Stars shine down: Did 'rahu-ketu' clash create trouble among Vijaypat Singhania & Co?

“They were like Rahu-Ketu,” was Mumbai-based businessman Vijaypat Singhania’s reply, when recently asked in an interview about the equation between his two sons, Madhupati and Gautam. Read on to know more about these two celestial forces from Hindu mythology.

1. Rahu and Ketu trace their origin back to the tale of the great samudra manthan or the churning of the celestial ocean, with gods on one side and the demons on the other. The elixir of immortality (amrit) came up to the surface in the process. Lord Vishnu took the form of Mohini, a divine beauty, and started distributing the elixir to the gods and demons. A demon named Svarbhanu, sat amidst gods and consumed the elixir out of turn. Enraged, Lord Vishnu, cut his head off but Svarbhanu couldn’t die as he had gained immortality.

2. Svarbhanu’s head and body are believed to be two entities. Rahu is the severed head and Ketu is the body without a head. In visual descriptions of the navagraha, Rahu is typically depicted as a figure with a human head and a serpent body. Ketu is depicted as a serpent head with a human body.

3. As per Vedic astrology, life is influenced by nine astral bodies: five gods (Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Saturn), two asuras or demons (Rahu and Ketu) and two rishis, one of whom is the teacher of the gods ( Jupiter) and the other the teacher of the demons (Venus). A blessing from Lord Brahma helped Rahu and Ketu to be included in this collective in their new form.


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4. Rahu signifies the north lunar node and Ketu, the south lunar node. The former, it is believed, can cause eclipses, by swallowing the sun completely. Ketu can manifest as comets. The intersection of the sun and moon with Rahu-Ketu as they move along their celestial spheres is what is believed to cause eclipses . The two are not considered auspicious planets and often considered trouble makers.

5. Rahu is an indicator, of worldly desire, fame, greed, high intelligence and manipulation. Ketu is considered a worldly malefic and spiritual benefice, as it causes sorrow and loss, which ultimately tu r ns t he individual to god. The temperament of both is considered erratic and unpredictable, not fit to be a part of normal society.

6. Yet, they are worshipped and exalted to an equal status in the navagraha system. The nine astral bodies a re worshipped as a collective in various rituals. The planets act as counterbalances to each other’s influence, keeping in check the impact of each planet on a person’s life. There is never such a thing as too much good or too much bad with all the planets working collectively to keep things exciting at all times.