The curriculum prescribed in my school days had a "Varaha Mihira's" story. There is no need to rehash it other than as establishing the credibility of vedic astrology in predicting far ahead of ensuing events, including life and death. The hindu mindset that astrologers can foretell what the planets have conspired goes deeper than grand canyon. The modern astrologers use astrophysics, cosmology and even quantum physics to justify their claims.
The key information vedic astrology needs is called "lagnam" which refers to the Zodiac Sign rising on the Eastern horizon at the time of a person's birth. It is significant in any type of astrology as it represents the entry point into an individual's life and is used to determine various astrological aspects. A day is divided into 12 lagnas, each lasting two hours, and a person's lagnam is the one they are born under.
Needless to say the accuracy of time of birth is crucial in vedic astrology. It need not be the case in sun or moon-based astrology. It is not clear how to take into account international time zones and datelines, not to mention the latitude and longitudinal information at the time of birth. I think vedic astrology is applicable to all those born in Bharatavarsha, not necessarily what the "hindutva" people say "Akhanda Bharat".
There are two kinds of vedic astrologers: (a) those who create the lagnam for a newborn and give the major milestones as the child progressed to adulthood; back in the olden days, before cesarean births became popular to get over the time paradox, with high infant mortality rate, they performed jataka karma; (b) those who predicted the course of a nation, kingdom or anything beyond; these days we see them appearing on TV and internet; this is one way for astrologers to insert themselves into macrocosm and claim to fame in the grist of election cycles.
With regard to the vedic astrology, one might wonder if it is based on vedas; if so, did vedas predict the future of mankind including the minutiae of a man or woman's life? The obvious answer is no because if they did, we wouldn't need itihasas and puranas describing the avataras of Sri Maha Vishnu, the war fought in Kurukshetra as per the epic Maha Bharata and most of all the Ramayana. Vedas mention puranas only in the context of Brahmanas. Many think the astrologers in the bygone days hijacked the passing mention of puranas in vedas to concoct the term vedic astrology.
Sticking to vedic astrology, what is it that parents of a newborn are looking for? The simple answer is Raja Yoga because every parent wants their child to achieve the highest success the ancient people aspired for. Even devatas are desirous of the position of their ruler Indra. Mortals have to do with the trappings of an elected office or a leadership role in the society, given that the kings were crowned by dynastic succession.
The vedic astrologers have a biographic template where they fill in the details of the planetary movements and their impact on the "native". For example, a native who suffers under the influence of sani/saturn early on in life is likely to enjoy the munificence of budha/jupiter later in life. The question then is how long before the onset of budha's munificence? For someone like Adi Sankaracharya, who passed away in his 30's, the budha's influence had been there forever, perhaps carried over by the karma phala in his previous birth. Similarly an artist's work appreciates much after his demise and names such as Ravi Varma, Michael Angelo, Jakkana et al. remind us of their accomplishments for as long as our civilization lasts. It is another matter they might have died penniless or in ignominy.
Going back to Raja Yoga, it seems to be the one to seek for a hopeful parent, but for the native it is nothing but immortality which is yet another trapping for the rich and powerful who are trying to transmigrate to another planet or in search of elixir/amruta using all scientific means. Kings in the olden days engraved their names and good deeds on stone in their quest for immortality. This tradition continued to this day when elected people erect statues and marble stones with their names and so on. For the sages who knew very well that all things born must die one day, samadhi is most covetous.
In the category of immortals we have Veera Brahmam who prognosticated the major events in Kali yuga; a Bulgarian called Baba Vanga who prophecized about politics, natural disasters, wars and even the end of the world; besides, any number of prophets in biblical times.
In sum, parents who believe in vedic astrology, implying astrology based on vedas, should take comfort in knowing that their child's arrival on earth is predestined by the paramatma who loves all no matter how they end up in one life. So even if they aren't as successful in this life, the benevolent god will give another life to fulfill their wishes. As for sun/moon astrology and horoscopes predicting ephemeral matters, enjoy while it lasts!
Regards
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