Rahu

Rahu is a phantom planet, the northern lunar node, the head of the demon

See also: Rahu and Ketu: the lunar nodes

The chief characteristics of Rahu: vairagya (renunciation of worldly life), jnana (knowledge), eccentricity, journeys abroad.

Karakatvas: research, inventors, residence abroad, travel, exile, foreigners, a representative of another social class or another culture, a heretic, smuggling, a spy, a gambler, expenses, base interests, harmful habits, deceit, cunning, false arguments, harsh or irritating speech, offensive words, slander, hypocrisy, want, shortage, the lower strata of society, cunning women, relations with immoral or diseased women, marital infidelity, widowhood, a hot temper, quarrels, strength, enemies, a sense of self-worth, the grandfather on the father’s side, the grandmother on the mother’s side, spots on the skin, skin diseases, epidemics, pain in the body, tumours, amputations, leprosy, mutilations, accidents, the drowned, suicide, darkness, a reptile, snakes and snake bites, poisons, alcohol, stones, hunters, slavery, the buttocks.

Significations: other countries, foreigners, journeys abroad, representatives of other social classes, materialism, transcendence; the manifestation of the meanings of the ruler of the sign or nakshatra in which Rahu is placed.

Gender: male

Direction: south-west

Stones: onyx. Women should wear the stone in a platinum setting on the index or middle finger of the left hand, men in a setting of an alloy of 5 metals on the index or middle finger of the right hand

Deity: Mahashakti, Nagaraja

Bija mantra: Om bhram bhrim bhrom se rahave namah (18000 times in 40 days)

Objects of donation: mustard, radish, sesame, saffron, a mixture of seven grains, lead, coal, a blanket (to be donated on Thursday evening or Monday morning.)

Outward signs: a formidable appearance, tall stature, baldness, dark skin, hot-tempered, sickly, looks older than his years.

Parts and functions of the body: breathing, the feet.

Illnesses: diseases of the spleen and adrenal glands, intestinal disorders, ulcers, diseases of the skin and feet, abscesses, a burning sensation in the body, leprosy, a fall from a height, madness, a decline of strength, chemical poisons, ailments that are hard to diagnose.

Kinds of activity and professions: research, scholars, innovation, work in scientific or research institutes, work with electricity, electronics and the electronics industry, computers, information technology, lawyers, pharmaceutics, antibiotics, poisons, telephone communications, aviation, aeronautics, funeral services, morgues, crematoria, slaughterhouses, sewerage systems, work in dirty and foul-smelling places, unskilled labour, tanneries, snake catchers, wrestlers, butchers, thieves, speculators, unusual professions, magic, sorcery, games of chance; the professions for which Saturn is responsible.

Kala-sarpa yoga

When all the planets are on one side of the Rahu/Ketu axis, a Kala-sarpa yoga is formed. The life of a person with such a combination in his chart resembles a roller coaster: the movement goes now swiftly upward, now sharply down. When the transiting nodes pass over their natal positions, the shaking is felt most strongly of all.

If after the Lagna Ketu comes first and only then Rahu, the unfavourable Kala-sarpa yoga is freed from its malefic qualities and becomes a Kala-amrita yoga. The placement of Rahu in the nakshatra Vishakha at 20—26° of Libra likewise removes the negative effects of the Kala-sarpa. However, if some planet is joined with one of the nodes, the Kala-amrita yoga ceases to act.

Kala-sarpa yoga usually does not affect a person’s mental abilities, his physical health or the length of his life. The problems are connected chiefly with external circumstances. It makes itself felt during the periods of the Lunar nodes or during their passage by transit over the Ascendant, the natal Moon or the Sun. An aspect of a favourable planet to the Lagna, the Lagnesha or the Lunar nodes reduces the negative effects.

The manifestations of Kala-sarpa yoga trouble a person especially when the transiting Rahu/Ketu approach their natal degrees.

Rahu in the houses of the horoscope

Rahu in the 1st house: frail health, protruding teeth, short stature, talkative, egoistic, unprincipled, with a firm character, quick-witted, a leader in the family, a profound thinker. Engages in work that he considers beneath his dignity; encounters   a multitude of family intrigues. Acquisitive, inclined to immoral acts, cannot resist earthly pleasures… more >>

Rahu in the 2nd house: quite well-to-do, receives money from the state, earns by dishonest means, does not disdain petty theft, touchy, worries over trifles, stammers. An absence of peace at home because of constant quarrels, pressure from the family, burdensome domestic duties, mercenary relatives of the spouse with an exploitative attitude towards other people. A good placement for prosperity… more >>

Rahu in the 3rd house: a long happy life, luxury and comfort, a good wife. Proud, full of a sense of his own dignity, is in conflict with his brothers… more >>

Rahu in the 4th house: the head of a city, heartless, stubborn, not especially wealthy, friendly with representatives of the lower strata of society. Cool relations with relatives, tension in the family because of the partner’s weak character and the domineering behaviour of the mother or of the spouse’s kin. The wife is often ill, there are troubles in personal life, he has more daughters. The mother lives long, little happiness from the father… more >>

Rahu in the 5th house: a hot temper, a nasal voice. If Rahu receives malefic aspects, the person will be forgetful and absent-minded. A small number of children; the first born is a girl. During the period of Rahu, addictions and reckless infatuations are likely… more >>

Rahu in the 6th house: such a position automatically destroys enemies and removes obstacles on one’s path; it leads to failures and moral dissoluteness if the Ascendant is in Capricorn, but for the other Lagna signs it promises victory over enemies and a life of prosperity. The person is inclined to marital infidelity and attains success through connections with foreigners. Long-lived, but disorders of the nervous system are possible… more >>

Rahu in the 7th house: an immoral way of life, which brings financial losses in its train, weak sexual potency, a wilful character. An unconventional marriage or an unusual marriage partner. The spouse has a negative effect on the person… more >>

Rahu in the 8th house: this placement tells badly on health and on the length of life, causes gout and rheumatism, and also indicates the loss of the partner and the possibility of being widowed (in a woman’s chart). The person has few children. An ordinary personality who does not care about the consequences of his actions… more >>

Rahu in the 9th house: egoism, coarse speech, unrighteous acts, fanaticism. Distinguished by slyness, cruelty and a tendency to self-aggrandisement. Holds forth about lofty matters, but in fact creates trouble for other people, deceives them and expects complete submission. Quickly gives way under an opponent’s pressure… more >>

Rahu in the 10th house: this placement contributes to professional growth and social standing, but may cut short a career unexpectedly. Responsive, outwardly attractive, sparing of words, brave, aggressive, with awkward manners. Earns by dishonest means, encounters many restrictions in his career, may change his kind of activity abruptly. Few offspring, a long-lived father… more >>

Rahu in the 11th house: capable, well-to-do, devoid of any sense of shame, keeps his emotions and mind under control, devout. A long and comfortable life, journeys abroad, good deeds and posthumous fame. Problems with the ears… more >>

Rahu in the 12th house: lives far from his homeland, suffers from constant ailments, sleeps badly, immoral, non-religious. Extravagant; his expenses exceed his income. Separation from his wife, secret immoral actions, success in the occult sciences, illnesses that are hard to diagnose, danger from water… more >>

Rahu in the Upachaya houses (the 3rd, 6th, 10th and 11th) contributes to material well-being and grants happiness and prosperity.

Rahu in the signs of the Zodiac

Rahu in Aries: the acquisition of landed property, family happiness. Evasive, chooses roundabout ways.

Rahu in Taurus: emotional, well educated, honoured in society, receives awards from the government, may amass a decent fortune.

Rahu in Gemini: loves to sing. Anxieties because of the intrigues of enemies, family troubles or problems with the authorities. Such a position creates problems for the spouse and children.

Rahu in Cancer: wealth, power, landed property, the support of society, cunning.

Rahu in Leo: thinks like a diplomat, endures grievous losses, is deprived of real estate and of the patronage of the authorities.

Rahu in Virgo: an idyll at home, prosperity in his native places, a responsible post in public organisations or state institutions. Abilities in literature and singing.

Rahu in Libra: conflicts with the authorities, the loss of property, the death of elder relatives. Good managerial abilities.

Rahu in Scorpio: cunning, immoral, gains victory over his opponents thanks to the assistance of the authorities; possesses much landed property.

Rahu in Sagittarius: the loss of property, bad relations with the family, failures in all undertakings. When Rahu is in conjunction with a favourable planet or under positive aspects, the person may expect success, fame, money and a good reputation. Such a combination also makes a person religious.

Rahu in Capricorn: prosperity in every sphere of life, public recognition.

Rahu in Aquarius: illnesses, grievous losses, problems for the wife or relatives. Pleasant speech.

Rahu in Pisces: religious, well brought up, a connoisseur of art. Losses connected with thefts and fires are possible, together with the loss of relatives and trouble from the authorities.

Note. The descriptions given should not be taken as the final truth. Conjunctions with other planets, aspects, the status of Rahu’s dispositor, and its position relative to the Lagna and especially relative to the Moon, may introduce substantial corrections into the interpretations.

Observations regarding Rahu

1. During the dasha of Rahu, and in particular in the sub-period of a planet placed in a nakshatra of Rahu, hindrances in study may arise. If there are no planets in the nakshatras of Rahu, the studies may be interrupted in the sub-period of Mars.
2. If a conjunction of Rahu with Mars in the 2nd, 10th or 11th house is present in the chart, the person receives income from secret and dubious sources.
3. Rahu in the 4th house from the Moon damages the mother’s health, in the 7th from the Moon it upsets marital happiness, and in the 10th it creates obstacles in professional activity.
4. A person with a natal Rahu in the 2nd house from Saturn may expect many difficulties at the beginning of his professional activity. Most likely he will have to begin his ascent of the career ladder from the very lowest rung.
5. Rahu in the 6th house and Jupiter in a kendra grant wealth.
6. Rahu in the signs of Cancer and Taurus and in the 10th house works for the person’s good; it also gives positive effects in Leo and Aries, behaves tolerably in Sagittarius, but feels best of all in Aquarius.
7. Rahu in a solar nakshatra in the 10th house, or in the same house in conjunction with the Sun, leads to failures in the political field and to numerous  rises and falls.
8. Rahu with Jupiter in the 8th house is a combination for diseases of the stomach.  If nakshatras of Mars or Ketu are involved, surgical intervention may take place.
9. If Rahu is in a sign of the Moon or in the 3rd, 9th or 10th houses from the Moon, the person lives like a king and becomes fabulously wealthy in old age.
10. Rahu in the 6th or 12th from the Moon promises power, prosperity and landed property.
11. A person with a natal Rahu in the 4th or 10th house from the Moon is often ill, which causes his parents anxiety.
12. Rahu in the 2nd or 12th from the Moon makes a person shameless and poor.
13. The placement of Rahu in the 5th house from the Moon increases the risk of car crashes and of accidents connected with water.
14. Visha-shula dosha: when the mahadasha of Rahu is running  and the transiting Rahu is in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 22nd or 25th nakshatra from its natal nakshatra, various troubles occur in a person’s life which affect his reputation and his work.
15. If Rahu and Ketu are placed in the chart on the 6/12 axis of houses, during the period of one node and the sub-period of the other the person will be tormented by a nervous disorder.
16. Rahu/Ketu in the 2nd house in a watery sign under a blow from Saturn or Mars causes alcohol dependence.
17. Combinations indicating a phobia of sex:  a) the Lagnesha Saturn aspected by Mars or Ketu; b) Saturn or Rahu in the Lagna; c) Saturn and Rahu together with the Moon; d) the lord of the 8th house squeezed between Saturn and Rahu.
18. Rahu in Virgo, Scorpio or Pisces gives excellent results, provided that the ruler of the sign falls in a kendra or trikona from Rahu.
19. The combination of Rahu, the Moon and Mercury  clouds the thinking and instils extreme mistrustfulness in a person.
20. Rahu in the 5th house allows a person to distinguish himself in the course of his studies, but for this the natal Mercury must be in good condition.
21. Rahu in the 5th house is a bad placement for playing the stock exchange.
22. An afflicted Rahu in the 9th house makes a person fanatical, cunning and merciless; such a person speaks of spirituality but has a base nature himself.
23. Rahu in the 10th house in conjunction with the lord of a trikona opens up excellent career prospects, including abroad, and makes a person a master of his craft.
24. The Lagnesha or the Moon in a watery sign under the influence of Rahu causes eczema.
25. Rahu represents foreigners, other social classes, foreign lands and journeys abroad.
26. The transit of Rahu over the 64th navamsha may prove fatal for an elder male relative.

See also: Rahu and Ketu: the lunar nodes

based on material from the book «Vedic Astrology» by Sri Govind Swarup Agarwal