You may not run the 100 meter sprint. But you are competing. Try tracing a moment when you are not in competition? As a child, even before you were able to walk you were hit by a psychological phenomena-`sibling rivalry’.You compete with your siblings for more attention from your parents. You envy your friend’s new dress or his toy and you want it for yourself, often at any cost. The competition in you is always active. It never seizes even for a moment. It goes deeper and deeper into the subconscious mind. And you are condemned to compete in your youth, adulthood and even in your twilight years.

Is competition always unhealthy: Is it a sin to strive to become cleaner, better　looking, better dressed than your colleagues and neighbors? Why shouldn’t we struggle to have a better painted and a more impressive home than that of our neighbors. Why shouldn’t we do that extra bit to have an edge over our colleagues and to be able to perform better in a race for a position where only one can reach? Why shouldn’t children compete and acquire more knowledge for medals or for rewards? Countries compete. Corporates compete. Civilizations compete. We fight election to compete in a democracy. Isn’t competition, contest what drives humanity’s progress? But at the level of the individual, this competition can be both healthy and harmful. We can make it healthy by exercising　a sense of balance and using our will power.

But competition has a downside: Is it wrong to strive to be faster, higher, stronger? How many sins are attached to competition :- jealousy avarice, anger, the list can go on. Your ego and your pride can rule your actions and make the competition ugly. Or you can be balanced and fair in competing. Much will depend upon the 6^th house and the other houses of your horoscope.

Do not see the 6^th house as only a `Dusth’(detestable) `Sthan’ (house)

How can you　get your favorite car or the dream house. Not without loans!. The sixth house governs debts and loans. You can see your maternal uncle and the help from him from the 6^thhouse. You can also see your father’s profession from here. You can see your job (service) from here. In Ashtanga yogafor journey to the world of spirituality, the sixth house is seen for dhaarna single pointed concentration. Yet, the 6^th house can also be negative as it also associated with disease, enemies and disputes. But, competition can be positive as well! It has in it opportunities hidden for achievers that look difficult but once tapped can take one to great heights. Based on the strength gathered by sixth house, one　can be assured of immunity to diseases and winning in competition.

Bush and Blair soared on the strength of the 6^th house: It wasn’t the traditional Kendra-Trikona rajayogas that took them to the dizzying heights, but it was effort (3^rd house) and 6^th (competition) which did. We have to keep modernizing the indications from the houses in a horoscope to be able to predict correctly.

Classics on the 6th House　

Brihat Parasher Hora Shastra: Matenal uncle, doubts about death, enemies,　ulcers, step mother. If 6^th lord is in the 6^th in the ascendant/ 8^th it gives wounds. The sign becoming the 6^th house will lead to the knowledge of concerned limb. The karaka (significator) of a relative or the lord of such a house indicates ulcers/bruises to such a relative. The Sun with such lordship and in such a house denotes such affectation of head, the Moon face, Mars neck, Mercury navel, Jupiter nose, Venus eyes, Saturn face and the nodes abdomen. One’s own sons will be his enemies if the 5^th lord is in the 6^th while the 6^th lord is with Jupiter. Simultaneously the 12^th lord should be in the ascendant. If the ascendant is occupied by the lords of the 6^th and 8^th along with the Sun, the　person will be afflicted by tumors and fever. Mars replacing Sun will cause swelling and hardening of the blood vessels and wounds and he can be hit by weapons. Mercury so featuring will bring in bilious disease while Jupiter in similar case will destroy any disease.

Phaldeepika: The sixth house deals with debts, arms, thieves, wounds, diseases, enemies, paternal relation, battle, wicked acts, sins, fear and humiliation.

India’s Rahu domination brought corruption and unhealthy　 competition. Rahu is in the ascendant of both -Indian Independence and Republic Horoscopes

Did the invaders weaken our ability to work collectively for growth. Is the　 ‘divide and rule policy’ of the British still lingering, making us use our energies to harm those competing with us more than to help ourselves and our society? Was it because we allowed ourselves to be ruled by corruption? Is it correct to say that the moral erosion in us started to spread and become incurable as we allowed our original culture, knowledge and traditions to be buried and accepted a culture imposed by foreigners whose aim was to tighten their hold over us.

One of the reasons cited for the phenomenal growth of China , Japan and　 South Korea is the collective spirit in their work culture. The companies of these　countries are never found competing among themselves in the international arena. But India stands in contrast. As the old fable goes, a carton of live crabs　 in a lorry on an Indian road burst open. Surprisingly none of the crabs got out. It was found on close observation that whenever one crab tried to climb up the others pulled it down. Since they were Indian crabs, the Indian spirit of competition was ingrained in　them and they therefore could not let any one　rise and come out. Captivity for all seemed preferred to the rise to freedom of any one.

Rahu in the 6th is seen giving phenomenal rise in life and victory over enemies: The malefics in 3,6,10 and 11, the three upachaya houses have been found giving results that ensures success and victory but at the same time they harm siblings in 3rd, give disease in the 6th, rivalries in the 10th and questionable gains in the 11th. The effect of malefics in these houses have numerous interpretations – both good and bad.

ReligionThe Deepest Divider

Refer to history and see for youself. Organised religion would be found responsible for the deepest divides, the gravest massacres and hatred for each other among homo sapiens. Religious beliefs tend to accentuate competition leading to contest among communities, clashes among civilsations. Which are the houses alongwith the 6th in a country’s horoscope that make people fanatics who go on to compete brutally needs special attention in today’s context.　　　Why can’t we have private prayers in the confines of our homes. Why should 　we be known by a religion. No loudspeakers! No processions! No displays would help peace. Do not make it mandatory to write your religion on application forms.

Competition has no meaning for a person who has set moksha as his goal

Little difference between nurseries for wrestling and nurseries for terrorism: The process for generating nuclear power that lights home and for making nuclear bombs that destroys all is quite similar. Earlier, dabbling with explosives and arms involved the risks of getting killed by own creations and own possessions, but with nuclear proliferation such dabbling could kill a big chunk of the populace. The concern for its spread has to more serious. It requires sincere, conscientious efforts by the great powers.With so many weapons of mass destruction and at so many places the world leaders and nations are found lacking in decisiveness to arrive at a plan that ensures survival of mankind. Is terrorism the ultimate selfish form of competition where the perpetrators are willing to accept or deliver death in order to win the competition of beliefs. Will jihadis have a particularly malevolent influence of 6,8 and 12 houses in their horoscopes. We as astrologers should have an understanding of such inclinations both in the horoscopes of the individual and countries for a meaning role as astrologers.

Look straight from the 6th to the 12th. Not around it

When Lagna, Sun , Moon and sixth house are well-fortified having situation, conjunction and aspect of benefics, good health will be maintained . More the malefic influence on these nodal point, planets and the houses; the chances of ill health and suffering on this account will go up. We have a lot that can be lost without our knowing if we cross limits. Our sleep, our health and most　importantly our sanchit karmas.

Did you know that the root cause of most of your ailments and enemies have been the wrong notions and misconceptions which have been misleading you to wrongly handle the today’s challenge called the competitive environment. The reason is that you think you can handle and manipulate everything. Surely, some are more disease and accident prone and some are less according to the　planetary configurations, but the Kaliyuga environment intensifies the negatives more due to misplaced behavioral norms.

If we look straight from the sixth we can see the reality of our evil karmas in the 12^th which governs loss, expenditure, hospital and jail but we tend to look around　and get disillusioned and indulge to seek the unjustified and also interpret wrongly the life by looking for answers in the neighboring 7^th and 8^thor the 5^th and 4^th houses.

The Kendra equation of the 6 -9-12-3 have a hidden meaning. You start with Kaam ( dreams and effort to self aggrandize) seen from the third house, you indulge artha (competition) but to balance you have to compensate in the 9^th dharma religion and 12th moksha seen from the 12th house. To simplify, if you had your bit of kaam and artha early in life and in abundance, it would be wise to shed them early for giving enough space to dharma and moksha- balance is the key always. The bottom line is 6^thhouse surely denotes troubled waters but there are opportunities as well and a swim in such waters could mean you emerge stronger and confident to be an achiever in your worldly life and also can avail the opportunity for spiritual progress. All you need is genuine astrological guidance.

Corporates and Countries also compete

The Corporates compete to enhance their brand value and ratings to take up the value of their equities. The Corporates strategies to have an edge over the competitors differ from Corporate to Corporate. They are identified with their practices. They are found explained in lighter tones :- What is DELLism :- Intel has a Goat. Samsung has a Camel. Buy milk from both & sell it as Cow’s milk.　 What is IBMism-You have old stubborn cows. You sell them as pet dogs to innocent small businessmen. MICROSOFTism- You have a cow. Force the world to buy milk from you. Spend a million dollars to feed poorer cows. SUNism-You have a bull. It doesn’t give　milk. You hate Microsoft. ORACLEism-You have a cow. You don’t know which side to milk, so you help tools to help milk cows. SAPism-You don’t have a cow. You sell　milking solutions for cows implemented by milking consultants. APPLEism- You have a cow. You sell iMILK. SONYism: You have a cow. You spend $50 million to develop the world’s thinnest milk. CITIBANKism: Welcome to Citibank. If you have a cow, press I. If you have a bull, press 2… stay on line if you’d like our customer care to milk it for you. HPism-You don’t know if what you have is a cow. You will have complete milking　　 solutions through authorized resellers only. TATAism-You have a very old cow. You re-brand it as TATA Indicow. GEism-You have a donkey. People think you have a 100-year old cow. If someone finds out, that’s his imagination at work.

News Area

Commonwealth Games- No more just a media spat! No more it is backtracking at　the individual athletes’ level! Its official now ! The country hangs its head in shame　inspite of spending crores! The allegation made is that it is 114 times the initial budget. The figure is mind boggling. It is high time we realize that our country is really smothered by corruption.The much maligned Games bosses have tarred India ’s image. They had set out to show case India ’s capabilities through this mega event, but discovered a little too late that the foreign baratis (wedding guests) are different and are not as tolerant as the Indians. The first arrived phiraangi baraatis ( foreign wedding guests) were shocked to see construction work on for the tamasha (drama) we about to witness.

The event was described as a national festival by Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit. CWC Federation chief Michael Fennel wrote a letter to the Cabinet Secretary informing that the conditions of residential zone has shocked many contingents. Games village was found seriously compromised .

Significant matters remain unaddressed! Street dogs were found enjoying the comfort of beds mean’t for athletes in the residential area. Even a snake was found in one of the rooms mean’t for atheletes. Urinating in public and use of toilets by anyone and everyone was considered an accepted norm by people manning these residential complexes. Fennel also sought an appointment with PMO. Surprisingly all this happened just days after Mike Hooper, the Chief　Executive Officer of Commonwealth Games Federation told the press that all is well. Australian Olympic Chief said ” India shouldn’t have been awarded the games”. All athletes after the shame were made to stay in 5- star hotels instead of much maligned Games Village. After Australia and New Zealand , even smaller nations- Guernsey , Jersey and Lesothic threated to pull out. Australia rushed its own elite police due to security concerns. 7000 participants and officials from 71 countries were to come. Many may not.

Are the foreign parameters or our corrupt practices found in every nook and　corner responsible. If we don’t discipline now in the dasha of Sun, we cannot dream of becoming a developed nation by 2020! The swollen Yamuna kicked the OC for their karmas at the most crucial time adding flood water to their woes while they battled allegations of shoddy arrangements. It is said the basements of the village were waterlogged.

Moody’s ratings has been affected. To them India doesn’t look as promising as projected.

Yet all is not in doldrums. There is glimmer of hope with Jupiter in the 11^th house of Indian Independence horoscope. This is not intended to ridicule India but is intended to get you thinking. We Indians, as the hosts should forget our internal differences and welcome the guests with the warmth we are known for. Everyone should pitch in and contribute to make the 11 day game with 285 events as a festival to remember for all the positive that such games can do.

Invigorating India : Inspite of OC of CWG still struggling and image India taking the　beating, the economy has invigorated India. Stock Market, one of the prime indicators have zoomed to unexpected heights. The Reserve Bank of India on 24^th August 2010 expressed optimism in their assessment of country’s economy. In its annual report for 2009-2010 released on 24^th August, 2010 , the bank said the growth outlook for 2010-2011 remains robust . Pointing out that　 it’s increasingly evident that growth momentum would further consolidate amidst persistent signs of weakness in the global economy it has already raised the GDP projection to 8.5 per cent in view of strong domestic drivers. India is the 3^rd most powerful country in the world after US and China. Despite marginal increase in profits, corporates have been fairly generous and declared hefty　interim dividends in the first five months of 2010-11.

The Prediction on Stock Market: In our newsletter of January, 2010 we mentioned that ” the Sensex, in the middle of 2010 is likely to reach its highest ever level. Even higher in 2011″. In our July newsletter and in subsequent ones we have been giving our assessment of the economy. It turns out we correctly predicted the　sharp rise in the Sensex when it was being debated whether it would breach the 14000 level of July,2009 or 17000 level of January 2010 in a global meltdown situation.The purpose of the newsletter is not to guide speculators but to predict the economy of which the Sensex is a prime barometer.

Our Monsoon Prediction Couldn’t have been more precise: ” Three months of incessant rain and drought package for Jharkhand Bihar and Tamil Nadu”. This is precisely what we had predicted in JOA’s Journal of Astrology and our 　newsletters. The government spends crores on the metereological department and not one paisa on astro-meterological predictions. The validity of astro-metereological predictions can be judged by simply referring to our newsletters and our Journal.

Is Obama running away from competition: Obama’s policy decision on outsourcing is going to render in India many without job. This is likely occurrence. A policy to protect the largest economy and to address the International financial crisis by the most powerful nation by escaping competition is surely indicating a serious weakness. Answers to the economic crisis does not lie in protectionism especially in a developed market. The US is trying to curb competition by introducing protectionism. Such policies were expected in the dasha of Moon of the American Independence horoscope of 4th July, 1776 predicted in the article US The Declining Years in 2002.

Has recession ended ?

Are we still far from total recovery? Are US markets getting　more optimistic? Is huge Foreign Direct Investment expected in India . For India the recession can be said to be over but not for the world’s largest economy US. US has to　struggle with recession till the dasha of Moon. On that basis we have predicted the　revival of the world economies. Dr. Marc Faber, an investment analyst and entrepreneur, concluded his monthly bulletin with the following: ‘The federal government is sending　each of us a $600 rebate. If we spend that money on Wal-Mart, the money goes to China . If we spend it on gasoline it goes to the Arabs. If we buy a computer it will go to India . If　we purchase fruit and vegetables it will go to Mexico , Honduras and Guatemala . If we purchase a good car it will got Germany . If we purchase useless crap it will go to Taiwan　and none of it will help the American economy. The only way to keep that money here at　home is to spend it on beer since it is one of few products　 still produced in the US . I’ ve being doing my part.’