| A Brief History of Astrology |
This is a brief outline of Astrology; reviewing the diverse cultures that utilized this valuable science. Throughout history man has been curious about his future; trying to make sense of his life and relationships. Astrology offers answers.
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"The study of the Sun, Moon, stars, and eclipses, began well before recorded history. The discovery of reindeer bones and tusks of mammoths from the Ice Age with notches carved on them picturing the phases of the Moon gives us proof that man was studying the sky. These bones and tusks are dated between 25,000 and 10,000 B.C.. The path of the stars was recorded 6,000 years before Christ was born. As early as 2767 B.C. a horoscope was cast in Egypt by Imhotep, the architect of the great Step pyramid in Saqqarah. That horoscope still exists!
Ancient Astrologers charted the movement of planets and stars and made predictions about eclipses, upheavals, famine and fortune. They developed calendars for marking and measuring the passage of time. We can still read star charts that were made by Egyptian Astrologers in 4200 B.C.!
In ancient societies, Astrology and religion were inextricably linked. The Astrologers were mainly priests. In fact, the Sumerian symbol for divinity was a star. Even the patterns that the stars form in the heavens were given names and worshipped as gods.
The Sun was considered the most powerful god. Because the Sun gave warmth, light, nourished plant life and made crops grow. Druids, Egyptians, Incas, and Hindus were all Sun worshippers.
The Hindu focus on the heavens dates back to 5,000 to 3000 B.C.. The Hindus trace their religious wisdom back to the seven ancient sages known as the Rishis (means to shine). The Rishis were the seven stars of the Big Dipper. Vishnu, is the reigning Hindu god of the Sun. It was claimed the Vishnu took various forms and visits the earth in the form of a Ram, a Bull and a Lion. These symbols were found carved on temple walls and were dated back 7,000 years. In modern Astrology, these symbols are still in use: Aries the Ram, Taurus the Bull and Leo the Lion. The Hindus found the 12 signs of the zodiac and this concept continues in the West today. They divided the sky into 28 equal parts called lunar mansions-each representing a passage of the moon through its 28 day cycle. The lunar cycle plays a great role in Eastern Astrology. They also believed in Karma and Reincarnation. Karma is the journey of the soul through various lives or incarnations. A person's karma is based on three things:
1) the influence in this life of acts committed in previous lives;
2) the influence of one's present acts on the next life;
3) unrealized acts.
Hindu Astrology is related to soul evolution. In my practice I find it an invaluable science for those who are concerned with spiritual growth.
The Egyptians became enmeshed in Astrology between 3,000 and 300 B.C.. The priest again held the secret to the heavens. But they created a complicated system of gods and deities that were hard to follow. However, many of the Egyptian symbols and deities reappear to this day in the occult and on Tarot cards which are still so popular.
The Egyptians were the first people to foretell a person's character by the date of birth. They also gave to each month, and each day a special deity. The Egyptians divided the sky into thirty-six pieces, which the Greeks later called dekanoi or decanates which means ten days apart. To this day astrologers use this to better understand the influences on the Sun sign of an individual. The Egyptians also named our star constellations for symbols of the zodiac which are still part of our modern Astrology today.
The examples are:
The sheep became Aries the Ram.
The bull became Taurus the Bull.
Two men clasping hands became Gemini the Twins.
The scarab became Cancer the Crab.
The lion became Leo the Lion.
The maiden became Virgo the Virgin.
The Horizon became Libra the Scales.
The scorpion became Scorpio the Scorpion.
He who draws a bow became Sagittarius the archer.
The goat became Capricorn the Goat.
The water bearer became Aquarius the Waterbearer.
The fishes became Pisces the two fishes.
One of the most famous astrologer-Kings in ancient Egypt was Ramses II (19th dynasty). At his death in 1223 B.C. Ramses's body was place in a sarcophagus covered with astrological symbols. We have since learned that Ramses tomb was constructed so that on a certain date the rays of the Sun would find their way in to the very pit of his grave. To this day the sun is making the same contact. When Ramses VI (successor of Ramses II) died, a star map drawn in the shape of a seated man was place on his tomb. When discovered modern scientists realized by using this star map they were able to chart the journey of the stars for each hour of the night throughout the year.
The Chinese were untouched by outside influences and they developed their Astrology along somewhat different lines than the Egyptians, Chaldaeans, Babylonians and Greeks. Life in ancient China revolved around the Emperor. His title was Son of the heavens, and he was the absolute ruler. Confucius wrote of the Emperor: The sovereign who rules by virtue in his place while everything turns around him. It was the Emperor who maintained good relations between the forces of heaven and human beings here on earth. Historians mark the beginning of Chinese Astrology during the reign of the Divine Emperor Fu His around 2800 B.C.. The bamboo annuals were found in the grave of a Chinese prince in 281 AD tell of a Emperor Yao, who named the 12 signs of the Chinese Zodiac and divided the sky into 28 mansions of the moon, which the Hindus had done earlier. The Chinese zodiac differs in its 12 symbols. The 12 year cycle is sometimes called the Yellow Road of the Sun. The 12 animals are the rat, ox, tiger, hare, dragon, snake, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog, and boar. Chinese Astrology is not content to rest with a division into 12 animals. There are also five elements; wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. A Chinese horoscope is divided into interlocking sets of the number 10 and 12 (10 celestial stem signs and 12 terrestrial branch signs). In addition, the ancient principle of yin and yang (negative and positive forces) is very much involved in charting a horoscope. Astrology has been an integral part of everyday life in China. Even communism which prides itself on rationalism has made very little progress when it comes to discouraging Chinese peoples faith in the zodiac. The Chinese know their animal year and all major decisions in life are still made according to Chinese Astrology. This is especially true when the Chinese seek guidance about whom to marry and when. Chinese Astrology is also used to determine when to conclude financial agreements, begin journeys, and start building a new house and even where to bury the dead. This is all very similar to Western Astrology which even though different, answers and guides the same way. The Eastern Astrology of the Chinese and the Hindus are lunar related. Western astrology is more sun related.
The roots of Astrology can be traced back to the Sumerians in the ancient city of Babylon between 4000 and 125 B.C.. This region was once known as Mesopotamia. The southern part was called Babylonia and the northern part was called Assyria. The Sumerians were the first people to settle the area, sometime around 4000 and 3500 B.C.. They were mostly shepherds and farmers who did lots of sky gazing. They soon noticed a connection between the heavenly cycles and the cycles of growth in plants and food. They soon started to worship three all important gods: Sin the moon god, Shamash the Sun goddess and Ishtar the goddess of fertility, which was Venus. (Notice the reverse in gender between the sun and moon). As in most early cultures the Astrologers were the priests and were not only religious leaders but leaders of government as well. Each priest ruled his separate province called city-states and dispensed divine wisdom to his followers. Large observatories or watch towers called ziggurats were built for the priests to study the movement of the stars and planets. The ziggurats in the cities of Ur, Uruk and Babylon were almost 300 feet high. Today we can still visit a ziggurat built by King U-Nammu during 2079-1960 B.C.. It is widely believed that the biblical story of the Tower of Babel describes the building of a ziggurat and tells in mythic terms the folly of trying to master the secret of the heavens. By the time the Babylonian culture was in full swing between 2800 and 500 B.C. Astrology had become more sophisticated. Besides the Sun, Moon, and Venus, four other planets had been discovered these were Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. The planets were given individual characteristics and properties and a god was assigned to each. For example Mars, reddish in color, became identified with the fiery god of war. Venus seen early in the morning, was in a sense giving birth to the day was associated with love and fertility, feminine energy. To this day Mars and Venus have there same characteristics in modern Astrology. The four seasons were also given symbols, with calendar divisions which date back to the 12th century which are still in use today. The invention of the modern zodiac is credited to the Babylonians. Cicero, the famous Roman orator, lived during the last century B.C. had an explanation for why the Babylonians were such acute astrologers: "They reside in vast plains where no mountains obstruct their view of the entire hemisphere, and so they have applied themselves mainly to that kind of divination called Astrology." It was the early Babylonian priest-astrologers who set down the basic principles of Astrology which has remained almost unchanged today. They divided the sky into 12 equal parts, through which the Sun and Moon traveled. One theory is that they patterned the 12 divisions after the 12 months in the Babylonian year, one month for each lunar cycle. The sky was thought of as a circle of 360 degrees with each division being 30 degrees. This is the way astrologers measure the sky today. The 12 sky divisions or signs as we call them were given names: Aries, Pleiades, Gemini, Praesepe, Leo, Spica, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. The Greeks later changed Pleiades to Taurus, Praesepe to Cancer, and Spica to Virgo. These names are still used for the 12 signs of the zodiac.
Each of the signs had/has a precise influence over events on the earth. Each ruled a plant, an animal, a precious stone, and a color.
The Babylonians also named the 12 houses. These are divisions of the zodiac that govern various areas of life.
The Babylonian houses were 1; life 2; riches and poverty 3:brothers 4; parents 5; children 6; health and illness 7;wife and husband 8; death 9; religion 10; dignities 11; friendship 12; enmity. With some exceptions these are more or less what the houses in modern Astrology govern.
By the time of the reign of King Assurbanipal in the middle of the 7th century B.C. the basic tenets of Astrology had been set down. One of the reasons we know so much about King Assurbanipal is that he left behind a great library, much of which survives today. Astrology was mainly used for wide-scale predictions: weather forecasts, floods, good and bad harvests, eclipses, war and the fortunes of the king. Around the 5th century B.C. astrology became more personal. There is a Babylonian horoscope dated 409 B.C. that is still in existence. In Babylonian Astrology the constellation of Cassiopeia rules over Syria and Palestine. This constellation was called the woman with child because every 300 years it produced an unusually bright star. Astrologers calculate that this star appeared after the birth of Christ, and may be the very star that the three wise men (Astrologers) followed to the manger.
The Jews of that era are also known to have practiced Astrology. Among modern day Jews the expression mazel tov is used on occasions of joy, such as birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries. Few people know that mazel tov has its roots in Astrology. The word mazelot in biblical Hebrew meant "Sign of the zodiac" or constellation and so wishing anyone mazel tov literally means to wish them a "good constellation."
The Greeks were not patient observers of the skies as the Babylonians were. It wasn't until the 6th century B.C. that the philosopher Pythagoras wrote his famous Harmony of the Spheres. He said that the universe was a giant sphere that contained the earth and the air around it. He believed that the Sun, Moon and planets revolve in concentric circles, each fastened to a sphere or wheel. The swift revolution of each of these bodies causes a musical hum, in the air. Each planet humming on a different pitch, depending on the ratios of their respective orbits-just as the tone of a string depends on its length. Two hundred years after Pythagoras, in the 4th century B.C. a Greek astronomer and mathematician named Eudoxos introduced a calendar, based on the Babylonian one. Eudoxos also divided the sky into twelve equal signs. He was the first Greek astronomer to explain the movements of the planets in scientific terms. Our word planet, incidentally, comes from the Greek plenetes, meaning wanderer. While the stars remain fixed in their positions in the sky, the planets move in their orbits, so they were thought of as travelers who crossed the sky and collected souls. (Essentially, I feel we are periodically "collected by the planets" during the times that planets are transiting our natal charts so that we can examine our lives and make the necessary changes.) He also believed as Pythagoras that the planets were held in place by spherical shells that kept them on their paths.
A turning point in Greek Astrology came when Alexander the Great conquered Babylonia in 331 B.C.. We know that Alexander consulted Astrologers. There is a legend that when he was about to be born, an Astrologer named Nektanebos asked Alexander's mother to hold back the birth until all the stars and omens were in place. And when Nektanebos gave his consent, Alexander was born. (I can't imagine telling a woman in labor to wait to give birth but it is a legend.) Alexander wanted to conquer Babylon. It was predicted by Babylonian Astrologers that Alexander would die in their city. To avoid this fate, he entered the city by the west gate, which was apparently not the expected route for a conqueror. The prediction did not come true and Alexander went on to annex all of Babylonia, Persia and India. However, when he did die, in June 323 B.C. at the age of 33, it was in Babylon.
The Greeks took over Babylonian Astrology and made it theirs. They gave the five planets new names, taken from the gods of mythology. Later, the Romans renamed the planets again, according to their gods of mythology. The Roman names are ones we use today that is the English translation of the Latin names. The father of modern astrology is Clauduis Ptolemy. In 140 AD this Greek astronomer from Alexandria wrote a four volume treatise called the Tetrabiblos (meaning the 4 books) in which he set down his observations and theories about the universe. It is considered the first modern textbook on Astrology. Ptolemy described the function of the planets, houses and signs of the zodiac. He formulated the theory of aspects, in which distances between the planets in one's astrological chart have a good or bad influence. The study of aspects is still an important part of modern Astrology today. Ptolemy's teachings remained unchanged for the 1,400 years. It was not until 1543 when Nikolaus Copernicus published his treatise, that Ptolemy's vision of the earth as the center of the universe was seriously challenged.
Astrology was brought to Rome by Greek slaves whom the Romans took captive. These early Astrologers were sometimes known as "astrologers of the circus"; the Romans liked to bet heavily at chariot races and brought along their Greek Astrologer slaves to predict the winners for them. Astrology soon became a topic of great interest to Romans. By the time of Julius Caesar (102-44BC) just about every important Roman statesman and military man had his horoscope cast. Julius Caesar had a detailed horoscope prepared for him, and Mark Antony's Astrologer was a "gift" to him from Cleopatra. Caesar, in fact, wrote a book about different kinds of divinations. He was warned of his death by someone versed in Astrology. The Roman emperors who followed Caesar took Astrology very seriously. Augustus (27BC to 14AD) ordered coins to be minted that bore his astrological sign of Capricorn. Several Astrologers predicted that he would be a ruler, one at his birth and the other upon meeting him and looking at his birth date. Tiberius (14-37 AD) who became emperor after Augustus, studied the horoscopes of political rivals. If he saw any that were likely to gain power in the future, he had them put to death. Throughout Roman history reliance on Astrology is documented.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, Astrology went into decline and it did not recover until 1200 AD. One of the reasons for its decline is that Astrology became linked with superstition during the Roman era. When Christianity became widespread, Astrology was opposed as the work of the devil and its study vigorously discouraged. St. Augustine (354-430), an early Church member, vehemently preached against the practice of Astrology. Though there was little Astrology practiced in Europe during this time, it did not disappear completely. It merely changed its principal residence for a time. In the Arab world Astrology remained a serious science. One of the great and most renowned Arab Astrologers is Albumassar (805-886), his writings turned the tide back to Astrology when translations of his theories found their way into Europe.
Another influence in turning the tide was the renowned church figure, St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). He lent legitimacy to the study of the stars when he declared, "The celestial bodies are the cause of all that takes place in the sub lunar world."
By the time of the Renaissance, Astrology was in full bloom again. The Catholic Popes now used Astrology as a matter of course and Pope Leo 10th (1475-1521) had many Astrologers on staff at the papal court. The de Medici family; the ruling princes of Italy from around 1400 to 1600, were great patrons of Astrology. Catherine de Medici was influenced by Nostradamus, the famous French Astrologer and physician. He correctly predicted the death of her husband Henry 2nd and its exact circumstance, four years before it happened.
In the sixteenth century, an imprisoned woman facing death had her horoscope read by Dr. John Dee. He told her that she would not only live but she would become queen that was Queen Elizabeth the 1st. Dr. Dee continued to advise her throughout her life.
One of the most famous names in astrology was William Lilly, (1602-1681), an English Astrologer who accurately predicted the Great Fire of London.
Toward the end of the seventeenth century Astrology again fell out of popularity more likely because it seemed to be linked to superstition and occultism. I feel people lacked knowledge about this science and they were more dominated by religious superstition.
During 1781 the planet Uranus was discovered and astrologers studied the effects of this planet and incorporated it in the personal horoscope. Uranus is associated with modern science, invention, the discovery of electricity, humanitarian movements, and revolution. If we look at history during its first 20 years of discovery we can see its effect on our world.
During 1846; Neptune was discovered. Its discovery was associated with a renewed interest in spirituality. Hypnosis became a new medical treatment, and anesthetics were first introduced into general use. Sigmund Freud was born ten years after the discovery of Neptune. During his lifetime, Freud's theory of the unconscious and his new science of psychoanalysis revolutionized the treatment of mental disorders and changed the way we viewed ourselves.
In the 1875, Madame Helena Blavatsky founded the Theosophical Society which brought Astrology back into prominence. The society encouraged the study of comparative religions and investigated the unexplained laws of nature. The Theosophical society played a large part in the revival and intellectual interest in Astrology, and many prominent Astrologers of the day were active in the society. Through their participation in the Theosophical society great insights were made in our understanding of modern Astrology.
At the turn of the 19th century Astrology was brought to millions of people by Alan Leo an Astrologer who published The Astrologer's Magazine which was later renamed Modern Astrology. He brought Astrology to the layman.
Evangeline Adams who was called the first American Astrologer. In 1914 Miss Adams was arrested and brought to trial for fortune telling. Miss Adams told the judge that Astrology was a science and she could prove it. She was given an anonymous birth date to interpret. Miss Adams' reading was so accurate that the judge congratulated her, and claimed that she raised Astrology to the dignity of an exact science. The birth date was that of the judge's son. He dismissed the charge against her. She became very popular writing books and doing radio programs about Astrology." 1
1 Woolfolk, Joanna. The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need. New York: Stein and Day, 1982
It was in 1930 that Pluto was discovered and so was modern psychology. " I believe that Astrology's ability to chart a person's childhood experience and personality completely lends itself to the realm of psychological insight. It was the discovery of Pluto that set us all on a course of greater meaning in life, to look within and find ourselves, to change ourselves and our world if necessary to reach our greatest heights. It is also the planet of rebirth and destruction. It influences masses of humanity, groups of people, and large organizations. Mass media and giant conglomerates are in its domain. Pluto also rules the elements of nature such as earthquakes and volcanoes. Its negative influence is shown in mob violence, demonstrations, murder, wide-scale terrorism and bombing. It is about nuclear fission which destroys and creates. Clearly, we are living in the age of Pluto."
"Throughout our history man has been curious and concerned about his future. We have been trying to make sense of our lives and our relationships. Astrology as a science offers this. In our time we are experiencing a world that seems even more uncertain then it did 100 years ago. In this uncertainty it would be great to know what direction to take and when there is an opportunity at hand. It would be important to be able to understand the people in our lives so we can feel a connection to them and also be understood by them as well. Astrology offers this. Many people view Astrology today as a disjointed computer print out or a newspaper blurb about our sun sign which more often then not doesn't connect with us. Because of this, most people can't see how relevant and valuable astrology is. I believe an Astrological consultation can bring understanding, serenity and empowerment to any situation one is experiencing!"©
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The featured image is the Moon.
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"Astrology is assured of recognition from psychology, without further restrictions, because Astrology represents the summation of all the psychological knowledge of antiquity."
Carl Jung
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