Pluto abducting Persephone
The
anguish of Rajasthan’s Rajputs arises from a deep complex they have about their
past, manifest in the movement to have Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati
banned. The movement has already received a boost — the release of the film has
been postponed. Their complex will only be reinforced further.
The
complex of Rajputs arises from Hindutva’s perspective on history — largely
influenced by British colonial historians — which teaches people that India had
a glorious past until the Muslims and the British conquered it. This has
unwittingly turned the past into an undeniable saga of Rajput royal families
failing in their duty to protect the interests of their subjects, a duty
traditionally enjoined on them because of their Kshatriya status.
The
ensuing inferiority complex should have been of the erstwhile royalty alone,
but such is the pull of caste identity that even ordinary Rajputs have embraced
the psychological bruises of the elite as their very own. They need not have,
for the elite’s decisions weren’t based on the consent of ordinary Rajputs. http://www.firstpost.com/india/padmavati-controversy-beneath-rajput-anxiety-about-depiction-of-padmini-lies-deep-seated-complex-4218287.html
Padmavati is an upcoming Indian epic period drama film
directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, based on the epic poem Padmavat (1540) by
Malik Muhammad Jayasi. Initially scheduled for release on 1 December 2017, the
film has been indefinitely postponed following numerous controversies [1]. The
Padmavati controversy took an ugly turn on Nov. 16 when a fringe Rajasthan group called the Karni
Sena threatened actor Deepika Padukone of physical harm. This is around the
time that a Mars-Pluto square
started to move towards its exactness on Nov.19. Mars signifies the warrior
archetype. Pluto signifies issues of power and control. Squares signify
fractious interactions. And when the clash is between Mars and Pluto, even the
air becomes cruel and brutal. From a personal perspective, this combination
indicates harsh attitudes aimed at yourself or at others. From a collective
perspective, this Mars/Pluto square can also indicate increased
violence—everywhere.
In Roman mythology, Pluto was the god of the underworld who
abducts the beautiful Persephone and ravishes her.
Padmavati is an epic Indian story that has parallels to the Pluto myth.
A chart for the Mars-Pluto square at Delhi is shown here.
Pluto occupies the mundane eighth house while Mars is in the fifth. Both the
planets make hard aspects to the Ascendant [3ge].
Pluto and the 8th
house holds our deepest, darkest fears and
complexes [2] and it is related to those things that are locked down below,
hidden in the recesses of the nation’s
mind and that need some form of release. Pluto is the signification of the
things that torture us, seduce, and threaten to tear us to pieces. It signifies
our neuroses and collective psychic conflicts. With Pluto here we need to
confront and exorcise those demons that lie in the nation’s psyche. Often these
are times of violent behavior and sudden explosive outbursts.
Mars is in the 5th
house which rules films and drama and any
form of creative expression.[3]
The square between Mars and Pluto from the 5th to
the 8th house therefore creates a crisis where a film dealing with a
historically sensitive topic is met with anger as it touches a subject that is
taboo for the Rajput community.
A thousand years ago, Rajput kings ruled much
of North India. Then they lost to Ghazni, lost to Ghuri, lost to Khilji, lost
to Babur, lost to Akbar, lost to the Marathas, and keeled over before the
British. The Marathas and Brits hardly count since the Rajputs were a spent
force by the time Akbar was done with them. Having been confined to an arid
part of the subcontinent by the early Sultans, they were reduced to vassals by
the Mughals. The three most famous Rajput heroes not only took a beating in
crucial engagements, but also retreated from the field of battle. Prithviraj
Chauhan was captured while bolting and executed after the second battle of
Tarain in 1192 CE, while Rana Sanga got away after losing to Babur at Khanua in
1527, as did Rana Pratap after the battle of Haldighati in 1576. To compensate
for, or explain away, these debacles, the bards of Rajputana replaced history
with legend.
Finally, we note that the Sabian symbol [4] for Mars in the
5th house explains what is really at stake especially for the filmmaker.
Phase 198: Two men
under arrest
When individuals try to reform an established
order they may be punished by that order.
For individuals the challenge is how to make their transforming vision
acceptable to society. The fact that two men are under arrest suggests a
polarization and a purpose transcending a mere fit of recklessness. Negative as
the image may seem, one may see implied in it the power in every individual to
assume social risks in order to express his convictions even if he has to face
the consequences. (edited from Dane Rudhyar)
Great Article.
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