Rahu Transit in Bharani

Yama, lord of restraint and death, presides over Bharani, and Venus rules it. Its symbol is the yoni, the womb and the gate of birth. It sits in the middle of Aries, so Mars holds the sign and Venus the star, and Venus is Rahu's friend in the usual lists. Rahu is more at ease here than in Ashwini.

Birth, sexuality, creative labour, discipline and the bearing of burdens are Bharani's themes, and Rahu makes each of them larger. The stay takes around seven months, backward from the fourth pada to the first. When the true node runs direct for some weeks, it splits into two visits.

Desire runs high, and so does the fear of losing what is desired. Obsession with a person, a pregnancy, a piece of art or a debt is common. Yama asks that every appetite be counted against its cost.

• Ketu stands in Vishakha for the first half of the stay and in Swati for the second, taking the heat out of shared goals.
• Aquarius, Scorpio and Gemini Moons and lagnas hold Rahu in the third, sixth and eleventh, the houses Phaladeepika favours.
• Aries Moons have Rahu in the first, Libra Moons have Ketu there, and both should watch the head, the kidneys and the marriage.
• Taurus Moons carry Rahu in the twelfth and Virgo Moons in the eighth. Expenses and sudden reversals are the risks.

The transit shows how a person holds desire. Rahu inflates the wanting until it becomes visible, and once it is seen it can be governed.

Worship Durga, and remember Yama with a lamp for the ancestors. Recite Om Ram Rahave Namah. Parashara's graha shanti asks for mantra and dana, and the customary gifts for Rahu are dark cloth and sesame oil on Saturday. Take no intoxicants, and make no promise in heat.