In ancient times, society forbade women from studying the Vedas, chanting hymns or reading Sanskrit verses – which are key to astrology, Kaushik says. But the group estimates that there are more than 20,000 astrologers in Nepal, and only about 200 are women. The exact number of astrologers in Nepal is unknown, says Lokraj Poudel, chairman of the Astro-Council, Nepal, a nonprofit social organization that promotes the science of astrology. The government pledges to help create more job opportunities in the field if it receives requests for support. Women and men cite their growing trust in female astrologers. Practitioners say rigorous study separates genuine astrologers from charlatans. The government college is offering scholarships to a diverse group of women to encourage their study of astrology. Astrologers say the profession offers women a viable economic opportunity. Traditionally, society reserved the practice of astrology in Nepal to males from the Brahman caste, but women of other castes are now eroding this custom. “I earn up to 32,000 rupees per month, which meet my household expenses,” she says. She bolsters her income by offering readings to Nepalese people abroad by phone. Rather, clients pay her based on their satisfaction with the results. She does not charge set fees for her services.
Today, Kaushik sees about nine customers each day. “But I remained steadfast and continued my work,” she says. She recalls many prospective clients who walked into the center and turned around when they realized she was a woman.
When she started working as an astrologer, many people talked about her behind her back because she is a woman and a member of the Chhetri caste, which ranks lower than Brahman, she says. “Finally, in 2005, I started this center and pursued astrology as a profession.” “I self-studied astrology for four years and got myself involved in various related trainings,” she says. This inspired her to take up the profession as a woman. She visited a string of other astrologers, but she found only male Brahmans, the Nepalese high caste that traditionally has worked in astrology. I was surprised when the astrologer told me about my past, present and the future, too.”Īfter that, she got curious about astrology and started researching the field, she says. “Reluctantly, I visited one on my friends’ insistence. “My friends suggested that my stars may not be in my favor and recommended me to consult an astrologer,” she says. After finishing her bachelor’s degree in humanities, she worked in a wholesale business that sold naphthalene, a chemical used in mothballs, but the company incurred losses for two consecutive years. Unlike many astrologers, she uses modern technology – a laptop – to communicate with clients and to share her readings with them.Īstrology has given Kaushik an alternative means of earning a living. “The horoscope indicates the good and bad planetary influence, and we predict accordingly.” “Astrology is also a Vedic science,” she says. She also draws from the Vedas, the four canonical collections of Hindu hymns, prayers and liturgical formulas that society used to not permit women to study. every day, she tells her clients’ past, present and future based on their birth dates and horoscopes. Kaushik owns Brihat Jyotish Paramarsha Sewa Kendra, or the Comprehensive Astrological Consultancy Service Center, in Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital. She is among the growing number of women here breaking into the historically male profession. But her pursuit of astrology as a career is not traditional for a Nepalese woman. Kaushik, 39, dresses traditionally in a red kurta surwal with a vermilion mark on her forehead. “But when they later realized that whatever I predicted turned out to be true, they would come back to me repeatedly.”
KATHMANDU, NEPAL – “Some people would come to me and doubt my ability as a woman to read their future,” astrologer Puspakala Kaushik says.
0 kommentar(er)
