Hindu astrology includes several nuanced sub-systems of interpretation and prediction with elements not found in Hellenistic astrology, such as its system of lunar mansions ( Nakṣatra).

The practice relies primarily on the sidereal zodiac, which differs from the tropical zodiac used in Western (Hellenistic) astrology in that an ayanāṃśa adjustment is made for the gradual precession of the vernal equinox. The foundation of Hindu astrology is the notion of bandhu of the Vedas (scriptures), which is the connection between the microcosm and the macrocosm. However, the specific term graha was not applied to Svarbhānu until the later Mahābhārata and Rāmāyaṇa. : 381 The Ṛigveda also mentions an eclipse-causing demon, Svarbhānu. : 382 The term graha, which is now taken to mean the planet, originally meant demon. : 377 There are mentions of eclipse-causing 'demons' in the Atharvaveda and Chāndogya Upaniṣad, the latter mentioning Rāhu (a shadow entity believed responsible for eclipses and meteors). : 376 Early jyotiṣa is concerned with the preparation of a calendar to determine dates for sacrificial rituals, : 377 with nothing written regarding planets.

Jyotiṣa is one of the Vedāṅga, the six auxiliary disciplines used to support Vedic rituals.

It aimed to keep time, maintain calendars, and predict auspicious times for Vedic rituals. The term Jyotisha includes the study of astronomy, astrology and the science of timekeeping using the movements of astronomical bodies. Jyotisha, states Monier-Williams, is rooted in the word Jyotish, which means light, such as that of the sun or the moon or heavenly body. The scientific consensus is that astrology is a pseudoscience. įollowing a judgment of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2001 which favored astrology, some Indian universities now offer advanced degrees in Hindu astrology. However, this is a point of intense debate, and other scholars believe that Jyotisha developed independently, although it may have interacted with Greek astrology. Some scholars believe that the horoscopic astrology practiced in the Indian subcontinent came from Hellenistic influences. The Vedanga Jyotisha is one of the earliest texts about astronomy within the Vedas. It is one of the six auxiliary disciplines in Hinduism that is connected with the study of the Vedas. Jyotisha or Jyotishya (from Sanskrit jyotiṣa, from jyót “light, heavenly body' and ish - from Isvara or God) is the traditional Hindu system of astrology, also known as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and more recently Vedic astrology.

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