Customer Reviews

Light on Life: An Introduction to the Astrology of India

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(2)
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2 star:		(1)
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This is the best book on Vedic Astrology (Jyotish) available in the market today. It provides a very strong foundation for a serious student of Jyotish.

The authors have taken great efforts to explain various aspects of this vast field in a very comprehensive manner. The book is very well organised. It first introduces the reader to the philosophy of Jyotish and how it relates to the Law of Karma and other apsects of Indian thought. I think getting an insight of how jyotish integrates with vedic world view in general is very important for an in depth understanding.

Then it builds on the basics of Jyotish. Grahas, Rashis, Bhavas, Panchanga, Nashaktras and so on. The authors not merely mention the attributes and characterstics of each of these building blocks, but also mention where and how these characterstics could be practically applied while interpreting a horoscope.

For instance, while mentioning the gender of Nakshatras, the authors explain how this knowledge could be used to predict whether a person will be blessed with a baby girl or a boy.

The authors have maintained a good balance among traditional Jyotish Principles, the distinctions as taught by their Jyotish Guru and as derived by their own experience.

Trying to learn Jyotish by directly reading the original Jyotish texts (or their translations) can leave a beginner student quite confused as these texts were not written for students, but, for teachers who would orally transmit this knowledge to their students.

The authors have taken care not just to reproduce the original texts, but have tried to emulate the oral tradition of teaching Jyotish through their unique approach to the subject and lucid writing style. I would say, they are pretty successful at that.

After creating a solid foundation on the building blocks of Jyotish, the book moves on to teach how to apply the knowledge of those building blocks to interpret a horoscope. The authors have abstratced eighteen basic criteria for horoscope interpretation out of a vast sea of documented Jyotish principles. This is simply brilliant and a saving grace for a Jyotish novice like me who was about to drown in the vast sea of innumerable and often contradicting Jyotish principles. In fact, many of these more complex rules can be derived from these eighteen basic criteria.

Then the book moves on to more advanced concepts like Graha Yogas, Dashas and Gocharas. Finally the book has a chapter on Example Charts illustrating how to apply Jyotish to real horoscopes.

Although the book has been promoted as an introductory text on Jyotisha, the reader will benifit more from the book if (s)he starts with a more preliminary book on Vedic Astrology and then studies this book as an intermediate level book. The reader can directly start with this book if (s)he already has some basic knowledge of Jyotish.

One more advice to the reader. The subject matter in this book should be digested slowly and patiently. It took me multiple reading sessions to finish a single chapter, but this really helped me fully comprehending the subject matter.

I myself started with "Beneath a Vedic Sky" by William Levacy (See my review) and then read 'Light on Life'. Profound thanks to Hart De Fouw and Robert Svoboda for sharing their knowledge and expericence of Jyotisha through this book.

There are many books for Beginners in Vedic Astrology which are written more like a cook-book, and where essentially you just take a look at the placement of the planet on your chart and then read what it's supposed to mean. This is not that kind of a book. This book assumes that you are seriously interested in grasping Vedic Astrology and it guides you step-by-step toward developing a solid level of understanding and competence.

The book contains countless correspondencies of planetary influences (grahas), constellations (rashis) and houses (bhavas). These correspondencies go way beyond just interpreting the natal chart, and enable the skilled jyotishi to get insight into the individual, question or particular situation sometimes even without looking at the chart. Understanding of these numerous correspondencies can enable jyotishi to assist the individual in successfully dealing with challenging situation.

Even though this book is "an introduction" to Vedic astrology, it may not be the best choice as the very first book on astrology. For absolute beginners, perhaps a book like Beneath a Vedic Sky may be a better choice to start with.

This is one of the finest introductions to Vedic Astrology you'll find anywhere. The information is as authentic as it gets, coming straight from the oral tradition of India where the authors studied for years. I have over 100 books on Vedic Astrology in my personal library, and this is the one book I keep turning back to. Very highly recommended!

You will loove this book. Its amazing.
Hart Defouw has actually been to India and learnt Jyotish
under the guidance of a vedic teacher for 15 years!
His book is so good that I sometimes feel like buying a second copy!

There were some things which I would have never understood had I not read this book. You will realize that Defouw has not blindly stated the rules but has also given a lot of insight which will make you a good astrologer.

Once you have read this book, you will have a very good grasp
on the principles and major aspects of this subject.
This book reads like a novel.

Once you are done reading this book , you should then start reading books by contemporary Indian authors like Dr.Raman,
Dr. Charak etc.
"Elements of vedic astrology" by Dr. Charak is Available on
amazon.com. It gives a lot of details and also tell you a bit about astronomy and how to plot charts. But I think that it should be read only after reading Defouws book , else you may get lost.

Try reading BV Raman's books on astrology after that. All of them are excellent - also inexpensive....

After this you will have a very good hand on making predictions . If you wish to pursue further and become a 'Pundit'
in vedic astrology, then try reading classics in Sanskrit with
english translation - written by ancient Hindu scholars ...
like 'Brihat Parashar Hora Shastra' , Brihat Jataka, Jataka Parijata etc...
These classics are the books that vedic scholars in India learn astrology from - but they are too complex to be read as the first reading.

Reading Defouw 's book should be the first step.

A "MUST READ" book for anyone who wants to understand Indian Astrology. This explains the intracacies involved in very clear manner. I was initially skeptical about the extent of knowledge, especially when written by a non - indian, but I was absolutely wrong. No one could have done a better job in explaining the concepts to a beginner. This book is even recommeded on some of Indian Astrology sites.

Light on Life by Defouw and Svoboda is by far the best book on Jyotish. No other single book covers so much.

I've studied, not just read, the Brihat Parasara Hora, Saravali, Jataka Parijata, Prasna Marga...B.V Raman, Bepin Behari, and of course the western authors like Braha and Levacy...and even Braha's mentor Santhanam who translated Deva Keralam. They all have merit but none of them tackle the subject as comprehensibly and cohesively as Defouw and Svoboda. They've taken the cream from all the ancient texts and churned it into rich, sweet butter, making this the most nourishing read.

The philosophical and historical background they offer along with calculations needed to draw the chart and translations of Sanskrit words is testimony to their vast knowledge of the subject. A mere glance at the index tells the story.

This is not an introductory book as some reviewers have suggested. Maybe it's the ease with which Defouw writes that makes one think that but in fact it's quite an advanced text, a book that's to be read over and over again to grasp the intricate design that is Jyotish.

A very good book for Western astrologers who are interested in Jyotish.Detail fundamentals are quite adequate and explanations are logical and applicable,especially about bhavas,nakshatras and interpretation of the horoscopes. For jyotishis who are more critical,details in some yogas are to be carefully considered and judged, as the conditions of such yogas may differ in details.Examples are the Panca Mahapurusa yogas and Dharma Karma Adhipati yogas.

The book is highly useful and informative.A beginners book to learn & understand Vedic astrology in clear and concise way.
The boook is well researched with references to the ancient texts like Saravali, Brihat Jataka,other old classical Vedic (Hindu)astrology books .The authors have explained in clear details the core basic facts of Vedic Astrology such as :Nakshatras,Yogas,Almacs,Dasha,Karma,Agnichayana(Vedic Fire Sacrifice)Ashtaka Varga,Arudha Lagna.+ the book also has astronomy required for Jyotish (Astrology),which is ignored by modern day authors of Astrological books.The book can be understood by those with no,or very little knowledge of Vedic Astrology.The book will certainly help one gain a greater understanding of the subject.Highly recommended.Dr.Mohit (Stephen)Parihar(Vedic Medical Astrologer,Canada,)(...)

I bought this book in India having pored over several good, but hard to read Indian books on Jyotish ( Vedic Astrology). Defouw and Svoboda have put much effort into making this book read well for the serious enquirer into this ancient art.

It certainly helped me gain a greater understanding of the subject while sitting on a South Indian beach, and even after my return home I find it useful and informative.

Highly recommended if you want to learn the subject properly.

You will loove this book. Its amazing.
Hart Defouw has actually been to India and learnt Jyotish
under the guidance of a vedic teacher for 15 years!
His book is so good that I sometimes feel like buying a second copy!

There were some things which I would have never understood had I not read this book. You will realize that Defouw has not blindly stated the rules but has also given a lot of insight which will make you a good astrologer.

Once you have read this book, you will have a very good grasp
on the principles and major aspects of this subject.
This book reads like a novel.

Once you are done reading this book , you should then start reading books by contemporary Indian authors like Dr.Raman,
Dr. Charak etc.
"Elements of vedic astrology" by Dr. Charak is Available on
amazon.com. It gives a lot of details and also tell you a bit about astronomy and how to plot charts. But I think that it should be read only after reading Defouws book , else you may get lost.

Try reading BV Raman's books on astrology after that. All of them are excellent - also inexpensive....

After this you will have a very good hand on making predictions . If you wish to pursue further and become a 'Pundit'
in vedic astrology, then try reading classics in Sanskrit with
english translation - written by ancient Hindu scholars ...
like 'Brihat Parashar Hora Shastra' , Brihat Jataka, Jataka Parijata etc...
These classics are the books that vedic scholars in India learn astrology from - but they are too complex to be read as the first reading.

Reading Defouw 's book should be the first step.