"So what's your sign?" Not just a trite pickup line, astrology in various forms, has been with mankind for a very long time. People of different countries and cultures, have often looked to the stars for guidance. Millions of people read their daily horoscopes, though most look like a mere form of entertainment. Some people really take the art of astrology very seriously and I think it is a valid means by which to predict the personality of a person, as well as their immediate future (although the most serious astrologers having horoscopes be reviewed as only entertainment) .
So where did all start? About 3,500 years ago, the ancient Babylonians were attempting to correlate the events on earth (eg good crop yields, bad diseases) with things they noticed in the night sky. This was not the first time this has happened, either. Other ancient cultures like the Maya and Aztecs, developed their own form of astrology too. Most of the astrology we see today, however, comes from India, Europe and China. All, however, is deeply routed, or deeply influenced by Babylonian astrology.
Early astrologers simply correlated with those events heavenly land. It was not until mathematical astronomy developed (which allows us to predict the movement of stars and planets), around 612-539 BC, that astrologers started to "predict" the future. It 'was also around this time that the "twelve" signs of the zodiac, were created. The oldest recorded horoscope dates from 29 April 410 BC comes from a plate of old clay that has been done for the emergence of a greek man. The tablet is very similar to the horoscope given out today. Even more similar, however, is the vague prediction given on the person. Parts of the board who are still alive, State:
"... Things go well for you."
Early Babylonian astrologers were called: Chaldeans. Would create shops in town, and offer their services to passersby. Interestingly, it was not until he has done in Greece, that the concept of free will was entered into the equation. The ancient Greeks viewed these jokes as Chaldeans and their predictions to be patently false. They refused to believe that the stars dictated their actions, and who had no free will. For this reason, astrologers adopted the belief that the stars can only show "possible paths" through life. This turned out to be a major advantage for the Chaldeans, and astrologers future, what he did for the Greeks. Now astrologers had a valid excuse for why their predictions do not always come true.
Finally, we come to the most influential man in astrology: Claudius Ptolemeaus. Also known as Ptolemy, wrote the book: Tetrabiblos. In it, Ptolemeaus tried to consolidate all the various aspects of astrology, when, in a sort of valid standards. Tetrabiblos is generally regarded as the modern "astrological bible" from which everything derives Western astrology.
Okay, now let's see where it all started, but what with the rise in popularity? Astrology was already in crisis in 1600, such as astronomy really took off. It was not until relatively recent events of World War I, that astrology really started to rise again. So, why is that in this day and age, with the knowledge available to most industrial nations and post-industrial, that astrology is so popular? Could actually be an effective means of telling the future, or the psychology of a person?
So far, the answer is an emphatic NO, by the scientific community. Despite the fact that a Gallup poll found that about 50% of Americans believe in astrology, there was no scientifically valid evidence to support this belief. On the contrary, there are a lot of counterexamples to this. In fact, there are many counterexamples to the validity of astrology, that most scientists dismiss as just a fun diversion. Yet, for the sake of closure, some examples which are shown below.
To begin, we have the arbitrary nature of astronomical symbols themselves. All the traditional planets of our solar system (ie none of the candidates recently discovered planetary), were named after Roman gods. This assignment was completely arbitrary. There may have been a logic behind (Mars is red, the war is blood, etc.), but overall there is no reason to think that just because Venus was named after the goddess of love, which should hold any influence on their relationships. If the "effects" of the planets on people, had a real relationship for the same planets, then Venus should be the king of bad gas, not love.
Other things to consider are the fact that many astrological terms, are emerging from a period when the Earth was believed to be the center of the universe (geocentric). As such, astrologers still talk of cycles and epicycles. How many times have you heard an astrologer (or individual mentality astrology) say that "Mars is in retrograde."
Then there is the fact that Uranus, Neptune and Pluto were discovered only in the last 250 years. Many astrologers say that the astrological techniques are accurate for many centuries. If planets on people, then we can not discount these three, that is to say nothing of the newly discovered "planet 10."
Another nail in the proverbial coffin is the miss of the mysterious 13th zodiac: Ophiuchus. This constellation falls along the ecliptic, and the houses of the sun during a month of the year (December). Yet modern astrologers choose to ignore the "serpent bearer" in favor of the 12 zodiac symbols. The reason they cite is the troubled history of the constellation. Ophiuchus is a point in the sky, which once housed multiple constellations. This argument tends to fall apart, however, considering that the ancient Greeks as the "father of modern astrology," Claudio Ptolemeaus, both considered valid by a constellation Ophiuchus. The most likely scenario seems to be that 12 zodiac symbols fits quite well with 12 months of the Gregorian calendar. As such, the reason for the omission seems to be convenience and aesthetics, rather than a real problem with the same constellation.
Two examples of where astrology fails the test of validity include studies of twins and the effect of precession. With twin studies, we see how two people born at the same time and same place are able to lead lives completely different from one another, even if the astrological horoscope should work for both. The effect of precession is even more interesting.
As the Earth goes around the universe, that "wobbles" along its axis due to the gravitational pull of the moon and sun. This oscillation can be compared to flickering we see when we turn a top. Even when the top turns very fast, you can still see him make a small circle about the area, is spinning. The Earth does something very similar to this. The geographic North Pole is an arc around 23.5 ◦, what is known as the ecliptic pole. This precession proceeds at a rate of 1 ◦ for every 180 years.
For this reason, the arrangement of the constellations in the night sky, no longer conforms to their original position in the tropical zodiac. Each astrological sign is now off by 1 month. So if one was born in the constellation Virgo, are actually in the constellation Libra, and so on. There is a distinct type of astrology called: Sidereal Astrology. It takes into account the precession of the planet. He does this by subtracting ~ 24 ◦ constellations. Both versions still suffer from the fact that the constellations themselves are not of equal size, and therefore not fit neatly into 12, 30 ◦ "slices" of the sky, that astrologers have assigned them. As such, the constellation overlap still occurs.
Other examples include the effect of gravity (why bother to pull of Saturn, when pulling the moon is much stronger!) The effect of the magnetic field (modern electronics produce magnetic fields much stronger than the Earth).
Astrology can be a fun and entertaining diversion for many, but you should always keep in mind that it is only for entertainment purposes.
"There is an absurdity of the past that can not be found flourishing somewhere in this." - Will Durant
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