Characteristics of Elements
What type of personality characteristic does each of these elements produce? According to Parasara, one who has a fiery nature will be distressed by hunger, restlessness, slim body, courage, learning, has a voracious appetite, is sharp, of fair complexion, is serious, and proud.
One with the earthy nature will exude the fragrance of camphor and lotus, is sensual, will always be happy, strong, forgiving and has a voice like a lion’s.
The native who has ethereal nature will have knowledge of semantics, is diplomatic, brilliant, erudite and a tall body.
Watery element makes for one who is radiant, capable of carrying burdens, speaks sweet words, is king of the earth, has many friends, is gentle and erudite.
The features present in a person who has an airy nature are generosity, anger, fair complexion, fondness for wandering, victory over enemies, king and a lean body.
After describing the general features contributed by each of the five elements of character, Parasara deals with the qualities which each of the five elements will impart to the personality.
Personality Traits and Elements
When the fire element is predominant which means that the Sun or Mars is strong, then the person’s face and body will shine like gold. And he will have bright eyes. He is successful in his undertakings, triumphant and wealthy.
The preponderance of the earthy element (strong Mercury) makes one exude the fragrance of many kinds. He will have clean hair, teeth and nails. He will have comforts, wealth and is religious.
The preponderance of the ethereal element means for a strong Jupiter, which makes a person an expert in conversation and who gets happiness by hearing auspicious sounds. When there is a preponderance of the watery element (strong Moon or Venus) then it makes one’s body soft, has bodily comforts and gets delicious foods of his choice.
The preponderance of the airy element (strong Saturn) makes a person dirty, an idiot, miserable, afflicted with disease, sorrows and grief.
After discussing how the five elements colour character, Parasara lays the condition that the qualities ascribe to each of the five elements will manifest fully provided the planets ruling them possess strength. If the planets are weak, the concerned qualities of the elements will not be effective. He also says that when the native experiences bad results and if he does not know his birth details to cast a horoscope he should use the effects described above to identify the Dasa he is in and should do the necessary measures to pacify the planet who is the Dasa lord.
Trigunas and planets
The five elements are only one of the media through which the planets influence the human character and its quality. But in deciding the basic nature of the character, the planets have a more important and effective medium of operation. And this medium is the Trigunas. The planets are classified according to their rulership of the three Gunas or qualities. The Trigunas, Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas are the primary ingredients of the human character. And their manifestation in character is what we see as its goodness and evil. The Srimad Bhagavad Gita also discusses the importance of the Trigunas. Lord Krishna’s sermon to Arjuna in the battlefield to bring back his lost courage and presence of mind contains valuable observation regarding human character.
Lord Krishna in Chapter XIIV gives a detailed exposition of the Gunas. He says that among the three qualities, Sattwa Guna is the purest which illuminates and is without sorrow and gives knowledge and happiness. Rajo Guna originates from desire and lust and makes one do acts in order to satisfy one’s lust and to fulfil one’s desires. Tamo Guna is a product of ignorance and it leads to insanity, laziness and sleep. Lord Krishna says that the result of Sattwic action is purification. Rajasic action produces sorrow. And ignorance is the result of the Tamasic action. He further says that Sattwa Guna produces knowledge while Rajo Guna gives greed and Tamo Guna gives madness, delusion and ignorance. Lord Krishna’s words show how these three basic qualities operate in human character in varying degrees to make a person an angel or a devil.
The Sattwa Guna planets are the Sun, the Moon and the Jupiter. The Mercury and the Venus are Rajo Guna planets. And the Mars and the Saturn form the team of Tamo Guna planets. When the influence of the Sattwaguna planets is dominant it makes for a person with good character. The predominant influence of Rajo Guna planets Mercury and Venus make one Rajoguni and who is intelligent. When the Tamoguna planets influence is predominant one becomes an idiot. If all the planets are equal in strength then there will be a mixture of the three Gunas. Based on the three qualities, the sage classifies the characters into four types. And they are Uttama (excellent), Madhyama (moderate), Adhama (inferior) and Udaseena (indifferent).
The Sattwaguna person has control over his senses, practises religious austerity, is pure, patient, sincere, without greed and truthful.
The Rajoguna person is brave, radiant, self confident, clever, does not flee from war and protects virtuous people.
Avarice, lying, stupidity, inertia and servitude are the qualities found in a Tamoguna person.
Agriculture and business, looking after cattle, telling both truth and lies are the qualities of a Udaseena person.
The Parasari classification of character into four types can be used to decide the suitability of a job for a person. If two people whether as a master and a servant or as a husband and wife belong to the same quality, their relationship will always be marked by affection and stability. The mutual compatibility of these four types of characters is as follows: Adhama-Udaseena, Udaseena-Madhyama, Madhyama-Uttama. The relationship of two people belonging to each of these three groups will be marked by love and affection.
Between the bride and bridegroom, if the latter has better qualities, they will have mutual attachment and love. It is the same as the case of a master and his servant. If the bride and the servant posses better qualities, then the results will be opposite. Parasara’s suggestion regarding the bride and bridegroom can be used in horoscope matching which with other matching parameters will enhance the quality of married life.
Parasara says that the four types of qualities acquired by a person are the result of his genes, his birth time and his associations. The birth time factor and associations outweigh the genes factor in imparting the qualities to a person. The Parasara’s observation underscores the importance of the influence of the planets on human character and for that matter on human life.
Courtesy: Modern Astrology(P.Shyamkishore)
Continued from: Judging Character Through Planets – Part 1
