Posts Tagged ‘Legend’

By the River of Eridanus

Monday, September 20th, 2010

 

Eridanus is a southern constellation; most of its stars are not visible to those who live in the northern hemisphere. But it does not stop us marvelling Eridanus, the celestial river whose origin is mired in mythology and whose down stream winding journey is full of cosmics significance. Let me give you a broad brush stroke of legend, astronomy and cosmics standing by the river of Eridanus.

Legend

1. Eridanus is an ancient constellation, one of the 48 constellations Ptolemy penned in his Almagest. The word Eridanus is from Greek “Eridanos” meaning a river. Greek legend has two versions for its origin:

Version one relates to the legend of Phaethon son of Helios prevailing on his father Sun god to let him handle the reign of chariot Helios rides. On concession by the Sun God, Phaethon, inexperience as he is, loses control of the seven immortal steeds and causes the chariot to veer off, setting the earth on fire. Zeus was smitten with this indiscretion and strikes Phaethon by a thunderbolt and hurls his flaming body into the river Padus, which is thereafter christened as Eridanus the celestial river

Version two relates to the legend where, Heliades kid sister of Phaethon, mourning the death of her brother weeps and tears falling from her eyes gather stream and transformed into Eridanus the celestial river

2. The Arabs called Eridanus, “An-Nahr” meaning a river; again there are two versions as to which river they are referring to:

Version one refers to the river Nile; even in Greek the word Nilus is mentioned referring to river Nile which is noted for meandering over a long distance

Version two refers to Euphrates River which fits the topology of Eridanus constellation. The Euphrates River has two branches of stream bringing alluvial soil to the heart of Mesopotamia. Eridanus constellation has two branches called northern and southern streams in the sky.

Astronomy

Eridanus is the by far the longest constellation in the sky. Beginning at south 5 degrees it finishes at about south 57 degree almost a 52 degree span in length. In terms of breath it ranges from 1 hour 38 minutes at star Achernar to 5 hour 4 minutes at star Cursa. It is also the sixth largest constellation in the known sky and occupies about 1,138 square degrees in space. The constellation is visible between latitudes north 30 degree to south 90 degree

Let me take you on the down stream journey of Eridanus constellation. For your easy convenience I am giving you the contours of the Eridanus constellation in the picture below:

Eridanus Constellation

Eridanus

Courtesy: http://www.astrofilitrentini.it/mat/costell/eri_e.html

The river begins its northern stream with the star Cursa (Beta) located at South 5 degree (Declination) and travels westward horizontally till it reaches star Omega then rises to north-west and braces star Mu the northern most star in the constellation. From here till star Nu the journey is flat. Nu star marks the first plunge southwards of mild depth, passing star Xi and come to star Beid (Omicron 1). This location marks the second plunge southwards a fairly deep one. As the river meets star Zaurak (Gamma) the plunge is arrested and Eridanus moves upward in two steps passing Pi star and then star Rana (Delta). Rana begins the horizontal flow of the stream to the west wherein Eridanus flows quietly passing star Epsilon and knocks on star Zibal (Zeta). Eridanus moves on effortlessly bypassing the famous Ostrich’s Nest that is built by a combination of star Zibal, three stars system of Rho (P) signified as P1 P2 and P3 and star Azha (Eta).At this point the northern stream comes to an end.

Azha star begins the southern stream and marks the steepest and deepest fall to south for the river Eridanus until the stream banks on Tau 1 star. A normal plunge is seen now but towards the south-east for the first time. This stream gushes on from Tau 1 thru Tau 3. At the median point of this fall lies Angetenar (Tau 2). After reaching Tau 3 the river meanders till about Tau 9 the entire stretch is being the fertile valley of Eridanus.

Tau 9 marks at yet another plunge towards south-east till the river Eridanus reaches the shore at Upsilon 1. At this pint the river has reached south 30 degree. After this the river takes a U turn at Upsilon 2 and plunges mildly to Upsilon 3 and thence to Upsilon 4. From this point Eridanus makes a medium steep plunge towards south-west and then climbs to north-west. In this journey Eridanus goes through Seven Upsilon stars which are collectively known as “Theemim” and signify the seven steeds of the chariot Helios rides. Thereafter Eridanus labours towards the dam of star Acamar (Theta).

Flowing straight westward, from Acamar, Eridanus passes star Iota. From Iota star, river Eridanus begins a deep descend bathing Kappa star and falling towards Phi star. A quick turn to the west and at Chi star is followed by one shot descend bringing the river to star Achernar (Alpha) located south 57 degree, whereat the longest and winding journey of the mythical river comes to a happy close.

Cosmics

1. Eridanus constellation is known for three significant groups of stars: Ostrich’s Nest, Valley of Eridanus and Seven Steeds of Helios; all of these have great cosmic significance in chiselling your lifestyle

2. In addition there are important junction stars such as Cursa, Beid, Zaurak, Rana, Acamar and Achernar playing a great deal of importance in shaping and improving your life

3. Most stars in the Eridanus constellation starting from Tau 1 downwards do not figure as birth stars, sighted by the Moon or lucky stars sighted by other six planets because these are located 20 degree south of the Ecliptic, which is the path of the Sun. Hence, these stars figure as rising stars or culminating stars only. Rising star is defined as the star rising in the eastern horizon at the time of your birth; whereas Culminating star is defined as the star that was just overhead at the time of your birth

4. The Eridanus stars portend great knowledge in science and technology; facilitate travel above the water; grant position of authority; to many these signify becalming family compared to fairly stormy business life.

Muthu Ashraff

Cosmic Adviser

Mobile : +94 777 265677

E-mail : cosmicgems@gmail.com

Web : http://www.cosmicgemslanka.com

Blog : http://cosmicgemslanka.com/blog/

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Mercury in Your Life

Thursday, April 8th, 2010

 

It appears and then disappears is what you hear when talking about the planet Mercury. Though a bright planet in the sky, its brightness is lost in the glare of the Sun. Even then the planet has a big role to play in your life. This blog post details facts about Mercury in terms of Astronomy, Legend and Cosmics to enable you to understand Mercury better.

Astronomy

Important astronomy facts of Mercury are given below:

1. Mercury is not a planet that you can view easily; it is there and the next moment it has gone; appears and then disappears the planet got several rubrics such as “elusive planet” “unpredictable planet” and “quicksilver”. There are several reasons for this phenomenon:

# Mercury is too small with a diameter of just 3.032 miles at the centre, something like two fifth of the diameter of the Earth; besides it is somewhat similar to our Moon in size but orbiting much closer to the Sun

# It is in fact the closest planet to the Sun in the planetary kingdom; on average its distance from the Sun is about 36 million miles; at the furthest point in orbit Mercury is around 43.3 million miles away from the Sun whereas at the closest point to the Sun the distance is around 28.6 million miles

# Mercury either rises just before the sunrise low in the east or just after the sunset low in the west

2. Mercury takes about 88 earth days to orbit around the Sun; in doing so it rotates on its axis once in 58.6 days

3. Mercury is the swiftest in the planetary kingdom moving with a speed of 30 miles per second

4. Mercury is too hot, hotter than Venus; in its close proximity to the Sun its temperature hovers around 450 degrees in centigrade while in furthest distance from the Sun its temperature clicks around minus 170 degrees of centigrade. At its height Mercury’s temperature can melt lead while at the lowest temperature it can freeze you

5. It is too hot and dry on the surface of Mercury; there is no oxygen and no atmosphere; however there is water on its north protected from the deep penetrating sunrays, a wonder indeed. Water without oxygen is useless as plants cannot grow

6. Like our Moon, the orbital path of Mercury is oval shape called as elliptical

7. Mercury is the densest planet after the Earth; a person weighing 100 pounds on Earth would weigh at 38 pounds, provided he can get there

8. Mercury is made of 70 % iron in its core which is partially molten and 30 % silicate

9. Like our Moon, there are caters on the surface of the Mercury, which is otherwise rocky

10. If not for the fact its brightness is lost in the glare of the Sun, Mercury is definitely a bright planet when viewed during morning or evening twilight

Legend

1. Mercury has two names; the ancient Greeks thought there are two such planets because Mercury was seen in east and west on different occasions. The morning planet was called “Apollo” whereas the evening planet was called “Hermes”

2. Mercury is said to contain both feminine and masculine qualities; many cultures thought Mercury as a child known for his truancy. So much so, in the Roman traditions Mercury is God of commerce, trade and playful thievery

3. Mercury is deemed a messenger of the Gods, going on its errands, carrying news; it carried along with it a lighted caduceus (a staff with two snakes entwined around it and two wings at the top) to guide souls to the under world

4. In many cultures Mercury is said to represent, intelligence, intuition, inventions, travel, leisure, truancy, carefree behaviour and childishness

5. All these legends led to the English word “Mercurial” which means someone who is an active and lively personality; someone who changes suddenly and unpredictably; someone whose personality undergoes swings in moods; someone whose mind or temper is fast and at the same time volatile

Cosmics

The position of Mercury at the time of your birth is very important to understand the nature of your cosmics, the hidden aspects within you that can influence your lifestyle and facilitate improving your life:

Firstly, you have to find out where Mercury was posited at the time of your birth. Theoretically, Mercury visits 16 constellations in the sky. In addition to the Twelve Zodiacal Constellations where Mercury spends most number of days it also visits Four Non-Zodiacal Constellations: Ophiuchus, Cetus, Orion and Sextant. Mercury in different constellations means different things for you. Mercury in Gemini can make you an intelligent and smart guy and in Virgo it can make you a fashion and lifestyle specialist. On the other hand Mercury in Aquarius turns you a moody scientist who spends lot of time in laboratory

Secondly, you have to find out whether Mercury was in the sky map of your place of birth at the time of your birth. If so, you have to see whether it was rising, culminating or setting in the sky at the time of your birth. A rising Mercury is a sign of brilliance; culminating Mercury leads you to be an accomplished person with mild manners and an easy going lifestyle; setting Mercury, however, can cause tooth related sickness in you

Thirdly, you have to find out whether any phenomenon involving Mercury has taken place at the time of your birth. For example, if there is an inferior conjunction involving Mercury then your business and family life is often clumsy and cloudy; if there is a superior conjunction involving Mercury then it is good news for your business life

Fourthly, if you are born during the Geminids Meteor Shower, you are an evergreen person who savours success.

Muthu Ashraff

Cosmic Adviser

Mobile : +94 777 265677

E-mail : cosmicgems@gmail.com

Web : http://www.cosmicgemslanka.com

Blog : http://cosmicgemslanka.com/blog/

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What makes Venus Unique?

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

Bright in the sky, planet Venus is similar to our Earth. But many of her features are so unique that Venus has gained importance not only in Astronomy but in your life too. This blog post details facts about Venus in terms of Astronomy, Legend and Cosmics to enable you to understand Venus better and embark upon improving your life and lifestyle.

Astronomy

Venus is a feminine planet and I have used the word she or her appropriately:

1. Similarity to Earth: She is considered as twin sister of Earth due to similarity in terms of size, mass and gravity. The diameter of Venus is 7,521 miles about 86% of that of the Earth; her mass is about 82 % of that of the Earth. Gravity of Venus is equal to 90% of the Earth’s gravity; for example a person weighing 100 pounds on Earth would weigh 90 pounds on Venus

2. Difference between Earth and Venus: Key difference lie in the atmosphere of Venus which is made up of mostly carbon dioxide. It is too hot there with average temperature on the surface ranging about 460 degree Celsius compared to Earth’s hottest temperature at 58 Celsius. Furthermore, the density in the atmosphere of Venus is very high; something like 92 times the air pressure of Earth prevails on Venus. If you land there you would simply be crushed and melted. Yet anther difference is equally appalling. Sulphuric acid in the cloud surrounding Venus together with lack of water on surface or beneath makes the planet inhospitable

3. Proximity to Earth: Venus is the closest planet from the Earth; her mean distance is calculated as 0.28 astronomical Unit or about 26 million miles. In her orbit around the Sun, Venus travels closest to the Earth at 23.7 million miles; when it moves away from the Earth her distance is about 162 million miles

4. Appearance: Venus appears both in mornings and evenings, a scenario that led ancient Greeks to conclude that there are two such planets: Phosphorus for the morning one and Hesperus for the Evening one. However, modern astronomers found that Venus appears at times in the western sky in the evening when Venus is moving towards the Earth and other times Venus appears in the eastern sky in the morning when Venus is moving away from the Earth

5. Conjunction: In her orbit around the Sun Venus can come in between Earth and the Sun which is known as Inferior conjunction where the light of Venus is lost due to the glare of the Sun. When Venus goes to the opposite point, Sun comes in between Venus and Earth which is known as superior conjunction where the Sun completely occults (covers) Venus and shuts her light falling on Earth

6. Brightness: Venus is the brightest planet viewed from Earth after the Sun and the Moon. There are several reasons: one is the proximity and the other in the manner in which Venus rotates. The silvery planet rotates so slowly on her axis that it takes 243 days for a single revolution. Compare this with Earth’s rotation of 24 hours. Now in her orbit around the Sun Venus takes 224 days just about seven and half months to complete the journey. This feature makes Venus remaining almost as a day planet

7. Rotation: The other four planets namely, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn rotate on their axis West to East called counter clockwise, whereas Venus rotates on her axis East to West called clockwise. There is a reason for this phenomenon. Millenniums ago Venus was struck by a huge asteroid. As a result Venus turned upside down. Even today Venus rotates on its axis that tilts about 177 degrees. So Venus is seen as rotating East to West. If she was in her original condition then she would behave like the other four planets

8. Topography: Her surface is covered by caters created by volcanoes and have topography of huge mountains (higher than mountains on Earth) with valleys in between representing bosoms of a lady. Hence the planet is considered feminine.

Legend

1. Venus is named after the Roman Goddess of love and beauty due to silvery light and the appearance of heaving bosom of a lady

2. Venus is the jewel in the sky bright with her carbon dioxide representing blue diamonds

3. Both Holy Scriptures Bible and Quran call Venus as the “morning star”; Venus is one of the stars that guided the three magi to Infant Jesus

4. Hindus called Venus, Shukra personifying the great teacher of Ashura by the name Shukracharya who is said to bestow many boons including Wealth & prosperity, Knowledge & arts, Happiness & enjoyment, Luxury & comfort, Love & marriage, Sex & pleasure, Sensuality & civility and Beauty and brains.

Cosmics

The position of Venus at the time of your birth is very important to understand the nature of your cosmics:

Firstly, you have to find out where Venus was posited at the time of your birth. Theoretically, Venus visits 24 constellations in the sky. In addition to the Twelve Zodiacal Constellations where Venus spends most number of days it also visits Four Non-Zodiacal Constellations: Ophiuchus, Cetus, Orion and Sextant. Moreover, Venus touches eight other constellations one day or less out of 1000 days as calculated by the Astronomical Institute of Utrecht University in Germany. Venus in different constellations means different things for you. Venus in Aries can make you a famed soldier and in Capricornus can make you a renowned professor. Venus in Virgo however can make you a ladies man

Secondly, you have to find out whether Venus was in the sky map of your place of birth at the time of your birth. If so, you have to see whether it was rising, culminating or setting in the sky at the time of your birth. A rising Venus makes you famous; culminating Venus turns you a man who enjoys life; setting Venus however, can cause trouble for your sex and family life

Thirdly, you have to find out whether any phenomenon involving Venus has taken place at the time of your birth. For example, if there is an inferior conjunction your life and fame are overshadowed by events beyond your control; if there is superior conjunction your rise in career and family life finally goes up in smoke due to a transgression on your part.

You can contact me via E-mail cosmicgems@gmail.com or Webpage http://www.cosmicgemslanka.com

Muthu Ashraff

Cosmic Adviser

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Alnilam: The Fabulous Star of Discipline, Standard & Honour

Monday, August 3rd, 2009

You are fascinated by the star Alnilam located in the buckle of the Belt of Orion. Looking overhead in early night you see without even a telescope the blue-white star in its splendid glory. “I am honoured; what a great star“you muse to yourself. A sense of elation runs through your spine. “I hope, I have something to do with this star” mulling this thought you turn your head once again to see Alnilam. Now you see the star and the surrounding nebulae bathed in blue-white colour. You remain spellbound. In this blog post, I give you a brief of Alnilam: its Legend, Astronomy and Cosmics along with a Sketch of this great star in your chart.

Legend

Alnilam is located in the middle of three stars that form the Belt of Orion. From west to east, these stars are Mintaka, Alnilam and Alnitak. Out of the three stars Alnilam is most brilliant. It was called the buckle of the belt, something that tightens and at the same time gives an aura of iron discipline. Though loosely translated as “string of pearls” the word Alnilam comes from Arabic “nilam” which means order, arrangement, discipline, honour, being exalted. It is also used to imply authority. The Turks used it to mean governor or vizier. In India the erstwhile rulers of Hyderabad are Nizams. So much is that a person who receives honour in any undertaking is generally described as Nizam. Our star Alnilam had another name given by Arabs; “Alnasak” which means “the line”, referring to the celestial line drawn through the star that links Aldebaran to the north- west and Sirius to the south-east. This line was also considered as authority and standard. Traditions state that many kings wore their jewels in the centre of their crown or following the steps of Alnilam in the centre of their belt.

The belt of Orion consisting the three stars is an asterism itself that is a sub-group within a constellation. Different cultures had different names for this asterism: in Latin America it is “three Marys” reflecting on the trinity of Holy Mary; in the middle-east it is “three magi” who were the first to bless Infant Jesus; Chinese meant it as a beam while Arabs took it as a scale or standard.

The constellation Orion is called Hunter or Giant. The latter was chosen by Al-Sufi, 10th century Persian-Arab astronomer when he drew the constellation and the star Alnilam. Orion was so tall that he can wade through the oceans. Blinded by his father, Orion looked at the Sun and regained this eye-sight. He fell in love with Aurora, the goddess of Dawn and eventually was killed by Scorpio. Orion marks all four seasons in the sky. Orion also said to mitigate the coldness of winter.

Astronomy

Alnilam is astronomically referred to as epsilon Orionis; it is classified as B01a spectral class, which means blue-white very bright supergiant. It is a star of second magnitude in brightness with 1.7 visual magnitude. Alnilam is 30th brightest star in the sky and 4th brightest in the Orion constellation. It is located in Right Ascension 5.60 hrs and Declination of 1.20 degree south. It is seen throughout the year. A solitary star with surface temperature of 25,000 kelvin, its intense radiation makes the surrounding molecular nebulae (NGC 1990) glow in bright blue bath. See the image below:

ngc1990

http://www.astrophotos.net/images/nebula/ngc1990.jpg

Alnilam is 1,300 light years away and about 37,500 times luminous than the Sun and about 40 times the size of the Sun. The star is just below the celestial equator and both luminaries Sun & Moon have occasions to come in straight line perpendicular to the star. On June 19 every year Sun gets into Orion constellation within 2 to 3 degrees and forms a straight line to Alnilam towards the southern direction. Alnilam is moving away from us at a speed of 16.5 miles per second. Like all super giants Alnilam is shedding its mass mostly due to the stellar winds lashing the star at 1,250 miles per second, much more than the speed of the solar winds. Time to come, Alnilam would transform into a red supergiant, in that case, it would be brighter than Betelgeuse, and thus become the number 1 brightest star in Orion Constellation.

Alnilam’s features as solitary star with simple structure and its central position in the belt of Orion and the Orion constellation as a whole has made it a standard in astronomy. Alnilam is used for celestial navigation and to mark position of other stars. Moreover, its brilliant blue colour has made the star an object of study among many astronomers and occultists.

Cosmics

Cosmically Alnilam means three things woven together. Discipline, Standard and Honour; no wonder the phrase “string of pearls“was applied to Alnilam. On the positive side Alnilam gives you unshakable confidence in what you do; makes you an orderly and methodical person; showers you with prosperity and pleasant life; grants you honour in every undertaking you do; finally transforms you as a dignified and exalted person in the eye of friends and enemies alike. Equally important are the negative comics: with success and honour you lose your head; throw away the standard; you are now an arrogant zealot; your piety has taken the back seat. This is how you fall. Not only that you can be caught in a web of deceit or conspiracy like Julius Caesar; sometimes you may be poisoned like Hamlet’s father. Take care. Alnilam is all about discipline, standard and honour; if you take one pearl out the string breaks and you go down the sink.

Symbology equates Alnilam as a line drawn west to east slanting down; it is well supported by the Hebrew letter Aleph implying upright and exaltation; standard and honour. In meteorology Alnilam is for all seasons; if the star and the surrounding nebulae becomes duller in brightness it signifies rain and wind. All blue colour gems & crystals are recommended generally; specific colour tone depends on the star’s position in your chart. Alnilam has positive resonant with the numbers 1, 2 & 3.

Sketch in your Chart

Birth Star- You have all three qualities of the star and would do well in anything you touch; call it Midas touch

Sighted by Sun- Military & political honour

Sighted by Jupiter Excellence in trade, professions such as legal, religion education

Sighted by Saturn- Political high office or exalted position in priesthood

Sighted by Mercury- Education, writing, research, accounting & IT

Sighted by Venus- Entertainment, leisure, hospitality & show business

Sighted by Mars- Military commanding office, corporate high office,

If these planets are in houses 1,3,5,7,9 & 11 the effect is high, in houses 4 & 10 the effect is moderate except for Jupiter in 4 and Sun in 10; in houses 2,6,8 & 12 the effect is less except for Saturn in 8.

If you are born in June 18, 19 & 20: you have a life ladled with standard & honour with excellent inter-personal relationship.

You can contact me via E-mail:cosmicgems@gmail.com or Webpage http://www.cosmicgemslanka.com

Muthu Ashraff

Cosmic Adviser

 

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