About

About this site

Welcome to Astrolosophy! There is a Facebook page, and a twitter account @astrolosophy.

This is both a sight for discussing Astrology as a philosophy, and discussing some concepts in Astronomy. The site mainly focuses on the philosophy of Western Tropical Astrology and is a community for discussing western approaches to logic and science.

Astro = The Stars

Losophy = The philosophy and wisdom of the stars
The Long Version

Astrolosophy is a name that I use to describe my unique perspective on astrology and philosophy. This is not a religion, a cult or anything that seeks to take you away from your personal beliefs. This site satisfies my desire to teach and practice Western Tropical Astrology. This site does not discuss Sidereal Astrology. Sidereal Astrology focuses on the mathematical coordinates of the constellations while Tropical Astrology divides the celestial sphere into 12 sector and uses the Cardinal points to determine when each Zodiac signs starts. This keeps the practice of Astrology from the precession effect known in Sidereal or Vedic Astrology.

Many scientists and skeptics tend to place the various branches of Astrology into one category and this usually results in an article that states that all of the signs have “changed,”  ”precessed,” or stepped backwards.

Our planet does experience precession because of the wobble of the earth on its axis. This is the reason that the North Star will switch from Polaris to Vega in about 14,000 years. Currently, precession causes our planet to go backwards through the zodiac changing signs every 2,150 years as seen from earth. If you do this 12 times, that is approximately 26,000 years (some sources argue 25,820). This is a precession of about 1º degree every 72 years.

Each instance of 2,150 years is called an “age.” We are currently in the age of Pisces, however, we are now on the cusp of Aquarius. So at about 2,150, the first constellation that will rise at dawn in the northern hemisphere will be Aquarius. 2,150 later it will be Capricorn and so on. Many non-main stream theorist believe that the Sphinx was created during the age of Leo about 10,500  years ago.

So if you stick to the idea that Astrology only has one type and sidereal is it, then all of the signs have changed, however, if you note the various types of Astrology and the different approaches used, you will find that precession only affects a small portion of a natal chart.

Mayan Astrology uses a different base number system to calculate its conclusions.  Venus (Ixchel) is a very important factor because a superior conjunction (Venus is in alignment with the sun but on the other side of the sun) is not the same as an inferior conjunction (Venus is lined up on the side closer to earth). Also the Aztecs and the Mayans wisdom involving the mythology of Venus is closer to sounding like what modern day astrologers associate with Mars (War, Action, Pioneering extroversion). More and more information continues to surface connecting the pyramid cultures from all over the world, including pyramids discovered in Bosnia.

Eastern Astrology, sometimes called Chinese Astrology, designates characteristics based on the whole year starting on the second new moon after the winter Solstice. Many Western Astrologers would correlate this to the cycle of the planet Jupiter, it changes about once a year. There is so much more to the many types of astrology and I will explore them more with participants on this site as time passes. Just agree to disagree on many topics and let’s focus on finding the answers together as allies.

What you will find on this site is experience and observations in astrology that I have accumulated since childhood. I have never been able to track down exactly where Astrology began. The closest that I have been able to conclude is Sumer or Egypt.Hathor’s Temple and the Ceiling of Denderah seems to be the western starting point. But there is evidence in the Mahabharata that suggests that it goes back much further than that. There are no records that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt where/when the practice of astrology originated or exactly how it works. Therefore I teach astrology like an art and philosophy not as an objective science. While I share Earth Science and data about the sun and planets in contrast to their mythologies, it is best that you draw your own opinions and do your own research. I am a strong advocate for life-long learning.

Remember, some science is still theory…I am still waiting to find out what happens beyond the “singularity” of a black hole.

Western Tropical Astrology (the type used primarily in this blog).

I have studied astrology since childhood and I understand it pretty well. However, I feel like an eternal student, there is so much to learn in astrology that I could study it to the end of my life and still not have every answer I want. That is why healthy skepticism on all theories always keep me grounded. After all, no one knows how the Chaldeans contrived this system or if it was some progenitor society that created it. This is still a mystery that we are looking to solve.

Isn’t there more than one type of astrology?

Yes, There is:

There is a difference between the types of Astrology:

• Western Astrology
• Eastern Astrology
• Sidereal astrology
• Tropical Astrology

• Mayan Astrology
• Egyptian Astrology
• Sumerian Astrology
• Vedic Astrology
• Horary Astrology
• Elective Astrology
• Natal Chart Astrology

And the list goes on.

But the simple astrology most people are talking about is Western Tropical Astrology. People usually receive it in the form of a horoscope. It is a good idea that you check your rising sign (the time and place you were born including latitude and longitude; tells the manner that you approach others or the world in general), Your moon sign (based on your birthday and location but not the exact time).
It would also be a good idea to know which zodiac sign your other planets are in because each potentially has a different effect on your character.

• Mercury (communication, business, commerce, the mind and how you think.)
• Venus (ethics, romance, passions)
• Mars (assertiveness, energy, how people approach and handle conflict)

Fact is that there is more information about the other planets that I haven’t mentioned and how their certain distance (geometric angles) from each other effects behavior. In theory, earth combined with the planet’s angles have different affects on different social or political and sometimes physical occurrences in our lives. These angles are called “aspects” and they take time to understand. However, once you see the aspect patterns often enough, you begin to figure out which angles TEND to correlate with certain behavioral or personality traits.

It also pays to know which houses each of the planets show up in. The houses are basically the 12 Zodiac signs spread out over a 24 hour day. This means that each sign stays in house a about 2 hours a day. It takes roughly 4 minutes for the 360 degree circle of the zodiac to advance forward.

Again for emphasis

You should be aware that many skeptics often mix up  Sidereal Astrology and Tropical Astrology  or simply don’t understand (or perhaps care to understand?) the differences.

In Sidereal Astrology, the 12 signs that surround our planet in a belt called the Zodiac also changes every 2,150 years. This is something called the “Precession of the Equinoxes.” The constellation that the sun rises in an hour before dawn, on the first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere, changes every 2150 years. Right now it rises in Pisces and by 2150 it should be rising in Aquarius (this is why you have heard so much about the “dawning of the age of Aquarius.”)

Now if you are using Tropical Astrology, you are dividing up the zodiac signs into 12 sections and doing it according to seasons. Each sign is divided up roughly into 30 degrees (days) I. E. Aries is the first day of spring, Cancer starts the summer, Libra starts the fall, and Capricorn starts the winter. Those signs are the cardinals (initiators) of the Zodiac.

Another point of controversy is that there are actually 13 zodiac signs. Ophiuchus, “The Serpent holder,” is left out of the signs on the path of the sun called the ecliptic (the only place where eclipses occur). Ophiuchus was actually dropped presumably because many in the “western,” world associated snakes as being a symbol of negativity, not as a sign of fertility like many non-western cultures. Another dilemma is that some constellations, like Virgo, are up to 44 degrees and then  others like “Scorpius” are only about 7 degrees (or days). Since Serpentarius (Ophiuchus) has a foot between Scorpio and Sagittarius, perhaps it was easier to just expand Scorpius to last up until Sagittarius starts? (approx November 21, depending on when the last leap year was).

There are many things that I believe work very well in Astrology and there are some topics that people are studying scientifically each day to make this very philosophical art more of an accepted unique form of science.

Politically, I see astrology as a philosophy because I don’t believe things can always be explained mathematically. However, I do recognize that sometimes we don’t have the tools to recognize the nuances that are discussed in the many types of Astrology. It is like the Egyptian Pyramids, how did man come out of the forest and erect huge pyramids in such a short period of time? Well I suppose that is the subject of a different post. :0

I am open for response as I don’t see myself as having all the answers, but rather someone who is committed to searching for the “truth,” however subjective that may be at times, from all available perspectives. After all, we each perceive the world subjectively, so it is important to try and see every angle we can on each topic.

Thoughts?

Read Dr. Percy Seymour: the Scientific Basis for Astrology

http://www.mountainman.com.au/astrology_01.htm

Look at the Nation Council for Geocosmic Research

http://www.geocosmic.org/