KETU - A Cosmic Force

K- Karmas of past life, knowledge

E- Extremes, emancipation, enlightenment

T- Tail, tamas, turmoil

U- Unexpected gains & losses

Ketu as we know, the southern node of Moon, is as dynamic as the planet Rahu. A sudden mystic force which we associate with Rahu, goes with this planet as well. Rahu & Ketu always move in retrograde motion and are always 180 degrees apart from each other. Rahu bestows material prosperity but Ketu’s dimension is different, Ketu makes one go through material adversity.

Ketu is the beginning & end of all things. In Vedic traditions Ketu is directly linked with Lord Ganesha, the first born child of the universe. The word Ketu translates into “the banner “as its main symbol. Sage Parashar says Ketu is akin to Rahu & so most of the names and qualities associated with Rahu apply to Ketu as well. Ancient seers also gave it different names like – Shikhi (one having a tail), Dhawaja (flag) attached to a pole, and tamas (darkness). Ketu governs all the subjects like occult, magic and alchemy etc. It is the significator of our psychic faculties and the phenomena like telepathy, hypnotism etc. Since Ketu is the strong significator of our intuitive powers or the so called “sixth sense”. It represents psychics, tarot card readers, hypnotists and all other people involved in similar professions. Being the planet of the past it is a special significator of ‘past life regression’.

Ketu is a fiery planet like Sun & Mars. It is a planet signifying all types of catastrophes & represents nature’s destructive aspect. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tidal waves, asteroid hitting earth are all examples of ketu’s energy at work. Ketu has a religious side to it like Jupiter and Sun so it signifies all places of religion & occult significance. A strong Ketu in the chart gives visionary power, awareness & a great level of insight.

Like Mars, Ketu behaves like a military man who inflicts extreme torture on an enemy soldier in the name of war and patriotism. In its other aspect it also produces individuals like Mother Teresa who highlight the other extremes like selfless service. Adolf Hitler has Ketu in his third house (prakaram bhava), while Mother Teresa has Ketu in her Twelfth house (moksha bhava).

Ketu is a cosmic force which represents the beginning and ending of our existence. We can term it as malefic, demonic or even evil, but the fact is that this force displays all the possibilities and extremes within the realm of existence. It is, we can say, a benefic force which represents the cycle of birth & death.