"Vedic", comes from the word "Veda"
in Sanskrit, which means knowledge and truth. Vedic astrology (called
"Jyotish", or the science of light) has its origins in
India and dates back as far as 6500 BC. Vedic Astrology is also
called Hindu Astrology especially by westerners. Vedic Astrology
was perceived through enlightened vision by the ancient sage Parasara,
who is considered the original author of the Vedic texts. The vedic
scriptures record an intellectually and spiritually advanced culture
going back several thousand years in human society.
Vedic astrology assumes the law of karma. It is believed that a person is born at a specific time and place according to the record of one's karma or the results of one's actions in past lives. The specific time and place of birth is very crucial for all astrological purposes. The birth chart or the natal chart is a snapshot of the heavens at the time of birth and is used by all vedic astrologers for predictive and general purposes. The term horoscope comes from the Greek word "horo" indicating time and "scop" "meaning to look at", and it literally means a birth diagram of the specific astronomical pattern in the heavens based on each individual's time and place of birth. While the birth chart of a person is fixed, the planets and constellations are constantly in motion. Study of transits is one of the ways Vedic astrologer charts help us avert any dangers and gain the benefits of the cycles of nature. Through the help of a birth chart and with a knowledge of the planetary transits, an astrologer can understand the psychophysical nature of individuals and can assess the latent potential of individuals, role in life, health, wealth, friends and enemies, ups and downs, life span, diseases, obstacles, relationships with other people, career etc.
Vedic Astrology uses the fixed star based Zodiac as opposed to the western astrology which uses a moving zodiac. Because of the gradual tilting of the earth in space on it's axis, the zodiac, if you calculate it from the Sun's relationship to the Earth, appears to be moving at the rate of a little less than 1/60th of a degree per year. Currently, the relative or movable zodiac is off or out of alignment with the fixed or real star-based zodiac by roughly 23 degrees, which is almost one whole sign of the zodiac (30 degrees). Because the two systems are skewed from each other by nearly one whole sign, most people's "Sun Sign", that which you can get from the paper each day, is usually one sign back when the chart is refigured using Vedic astrology.