page_title: Hindu astrology
section_title: Modern Hindu astrology
hierarchical_section_title: Hindu astrology / Modern Hindu astrology
caption_attribution_description: English: English nomenclature of the last few centuries for Jyotish- called Indian or Vedic or Hindu Astrology.
context_page_description: Jyotisha or Jyotishya is the traditional Hindu system of astrology, also known as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and more recently Vedic astrology. The term Hindu astrology has been in use as the English equivalent of Jyotiṣa since the early 19th century, whereas Vedic astrology is a relatively recent term, entering common usage in the 1970s with self-help publications on Āyurveda or yoga.
  The horoscopic astrology practiced in the Indian subcontinent came from Hellenistic influences, post-dating the Vedic period. and the Vedanga Jyotishya, one of the earliest texts about astronomy within the Vedas, dates from the last centuries BCE.
  Following a judgement of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2001 which favoured astrology, some Indian universities now offer advanced degrees in Hindu astrology, despite protest from the scientific community that astrology is a pseudoscience.
context_section_description: Astrology remains an important facet of folk belief in the contemporary lives of many Hindus. In Hindu culture, newborns are traditionally named based on their jyotiṣa charts (Kundali), and astrological concepts are pervasive in the organization of the calendar and holidays, and in making major decisions such as those about marriage, opening a new business, or moving into a new home. Many Hindus believe that heavenly bodies, including the planets, have an influence throughout the life of a human being, and these planetary influences are the "fruit of karma". The Navagraha, planetary deities, are considered subordinate to Ishvara (the Hindu concept of a supreme being) in the administration of justice. Thus, it is believed that these planets can influence earthly life.
caption: Nomenclature of the last two centuries
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