Over the last century, little else seems to have generated as much
controversy as the belief in and practice of astrology. Not only have the
majority of the world’s religions claimed that it is ‘evil’ and was
spawned by the devil, but the scientific community has claimed that it is
– at best – a superstition; at worst it is said to be inaccurate and those
who offer these services, little more than charlatans.
It's understandable that most laypersons don't and can't understand the
intricate nuances of astrology. However, it's infuriating – especially
from an astrologer’s point of view – when those who actually know little
or nothing about it attempt to discredit it.
Generally, these individuals are merely mimicking what they've heard
others say. While it’s true that many of those debunkers are 'scientists,'
we need to keep in mind that even scientists can be and often have been
wrong.
As most of us are no doubt aware, Mankind does not have all the answers,
which is one reason why academic textbooks are constantly being revised. A
good example is Einstein and his Theory of Relativity, which is even now
being disproved by the String/Super String/M Theory. Scientists now
realize that the laws that govern the 'universe' as we know it may be more
localized than we, at first, believed. There may be no law of gravity (for
instance) in another part of our universe.
In fact, recent research indicates that this very well may be the case.
Additionally, according to the new physics, the fact that there are other
dimensions -- multiverses -- which operate on different 'laws' should be
enough to indicate that there's a very real possibility that astrology
works off of one of these same principles.
What's misleading about all the so-called 'studies' that have been
conducted on astrology and its validity or lack thereof, is that the
'scientists' who have conducted the studies focus mainly on one aspect:
Sun Sign astrology. The fact is, there is so much more to take into
account in an individual’s birth chart than just the Sun Sign.
Over the last one hundred years or so only one or two studies have, in
reality, been conducted using a minimal number of control subjects and
have given precious little source information which would prove beyond the
proverbial shadow of a doubt that astrology is not efficacious.
I’ve been an astrologer for over 25 years, and during that time I’ve been
able to verify its accuracy through data collection and comparison of the
numerous astrological traits, characteristics and propensities of the
various zodiac signs.
Further, I am currently back in college in order to obtain a degree in
counseling psychology and have encountered this same prejudice even with
psychologists and other scientists and academicians. While they espouse
following empirical methods, they rarely follow these came criteria
themselves. In fact, their dialogue with their students actually runs
something like this:
===============================================================
Cause and Effect*
STUDENT: Why does science accept electricity without knowing what it is,
professor?
PROFESSOR: Because we have proved by its demonstrable effects that it
exists, my boy.
STUDENT: Science also accepts magnetism without knowing exactly what it
is, doesn't it, professor?
PROFESSOR: Yes, although we do not know whether it is force, fluid or
quality - we have proved it by its demonstrable effects.
STUDENT: And Life itself, professor - science says it doesn't know its
cause, but it recognizes its existence, doesn't it?
PROFESSOR: Of course! Anything that has a demonstrable effect must be
accepted.
STUDENT: Then the demonstrable effects of astrology are entitled to
serious scientific consideration, aren't they professor?
PROFESSOR: Certainly not! Science will not accept astrology on the basis
of mere demonstrable effects!
* Astrology, Science of Prediction, Sidney K. Bennett, © 1945, Wynn
Publishing, Los Angeles, CA. and Chart Interpretation Handbook, Stephen
Arroyo, © 1989, CRCS Publishing, Sebastopol, CA, USA.
===============================================================
A bit contradictory, wouldn't you say? The truth is, there are
demonstrable effects with astrology, just as there are with electricity,
magnetism and life -- all intangible substances we can not see with our
physical eyes, and yet whose 'demonstrable effects' we can see, and which
we know are there.
Another glaring red flag is that none of the so-called studies were
conducted by anyone who knows enough about astrology to make a qualified
statement as to its validity. Additionally, there are numerous forms of
astrology. It is so detailed and complex that it takes an astrologer years
(if ever!) to master any one form.
However, since there have been only 'two' studies which debunk astrology,
I will reference 'two' different scientific sources which have proven its
efficacy: 1) the astronomer Percy Seymour, one of Britain's leading
astronomers, wrote of its validity in his book, Astrology, the Evidence of
Science. Another source is the voluminous studies of the French
psychologist, Michel Gauquelin. Two more excellent sources of validating
data come from Astro Databank and from Avalon School of Astrology, among
others .
But do the scientists who have attempted to disprove astrology reference
the validating studies? Of course not. Because if they did it would
disprove their own blather.
Because of this issue, I am currently working on what may well turn out to
be a major psychology paper (possibly my dissertation) which will prove
the efficacy, and thus, the validity of astrology.
And just for the record, as far as Sun Sign astrology is concerned, it's
not that it's not accurate; the problem is that only one planet (for
simplicity, the sun is considered a planet in astrology) is used, in this
case the Sun. However, our natal charts include all the planets in the
solar system, including the Moon and several asteroids. Therefore, when
calculating a chart, much more is taken into consideration than just the
Sun. The fact is, our Rising Sign or Ascendant and our Moon sign can
significantly modify or offset the effects of the Sun sign, as can the
signs in which our Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Neptune, Uranus, Pluto
and Chiron may fall.
If one is going to argue about the pros and/or cons of an issue, at least
study it so that you do, indeed, know whereof you speak.
© 2007 Kat Starwolf All Rights Reserved
Kat Starwolf is a practicing relationship and empathic counseling
astrologer, researcher, metaphysician and avid reader of anything
pertaining to human inter-relatedness, emotions, sexuality, sociology and
psychology. She is also currently working on her degree in counseling
psychology. She may be contacted at 400 Capital Circle SE, Suite 18-255,
Tallahassee, Florida 32301, by phone at 850-980-0250 or via her website
www.starwolfastrology.com
|
