KETU - The Eternal Wisdom

It is always placed in the opposite house from Rahu. Both planets, which are primarily shadowy in character, create an impact which must be considered as a unit, though they also have distinct and separate features of their own.

Ketu is a mendicant. Toward material property and attainments. its attitude is rather indifferent. Those who are under the influence of Ketu are seldom attracted objects of a worldly nature: wine, women and wealth will not satisfy them. Ketu prefers to wander from one place to another; it does not wish to hold onto anything for long. It is very much akin to Mars in the sense that it causes the kind of psychological explosion which allows us to break through our limitations. Staying in one place and in one situation fossilizes our energy. But Mars and Ketu perform their liberating roles in different ways. The physical force fired by ambition, aspiration, devotion enables Mars to break through the outer crust so that the energy within gushes out and conquers new worlds of experience. Ketu, on the other hand, moves with the impulse of inquiry and is fueled by disenchantment with the external outside world. It delves deep into the realities of life. In both cases, the outer crust is destroyed, but the liberating effect of Ketu is of a radically different nature. A new understanding, a new way of life is achieved. While one may consider Mars the commander of an army, Ketu is more like a mystic inquiring into the secrets of nature.

The ancient seers gave to Ketu such epithets as Tamas and Dwajah, which reveal the basic character of the planet. Tamas is one of the three basic attributes ordinarily means darkness, but the darkness produced by Ketu is the Great Illusion, Maya, which makes all manifestation possible. Ketu is like a serpent with a luminous star at its head; it shines in the darkness so as to illuminate the true reality. Dwajah ordinarily means a flag or emblem, but it has other connotations too. It may symbolize an eminent person, the organ of generation, or a house situated in the east. These indications reveal the inner significance of Ketu and point out certain traits which are marked in its working.