Dr. Jonas Salk was a famous American virologist and medical researcher who developed first ever polio vaccine. He was a noble man who chooses not to patent the vaccine or seek any profit from it so that it maximize global distribution. However, he was not able to get the Nobel Prize for his great scientific achievement as the committee viewed Salk’s vaccine as a technical and applied achievement rather than a fundamental scientific discovery. The Nobel committee felt that Salk’s polio vaccine relied heavily on the prior work of other scientist. Interestingly Jonas Salk had made his work on polio vaccine public in April 1955 and after a few year in 1961 an oral polio vaccine developed by Albert Sabin was introduce to the world which become more popular due to its ease of usage.
In this article we will study the horoscope of Dr. Jonas Salk from Jaimini prescriptive applying Trikona Dasha to understand various events of his life. He had many vicissitudes in his life as a scientist, intellectual and a family man.
Chart 1. Horoscope of Dr. Jonas Salk
Source: From the book ‘Tried Techniques of Predictions & Some Memoirs of an Astrologer’ by Shri K.N. Rao
Karakamsha lagna: Gemini
Pada Lagna : Sagittarius
Upa Pada : Capricorn
Gulika : Scorpio
In the Libra lagna birth chart of Jonas Salk Atamakaraka Mars is in the Janma lagna along with Putrakaraka the Sun is a good Raja Yoga. Karakamsha lagna is Gemini where Saturn is placed and it aspect the 10th house from Karakamsha i.e. Pisces. This is a major yoga for attaining fame in career. Another yoga for major recolonization in career in this chart is the Jaimini aspect of Mercury on the 2nd house of Karakamssha lagna. But malefic planets in trine of the Janma lagna and Karakamsha lagan is a major weakness of this chart which didn’t let him get the highest achievement of Nobel Prize for his research.
In the Libra lagna birth chart of Dr. Jonas Salk 4 planets are in trine houses. The Sun and Mars are in the lagna, the Moon is in the 5th house and Saturn is in the 9th house. We don’t consider Rahu and Ketu in calculating number of planets condition for Trikona Dasha and Mandooka Dasha of Jaimini system.
Trikona Dasha in Dr. Jonas Salk horoscope
The trikona Dasha will start from the lagna which is stronger as more number of planets are placed in it than any other trine houses. The order of the Dasha will be direct only as the 9th house from the starting point Libra has the sign ‘Savya’ or a direct group sign.
Libra – 1914 to 1915, Aquarius – 1915 to 1923, Gemini- 1923 to 1928, Scorpio- 1928 to 1939, Pisces- 1939 to 1941, Cancer- 1941 to 1946, Sagittarius- 1946 to 1947, Aries- 1947 to 1953, Leo- 1953 to 1963, Capricorn- 1963 to 1970, Taurus- 1970 to 1976, Virgo- 1976 to 1986, Libra- 1986 to 1987, Aquarius- 1987 to 1995.
Note: In calculating the number of years we are using the same method as we do in case of Jaimini’s Chara Dasha (K.N. Rao method).
Higher Education and First Marriage
Jonas Salk was born on 28th of October 1914, at 07:30 a.m. in the morning at Manhattan, New York. Salk’s father, Daniel Bonn, was a fashion designer by profession. His parents wanted to make him a lawyer. Jonas Salk was eldest of the three sons of his parents. Mars the Karaka for co-born is in the Dasha Rashi Libra at his birth which get the Jaimini aspect of 3rd Pada placed in Aquarius explain the birth of younger brothers of Jonas Salk.
He enrolled in City Collage in New York and got a Bachelors degree in chemistry in 1934. It was the Trikona Dasha of Scorpio (from 1928 to 1939) when he did his B.sc in Chemistry. Scorpio is the sign of chemicals. The 5th house in the Rashi chart of Jonas Sulk has Rahu and Moon which made him study chemistry. After graduation Salk enrolled in New York University School of Medicines from where he did his M.D. in 1939.
On 9th of June 1939 Jonas Salk married Donna Lindsey a social worker a day after he graduated from collage. It was the Trikona Dasha of Scorpio which has Darakaraka Mercury.
Study in Virology and Early Laboratory work
Jonas Salk started his post graduate work in 1941 in the area of Virology. It was in the University of Michigan where he discovered the type B Influenza Virus. In Trikona Dasha it was the period of Cancer (1941 to 1946) which is the Rashi of the 10th house of his birth chart which now have to give him some early recolonization. Cancer get the Jaimini aspect of Rahu which is the planet of Virology subject. Jupiter and Mercury are natural Jeev Karaka planets. Mercury is in the 5th house from Cancer and Jupiter aspect it shows his study in life sciences and virology. In 1944 he got Research Fellow and then Research Associate posts all in the Trkona Dasha of Cancer only for his work in epidemiology.
Polio Research by Jonas Salk
In 1948, Harry Weaver, the director of research at the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, contacted Salk. He asked Salk to find out if there were more types of polio than the three then known and offered additional space and equipment for his research lab. It was the Jaimini’s Trikona Dasha of Aries (from 1947 to 1953) when Jonas Salk was doing his research work on Polio virus. In 1949 he was promoted to the position of Professor. Salk decided to work on his ‘Kill-Virus’ vaccine while around the same period a Polish Scientist Albert Sabin was working on an ‘oral vaccine’ on weakened strain of ‘live virus’.
Jonas Salk started testing his virus on children from year 1953. He also vaccinated his own children in 1953. It was the Trikona Dasha of Aries (from 1947 to 1953) when his research took place. See the Amatayakaraka Jupiter in the 10th house from Dasha Rashi Aries which gave him great fame. Mercury and Venus are two natural benefic planets are giving aspect to the 10th house from Aries.
Great Fame and Honor in Leo Trikona Dasha
In 1954 during the Trkona Dasha of Leo (1953 to 1963) his vaccine was given to about one million children in the USA and by 12th of April 1955 it was announced that this is a safe polio vaccine. The Trikona Dasha of Leo made Jonas Salk a national hero and it was said that by 1963 Salk open his own Institute ” Salk Institute for Biological Studies”. He was the most famous scientist in the late 1950’s as by 1959 1959, the Salk polio vaccine had reached about 90 countries. See the Jaimini aspect of Atamakaraka Mars, Amataykaraka Jupiter and Putrakaraka the Sun on the Leo and the 10th house from it which made Jonas Salk an international figure. In Navamsha also the 10th and 11th house from Leo get the Jaimini aspect of so many planets.
When Salk Injectable Vaccine lost to Albert Sabin’s Oral Vaccine
In 1961 the Polish scientist Albert Sabin’s oral polio vaccine was launched which was cheaper and easy to administer for small children thus it become more popular in coming years. It was the Trikona Dasha of Capricorn (1963 to 1970) when Sabin’s oral polio vaccine become more popular. Capricorn is the Dasha of 6th house of Karakamasha lagna Gemini. The 10th house from Capricorn has natural malefic planets Mars and the Sun showing it.
In 1968 Jonas Salk divorced his first wife Donna Lindsey. In Rashi chart the 7th house from Capricorn get the aspect by Darakaraka Mercury. In Navamsha Mercury is in the 7th house from Capricorn and is afflicted.
In 1970 in the same Dasha of Capricorn Jonas Salk married French artist Françoise Gilot, former partner of Pablo Picasso.
Last years of life and Death
Jonas Salk spent his later years leading research teams investigating potential vaccines and treatments for multiple sclerosis, cancer, and HIV/AIDS. It was the Trkona Dasha of Virgo (1976 to 1986) with Amatayakaraka Jupiter giving aspect to the 12th house and Ganatikaraka Saturn in the 10th from Dasha Rashi he didn’t get much success in developing AIDS vaccine. His last Trkona Dasha of Aquarius (1987 to 1995) when he was living in La Jolla, California focusing heavily on researching an experimental vaccine against HIV/AIDS until his death from heart failure on June 23, 1995, at age 80.
The Dasha Rashi Aquarius has natural malefic Rahu and the Bahya Rashi from it is Gemini which has natural malefic Saturn. As per the Chapter number II and Pada IV of Jaimini Sutra’s the Dvara Rashi is the sign who’s Dasha is being considered. And Bahya Rashi is the sign which is as many sign as the Dvara Rashi is from the lagna. Since Dvara Rashi under consideration is Aquarius which is 5 houses away from lagna Rashi Libra, so the Bahya Rashi for it will be Gemini only. Malefic in both Dvara and Bahya Rashi are not good for health if the longevity is about to end as per the calculations of Jaimini methods.
Rahu and the Moon are in Aquarius which are good for the study of virology but then Amataykaraka Jupiter falling in the 12th house from the Dasha Rashi could not have given him any success. Atamakaraka Mars giving aspect to the Aquarius along with natural malefic the Sun has to make this Dasha fatal for him.
Practical Application of the Trikona Dasha of Jaimini- Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa Horoscope
