How Moon Affects Your Thinking as per Vedic Astrology

Introduction

How do you think, astrologically speaking? In my view, that's directly linked to the position of Moon in your chart. Moon is given the most importance as per Vedic astrology because what you are thinking today is going to lead to actions tomorrow. Whatever we experience in society, whether it's a rainy day and you feel like, "Wow, it's a wonderful day," or you have recently gone through a major issue and you're feeling sad, or you're going on your first date and feeling nervous.

So all these feelings, in my view, whether it's joy, nervousness, optimism, pessimism, excitement or sadness, all of them, in my view, originate from Moon. Because anything that's going to happen to you, whether it's good or bad, it's your mind that's going to react first. So let's start from this starting point.

The Factors to Take Into Account

How do you understand your thinking from the position of Moon in your chart? Take these factors into account. Look at the house Moon is ruling in your chart. Let's go through these factors, and I'll take an example to illustrate what these factors are and how to apply them. The second is the house in which Moon is placed. The third is what role Moon has been assigned in your chart. This factor can often be overlooked.

So you have to look into where Moon is placed from the house it's ruling. What that means is, if Moon in your chart is ruling the third house and it's placed in the sixth house, then the sixth house is fourth from the third house. That also becomes a factor you need to take into consideration.

Nakshatra, Sign, Conjunctions and Aspects

Now the most important thing: which Nakshatra is your Moon placed in, and in which sign is it placed? You must not stop here. You must also look at who the Nakshatra and sign rulers are. Then you must also look into whether Moon is in conjunction with a planet.

For example, Moon and Rahu are together in your chart. When I say conjunction, let's draw a line in the sand. If they are less than 10 degrees apart, I'd call it a close conjunction. If they are more than 10 degrees apart and possibly in different Nakshatras, then I wouldn't call it a conjunction. So see which other planet is influencing Moon and affecting how you think. If Moon and Rahu, for example, are in conjunction, you may have a rebellious streak about you.

If you go further and look at aspects, you must also take the degree into account. For example, Saturn in your chart is at 23 degrees, Moon is at 21 degrees and Saturn is aspecting where Moon is placed. Since their degree values are very close, just as we've taken a degree value to have some measure of what constitutes a conjunction and what doesn't, similarly, with aspects too, you must take these degrees into account.

The last factor you should take into account is the position of Moon in the Navamsa chart.

Karl Marx: Applying the Method

Let's apply it quickly. This is the more exciting bit. I've taken Karl Marx's example because we know him as someone who was a revolutionary thinker. So let's see how our theory applies to his life.

In his case, I found his details, including his time of birth, which is listed as 2 a.m. It does seem like an approximation. However, even if the time is 15 minutes on either side of 2 a.m., we can still rely on his chart because his rising degree, as you would see, is 17. So we do have some leeway on either side of this 2 a.m.

Now let's apply the first factor. The house Moon is ruling in his chart is the seventh house. It's placed in the fourth house. From the seventh house, the fourth house would be the tenth house. If you place the seventh house as the first house and start counting in a clockwise direction, you'd find the fourth house being the tenth house from the seventh house. So the houses involved in this case that are affecting his way of thinking, affecting his Moon, are the seventh, tenth and fourth houses.

Furthermore, Moon in his chart is placed in Bharani Nakshatra. Bharani is ruled by Venus. Venus is in Krittika. So we have the sign ruler, Mars, which is placed in Punarvasu. If you study his Navamsa chart, you'll find Moon placed in the sign of Virgo.

Now conjunctions and aspects: this is an important bit. Moon is accompanying Sun and Rahu, so Sun and Rahu are also affecting his way of thinking. Similarly, Jupiter from the twelfth house has its fifth aspect on the fourth house, and the degree values are close. Saturn from the second house is also aspecting the fourth house through its third aspect, and the degree value isn't far away. So we now have all the factors with us.

Houses and the Industrial Revolution

Now how do we interpret this? Let's look into the houses involved. The seventh house, firstly, is linked to all the experiences we have with people, whether it's an exchange you're having with a florist at a cafe or something as serious as a rental agreement, a job contract or marriage. Those exchanges that we have are seen from the seventh house.

His mind was deeply affected by how these commercial exchanges were taking place. At the time, he felt very inspired. What inspired him? It was the Industrial Revolution. He saw factory workers being mistreated by factory owners. Wages were low, whereas factory owners were chasing profits. That inspired him. The seventh-house-related activities, commerce and business, inspired him. How it was run, that inspired him.

The fourth house, among many things, is also linked to governance. Moon in his chart is in Bharani. I think this is where he got his original way of thinking, because Bharani is about exploring the unknown. Secondly, it's classified as belonging to the nature of Ugra, which translates to fierce. That is where I think he's getting his passion.

Bharani, Mars and Original Thinking

Moon in his chart also has a relationship with Mars, as Moon is in Aries, which is ruled by Mars. So Bharani and the Martian influence on his Moon are where he's getting his passion from. His originality is also coming from Bharani, and Bharani's ruler, Venus in the fifth house, is also behind his original thinking.

Moon in the fourth house itself links his thinking to governance and looking after people, particularly as the sign ruler Mars is in Punarvasu, which is directly linked to looking after people. Venus in Krittika is once again linked to governance. Looking at how society can be governed might have been an area of interest for him.

The Other Planetary Influences

Sun and Moon coming together would have given him the necessary confidence to advance his theories. Rahu would have made him someone who contested against existing forms of government and how operations were being carried out in England, or Europe by extension.

Moon in his Navamsa chart is in Virgo, suggesting that his mind is service-oriented. I think Punarvasu's influence is there because Mars is there and Mars is having an impact on his mind. We also find Mercury having an influence, particularly as Moon is in Virgo. He's service-oriented. If you look at Mercury's position in the main chart, it's in Rohini. Mercury in Rohini, in my view, is the reason behind his creativity. You have to have some creativity if you are planning to write a book, as he did.

Now we haven't looked into the aspects. Look at Jupiter in the twelfth house in Purva Ashadha. This is a combination I generally see lending greater optimism. When it has a fifth aspect on the fourth house, which is where Moon is placed, he would feel inherently confident and optimistic. Whatever he's thinking, he's going in the right direction.

Saturn in his chart has its third aspect on the fourth house. Particularly as Saturn occupies Purva Bhadrapada, I think this would have given him the resilience to keep carrying on. He studied capitalism for a very long time. It was under Rahu and Moon's chapter. You can imagine a person could then advance their revolutionary ideas. When Rahu and Moon came together is when he published his book, Das Kapital.

How Planets Shape Your Thinking

Moon's position in your birth chart is going to affect your thinking, and the factors used to determine Moon's position help you decipher your way of thinking. Are you very competitive? Do you get sad quickly? Do you get excited over small things? Do you get nervous? Are you shy? Are you generally an optimist or a pessimist? Or do you remain calm under difficult circumstances? All of these emotions originate from Moon.

If Moon has a relationship with other planets, those other planets are going to shape your thinking. Now what do I mean by that? If Moon is in a sign not ruled by Moon, then Moon has a direct relationship with the sign ruler. For example, if Moon in your birth chart falls in Libra, then Moon and Venus have a relationship. Venus is having an impact on Moon.

Secondly, Moon may be in conjunction with a planet, or a planet may be aspecting Moon. We must not forget the Nakshatra. That's the most important bit. If Moon, for example, is in Anuradha Nakshatra, then Moon and Saturn have a relationship, as Anuradha's ruler is Saturn. These are the relationships through which other planets have an impact on your thinking.

Body, Senses, Mind, Intellect and Soul

I want to start with something very fundamental. This is something I learned from the Bhagavad Gita. It says that the senses control the body. So the body comes first, then come the senses. The mind controls the senses. Beyond the mind, you also have the intellect, which helps you reason. Beyond the intellect, you have the soul.

This is a fascinating concept, and we get a hierarchy. When we experience something difficult, for example a loss of job, a breakup, a loss in the family, loss of wealth or a missed opportunity, the mind reacts first. You are devastated by that loss. You start to feel, "This is the end of the world."

But then, as time passes, Mercury kicks in. It's also probably to do with the orbital cycle. Moon is the fastest-moving planet, and therefore we react emotionally to things that occur to us. Then Mercury helps you see things in better perspective. For example, if it's a loss of job, with the passage of time you begin to reason and see, "It wasn't my fault. The company wasn't doing so well." So the real reason behind the job loss was not you.

How the Mind Finds Its Way Out

Then you have Venus's influence. Venus will give you a sense of proportion. With Sun, you begin to feel a bit more confident. If Sun is strongly placed, you begin to feel, "I'm not going to let this setback push me down." With Mars, you then lay out a plan. You're ready for your next step.

With Jupiter comes wisdom. You start to look at life more philosophically. You begin to see, "Life is full of ups and downs. There's no point getting too disappointed." With Saturn, you get this inner resilience. I have broadly tried to summarize for you how different planets affect our thinking, particularly when we are going through a difficult time.

I think the goal—I go back to what the Bhagavad Gita says—is this: the body comes first, which is controlled by the senses; the senses are controlled by the mind; the mind is controlled by the intellect; and the intellect is controlled by the soul, your true self. The idea is to go beyond the realm of mind. As long as you are in the realm of mind, you are going to continue to experience happiness and sadness, and you are going to react to every changing circumstance.

So it is our duty, as human beings who are given the gift of intellect, to reason and find our way out.

The Two Planetary Camps

Let's come back to astrology now and look at how friendly the planets are to Moon. But before we go there, I want to talk about how planets arrange themselves. They are basically two camps. It is actually quite fascinating.

Mars, Moon, Sun and Jupiter have one camp. They sort of like each other. Camp two belongs to Saturn and Venus. Rahu and Ketu are also placed in this camp. Mercury is flexible, but Mercury leans more towards Saturn, Venus, Rahu and Ketu's camp. So the nine planets can be arranged into camps.

If we study how other planets have a relationship with Moon, let's start from the bottom. Moon doesn't have a good relationship with Rahu and Ketu. It also doesn't seem to have a good relationship with Saturn. So if Saturn has an influence based on the factors mentioned at the beginning, for example Saturn is aspecting Moon, it's not a happy aspect or a happy influence.

However, if Moon is getting the influence of Sun, Mercury, Mars or Jupiter, things are a bit better for Moon. Venus also leans more towards not having a positive impact on Moon. Planetary friendship helps you see which planets have a positive impact that Moon welcomes. Now let's look at the pros and cons of having the influence of other planets on Moon.

Sun's Influence on Moon

If there's Sun's influence on Moon, I think you then begin to feel more confident. But at the same time, you can also be a victim of ego. Just like a powerful king eventually, at some stage, succumbs to ego, if Sun has a strong influence, your way of thinking can be affected in that manner.

Mars's Influence on Moon

With Mars comes that fighting ability: "No matter what, I'm going to face my circumstances." But with Mars, there's also a case that you can go to the extreme and become excessively competitive. Your emotions come out not only passionately, but in a way where you come across as someone who's uncompromising. So Moon and Mars are a difficult combination.

Mercury's Influence on Moon

With Mercury comes reasoning ability. You look at facts and figures, and you try to find logic in your thinking. But equally, Mercury's influence can also make you restless and fickle-minded. That will depend on the positions of Moon and Mercury. By that, I'm referring to the signs and Nakshatras they occupy.

Venus's Influence on Moon

With Venus, I think you begin to develop a sense of compassion and a sense of proportion. Venus brings balance to your thinking. But Venus's influence on Moon can also make you quite desirous of material pleasures and perhaps experimental in love. Or perhaps you get emotionally disturbed very quickly in love affairs.

Jupiter's Influence on Moon

With Jupiter, although you might feel this is a strong influence and you get the benefits of Jupiter, which bestows upon us knowledge and wisdom, Jupiter's influence can also make you impractical. Your philosophies or way of thinking can be so broad that they may not apply in practice.

I want to take up a controversial example here. Adolf Hitler, if you look into his chart, has Moon, Jupiter and Ketu together in Purva Ashadha. So he does have this Moon-Jupiter influence. Purva Ashadha is about marching forward and having a sense of optimism that anything is possible. I think that thinking he might have had was inflated by Jupiter's conjunction.

The combination fell in the third house. This, in my view, is behind why he was so passionate in his speeches. At a philosophical level, he might have been convinced in his thinking that, "Yes, I'm doing something great." But Jupiter can have that negative impact too.

When I talk about practice, this is where Mars, Saturn and Mercury come into the picture. You can say these three planets are soldiers on the ground. A general can throw out ideas that "we'll do this, we'll do that," but Mars has to actually compete on the battlefield. Saturn has to stand guard and oversee activities, and Mercury has to apply logic: how is it going to happen?

Saturn's Influence on Moon

Saturn's influence, as I mentioned, brings the qualities of resilience and a public-service orientation. The individual has a sense of empathy and is driven towards social-welfare activities. But the individual can end up being an over-thinker. You get depressed and continue your suffering a bit longer than if some other planet had an influence on you.

You get caught up in the idea, "I have this loss. I don't think I'll be able to recover." It carries on, given Saturn's slow-moving nature.

Rahu's Influence on Moon

With Moon and Rahu coming into the picture, let's look at the positive side first. I think you would have an unconventional way of thinking, and therefore your ideas can appear quite revolutionary. But Rahu does delude us into thinking we are thinking in the right direction.

Delusion is something a person can suffer from. This is where thoughtfulness comes into the picture: give yourself more time. A Moon-Rahu person can react very quickly and in an extreme way, driven by Rahu's delusion that, "Yes, this is the right way of reacting to this situation." Patience would be the key.

Ketu's Influence on Moon

With Moon and Ketu coming together, it's a case that you may have this natural intuitive ability to sense what is actually happening. You might understand why your boss isn't giving you more work. You might be able to understand human psychology. That's the benefit.

However, with Moon and Ketu, you can become secretive. That's a downside: your thinking is not exactly straightforward. In the case of Adolf Hitler, he has Moon and Ketu together in his chart.

Read the Entire Chart

Adolf Hitler also had Mars in Bharani. This is something I want to draw your attention to. In the case of Karl Marx, Moon is in Bharani. In the case of Adolf Hitler, it's Mars. Bharani is strongly linked to fighting for justice, given its mythology and its rule by Lord Yama.

A Moon-in-Bharani person can bleed for justice. That's Moon's nature. However, a Mars-in-Bharani person can actually be an enforcer: "I see there's a great injustice taking place. I will then carry out the justice myself." That's what Mars in Bharani does.

So apart from looking at Moon's position, we have to read the entire chart, with Moon being the most important planet. This gives you a sense of direction for how to look at other planets and their influence on Moon, and how it can affect your thinking.