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Home , Conjunction (astronomy), Horoscope, Opposition (astronomy), Virgo (astrology), Western astrology, Zodiac

Astrology and : From to Resources

Daniel Kunth Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, France E-mail:[email protected]

Summary Key Words As science communicators dealing with astronomy we often find a strong interest amongst the public in — how the and directly Astrology affect our individual lives. Nowadays astrology is at odds with the scientific Society nature of astronomy, but this has not always been the case. Presented here is a background to astrology, to give a deeper understanding of where it has come from and why it has such an enduring place in all forms of global media.

Astrology has adapted to changes in soci- be considered a science. Astrological analy- constitutes a psychological alienation that ety throughout history, and as a result it sis, while sometimes quite sophisticated, can easily be over-exploited by those inter- continues to benefit from a positive public does not utilise any traditional scientific ested in financial gain. image. The commercial and social success methodology. Astrology even skips the nec- of astrology, largely driven by the media, is essary confrontation between hypothesis Throughout our own civilisation, astrology surprising given the dominance that science and proof, the opposite of a rigorous scien- has had both fervent and casual believers enjoys within our society. Its foundations tific approach. Astronomers oppose not only within nearly all social classes or cultures. exploit the widely held belief that pervasive the astrological assertion that cosmological From ancient times to the present, humans connections exist between the macrocosm positioning can directly impact a person’s have been challenged to predict and pre- (the Universe as a whole) and our microcosm destiny, but also astrology’s ignorance of pare for life events from the joyous to the (human society and social relationships). the physical reality, richness and variety of catastrophic. Faced by disorder on , Astrologers aim to decipher the hidden stars and planets. astrology proposes that an ordered and meaning behind planetary movements and readable structure exists in the firmament positions, which they believe correspond to Moreover, no serious statistical study has that is intricately involved with the saga of human personality traits or predict major and been able to establish the reliability of astro- human life. However, this belief does not minor life events. The lexical ambiguity, with logical predictions. In modern times, most of at all constitute a cosmic science because which these predictions are made, however, its adherents opt for a psychological inter- neither the tools of the astrologer nor their produces results that can be neither proven pretation of astrology in which the stars have subjective analysis allows the astrologer to nor disproven. set forth the keys to our destiny, personality deduce facts or test a theory. Is astrology and predilections at the very time of our therefore more of a social science? That is Without an objective method by which a pre- birth. The foundation of a belief in astrology to say a mode of knowledge in competition dicted result can be tested, astrology cannot is based upon a deterministic approach and with scientific cosmology?

Astrology and Astronomy: From Conjunction to Opposition CAPjournal, No. 5, 2009 Page 11 Some astrologers, discontented by their rel- of this technique in order to determine the Astrology face to face egation to the margins of official sciences, charted angles of a with respect to request academic recognition that would a sign. For example, a person born under with science allow the public financing of astrological the sign of might have the planet research and strengthen the scientific and charted in close proximity to their sign; the So now we have one cosmos to investigate, academic standing of astrology and its astrological characterisation of Mars as the studied by two wholly different schools of followers. The utilisation of computers, sta- planet of war could be interpreted as an indi- analysis. Many astrologers describe them- tistics and ephemerides of great precision cation of impending conflict. selves as scientists and insist upon the suggests an increasingly scientific prac- existence of genuine celestial influences on tice. However, an overwhelming majority the individual. They hope to demonstrate its of scientists completely reject the scientific A brief return to the past authenticity by using statistical studies that relevance of astrology and remain critical of are often ill-conceived and badly executed new superficial uses of technology. Historically, astrology and astronomy were (Fraknoi, 1989). not considered entirely separate fields; Astrologists have been at the centre of an much of an astrologer’s time was spent In borrowing astronomy’s methods of calcu- explosion in both traditional print and elec- working on charts or taking meticulous lation (the ephemerides of astrologers are tronic media that has bombarded readers measurements. Observations repeated scientific tables graciously made available with intense (and intensely lucrative) com- thousands of times allowed the prediction to the public by astronomers), this type of mercialisation of astrology. Astrology in the of certain celestial events and, as a result, astrology recovers a kind of scientific legiti- print media is especially common – today, terrestrial events (the Egyptian calendars macy that plays a role in its durability. The from the tabloid to the weekly, many news- were inextricably linked to the life of the Nile). confusion of genres and the questions of the papers offer an astrology column. Some Proceeding from the correlation between public are relayed by media debates where people read their as if it were celestial and terrestrial events, a control of astronomers and astrologers confront one fiction; others rely on it for predictions and the latter by the former was imagined. The another. The most critical arguments of advice that will help them manage their planets or “wandering stars” were perceived astronomers regarding astrology focus on personal or professional lives or perhaps as a coded communication from the deities; the misunderstanding of the physical real- how and when to plan a holiday. If so much hence observation of tiny planetary move- ity of the Universe and its richness. What is money is devoted to astrology, perhaps it ments was a way of interpreting the will of the the point of invoking the sky and its planets is because it fulfils an essential need that Gods. The , then the Romans, were if they are not taken into account for them- neither science, nor psychology, nor religion convinced of the divine nature of this kind of selves – that is, if the sky is without object? takes into consideration. astrology, also known as Chaldean, deriving from its ancient Sumerian origins. In ancient In essence, the symbolic language of astrol- , the regularity and often predictable ogy possesses some limits that keep it at Symbolism in astrology nature of celestial events gave birth to a a distance from the realities of the physical mathematical mysticism, a singular marriage world. Taking the example of the planet Mars: One of astrology’s great forces of persua- between mathematics and , which for the astrologer, the colour red evokes flow- sion lies in its symbolic perception of the has drawn upon, allowing ing blood, therefore war, and with it, death; world. This symbolism follows, more or less, it to endure to this . Modern astrology for the scientist, the colour red can have from observations made since antiquity has broken with the concept of gods, but multiple causal reasons, which can only be regarding the lustre or colour of astronomical has conserved the belief that a universal will determined by experiment. The first space bodies, the apparent vagaries of planetary can be perceived through careful evaluation missions to Mars attested to the presence of movement as well as solar or lunar proxim- of planetary movements. With the evolution on the surface of this planet, the colour ity. These symbols do not have a universal of both knowledge and scientific tools, the red was partly due to the oxidation of iron. value: each culture elaborates its own. gap has widened between the premises of Oxidation, however, required the presence astrology and those of science. of oxygen, most notably in the form of water. Most people know their sign: to be a Water is considered synonymous with life on sign signifies that at that individual’s Historically astronomers renounced unproven Earth so the question was then posed about birth, the (when projected on the sky) principles regarding the influence and con- the existence of life on Mars. Did life exist in was in the position corresponding to the nection between planetary configurations and the past? Such a hypothesis will be explored sign of Cancer. In order to be more focused terrestrial events. These became sources of during future missions to the red planet. on the individual or to help account for disagreement and eventually rupture be­­tween Mars-red-war-blood and death, the symbolic evident differences between those with the astronomy and astrology. Astronomy attempts chain that functions on analogy has made same sign, the sign is countered or nuanced to explain the cosmos; scientists are objective room for Mars-red-iron-water and life, which by other personalised elements, such as the observers. The astronomer builds upon or comes from strict ties with causality. sign that rises in the east at the rejects a theory based on available evidence, precise moment of birth or the position of while an astrologer’s work is controlled by a Mars, a simple mass of red stone covered the principal planets in the birth chart. doctrine of predetermination. with iron oxide, continues to be assigned the virtues of the god of war. We see how a Astrologers are equally interested in plan- During this transition, astrologers were con- relevant observation – that of colour – can etary transits, when planets pass certain fronted by shake-ups they had not foreseen: provoke a simple and elementary symbolic significant points in the birth chart. They the Earth was no longer at the centre of the interpretation. However, once the nature of consider them to be triggers of events or system, the separation between the sub- the planet is known and causal relationships decisions (marriages, divorces, births…) lunar and supralunar worlds was no longer revealed, that this associative game could already predicted within the chart at the time justified and distances exploded. According endure after having lost all real significance of birth. Transits occupy a key position in to the philosopher Alexandre Koyré, our does not cease to astonish. astrology because it is considered possible human world, once at the centre of every- to predict by calculation the principal transi- thing was transformed into a tiny player in an It is certainly not necessary to understand tions of a life. often make use infinite Universe. the nature of a phenomenon in order to

Astrology and Astronomy: From Conjunction to Opposition CAPjournal, No. 5, January 2009 Page 12 Astrology and Astronomy: From Conjunction to Opposition CAPjournal, No. 5, January 2009 Page 13

Beliefs / Age & Sex establish its existence, but the first question, 60% beyond all polemic, is to know if astrological Astrology influence is attested to by the facts. Women

36-45 18-25 Alas, astrologers hardly worry about submit- ting their hypotheses to a definitive test of Average 26-35 44 56-64 refutation. The exception is the psychological 46-55 40% test conducted by Carlson and published in the 1985 review in Nature, which tested the Men precepts and foundations of astrology. They 65+ effectively debunked all tested astrological principles.

20% Astrological predictions of catastrophic events rarely specify the size of disasters, location or precise date of occurrence;

Average because of this they can almost never be contradicted or disproven. Even so, at the Boy & Michelat, 1986 Paranormal beginning of each year we see in the media a wave of predictions that are rarely verified — 20% 40% 48 60% 80% a fact the public does not seem eager to take into account. A renowned astrologer once predicted a major catastrophe because the Beliefs / Profession 1999 solar coincided with the 60% Professional Earth flyby of the Cassini probe. A petition Astrology was immediately sent to NASA demanding Manager Worker that they modify the date of the mission! (Junior) School Teacher Office Employee Despite an abundance of evidence that Shop owner and craft person astrology is essentially a non-science, the Student 40% Skilled Worker academic platform of astrology does offer a Technician certain psychological depth. Predictions can Farmer Manager (Senior) be so ambivalent that there are an almost Professor unlimited number of interpretations on any given subject. Scientists regard such profu- sion as redundant, manifesting when the 20% number of possibilities exceeds the number of unknowns. The astrological lexicon, with numerous possible meanings, allows those who use it a good deal of latitude.

Boy & Michelat, 1986 Paranormal Science is at the same time knowledge, 20% 40% 60% 80% method and proof. It tries to transcend cul- tures and national affiliations and evolves without demanding any psychic belief as a Beliefs / Level of Education prerequisite for exploring the nature of the world. On the other hand, the term astrology 60% should merit the plural form; so diverse are Astrology its schools. Different and numerous disci- Secondary plines of astrology often contradict or ignore Junior each other without consensus or even the need for consensus. Infant Non-Scientific Degree 40% Public attitude

• 26% of people questioned in France Scientific Degree declare they “believe in the predictions of 20% astrologers”; among these, one third takes horoscopes into account in their lives.

• 41% of people surveyed declare they believe in the explanation of characters by Boy & Michelat, 1986 Paranormal astrological signs.

20% 40% 60% 80% • About 13% have consulted an astrologer.

Figure 1. Examining the relationship between beliefs and life factors. Credit: Boy & Michelat. The infatuation of the public for astrology state-of-being that he called semi-erudition. commercial exploitation of those seeking moves more and more towards a psychol- The semi-erudite would borrow some non- answers by those adept at the manipulation ogy aimed at liberating the potentialities of scientific shortcuts to find answers to ques- of a complex lexicon and a societal need for individuals. During a session, an astrologer tions regarding their future as a result of an stability can only be condemned. works in the field of affectivity, not rational- unsuccessful conversion to the system of ity. The client finds himself in the position of scientific thought. Some astrologers be skilled at fitting expectant believer, a mechanism by which astrological omens and portents within our he hears only what he wants to hear, and perceptions of reality, but the premises and discounts or ignores what does not fit in with The nature of astrology methods of astrology differ fundamentally his expectations. from those of science or even social science Astrology is not monolithic, but finds an and carry no scientific validity. Astrology remains at its heart the art of pre- anchor in a current of common thought dicting the future, a future written according linked to tradition. It weaves social connec- to the tendencies acquired at birth by the tions and allows a group of people to identify References influence of the stars. However, this depriva- themselves with a cultural community. tion of free will engenders alienation and a • Adorno T. W. 1994, The Stars Down to strong risk of psychological manipulation (it We can characterise two classes of astrolo- Earth and Other Essays on the Irrational in is not uncommon to meet people who con- gers. Those who call themselves astro- Culture, (London: Routledge) sult their astrologer before making any deci- logical scientists work under the premise sions). The determinist nature of astrology that they live in a world of physical causal • Caudron D. et al. 1996, The Mars Effect, leads to the irreducible paradox in which the influence between people and the cosmos. (London: Prometheus Books) astrologers work as so-called psychologists. Such astrology utilises a sort of patchwork The free will that the psychological astrolo- scientific analysis, which moulds concepts • Boy D. & Michelat G. 1986, Croyances aux ger advocates finds itself confronted by the pulled from other scientific fields to suit parasciences: dimensions sociales et cul- determinism of predictive astrology. How the astrological framework. More traditional turelles, Revue Française de Sociologie, can this personal autonomy be reconciled astrologers consider the sky to be a symbolic 43-1, 35-45 with the blows of fate or of bad luck that template, and willingly use some mythical or provokes in passing by the tales to expand their interpretations rather • Carlson, S. 1985, A double blind test of birth sign? The client waits for the answer to than expounding on a physical cause and astrology, Nature, 318, 419-425 be revealed to him. Astrological analysis, in effect methodology. Astrology can equally the great majority of cases, is performed for be perceived as a language that presents • Fraknoi, A. 1989, Your astrology defense pecuniary gain, which is why an astrologer words with the use of a specific vocabulary kit, Sky & Telescope, 146-150 formulates broad assertions, the opposite of and grammatical technique. The scientific generally prudent interpretations offered by refutations presented by astronomers only • Kunth D. & Zarka P. 2005, Astrologie, Que psychotherapists. fleetingly embarrass these astrologers for Sais-je no 2481, (Paris: Eds. Presses Uni- whom the object of astrology is not a study versitaire de France) The influence of the astrologer is not found of the cosmos but of man, at the same time solely in the private sphere. It has penetrated subject and object. • Peretti-Watel P. 2002, Sous les étoiles, rien the field of politics and civil society. Certain de nouveau?, Revue Francaise de Soci- businesses use astrology for recruitment. Fundamentally, the differences are glaring. ologie 43-1, 3-33 Astrology is judged sometimes to be more The astrologer scientist makes his art math- suitable to evaluate potential candidates ematical. The astrologer metaphysician than their CVs and motivation! A financial attaches no importance to a so-called scien- astrology, based on the apparent move- tific astrology. There is an in-between kind of Notes ment of has been all the rage, even astrologer, probably the most widespread, Translation from French by Emma-Kate Symons on Wall Street and astrology has even been for whom the practice comes as close as (journalist). English editing by Brooke Sing (writing used in fee calculation for certain insurance possible to penetrating intuition, of psychol- editor) and the CAPjournal editorial team. companies! In fact, for almost any human ogy and clever deductions. It is believed that activity or phenomena to which a great the cosmos imprints upon the individual at deal of uncertainty is attached, you will find the moment of birth and that the future of the astrologers eager to impart a sense of cos- individual is coded within that specific and mic order and to be paid for securing that unique formation. For this community, the peace of mind. astrologer is simply the interpreter who anal- yses the characteristics of the birth chart. Astrological belief is not the sole privilege of Such astrological discourse is extremely those who have access to thorough instruc- malleable, which explains its capacity to tion but thrives in a sort of in-between state adapt to cultural norms of modern or post- (Boy & Michelat, 1986). Statistically, a belief modern societies. This is again due to the Biography in astrology increases with a declared inter- rich and symbolic lexicon of astrology; a est in science, peaking among the salaried birth chart can be interpreted in so many Daniel Kunth is an astrophysicist, a special- middle class holding an intermediate- ways as to make impartial and unequivo- ist on extragalactic astronomy, mainly in the level degree, then lessens among those cal analysis impossible. Astrology seduces study of the evolution and formation of galax- ies. He dedicates a significant fraction of his with a postgraduate education (notably timelessly, not because it carries the scien- time to develop media outreach, give talks among scientists) (see Figure 1). The soci- tific weight of fact or provable hypothesis, but and write articles, in particular on the relation ologist Theodor Adorno (1994) pointed out because it places the appearance of order between astronomy and astrology. that belief in astrology is characterised by a upon an unknowable future. The unbridled

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