In 1968, a young man stepped out of Oklahoma State University and looked to his future. Armed with a degree in Psychology, as well as a Bachelor's degree in business, his future looked as bright as the stars in the sky. From that point in his life, he never would have guessed where his fate and dharma would lead him — through a chain of experiences and associations that would place him as one of the preeminent astrologers of our time — Govinda.
Right out of college, Govinda was hired by Southwestern Bell Telephone as a regional manager, and after a short training period, they turned over the management of seven towns to him. His job consisted of being the liaison between the public and the phone company. When customers had problems with service or equipment, they would call Govinda. However, after two and a half years with the company, he found his personality wasn't a good match for the corporate world.
It was in the year 1972 that Govinda began to notice a greater force affecting his life.
"That's the year I began to open up spiritually and to look at life out of the box," he said. "I was having mystical experiences and I became interested in knowing the higher part of myself. I went through major changes in my life at that time."
Like many young people of that era, Govinda dropped out of society and began a quest for truth. At that time he was living in Norman Oklahoma, where he bought a van and traveled to San Diego. That part of his journey also led him to the Bhodi Tree Book Store in Los Angeles, a new age Mecca where counter culture seekers gathered to exchange ideas and find recent and classic books on a wide range of subjects. This is where Govinda sought to read every metaphysical book that would explain his experiences.
He then headed north along the coast via California State Route 1 to Berkley. At Berkley, he met another soul who changed the course of his life.
"He was a very interesting man who was well versed in metaphysics." Govinda said. "He was all about truth and higher consciousness. He pointed me in the direction of Astrology and taught me about the divinity of the I-Ching. I was also fascinated by what astrology was teaching me. I discovered that I could feel people change as the Moon went through the signs and its phases. I was having a lot of psychic experiences."
From Berkley, Govinda headed further north to Eugene Oregon, where he discovered the whole foods movement and other like-minded people who were also interested in the metaphysical arts.
"In Eugene I found a coop health food store with bulk foods, herbs and spices," he said. "I'd never seen anything like that before. These influences had a great impact on me."
After learning what he could in Oregon, and consulting the I-Ching, Govinda moved back to his home town, Norman Oklahoma. Though he was homeless, he managed to connect with the manager of a local health food store who was sharing with him the challenge he was having with the phone company. Govinda solved the problem and soon became close friends with the store manager, which ultimately led to his employment there. Govinda ended up buying the health food store — The Earth Natural Food Store — and owned it for seven years.
During this time of change and growth, Govinda was slowly honing the art and science of creating astrological charts. In 1987, he moved to Sandpoint Idaho and began practicing astrology full time for a wide range of clientele. Govinda found that most of the people seeking his services had heard of him via word of mouth.
"There's more to astrology than stunning and amazing people," he said. "I began looking at astrology from a spiritual perspective. I discovered that through the natal chart, I could get to the person's core being and understand their soul journey. My desire was to help people become empowered through understanding their true essence."
Govinda began to explore his own unique expression of the art of astrology.
"I call it High Octave Resonance Astrology or HORA." he explains. "This is the understanding that everything has a vibrational frequency. When we know the higher vibration of a sign, we can glean its greater potential. By looking at the energies of a natal chart from a HORA perspective, we can literally find what the potential expression of that soul is. It's an exciting way to use astrology to help people."
He went on to say that astrology is helpful for objectively looking at and seeing the universal order of a persons life. It is the objective nature of astrology that led some main stream scientists and psychoanalysts to explore its meaning.
"I've been greatly influenced by Carl Gustav Jung," he said. "Many people didn't know he was an astrologer himself and used astrology in his diagnosis. Knowing that and having a background in Psychology myself, I also began to look at the psychological value of natal charts."
No story would be complete without love, and for Govinda, there is one great love in his life — Janet Samadhi Rose.
"We met in 1999 and have continued to expand in love ever since," he said. "In 2002, Janet was very ill and was told by medical doctors that she had six to eight weeks left to live. I began to reach out to friends and asked people to pray for Jan. I sent emails and called as many people I could think of. Within 24 hours several people wrote back and mentioned John of God, the spiritual healer who lived in Brazil."
Pooling their resources, the two made the journey to be with John of God, in Abadiania Brazil.
"Jan's life was saved," said Govinda. "In Brazil, we witnessed and experienced many miracles, including Jan's healing."
As a way of giving back to those who helped them, Govinda and Janet brought groups of people to Brazil for healing, from 2003 through 2011.
Govinda and Janet currently reside in their mountaintop home with their two dogs, Rama and Sita, and two cats, Goldie and Rosie, outside of Priest River, Idaho.
Address: 2649 Black Fawn Lane
Westcliffe, CO 81252
Phone: (719) 783-2306