturn to bring about fresh changes in the.
9. The strength of Atmakaraka is to be analyzed in all the varga charts. The position
of the Vargesh- the ruler of varga rising sign, Atmakaraka and the rasi lagna ruler.
This gives you the information about the soul’s fulfillment in specific areas It is
impossible to study all the varga charts but we will study William’s Atmakaraka in
the dasamsha chart for his future career indications. Both the lagna lord and the
Atmakaraka are placed in the 12th house. This appears at odds with the position of
William as the heir apparent of the British monarchy. Therefore it suggests to me
that the timing of his birth may not be precise. Lagna lord and Atmakaraka in
the12th house in Dasamsha show the rejection of his future role as a Monarch. At
present William is showing no sign of doing so, he appears remarkably well adjusted
publicly at least to his future role. If you move his birth time behind by 4 minutes to
8:59p.m. Rahu Saturn and Jupiter come into the lagna of the dasamsha, adding
strength to the Atmakaraka. This would be powerful indication of William’s strength
as the future King of England. Only the future will tell whether Prince William will
give up his royal duties or embrace them. My reading is that the 4 minutes earlier
time for Prince William’s birth is probably the right one. Even the most perfect birth
times like the one of Prince William can be subject to small mistakes. Atmakaraka
position in the varga chart can also become a tool for rectification.
10. Dashas and Bhuktis of the Atmakaraka planet can give profound experiences,
they usually teach you a life lesson. Willliam was born in the Saturn bhukti of Rahu
Dasha, indicating that the soul lessons started at birth. The two most import events
of his life so far are directly connected to Saturn Bhukti in Jupiter Dasha. The
decree absolute finalising the divorce of William’s parents was given on 28th August
1996 and The Death of his mother Diana - 31st August 97 both took place in Jupiter
Dasha/ Saturn Bhukti. The Atmakaraka Saturn gave its most important lessons to
him in its Bhukti changing his perception of life forever.
Atmakaraka Worldly Desires Spiritual lesson
Sun success , fame, power, letting go of the ego, humility
Moon happiness, love, satisfaction understanding unhappiness,
Difference between true and false love
Mars passion, victory, adventure conceding defeat, patience,
Unrequited passions,
Mercury intellectual superiority crossing intellectual barriers,
Divine Communication learning to face the truth
Jupiter children, spirituality, tolerating other’s spirituality
wisdom Putting your children before you
For women- imperfect husbands
Venus sex, relationships, luxury accepting relationships the
Sensuality way they are, avoiding excessive behaviour,
controlling sensuality
Saturn Democracy, duty, facing the harsh truths, loneliness
Rahu Achievement, experience disappointments, fears, doubts