What is astrology?

Almost everyone knows a little something about astrology. We’ve all been asked, “what’s your sign?” or perused the horoscope section of the paper. Most know our sun sign, the place where the sun was when we were born, as this is easily found with just the date of our birth. This is the sign we identify as when someone asks “what’s your sign?” For some, this sign and its descriptions seems to resonate fully. For others, the descriptions simply don’t seem to fit. This is because our sun sign is just one tiny sliver of the whole picture that makes up our horoscope. We’ve also got a moon, Mercury, Mars, Venus, Saturn and Jupiter sign and each one of these falls in a different “house” in our charts. AND each of these planets is in a geometric relationship with each other in what we call “aspects.” All of this helps flesh out the bigger picture of who we are.

We’ve all said something along the lines of “well, this part of me operates this way, but another part of me does this.” We recognize we are multi-faceted, and often contradictory. We think one way, but act another. We love one way, but need to be loved back differently. We learn one way, but teach another.

We are in a constant state of change, evolution and growth. And yet, we are always “us.” Our behavior and habits may evolve and grow, but who we are on a soul level always shines through. Astrology helps us to understand and embrace these aspects of ourselves.

So what exactly IS astrology?

Astrology is the study and interpretation of celestial bodies and how they relate to human affairs. This ancient art and science spans thousands of years and is found within every culture. It is a living science, with data being collected every day and every hour. We modern astrologers are blessed to have an almost endless supply of emperical data to tap into, as peoples from all over the world have been tracking and documenting the movement of the planets, and how they affect us, for thousands of years. As we advance and discover planets outside our visabilty, we have the opportunity to continuously add to this body of knowledge. The planets and their movements do not “make things happen”- they simply show a sympathetic relationship with what is already happening. Just like a metorologist can use satelites to see when a storm is approaching, we can look to the heavens to see what “cosmic weather” is approaching and use this information to prepare ourselves accordingly. It truly is As Above, So Below.

One thing astrology is not, is a religion or a belief system. Just like anything else, each astrologer brings their own interpretation and style to their analysis. But it doesn’t require belief or trust or faith. It simply is.

Just as the cycles of the sun and moon dictate life on this planet without our needing to believe in the changing of the seasons or the tides, so too do the outer planets dictate our lives without a need for our belief or understanding. That said, the more we DO understand it, the better we can weather the seasons of our life and the changing of our emotional tides.