Dr Theja was born on the 27 April 1951 to a traditional Buddhist family in the Western Province of Sri Lanka. Powerful planetary placements in his horoscope, such as Venus in her own 5th house, (house of intelligence positive for - children, investments, scholarships and higher knowledge), Mars in his own 4th house (means earth & land related issues, brothers) with the exalted Sun (education, authority, leadership, dignity, happiness and research talent), a well placed Rahu in the 2nd house (education & travelling), Jupiter in his own 3rd house (house for siblings and speech) - a planet for self realisation and spiritualism and other favourable planetary positions have destined him to be a scholar and a spiritual astrologer.

He was an outstanding scholar in Germany 1971 - 1984, and won five scholarships one after the other and completed his BSc in Geology, MSc in Applied Geology, PhD in Mineral Science, Fellowship Diplomas in Gemmology in Germany and UK and Diploma in Business Management. He was the first lecturer in Gemmology in 1981- 84 at the Department of Mineralogy, University of Berlin.

He has travelled widely throughout the world in his capacity as a Business Promotion Adviser in the field of value added precious mineral industry. The highest point in his career was the time he worked as a British Government (Commonwealth Secretariat) funded Adviser to the Government of Ghana to develop the value added precious mineral industry. Among his contributions in the field of Science & Technology, and Economic Development is the discovery of the mineral “Srilankit” (Zr, Ti) O2 in 1984, setting up the Sri Lanka Gem & Jewellery Exchange in 1990 and the development of the value added gold industry in Ghana, W. Africa in 1992-96.

Dr Theja’s family was very much attached to Vedic astrology and his parents have always consulted an astrologer, especially on matters related to education, commencement of new projects, (such as construction of a building, sowing of seed) marriage and overseas travel. This led him to study astrology at a very early age of his life. He has spent a great deal of time in the company of astrologers and spiritual seekers in studying and finding astrological causes for the events in our lives.

Despite a busy professional schedule, Dr Theja never fails to widen his knowledge in Vedic Astrology. It was clear to him that the strong planetary positions in his horoscope, that give the ability to do research into scientific and occult subjects have led him to become a spiritually oriented astrologer and a planetary gemmologist.

Apart from his astrological readings he gave 10 lectures and had 3 TV interviews during his last Asia tour (Dec. 2002 – Mar. 2003) in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore. At the 12th Asian Astrologers Conference in India, January 2003, he was given the prestigious “Rudra Bhatta” award for his excellent contribution in the field of Astrology. One of his great highlights was the ladies luncheon lecture delivered in Feb. 2003 at the
well known Tanglin Club in Singapore (picture above).

Today, he has a busy astrological consultancy in Perth where he with his wife, Priyanthi and two children lead a happy and peaceful life (picture left).

He is consulted by people from all over the world and from all walks of life. He is also a well recognised consultant astrologer and a lecturer in astrology in Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

He is an active member in the community who has gained experience in counselling. Presently he is a registered lecturer on Vedic Astrology at the Australian Institute of Holistic Medicine, Perth

He is the founder of the Australian Academy of Vedic Astrology which is going to be an educational center devoted to the greater system of Vedic and Yogic knowledge of India. He has set up this academy with the intention of promoting various related aspects of Vedic Science including Vedic astrology, Vastu Shastra, Meditation and Mantra, with special reference to their background in the Vedas

Therefore, Dr. Theja’s whole hearted intention is not only to share the knowledge and wisdom each person is entitled to, but also to enhance their life experience and journey. To learn what they came here for. To embrace happiness and loving kindness, compassion and love with all that we associate with.

Spiritual Vedic Wisdom for Inner Peace & Happiness

Dr Theja's Family Album

Loving mother & Father (1948)
Dr Theja and Wife	Dr Theja and Wife
Son, Mahesh a senior accountant (27)	Daughter Piumi and Son-in-law Heshan
India 2006

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My Achievements

I was born on the 27 April 1951 to a traditional Buddhist family in Kalutara , Sri Lanka .

I was educated at Royal College and left to East Germany in 1971 on a scholarship to study Geology. Initially I had to learn German for about 10 months and then started to study Geology with German students. I completed my BSc in Geology in 1975 and crossed over to West Berlin .

I first went to Sri Lanka after 5 years in 1976 and got married at the age of 24. This is the time I started to study Astrology. This interesting subject has been following me now for over 30 years.

After coming to West Berlin , I managed to receive a scholarship from the Otto Benecke Foundation of West Germany to study Applied Geology at the Free University of Berlin. This scholarship was extended once in 6 months purely based on high academic results. It was very hard but I managed to do it without any problem. Likewise I completed my MSc in 1980 and my thesis was on Radioactive rare earth mineral - Monazite deposits around Bentara – Elpitiya surrounded by the Bentota River in Sri Lanka .

Since I was able to get a 1 st class for the MSc, I was offered another scholarship to read for the PhD under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Alexander Willgallis – a well known mineralogist in Berlin . My research was more into mineralogy and the dissertation was “Mineralogical – Chemical Analysis of Heavy Minerals from Washed Residuals (Kalu Katta etc.) in Sri Lanka ”. Though I studied in Germany in the German language, I always wanted to do studies related to Sri Lanka as I wanted to go back and serve my motherland.

While reading for my PhD, it was very important to study Gemmology as it helped me to understand more about gems and other waste materials. The year 1980/81 was a very challenging year as I had to work fulltime at the University doing research, studying Gemmology simultaneously at the Gemmological Association of Germany and Gemmological Association of Gt. Britain . This was a very big challenge to do with a family – especially with my 2 year old son. In 1982 after my completion of the Diploma in Gemmology in London and Germany , I was given the Fellowship in Gemmology from the Gemmological Association of Gt. Britain (FGA) and the Gemmological Association of Germany (FGG).

In 1982, I was the first to introduce lectures in Gemmology and offer lectures at the Faculty of Mineralogy at the Free University of Berlin and also at the University Extension under the Adult Education Programme. In 1982, I was given the Fellowship (FGS) of the well known prestigious organisation the Geological Society of London. At the beginning of 1983 I completed my PhD and was able to discover, through my research a new mineral to the world of Mineralogy. This was named as “SRILANKITE” - (Zr, Ti) O 2 to honour my motherland Sri Lanka for giving me the most important initial education to become a research scientist.

Since I was very good in my academic work and research, in 1983 the Technical University of Berlin offered me a scholarship to do a Diploma in Technology Management in Developing countries. During this time I even went to a school in Idar Oberstein in Germany to learn the basics of the jewellery manufacturing as it was interesting for a Gemmologist to know about the jewellery trade. After the completion of the diploma, I decided to leave Germany for good in a way to serve my country, Sri Lanka . I uprooted from Germany in 1984 after a long stay of 13 years at a time when the ethnic problems in Sri Lanka were very critical.

At the beginning it was hard to find a suitable position and I decided to join a Gem Company in Kandy and to set up my own Gem Testing Laboratory to work as a Consultant Gemmologist. This was in 1985.

Then at the end of 1985, an American Company by the name Dianus Lanka Ltd , operating under the G.C.E.C took me as the General Manager of the company. I was very happy to get the opportunity to practise my expertise gained from Germany . In 1986 the German government offered me a scholarship for 3 months to visit Germany in order to give me an opportunity to gain more knowledge in areas relevant to my activities in Sri Lanka . This was the 5 th scholarship offered to me by Germany . Around 1989 this American company was doing very well and became the leading exporter of gems in Sri Lanka .

Then in 1989 I was given a position by the Metropolitan Group of Companies to set-up a diamond cutting factory with foreign collaboration. This was a very promising project and when it was about to start the whole country started to suffer from terrorism which led the foreign investors to pull out.

At the end of 1989, due to the excellent vision of Mr Lester Fonseka, the Chairman of The State Gem Corporation at that time created a new position to absorb my knowledge to develop the gem industry of Sri Lanka . He appointed me as the Technical Adviser to the State Gem Corporation. Then I was serving at the Action Committee for development of the Gem Industry of Sri Lanka which was chaired by the Governor of the Central Bank (at that time Mr Neville Karunatilaka). The other members were Controller of Exchange ( Mr. Amarasingha), Secretary to the Ministry of Finance (Mr Liyanage), Principal Collector of Customs (H.B Dissanayaka), Mr N.U. Jayawardana, G.C.E.C (Mr Felix Perera), Export Development Board (Mrs Indira Malwatta) and some other government bodies. I was very happy to join the public sector as it gave me an opportunity study the financial and administrative regulations & procedures in the government.

My major task was to set up the Sri Lankan Gem and Jewellery Exchange as the 21 st Gem Exchange of the world and also to disseminate the knowledge of heat treatment of Geuda Gems. At that time this was almost a secret as these methods of treatment were dominated by Thailand who had the monopoly in the Geuda trade. Due to my persevering and hard working nature I took up the challenge.

The idea of setting up an Exchange was in file and discussion for 7 years prior to my joining the State Gem Corp. I was the project manager as well as the designer. Since the allocated funds were very limited I had to work with State Engineering Corporation, Colombo Commercial Company and other private sector companies rather than entrusting the project to a Private consulting company. This was a very interesting task and was very challenging as I had to work with Civil and Electrical Engineers, Carpenters, Masons, Electricians and many others. Thanks to Germany I was very keen on punctuality, perfection, workers relationship, budgeting and the systematic approach of events. Therefore, I made a record to complete the project which was in dormant for seven years within 3 – 4 months and also to save 20% of the allocated funds. This Gem Exchange was officially opened in Dec 1990. Then the Ministry of Finance and the State Gem Corporation decided to appoint me as the Chief Executive of the Sri Lanka Gem & Jewellery Exchange. Therefore, I had to work as the Technical Adviser at the corporation and also at the same time as the CEO of the exchange. This was also great as I always wanted to have work for the mind.

The setting up of the Gem exchange was going forward while organising lectures around the country to disseminate the knowledge of Heat treatment of Geuda. I was able to get help from many good Sri Lankans to demonstarate their work and to offer lectures with me in various parts of Sri Lanaka - Ratnapura, Monaragala, Colombo and Eheliyagoda. This programme was able to give a lot of courage and knowledge to Sri Lanka in the Gem trade to treat the stones on their own rather than selling it to Thailand .

After working for about 6 years in Sri Lanka , I took a decision to migrate to Australia . I am very happy about that decision as it gave me the opportunity to concentrate more on Vedic Astrology after working very hard in Sri Lanka for 5-6 years to help my motherland. Therefore, since 1991 I have lived in Australia .

Personally1992 was a great year because I was offered a challenging position by the Commonwealth Secretariat of UK as the Technical Adviser to the Government of Ghana to develop the value added gold industry of Ghana . This was a great position with a lot of authority and power that I used whole heartedly to uplift the Gold jeweller industry of Ghana . It was very challenging as I had to teach jewellery manufacturing, jewellery designing, marketing of jewellery etc. I even organised the first ever jewellery exhibition of Ghana (The Gold Coast). Then the Ghanian jewelers were taken to international exhibitions and at the end 1996 I was given a contract to promote Ghanaian Gold jewellery and handicraft in Canada and America . This was my highest professional achievement in life – to develop the gold jewellery industry of Ghana .

Unfortunately, it was not easy for me to find a challenging position in Australia . I have worked as a consultant to set-up a jewellery school in Perth , as an Assistant Manager of a Jewellery shop and also as the Business Development Manager for a Financial Adviser in Perth . But all these jobs were not for me as they were not research oriented and challenging.

After 1996, I almost gave up the idea of working as a scientist or the idea of practising what I had studied at the Uni. I am now practising (full time) astrology and can see a tremendous growth in Perth . I have studied over 4000 horoscopes in Australia , Singapore , Sri Lanak and Malaysia . I also offer postal readings internationally. I enjoy this much more than any other work I did in the past. I have a great passion for educating and delivering the knowledge of Vedic Astrology.

I think my highest achievement in life was to become a recognised astrologer (without a teacher) to practise this ancient spiritual & divine subject internationally after achieving high academic and professional levels in different other subjects. Spirituality is something very highly connected with the mind. Therefore, I believe if our mind is well organised and if we lead a spiritual lifestyle we can achieve a lot.

My vision is to further develop the Australian Academy of Vedic Astrology to disseminate the knowledge of Vedic culture so that the western societies will gain much happiness and learn how to find a balance between spiritual development and the scientific & technical development.

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My achievements since arrival in Germany (1971) – in a nutshell  

• Received 5 scholarships from Germany (1971 -1984) to do higher studies
• Went to Germany after completion of year 10 and competed with German students and received academic qualifications – BSc (Geology), MSc (Applied Geology), PhD (mineralogy), Dipl in Business management, Double qualification as a Gemmologist from UK and Germany
• Discovered a new mineral 1984 – Srilankite – in the list of minerals in USA
• Introduced and Lectured Gemmology at the Berlin University
• Received Fellowships & Memberships 
  • Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain
  • Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Germany
  • Fellow of the Geological Society of London
  • Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists
• Presently I am a:
  • Life Member of the Indian Council of Astrological Sciences (ICAS)
  • Member of the Australian Council of Vedic Astrology (ACVA)
  • Member of the International Institute of Predictive Astrology, ( IIPA , USA )
  • Member of the Planetary Gemologists Association Globa
    
• Project management and setting up the Sri Lanka Gem & Jewellery Exchange (21 st Exchange in the world) and to be the first CEO – 1990.
• Disseminated the knowledge of heat treatment of Geuda-gems in Sri Lanka
• First international expert (Commonwealth Consultant as Technical Adviser to the Government of Ghana ) to develop the jewellery industry of Ghana and to set-up showrooms, workshops and promoting Ghanaian jewellery to USA & Canada
• Introducing Vedic Astrology to the communities in Perth , Western Australia – (2000)
• Introducing lectures in Vedic Astrology to the University of Western Australia (2002)
• Introducing Vedic Astrology lectures to the Australian Institute of Holistic Medicine, Perth , Western Australia (2002)
• Published articles on Vedic Astrology in Australian magazines and journals
• Have given over 70 public lectures 3 TV interviews on Vedic Astrology in Perth , Singapore , Malaysia , India and Sri Lanka .
• Development of greater awareness and understanding of the value of Vedic Astrology among Australians and Singaporeans.
• Since 2002 practising as a visiting Consultant Astrologer in Singapore , Malaysia and Sri Lanka .
• Have set up a registered institute (2002) - Australian Institute of Vedic Studies, an educational center devoted to the greater system of Vedic and Yogic knowledge. The Institute promotes various related aspects of Vedic Science including Ayurveda, Vedic astrology, Vastu Shastra, Yoga, Meditation, Mantra, Tantra, and Vedanta with special reference to their background in the Vedas.
• Have participated in over 15 Exhibitions related to Astrology, Mind, Body & Spirit.
• Consulting sessions to be held in Hong Kong in the near future.
• Planning to offer my services in Auckland and Hamilton , New Zealand.

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