The Horoscope: A Map Of The Psyche

The horroscope have been from the very beginning a tool for the study of individuality. Without relating the motions of the heavenly bodies to a specific time and place on Earth, you have no personal indication at all, only a general one that applies to everyone on the planet born on a particular day.

Individual astrology is not merely a study of what will happen to people in the course of their lives. It is the study of the whole human life and everything about it: birth, childhood, relationships throughout life, self-image, the images projected onto others, the calling (in both the highest and most mundane sense of the word), feelings, and the patterns of energy that one generates around oneself. In the final analysis, the study of horoscope.

The Computer Versus The Human Astrologer

We are often asked if we believe that the computer will or should replace the human astrologer. With regard to calculations, our answer is unquestionably yes. We believe the day will come when hand-done calculations will be as rare in astrologers' offices as they are now in banks. Why should human beings cast horoscopes or calculate transits when machines can do it faster and without errors? On the other hand, if astrology were nothing but calculations, it would be asronomy.

The most interesting part of astrology is the part that will never be done by anything but a human being: intrepretation. The computer does not interpret; it merely stores, retiieves and prints interpretive text written and filed in its memory by human beings. The advantages and disadvantages of astrology in consultation with an astrologer and by computer complement each other.

Therefore we recommend both to our clients. The advantage of consulting an astrologer is that he or she can speak directly to your life situation, answer questions and counsel you on particular problems. The disadvantages are you may not know of a competent astrologer nearby, and if you do, his or her interpretation of your horoscope will probably be delivered to you in impromptu oral form, and will probably cost you a high fee. The advantages of computer astrology are guaranteed accuracy of calculations, high professional quality, a written report that you can study and refer to at your convenience, and low cost.

The disadvantage is that an interpretation of your horoscope written by someone who does not know you requires more study and and thougt on your part to apply it to your specific situation in life. The process that astrologers call 'synthesis,' weighing, summarizing and combining the meanings of the various parts of a horoscope, must be done by you, since the computer can only retrieve stored data, it cannot make evaluations.

Is Astrology A Science? Is astrology a science?

One hundred ninety-two scientists, nineteen of them Nobel price winners, have said that it is not. "We the undersigned -- astronomers, astrophysicists, and scientists in other fields -- wish to caution the public against the unquestioning acceptance of the predictions and advice given privately and publicly by astrologers. Those who wish to belive in astrology should realize that there is no scientific foundations for its tenets." Are they right? Yes and no. It depends on what you mean by "science". Broadly defined, science is "possession of knowledge as distinguished from ignorance or misunderstanding, knowledge attained through study or practice, a department of systematized knowledge as an object of study (the -- of theology), somehting (as a sport or technique) that may be studied or learned like systematized knowledge" If that is what science is, then astrology is a science and the scientists are wrong.

Strictly defined, science is what scientists do. Does astrology fit that strict defininition? Let us look at what scientists do and what astrologers do and compare them. The typical scientist works in a government - or industry-funded research organization with other scientists observing some tiny field of the natural world as precisely as possible, reporting observations in the most concrete and unambiguous technical, preferably mathematical, language, testing hypotheses that might account for the data, published in specialized journals for other specialists.

The typical astrologer,on the other hand, is a freelancer who teaches, writes books or articles and/or counsels clients. The subject matter of astrology is extremely broad,encompassing almost all of human life. Few astrologers specialize. The language of astrology, except for a few technical terms, mostly borrowed from astronomy, is abstract, almost poetic in its richness of meaning, but accessible to ordinary peoply. Historically, science is quite new; 90 percent of all scientists who have ever lived are alive today.

Astrology is thousands of years old. Science is elitist; if you don't have a Ph.D., your ideas on astrophysics don't count. Astrology is egalitarian; everyone has a right toan opinion about the meaning of Pluto.

Science is self-critical; if two scientists disagree, both understand that one of them must be wrong. Astrology is pluralistic; if two astrologers disagree, both may be right in different contexts. Science is established; it is well connected to big industry, big government, big universities. Astrology is disestablished; although astrologers were once royal advisors, now they are outsiders at best, at worst, outcasts and outlaws.

Generally, in the Western world today, the closer one stands to the centers of power, the more likely one is to praise science and condemn astrology. It was not always so. Science is pragmatic; science can change the world and has done so, sometimes irreversibly, not always for the better. Astrology is idealistic; it is directed more to understanding the world than to changing it. (Idealism is not fatalism. The word includes you making choices and taking action.) Science is analytical; the scientist's way of answering a question is to break it down into smaller and smaller questions, seeking one that can be answered scientifically.

Astrology is holistic; it tries to put the universe together rather than pull it apart, seeking correspondences among remote planets, ancient myth symbols and our lives here and now. Science demystifies; scientists believe that if something is unexplained, we must explain it; if we cannot explain it, it may not exist.

Astrolgy realizes that the universe is full of mysteries, many of which are beyond human comprehension. Astrologers accept the fact that those correspondences that are the very foundation of astrology are not only unexplained, but may be unexplainable. Science is detached from its subject matter, or tries to be; scientists tend either to study non-human phenomena or to quit doing science. (Psychologists are often accused of both). Astrology is involved; astrologers tend to believe, as did Socrates, that the unexamined life is not worth living. Science is satisfying to most people; it can tell us a great deal about the natural world, but it cannot tell us very much worth knowing about ourselves.

That is why most people do not learn very much science unless they are required to by a school or profession. Astrology, on the other hand is satisfying; millions of people spend multimillions of hours and multimillions of dollars a year on astrology books, magazines, horoscopes, lectures and consultations.

This is the sort of hard fact that scientists like. Since no one forces people to spend time and money on astrology, we must assume that they believe it to be of some value to them. Either they are being hoodwinked by "the pretentious claims of astrological charlattans," as the 192 scientists assert, or astrology really is of some value to them, as they themselves assert.

If you believe that 192 scientists know better than you do what is of value to you, then you will accept their view that science, strictly defined, is the one true path to wisdom and astrology is bunk. If, on the other hand, you believe that you know what is of value to you better than 192 scientists do, then you will conclude that astrology, like art, literature, psychoanalysis, philosophy and theology, is worthwhile, although, strictly speaking, it is not science.

Symbol: Crab Ruler:Moon Colour: Smokey grey Metal: Silver Gem: Pearl