My Astrological Journey - How a Skeptic Became a Practitioner
Did you ever have the feeling that some things are just meant to happen? Have you ever wondered what words like “fate” and “destiny” really meant, or whether such things actually exist? I have. In fact, I have spent my entire adult life pondering these age-old philosophical questions as a result of my experiences with astrology. These experiences have transformed my perspective on the human condition, and the eternal debate about fate versus free will. They have taught me the literal truth of the biblical statement “As you sow, so shall you reap.” They have also given me an unshakable faith in the existence of a higher reality in life, a faith I had once lost.
My astrological journey began at age 22 when I had my own chart read by my first spiritual preceptor, Goswami Kriyananda. Just based on my birth data, including the exact time, I was astonished at what he was able to tell me about myself and my life experience thus far. I was even more astonished when he predicted that I would likely become an astrologer myself! Up until then I regarded astrology as a medieval superstition in which only ignorant and uneducated believed. This experience literally turned my world upside down and sent me on a quest to understand how such a thing could be. How could the planetary pattern at a person’s birth symbolically reflect their personality and to some degree their life experience?
My quest led me to the work of renowned Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung, and his concept of “synchronicity,” and statements of his such as “whatever is born of a moment takes on the qualities and characteristics of that moment.” In a publication of his letters, I discovered that he did the birth charts of his patients to gain a deeper understanding of them. While reading “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahansa Yogananda I came across such statements from his guru that “a child is born on that day and at that hour when the celestial rays are in mathematical harmony with his individual karma.”Soon thereafter I began my own studying of astrology, drawing up the charts of family members and close friends, and found that these validated the interpretive principles I was learning. To my continued astonishment astrology appeared to “work,” and as a result of this discovery, the concepts of reincarnation and karma became very real for me, since they were the only thing that that logically explained the correlation between a person’s birth chart and their life experience. Then I started to become known among my circle of acquaintances as having some proficiency at interpreting charts, and they started coming to me for “a reading.” Kriyananda’s prediction had come true. The skeptic had become a practitioner.
Typewriter versus a Computer
Of Western astrology, that is, and I continued as such for a period of twenty years. But if the truth be known, I felt like something of a fraud. I could not reliably and consistently predict events. The only redeeming feature in this was that I was an honest fraud. I told my clientele up front that if it was prediction that they were looking for, they were probably talking to the wrong person.
Instead, I became adept at delineating personality dynamics through the birth chart, and shied away from the predictive side. I got good feedback on this type of consultation, but it was really more astro-psychologizing than predictive astrology.
Then in the autumn of 1992, on the insistence of a friend, I attended the first Symposium on Vedic Astrology in the U.S. where I met Dr. B.V. Raman, a renowned practitioner. Though he did not demonstrate his own skill with the Vedic system, his talks did inspire me to begin learning Jyotisha. I quickly perceived that without a teacher, I would make little progress. I prayed to God that a teacher would come into my life, and made plans to go to India. As it happened, India came to me. At the 1993 conference I met Mr. K.N. Rao. God had answered my prayer. Rather awestruck, I watched him demonstrate the beauty, elegance, and predictive power of this astrological system to a rapt audience in his hotel suite one night using my own chart. (For a more detailed account of this fascinating first encounter with K.N. Rao click here. It’s a good story!)
I was completely hooked, and immediately began an intense course of study with him. Utilizing the methods he teaches, I was soon able to make successful predictions about such diverse events as marriage, birth of a child, periods of professional distinction and financial gain, as well identifying challenging times for health. The experience in making this transition from Western to Vedic astrology was rather similar to what I felt when I was able to go from creating documents on a typewriter to using a word processor on a computer. It was just so much more of a sophisticated tool with such greater capabilities! So that is how a Westerner astrologer became a “Jyotishi.” I have been immersed in Vedic astrologer ever since, and would be pleased to share with you the benefit of my 20 year experience.
About Marc Boney M.A.
Marc Boney M.A. is an internationally renowned astrological teacher, writer and consultant. He has been involved since 1974 with the integration of the ancient wisdom of astrology with the counseling arts. He received his training in Jyotisha primarily from K.N. Rao, one of the world’s foremost Vedic astrologers. His focus is on using the Vedic system to help guide people in their lives, as well as training other Jyotishis.
Marc has been a featured speaker at international conferences, is a faculty member of the American College of Vedic Astrology, and was the main presenter on Jyotisha at the Chopra Center for Well-Being from 2000 to 2002. He is the author of 50 articles on this topic, and two soon-to-be published books.
The Institute of Astrology, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, of New Delhi, India honored Marc with a Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the advancement of Vedic Astrology in the West.
Marc recently founded the Pacific Institute of Vedic Science, which offers quality educational programs in Yoga, Ayurveda, and Jyotisha in the San Diego area where he lives.
Prior to his current full-time involvement with these Vedic sciences, Marc held positions in the corporate world as a Director of Human Resources, Outplacement Consultant, and Leadership/Organizational Development Consultant.
Marc holds an MA in Counseling Psychology and a BA in English Literature from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois.
He is a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation since 1971 and later trained as a teacher and taught TM in the late 70’s.