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A Glossary of Astrological Terms for the letter "V"
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Use this glossary to look up the meanings of words you come across on this website, or in your astrological reading. Just select the first letter of the word you need and click on it in the table below to go straight to that sector.
V
Vaastu (Vãstu)
Indigenous Indian variety of Feng Shui. Involving geomancy and astrologically correct placement of energies in the home and business, this ancient discipline is widely employed among Indian communities to this day.
Vacua Cursus
Latin for Void of Course.
Varga
There are 16 divisional modes (vargas) of the natal chart in Jyotish (Vedic) astrology. Based on fractions of each sign, each varga gives light on a different side of the character.
Veda
Ancient Indian scriptures, comprising the original basis of the Hindu religions and philosophies, including related teachings such as Yoga, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and even Hare Krishna! There are four Vedas:
- Rig-Veda, the most ancient
- Yajur-Veda, sacrificial formulæ
- Sama-Veda, ritual hymns and chants; mystic formulæ
- Atharva-Veda, spells and magical incantations; philosophical speculations
The Vedas, believed to be eternal truths revealed anew at the beginning of every new age, were originally composed and sung in Sanskrit, one of the earliest of the Indo-European tongues, from which most of the modern languages of Europe, the Middle East and India have ultimately descended.
Vedanta
"The end of the Vedas". Originally comprising the Upanishads or esoteric forest teachings that grew out of the Vedic religion taught by ancient gurus to their closest disciples. It developed into a philosophical school, which holds that the basis of all life is divine and that the goal of life is to realise the divinity inherent in our nature.
Vedic Astrology
A system of astrology (a.k.a. Jyotish) favoured in India, ultimately deriving from the teachings of the Indian scriptures (Vedas). The controversial term "Vedic" astrology is a very recent, apparently Western invention, mainly to avoid the term "Hindu" astrology—the Jyotish system having been devised in antiquity, but long after the Vedas were originally composed. The prime differences from modern Western Tropical Astrology include: the employment of the Sidereal Zodiac; planetary periods (dasha) and sub-periods (bhukti); the idea of planetary "friends" and "enemies"; divisional modes (varga); the pre-eminence of the Moon (Chandra) and the use of the nakshatras, or Lunar Mansions.
Venus
The evening and morning star, a planet symbolising matters to do with love, affection, beauty, the arts, money and so on. Ruler of Taurus and Libra. Exalted in Pisces. The lesser benefic. More about Venus.
Vernal Equinox
Spring Equinox (northern hemisphere). The first degree of Aries, the beginning of the astrological year, when the Sun crosses the celestial equator from south to north. In the southern hemisphere it is the Autumnal Equinox. More on the Equinox.
Vernal Point
Point on the ecliptic marking the position of the Sun at the moment of the Vernal Equinox. It is defined as the first degree of Aries in the Tropical Zodiac. This point moves backwards through the sidereal zodiac at the rate of a little over one degree every 72 years. This movement is called the Precession of the Equinoxes. The current location (2009) of the Vernal Point in the sidereal zodiac is at approximately 5 degrees of sidereal Pisces.
Vertex
- Point used by some astrologers to represent the inner life of the ascendant. Calculated by inverting the degree of the Ascendant (i.e., calculating the degree of the ascendant as if the native were born in the opposite hemisphere and calling this point the Vertex), it is the point where the prime vertical intersects the ecliptic and is always found west of the meridien. It can be above or below the horizon.
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A malefic Fixed Star (really a nebula) in the constellation Andromeda on the 28th degree of tropical Aries. This is the famed Andromeda Galaxy.
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