The field of study known as astrology investigates how the movements and relative placements of various celestial bodies affect human affairs on Earth. We can think of astrology as the language of stars because it was derived from the Greek words for star (Astron) and word (logos), dating back to the third millennium B.C. This language and practice have evolved throughout thousands of years in a wide variety of cultures around the world.
The Sanskrit word Bandhu from the Vedic scriptures serves as the basis for Jyotisha’s description of the connection between the internal and external worlds. Jyotisha, like Western Astrology, looks at the relationship between the local and the universal. Existence on Earth represents the microcosm, while the cosmos at large represents the macrocosm.
Astrology: A Brief Overview of Its Past
While astronomy and astrology have often been used interchangeably, astrology was developed long before either field was conceived. In 1645 BC, in Babylon, astrologers began recording their observations. Western astrology, Indian and Jyotish astrology, and Chinese and best astrologer in Toronto have distinct histories and traditions that cannot be reduced to a single timeframe.
Chinese
Chinese astrology, like its Western and Indian counterparts, is said to have begun in China in the third century. Confucius observed, “Heaven throws down its bad or good symbols, and intelligent men behave appropriately,” which is similar to the Hermetic principle of “as above, so below.”
Western
In the second millennium B.C., ancient Babylonians are often credited as originating Western astrology. All-weather, including rain and sunlight, was attributed to the Gods in Babylonian mythology. As a civilization, Egypt also had a significant role in the development of astrology.
Early star maps date back to 4,200 B.C., showing that astrology has been used in Egypt for a long time. Because of its dual purpose as astronomical calculators and tombs for pharaohs who were also deeply interested in the stars, even the pyramids faced north. The fixed placements of the cardinal signs of Aries, Cancer, Libra, & Capricorn are often attributed to Rameses II. Legend has it that the Egyptians were the inspiration for several of the zodiac signs, including Aries and Leo.
Constant Zodiac Houses and Signs
European literacy increased, leading to the publication of astrological data in many journals and almanacs. Astrologers and pioneers of the modern science movement, Galileo and Copernicus, were among the writers who contributed significantly to the field. Unfortunately, as astrology’s popularity grew, so did skepticism about its veracity. When significant astrological forecasts did not materialize, interest in the practice declined.
Astrology did not have a renaissance until the delivery of Princess Margaret in about 1930. The London Sunday Express, a British newspaper, published the princess’s astronomical profile to mark the occasion of her birth, spawning the current newspaper horoscope feature.
Horoscopic
Horoscopic astrology, which originated in Hellenistic Egypt, bases its interpretations on a graphical depiction of the skies called a horoscope (from the Greek horoscopes, “a gaze at the hours”). A chart and diagram (below) depicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, astrological challenges, and angles just at the time of an event, such as for a person’s birth, is a common form of this visual depiction.
There are four primary sub-disciplines within Horoscopic Astrology: Natal, Mundane, Electional, and Horary.
The most popular kind of Horoscopic Astrology is called Natal Astrology. It is based on the belief that a person’s unique personality and life path can be deduced from a chart drawn up for their precise time and place of birth.
Named after the Latin word for “world” (Mundus), one of the earliest schools of astrology is known as Mundanes Astrology. Individuals, international politics (wars, assassinations, etc.), and natural disasters (earthquakes, volcanoes, etc.) are all seen to be related to Mundane Astrology.
In Electional Astrology, a person’s astrological profile is used to foretell the best time and circumstances in which that person should engage in a certain activity, such as starting a company.
Conclusion
The traditional sun types (Aries, Capricorn, Leo, Taurus) and maybe your moon and rising sign are the first things that come to mind when you think about astrology. All of that is a wonderful beginning, to begin with, best astrologer in Montreal. Still, it’s important to remember that the constellations you were born under-represent only one small part of a much larger whole.