The Tithi Pravesh and its Monthly and Daily Iterations

A common method of astrological forecasting the the annual solar return, which is cast for the moment that the Sun returns each year to its precise position in the birth chart. Notable astrologers like William Lilly and Morin de Villefranche used the solar return as a cornerstone in their systems of forecasting. Morin also make extensive use of the lunar return to further subdivide the year in order to see when events implicit in the annual solar revolution would manifest in the coming 12 months. The medieval Arabic and Persian astrologers also made extensive use of solar revolutions, lunar revolutions, and even divisions into days of the month related to these returns.

Vettius Valens had a different notion of annual returns. He felt that the return of the Sun each year was insufficient for forecasting for the year ahead because it omitted the influence of the the Sun’s partner, the Moon. As a result, Valens used a hybrid chart for the annual return which consisted of the positions of the planets when the Sun returned to its natal position each year but these positions were placed in a chart whose Ascendant and houses were determined by the moment the Moon returned to its natal degree during the zodiacal month when the Sun was in its birth sign.

Hindu astrologers, who may have been aware of Valens method, developed a technique called the “Tithi Pravesh,” which is the chart of the annual return of the natal Sun-Moon phase angle each year. Vedic astrologer Narasimha Rao, creator of Jagannatha Hora software, utilizes the annual, monthly and daily Pravesha charts in forecasting. Mr. Rao has a YouTube video in which he explains the value of the daily Pravesha chart as a useful and powerful technique.

Modern Western astrologers refer to the Tithi Pravesh as the annual soli-lunar phase angle return. The program Solar Fire has an option to calculate “lunar phase” charts, which will generate the annual and monthly phase-angle returns but not the daily Pravesha charts. Fortunately, Mr. Rao’s freeware program Jagannatha Hora will generate daily Pravesha charts for those who wish to experiment with this technique.

My own experience with Pravesha charts is that they are a valuable predictive tool. They seem to work better with charts cast in the tropical rather than the sidereal zodiac. Let’s look at an example chart to illustrate their use.

John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas on 22 November 1960 at about 12:30 PM CST. This event ought to show up symbolically in his various Pravesha charts.

This is JFK’s natal chart (data from astro.com, Rodden rating A). Venus rules the natal Ascendant and the natal 8th house Placidus cusp. The 8th house contains a stellium of five planets, three of which in Taurus receive a square from Uranus in Aquarius. The natal Mars square Uranus, with Mars conjunct the 8th cusp, warns of the possibility of a sudden unexpected violent death. Mars rules the 7th of open enemies and conjoins Mercury, ruler of the 12th of hidden enemies.

For those who use annual profections, at age 43 Kennedy was in his Taurus profection year since Taurus is 8 places from the natal Cancer Ascendant. (The Descendant profection years occur at ages 6, 18, 30, 42, 54, 66, 78, 90, 102.) Thus, at age 43, the 8th lord Venus was his profected Lady of the Year.

Next let’s look at JFK’s Tithi Pravesh (annual soli-lunar phase angle return) in 1960, the year of his assassination:

In this Tithi Pravesh chart, the Sun lies in its birth sign Gemini, and the angle between the Sun and the Moon is the same as it was in the birth chart. The Moon rules the Cancer Ascendant and conjoins the 4th cusp (endings) and falls on the lunar nodal axis, conjunct Rahu, where eclipses occur. Saturn rules the 8th of death and receives a tight square from Mars in Aries in the 10th. Uranus is in a close quincunx with 8th rules Saturn. The risk of a sudden violent death is present in this annual return. In addition, Venus (ruler of the natal 8th of death) conjoins the return Sun in the unfortunate 12th house. Both Venus and the Sun square return Pluto.

The next chart shows the daily Pravesh chart for 22 November 1960 surrounded by JFK’s natal planets and angles. I used the data for the daily Pravesha chart from Mr. Rao’s program to generate this chart in Solar Fire. This chart is similar in concept to the Wynn Key Cycle return chart developed in the 1920s.

The angles and cusps of this chart are for the daily Pravesha chart at the birthplace. The inner wheel contains the daily transits at the moment of the daily Pravesha return. The outer wheel shows JFK’s natal placements. The natal Ascendant degree lies exactly on the daily Pravesha 8th cusp at the birthplace! Transiting Mars square the daily 8th cusp and JFK’s natal Ascendant degree. Natal Mars lies in close quincunx to the daily 8th cusp. Transiting Uranus is opposing the natal Uranus/Jupiter square. Jupiter is the Asc-ruler of the daily chart, and thus activates the natal Jupiter square Uranus.