Essay: The Legitimacy Of Astrology

Introduction

The theory of astrology has been around for several millenniums, dating back to 1800BC; it was an interest and wonder commonly shared all over the world during this time. And yet, as we approach modernity, astrology has turned into one of the most disputed over topics in science. People seem to question astrology’s validity and source of accuracy, particularly: how can a constellation define who you are. Although the study of astrology is backed up with years and years of research and analysis, it still remains unknown as to how the invisible forces in our universe determine how we act and who we are. However, humankind is notorious for disproving things that go against personal beliefs and knowledge; this can be seen throughout

Nonetheless, throughout this essay, I will explore the historical legitimacy of astrology and how it has come to be the one we know best by presenting not only my own personal exploration but also the research done by other scholars.

History According to Faust (2011), the earliest tangible records of astrology date back as far as 1800 BC, Babylon. However, during this period, Babylonian astrology was used in the affairs of state and was not applicable to regular people; at this time, “the sky did not necessarily cause things to happen, but only provided signs— omens” (de Saint-Germain, Comte, et al., 2011). The Babylonians thereby began accumulating vast amounts of astrological data, thus creating the Enuma Anu Enlil around 1500BC. The Enuma Anu Enlil was a catalogue (etched on 70 clay tablets) of over 7000 sky and weather omens with their possible outcomes. The Babylonian sky gods were manifested in seven planets or “wanderers” now known as Mercury, Mars, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, the Sun and the Moon. The gods were believed to present themselves in the celestial images of stars (or constellations) with whom they were associated with. By 1100BC, the text was completed and had made its way to India by the time of Christ

As stated by Gerwick-Brodeur and Lenard (1997), “astrology studies the movements of the Sun, Moon, and planets and their connection to everyone and everything on Earth” (Gerwick-Brodeur & Lenard, 1997, p. 1). It contains the idea that the universe is one organized and harmonious embodiment and that the energy of the individual celestial bodies in the universe influence who we are and give meaning to our lives. In theory, astrology proposes that everything in the universe shares the same energy and thus, when we are born, we take on that unique combined energy from how the planets are aligned at the time of our birth. Our modern astrological philosophy is comprised of the basic twelve zodiac signs: Capricorn (Dec. 22 to Jan. 19), Aquarius (Jan. 20 to Feb. 18), Pisces (Feb. 19 to Mar. 20), Aries (Mar. 21 to Apr. 19), Taurus (Apr. 20 to May 20), Gemini (May 21 to Jun. 20), Cancer (Jun. 21 to Jul. 23), Leo (Jul. 24 to Aug. 23), Virgo (Aug. 24 to Sep. 23), Libra (Sep. 24 to Oct. 23), Scorpio (Oct. 24 to Nov. 22), Sagittarius (Nov. 23 to Dec. 21). Each zodiac sign belongs to a coordinating constellation and are named after Greek mythological characters whose stories commonly end with them being put in the sky in honor. The twelve signs are thus divided into specific days within each month— this arises from the fact that