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1. Shukraachaarya Jee and Kach
2. Shukraachaarya Jee and Raajaa Yayaati
3. Shukraachaarya Jee and Raajaa Bali
4. Shukra in Astrology

Devayaanee, Shukraachaarya Jee's daughter, was a very proud girl. Shukraachaarya Jee was the Purohit of Daitya Raaj Vrishparvaa (Daksh's daughter Danu's son). Vrishparvaa had a daughter named Sharmishthaa. Devayaanee and Sharmishthaa were good friends. Once they were playing in a pond with their friends, that Shankar Jee was passing by with Paarvatee Jee, so all girls came out of the pond and started getting dressed hurriedly. In this hurry Sharmishthaa had put on Devayaanee's clothes. At this Devayaanee got very angry. Both had an exchange of very hot dialogs. As a result Sharmishthaa pushed Devayaanee in a dry well and came back to her house.

By chance Raajaa Yayaati came there in search of water. As he peeped in the well, he did not get water in the well, but found a girl. He took her out. Yayaati gave his cloth to cover her body, since she was without clothes. Then Devayaanee requested him to marry her saying that now she did not want that anybody else should hold her hand after this and see in this condition after him. Although this marriage was not in accordance to Shaastra and Dharm but Yayaati accepted it as his fate.

Then Devayaanee came to her house and told everything, about Sharmishthaa's incident, to her father. Her father decided to leave this Purohitship and left the house along with his daughter. When Vrishparvaa got this news, he immediately came to request them to stay back. Shukraachaarya Jee said, "My happiness is in the happiness of my daughter, so whatever she says, if it is agreeable to you it is all right with me."  On asking, Devayaanee said, "I want Sharmishthaa and all her friends as my maids and wherever I go they should also go with me."  Sharmishthaa had to agree for this seeing the delicacy of the situation. So when Devayaanee was married to Yayaati, Sharmishthaa and her friends also went with her as her maids. (Read Yayaati here for its further details).

Shukraachaarya warned Yayaati not to take Sharmishthaa to his bed. But it happened. So Devayaanee got angry and came back from Yayaati's house and told everything to her father. Shukraachaarya gave Shaap to Yayaati that he would be very old and ugly. Yayaati told that it would affect his daughter also. Then Shukraachaarya relaxed it to that if somebody was ready to exchange it with his youth, he could do that. Yayaati had five sons - three sons from Devayaane and two from Sharmishthaa. Then Yayaati exchanged his old age with his youngest son Puru's (the son of Sharmishthaa) youth.

Shukraachaarya and Raajaa Bali
(Read Raajaa Bali before reading this)

When Asur won in Devtaa and Asur war and Raajaa Bali won all Lok, he went to live in Swarg. He liked Swarg so much that he wanted to live there for ever. His Guru told him that only that person could live there for ever who had completed 100 Ashwamedh Yagya, so he started doing Ashwamedh Yagya to live there. He had completed 99 Yagya and now he was going to do the 100th one under the guidance of his Guru Shukraachaarya. Devtaa went to Brahmaa Jee and prayed Him to stop him doing this, otherwise he would become Indra. Brahmaa Jee went to Vishnu. He consoled Devtaa saying that he would be born in Kashyap and Aditi's house as Vaaman Avataar and will do something. So He incarnated as a Vaaman boy in Kashyap's house.

When Bhagavaan Vaaman came to Bali's palace for alms, Shukraachaarya advised him not to commit for anything because He was not an ordinary Braahman boy, He was Vishnu Himself, still Bali did not agree with his advice on the basis that "if He is Bhagavaan and has come for alms at my door, I am the most fortunate person in the world who will give something to Bhagavaan who gives to everybody. I don't want to lose this opportunity; and if He is not Vishnu, then there is no fear from him; third, I have already taken vow to give Him whatever He wants so I am not going to break that; fourth, nobody goes empty-handed from my house. So I cannot do that."

Shukraachaarya Jee quoted him several passages from scriptures where one could take his words back, but Raajaa Bali did not listen to. When he didn't listen to him, he sat in the spout of the pot through which the water for Sankalp of donation was to be used. So when Raajaa Bali wanted to pour the water from that pot, because Shukraachaarya Jee sat in it, he stopped water from going out. Seeing water not coming out of the pot, Vaaman Bhagavaan took a blade of Kush grass and inserted in the spout which pierced Shukraachaarya Jee's one eye. He shook with pain and moved away from the way, thus leaving the way for water to go out. Thus Bhagavaan Vaaman let complete the Sankalp ceremony and saved Devtaa. (Read Bali for further description)

Shukraachaarya and Raajaa Dand
The forest Dandak Forest wherein Raam trekked during His exile period, was a dominion of His own kingdom, but it was a deserted forest. How it was named Dandak Van? One King named Dand, the last son of Ikshwaaku, was engaged in all kinds of demonic activities in this kingdom. His father Ikshwaaku received many a complaint about Dand’s deeds from his public, and angry at his erring son Dand banished him from his kingdom.

Dand took refuge in Vindhya mountain range and built a kingdom there and a beautiful capital for himself called Madhumantaa. He rubbed shoulders with all the Raakshas thereabout and thus became a disciple of Sage Shukraachaarya - the Guru of Raakshas.

One day when Sage Shukraachaarya was not in his Aashram, Dand went there, and saw Arajaa, the elder daughter of the sage Shukraachaarya, and in spite of her repeated protests he molested her. Later when Sage Shukraachaarya came to know about it, he got enraged and cursed Dand, to fall down along with his entire kingdom under a mud storm around that Madhumantaa capital for a period of seven consecutive days.

Then there came the mud storm for seven days and the entire kingdom covered under mud, later to become a forest called Dandak Van. The place to where the curse fearing people fled from that Madhunataa Nagaree was in further South and was called Janasthaan. At later time, when Raam’s exile period started, these two places, Dandak Van and Janasthaan, were under the domain of Raavan, and Raavan appointed one demon named Khar along with Shoorpankhaa, as the in-charge of this dominion Janasthaan.

This was the place where Raam built his Aashram in Panchavatee, at which Raakshasee Shoorpankhaa came, and from where Raavan abducted Seetaa. When Raam asked the forest dwelling sages for a quiet place to live on, the sages in Dandak Forest, would make Raam constantly move southward, till He came to Janasthaan, indirectly directing Raam to eradicate the Raakshas over these places, which once belonged to Raam’s kingdom.

Shukra in Astrology
Thus by the boon of Shiv, he became the planet. He is a very bright star seen in the early morning. Shukra's position is eastward opposite to the Sun. For some months he is sighted before the Sunrise and after the sunset. Shukra is very affectionate, and learned, with intruding nature. Blessed by Brahmaa, he attained planetary position and showers bounty every where. Indraanee is his Adhidevta and Indra is the Pratyadhi Devtaa.

He lords over Vrishabh (Taurus) and Tulaa (Libra) Signs. Meen (Pisces) Sign is his best place and Kanyaa Virgo) Sign is malignant . At Meen Raashi he wins over Guru. If Shukra is placed in Lagna and matured, the women are found very beautiful with good qualities and young to their age. For men, matured Shukra may induce sexual flirting sometimes. In the life span of humans for 120 years the period of Shukra is for 20 years. Maximum. Normally marriages are seen during the Period and Sub-Period of well placed Shukra.

Diamond is to be worn to appease Shukra. Silver, gold, rice, ghee, white cloths, sandal wood, white horse, curds, sugar and lands are to be given away to please him. For removing the ill effects of Shukra astrologers normally suggest worship at Kanjanoor Shukra temple near Kumbaakonam.

Shukra stands for pleasures, love, marriage, beauty, jewelry, fine arts, and all types of prosperity is the result of Shukra's consideration and blessing. A broken marriage, ill-repute, excess expenditure, kidney problem, diabetics, throat infection are the result of Shukra being in a malignant position.

If Shukra happens to be in a said Muhoort, when a well is dug, it holds abundant water.

It is generally seen in the horoscope of those, who have the Vrishabh (Taurus) or Tulaa (Libra) as developed Lagna or Shukra is well placed and matured, their affection to their daughter is found very much . They will forgo all mistakes of their daughters including if at all they talk woundingly even to them.

Westerners refer to Shukra as shooting star, Greeks worship him as the angel of beauty and peace and also as a great poet. His proximity to the Sun gives him brilliance. Like Moon, he too has phases.

Shukra Stotra and Gayatri

Hemkund Praan Laabham Chaitanyam Paramam Gurum
Sarv Shaastra Pravatkaram Bhaargavam Pranamaamyham

Om Ashwa Dhwajaaya Vidmahe Dhanur Hastaaa Dheemahi Tano Shukra: Prachodayaat

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