The following is taken from a newsletter by James Kelleher, a Jyotishi for whom I have a great deal of respect. You can find the full text as well as a list of products and services he offers at JamesKelleher.com. Highly recommended, particularly his various astrology courses.
The Jovian Year of Shravana
January 24, 2009 – February 28, 2010
First of all, Happy New Year! It is hard to imagine that it is actually 2009. 2008 was full of surprises for the economy as many people were caught in the wake of the financial meltdown. In my last newsletter I described the new transit of Jupiter in the sign of Capricorn. I mentioned that I feel that Jupiter’s influence will help the world in general over the next year. But there is another type of Jupiter transit that is also interesting. It begins with Jupiter’s conjunction with the Sun and ends with its next conjunction with the Sun. The transit takes about 13 months and is used to give predictions for the year. This transit was described by the great sage, Varahamihira and is called the “Jovian Year”.
Each Jovian Year has a name based on the pair of nakshatras in which it occurs. The Current Jovian Year is named Jyeshtha. It began on December 24, 2007 and ends on January 24, 2009. According to Varahamihira, “In the Jupitarian year of Jyestha leaders of classes, families, wealthy men and trade guilds, kings and those that are well-versed in the laws governing righteous conduct (like elders and judges) will be in trouble. All grains with their seeds should be affected.” That seems to track with the experience of last year. The ancient language seems to suggest that it was not a good year for prosperity in general.
The next Year of Jupiter begins on January 24, 2009 and ends on February 28, 2010. It is called “Shravana”. Varahamihira says, “ In the year of Shravana, people will be happy and crops abundant. Heretics and mean-minded people will be troubled along with their followers.” This sounds more hopeful. The language here seems to promote prosperity.
It would be nice if it was that simple. Unfortunately, there are a number of influences that contradict Varahamihira’s description. For example, there will be a Solar Eclipse in Shravana Nakshatra on January 25, the day after the new Jovian year begins. Jupiter will join with retrograde Mercury, Sun, Moon, and Rahu . It is obvious that the economic problems faced by the world will not simply dissolve overnight.
2009 will also be a year during which six eclipses take place. That doesn’t take place very often, but when it does, it usually produces more difficulties during that year. Eclipses are generally negative events, but there are also eclipses that are supposed to be more positive. According to Varhahamihira, for example, the Solar Eclipse of January 25 (the one that is influencing the beginning point of the new Jovian year) is supposed to be more positive, because it takes place previous to it’s Lunar Eclipse counterpart.
A ray of hope? Possibly, but experience has taught me to respect the capacity for eclipses to “eclipse” the energy of anything they influence. So I think it is more likely that this eclipse signifies that the new Jovian year may not simply eradicate our current problems magically. After all, the financial issues faced by the world are deep rooted. There may still be many problems to deal with at least in the first six months of the year. The second half of the year may be more hopeful, however, allowing for improvements in the world’s economy and in personal finances.
This is reflected in the symbolism of Shravana, the namesake nakshatra of the new Jovian year. Shravana is a nakshatra symbolized by three footprints. It is related to the story of how Vamana, the dwarf avatar (incarnation of Vishnu) kicked the demons out of heaven and brought the gods back to heaven by taking three strides and traversing the entire universe. Vamana’s apparently small stature, compared to the giant demon-king , Bali, symbolized the possibility of overcoming insurmountable odds through taking steps in the right direction.
Hopefully we will take the right steps. There is no doubt that the coming year will be a great test of the insight and resolve of world leaders. But with a little help from the Jovian Year of Shravana, who knows what progress can be made? In the mean time, Happy New Year, or should I say, Happy Shravana Year?