General Approach

People visit the Astrologer for one simple reason which is to know the "future" of their own or their beloved ones.

While visiting, some of them just present their horoscope and expect the Astrologer to pin down their problem and when it will be over. But it is always better to ask the nature of problem before examining the horoscope.

When we visit a hospital we just brief the nature of illness to the doctor so that in can help to diagnose in the right direction, saving effort, time and money. Similarly, it is better to ask the visitors to brief their problem so that we can examine the birth chart in the right aspect and forecast the future better.

Some people reach out the Astrologer during desperate times such as serious health issue, Debt, loss of property, problem in marital life. In such cases, the first moral responsibility of the Astrologer is not to scare them with astrological jargons but to pacify them with kind words and still convey the facts nicely.

While examining the horoscope, the age of the person whose horoscope is being analyzed, plays a role. People will be more interested to know immediate future and not distant future.

For instance, if we tell the parents of a just born baby that their child will prosper at the age of 60 because Venus Mahadasha is starting at that age and Venus is well placed, the parents may not show much interest.

So, while predicting the future of a person, it should be more relevant to the age of the person. Here are some guidelines which you may apply while forecasting initially but later sure you will get a better handle on this.

Just born baby : It will be more ideal to forecast the Longevity of the baby because every parents want to hear that first. For this, check the Ascendant and its Lord, 8th house and its Lord, association of Saturn with any of these Houses or Lords and ruling Planetary period. Then, forecast on the education, overall life, presence of any Yoga, and finally relationship of the baby with the parents in the later age. If the parents want to know about something specifically, then certainly those areas can be forecast. Any sensible matters should be avoided.

Students : Few reasons why the parents want to check the horoscope of their children, who is a student, could be 1) the student is not keen in his studies 2) there is a sudden decline in the academic performance 3) studying well but want to know which field to select, Medical or Engineering or other.

In such situations, assess the strength of houses responsible for studies such as 2nd and 4th and their lords, strength of Moon which is primarily responsible for good Memory and Mercury for Mathematics. Also, check the ruling Planetary period (Dasha), its house and whether it will be favorable to Ascendant lord.

Also, check where the Transit Saturn is with respect to Natal chart Moon. During Janma Shani (Transit Saturn transiting through Moon) or Ashtama Shani (Transit Saturn transiting through 8th house from the Moon) period, the Student's ability to read and retain will decline and so will be the academic performance.

For Graduation, assess the strength of 5th house and its lord and for Post Graduation, strength of 9th house and its lord.

Aged 25 to 35 : People in this age reach out to Astrologer mostly to know about their future, their career and opportunity to work in abroad and acquisition of properties. They are practical people and believe astrology partly.

For such people, it is better to start from the characteristics of the person by assessing the Ascendant, its Lord and Zodiac sign. Also, by assessing the strength of 3rd, 4th, 9th and 11th house and its lord, the relationship of the person with his/her family members could be highlighted which will gain credibility.

Then check the Transit Saturn position for any immediate past or near future impact because this would have had or will have impact on the Job and income. Then assess the 2nd house for income, 4th house for Comfortable life, 10th house for Job and 8th & 11th house association for foreign travel. Check the Planetary periods and its impact for acquisition of Land, Vehicle, Career and Overseas opportunity.

In case of business person, assess the strength of 6th house, its lord, position of transit Saturn and planetary periods because business people reach out either when they are at loss/debt or want to expand their business.

Aged 50+ : People at this age reach out to Astrologer mostly to discuss about the marriage of their wards. So, examine their wards horoscope for houses responsible for marriages, presences of any marriage related blemish such as Kalathra Dosha or Manglik Dosha, the current planetary periods and sub-period (Bhukthi), Transit Jupiter and Saturn placement etc., and forecast the tentative marriage time line as well as how their marital life will be.

Most of these people also will be interested in knowing how the rest of their life will be, especially when they are around the age of 55. They look for a peaceful retired life. For them, assess the 9th house & its lord for spirituality, houses & lords related to longevity and the ruling planetary period and how the next 20+ years is going to be.

Transit Saturn : Keeping track of Transit Saturn is most important. People who are affected by Ashtama Sani and Viraya Shani (first leg of 7½ years Shani) will be desperate to know things happening around them and when they will see light again. So, by keeping track of Transit Saturn especially through the Star it is transiting, we can brief the nature and intensity of the problem they will be undergoing, and when it is likely to be over.

Transit Jupiter : Keeping track of Transit Jupiter is also important for two reasons 1) its association with Transit Saturn can reduce the intensity of problems caused by Transit Saturn 2) onset of Jupiter aspect is important for those who want to get married.

Well, as mentioned in the beginning, these are all just general guidelines on how to approach people who visit the Astrologer with different problems. But, this approach will vary from Astrologer to Astrologer based on their experience, types of visitors, their problems, local culture of the visitors etc.,. So, the objective here is to provide some general guidelines to the beginners.