The 30 year old Venerable Jamyang Tenzin, the lama astrologer, chose to become a monk at the age of 14 and began studying Tibetan astrology while still living that life in Tibet. Astrology is a special art that must be mastered on the path to enlightenment. He fled religious persecution into exile in 1992 to a monastery in southern India. From there, he was requested by his teacher to come to McLeod Ganj to teach the Dharma to western students. So this morning at the Dharma House, which is an apartment at the Dreamland Guest House, the Venerable Tenzin explained to me in Tibetan my astrology chart. He was seated to my left, crossed-legged like me on the pillows covered by rugs, but in maroon monk robes, with shaved head and wire rimmed

spectacles. He was holding a clipboard that he turned round and round and on it was a symbolic diagram with lots of Tibetan language characters. To my right was the western dressed Tibetan interpreter in blue jeans with long black hair in a ponytail and the signature high cheek bones of his people even more pronounced than usual. He struggled to explain in English as he talked with his left hand on which was perched a huge turquoise ring. Mine was a good chart. I am earth, monkey, born under the fifth god, Satackguyopo, who was king of the earth. In my past life I had been a very spiritual man, not a monk, but a scholar. From this I have again a clear mind and good memory. He says I have a lot of power, a good capacity to do a lot of things, but that I am too modest and too humble. He says I must be brave.

Next he said that my parents or grandparents had upset a God that lived in the fields, probably by plowing or disturbing the earth in some way. Because of this, there was sickness in succeeding generations. He described hepatitis or an illness of the mind, a wind disorder. And a wind-horse Tibetan prayer flag placed high would do much to appease the God. Hmmm…. There is a mound of earth on our family farm that is rumored to be an old American Indian burial ground.

There will be trouble through a child who is not my own. Maybe it will be an adopted child or some such thing. It is someone I try to help, but it is up and down for me, sometimes painful. Maybe the child is sick.

Financially I will be fine from now on. I will live a very long life which can be increased even more by giving, with generosity, but virtuous generosity, not materialistic. By that, he said he means positive teaching, helping others in many ways besides giving to them money and material things.

Again he tells me not to be modest and humble but to be brave because I have a lot of power. I laugh a little and question this. I thought that Buddhists promoted modesty and humility. But he says my path is different. And there are things I need to do so not to be so modest. He tells me I will be a very spiritual person and practitioner and that my chart doesn’t point to any specific profession which means I could do a lot of things well.

I should always keep a statue of Buddha with me to increase my success in my next life when I will again be a man, and a very popular one at that!

He said to be careful of thieves as something will be taken from me. And he gave me a mantra to repeat twice per day to benefit those who have accused me, stolen from me, hurt me. He said it would help my friends as well. “Om marze mam soha.”