In my last posting, I looked at the birth chart of Adolf Hitler and found several reasons to not want him as my leader. Since I’ll be interjecting random bits of astrology every now and then in this blog, I probably should include an explanation of why I’m not ashamed to be giving credence to this ancient superstition.
I know there’s a problem here. I believe in science. I don’t believe in anything that contradicts science. I’m well aware that there’s no scientific evidence for astrology, and no conceivable physical mechanism by which astrological effects can be produced. I know astrology is based on a model of the universe that astronomers discarded a few centuries ago. Obviously, it can’t possibly work.
And yet it does. It seems to, at least. When I apply the methods of astrology to the positions of the heavenly bodies at a given point in time, I almost always obtain a meaningful result. It’s spooky. Skeptics will confidently assert that I’m misled by an optical illusion, but I’m equally confident they’re mistaken. Something mysterious and rather unsettling is going on here. But what?
Part of the answer, I believe, is that while scientists are indeed infallible within their area of competence, they can’t explain everything. They’re very good at figuring out material phenomena. But even after they’ve exhaustively itemized all the possible consequences of atoms moving in the void, there’s still something left over – something extremely important about the world that isn’t susceptible to scientific investigation and elucidation. That’s the fundamental premise behind all religions, and the starting point for a justification of astrology.
Heavenly observation was the mode of divination practiced by the Babylonians. Each of the planets was to them a Deity, and the stellar pattern as a whole conveyed the Divine Will, which mortals neglected at their peril. Astrology is therefore comparable to the Oracles of the ancient Greeks, and has the same frustrating quality of being a bit opaque going forward, yet crystal clear in retrospect. It differs from such techniques of prognostication as Tarot or Runes chiefly in two respects: (1) the depth and complexity of its interpretive schema and (2) the fact that its judgments are taken, not from a one-time shuffling of cards or casting of yarrow stalks, but from the general revolutions of the cosmos. I’ll expound on each of these.
(1) Speaking as a practitioner, it’s clear to me that the power of the astrological method derives principally from the symbolic system on which its readings are based: a succession of vivid, memorable images, arranged in a strictly logical, though intricate, pattern, honed over millennia by seers, ancient and modern, who possessed a profound knowledge of human nature, great practical wisdom, and a due appreciation of the Law of Karma, that what comes around goes around. Because astrologers express their more or less insightful guesses in terms of this framework, using these metaphors, they’re led to articulate truths they’d never have found otherwise. We don’t even need to presume anything supernatural to see how this could work.
When we add the possibility – to a Pagan, almost an article of faith – that there’s a level of psychic awareness far beyond what’s rationally accessible, and consider that astrological symbols may be powerful precisely because they provide an opening to this otherwise esoteric plane of reality, we can understand how astrology could be effective for reasons scientists can’t fathom.
(2) It’s true that modern astronomical science has determined stars and planets to be huge globes of gas and rock moving in obedience to the force of gravity, and this has tended to undermine belief in astrology. Pagans, however, hold spiritual powers to be immanent – that is, intertwined with the material world. One way of expressing this is to say that everything has a soul, all living things, certainly, but all things, especially big important things like rivers, mountains – and planets. Can it be that astrologers are in some way communing with the souls of the heavenly bodies?
Okay, I admit that’s far-fetched.
Nevertheless, I find I get the best results when I suspend disbelief and regard the celestial orbs as distinctive characters, with quirks and changeable moods – alternately helpful, malicious, brash, timid, agreeable, quarrelsome, furious, and calm – sometimes at war with one another, sometimes working together for the common good. I can see where the Babylonians were coming from on this.
In summary, for me, astrology is basically a way to participate in the wisdom of the ancient Pagan savants – to pay my respects, in other words. I can’t really say that I live my life by the stars. If I think I have a rational reason for doing something, I do it, and I don’t worry about the astrology. I own a daily planetary guide which I keep on my desk. When I have a big day I sometimes consult it, but I usually think of doing that too late for it to have any actual effect on my actions.
There’s a whole branch of astrology devoted to politics – it’s known as mundane astrology, meaning worldly. There are methods of foretelling the political events of the coming year, or the coming season, with regard to particular nations, and I’ll be doing that occasionally in this blog.
Next time, back to Steve Bannon.
# # #