I must admit that I'm not too terribly familiar with astrology, but it definitely interests me. Where's a good place or book to start? I know some of you guys must be into this stuff!

I think astrology is a hoax without scientific validation but since we 're so fortunate to live in the age of Hubble and the Large Hadron Collider, you might want to explore the works of Stephen Hawking on Quantum Mechanics instead of mystical and spiritual theories from the past.

IDJ, I think that astrology at best is the ability of humans to tap into cosmic forces and help us to move with the forces of nature and the universe rather than struggling against them. At its worst, astrology can be charlatanism and inept or insincere practitioners can give it a bad name. There was a time in history when astronomy and astrology were linked in study by early scientists. At some point they got separated but the ability to read the doings of humans in relation to the physical forces that affect the earth is intrinsically sound and legitimate in my view.

There are a couple of members here who are quite knowledgeable about astrology. I am an interested person who knows a bit about it but does not do charts or anything like that, which involves mathematical precision. I've found astrology to be a very useful guide in my life.

The type of pop astrology that looks strictly at a person's sun sign does not cover the territory well at all. The positions of all the planets at the time of one's birth is important and that individual's relationship with the changing planetary aspects throughout life can be revealing and helpful. There are also planetary vibes to the times that can help to explain why certain trends or eras are prevalent in society and how to best steer through those times. I figure we need all the help we can get in trying to move ahead and do the right thing and astrology can provide some assistance.

I'm a numbers gal myself. (numerology)

I don't get into astrology too much except the daily horoscope in the newspaper. For me it's more on the entertainment side. But as FiveO mentioned, there is a method to it which when done right, can guide people. I think that's the key word .... *guide*. Same thing in numerology. I don't believe in it for future and/or fortune telling.

I'm a skeptic in the case of astrology. Frankly, don't understand this infatuation of a " new age" with astrology, crystalls...ext. We can't control our destiny, but the child in us wants to believe in magic. Y

Astrology is good for predicting trends and giving basic personality tendencies and background (some psychologists use it for insight into their patients), but we all have free will. I used to be more interested in it (used to put up charts the old fashioned way, not with computers) but now I am more into meditation, intention and quantum physics. Go rent the DVD 'What the Bleep Do We Know?'

Sun Signs and Star Signs are rubbish, though.

If you're interested in an overall view, any book by Linda Goodman (Linda Goodman's Sun Signs and Linda Goodman's Love Signs in particular) are excellent reads. Her knowledge of the topic was truly masterful. (Both books were written decades ago--there's a reason why they're still in print.)

Of course, one must take what one reads with the customary grain of salt.

What 5-0 and alto said....

Astrology, rather than assigning personality or predicting fate (much newspaper astrology is severely limited and hamstrung, even when done by superb astrologers like Holiday Mathis or Rob Brezsny) has more to do with Nature's seasons.... And I'm using the word "seasons" to mean both the four that we think of as comprising a year-- summer, fall, winter, spring-- but also "seasons" in the way the Book of Ecclesiastes uses it: "To everything under the sun there is a season".

There are just optimum moments for every kind of activity, and, just as with a work of art, the artwork partakes of the "season", the "mood", the Zeitgeist and the "bearing" in which it was hatched. Nothing is produced in this quantum world "ex nihilo".

Nature's rhythms. Is it just a coincidence that the human female menses, and the tides in the ocean, coincide with the phases of the moon? [Actually, a more waggish astrologer would say "Yes. It is literally a CO+INCIDENCE." ]

The best use of Astrology is to align oneself to one's Tao: to learn to go with the natural flow of things. Sometimes easier said than done, because we possess a "monkey ego" that too often wants to run the show.

I would abandon my study of Astrology.... if it weren't being continually confirmed and reinforced for me. People who aren't fascinated by it are people who have not studied it in any great depth at all.

RUN!!!!!

Deev: I have read both of her books and I agree!!! I am a TOTAL ARIES by the way!

a site I can recommend is www.astro.com
try the interactive horosope

Stay away from it.

That's a good site if you need a quick, free chart or to do comparison charts with someone you are dating. For something really important, like starting a business or getting married, I'd go to a real astrologer. They are more expensive but it's worth the money. Mine has saved me a lot of money and heartache, even when I was positive I was right and he was wrong!

I've been thinking some more about this subject and would like to explain more why I do not dismiss the psychic sciences in general, of which astrology is one.

The way I look at it, astrology is just one framework for looking at life and nature which examines human behavour in relation to the movements of the solar system. Instead of dissecting individual bodies of matter into parts and looking at them under a microscope, it studies the relationship between the position of the sun and planets and human behaviour on earth. Although in people's minds astrology is often pitted against science, I see the two as complementary.

Astrology is one of the "psychic sciences." To me the psychic sciences--things like astrology, numerology, palmistry, graphology (which is now accepted by many institutions as scientifically valid), card reading, etc.--are intuitive sciences which, when applied by serious methods, have over the ages built up bodies of knowledge that aid practitioners to "read" life. All of these psychic sciences can contribute to an understanding of life. These are areas of expertise that are learned over time through human observation, much in the way that farmers can often predict weather more or as accurately than weather stations with millions of dollars of sophisticated equipment, by "reading" the forces of nature and applying their observations to the accumulated knowledge of past generations.

The psychic sciences are based upon the development of human, intuition, perception and experience rather than strictly on examining the physical behaviour of molecules and I would not dismiss any understanding of life that comes about through accumulated knowledge over the ages, based upon human understanding. How many times have we seen "scientific studies" that come up with something we've known all along? Through history science has had as many misconceptions and false starts as any other area of human endeavour. Knowledge doesn't have to be acquired through laboratory equipment to be valid. I believe that we have in our brains the capacity to understand much of life by the perception, processing and sharing of experience in many ways and while there's no doubt that technology has contributed greatly to the global body of knowledge, I don't believe it's the only path to knowledge. Astrology is one of many pathways to understanding life. Why not take insight from any sphere of life that offers it to us?

I don't believe in astrology, but kudos to all those who've managed to turn a quirky bit of fluff into a huge money making gig! It's amazing the stuff that people will spend their money on in the quest for a crutch. I predict that the tougher things get with the economy, wars, etc, the more we will see an interest in astrology and other gimmicky pass times.
What worries me is that some see it as a "science".
But as long as it is seen as just a harmless hobby, I don't see the problem with it: it's like hiking for me or scrapbooking for someone else.

Okay, here's a challenge: It's easy to debunk something by calling it names. I'd like to see some logical argument against astrology as I have tried to put forth in its favour.

Shouldn't the burden of proof rest on those who claim astrology as a science? I see no proof supporting any claims pro astrology. I suppose it's a bit like religion, in some ways: some have faith, which requires no proof, others need proof and do not believe without it.
I belong to the latter group, I need concrete, scientific, solid proof before I believe something.
I have yet to see any such thing pertaining to astrology.

I did not mean to offend, btw. It's just that I want the blue print in my hands before I put any money down to buy that bridge.

This made me think of the pharmaceutical industry.

I agree. To digress a little, I can never get over those commercials peddling God knows which new anti depressant as the latest happy place in a pill thing, then give a list of 50 ailments/side effects associated with the drug from total apathy to uncontrollable bouts of projectile diarrhea. Oh joy, I keep thinking... I can't wait!
Meanwhile it obviously does nothing (in most cases) to improve the person's life.

A few of us here owe our lives to pharmaceuticals.

And as to astrology being "fluff" -- here, read this chart, would you?

Color me slow brained, but I don't see how a chart can be deemed scientific or factual. Anyone can make a chart about anything. Where is the informational data? Proof that what is in this chart applies to real life and affects it?
If you look at information on cardiac health, for example, you will find countless documented studies that match ongoing health issues among a number of people. There are samples, test results, recorded examinations and so on. For example we know that smoking, trans fats and heavy drinking will do a number on the heart and arteries.
But astrology?
I'm sorry, I may be considered ignorant or cynical, but I just don't see it.

As I mentioned in my post, I don't think astrology is at odds with science. To me comparing astrology or the psychic sciences in general with science is like comparing apples and oranges. I don't think astrology claims to be an exact science, or to attempt to replace science or fulfil the same function as science or to be subject to a scientific methodology of proof. Therefore, to criticize it as not being science is to criticize a dog for not being a cow. What would convince me that astrology does not have validity is if the observations of astrologers were not evidenced in reality, but I have seen astrology be accurate often enough to get my attention. There are good astrologers and bad astrologers just like there are good doctors and bad doctors. I think that if a person goes into astrology in some depth they will find that good astrologers are able to tap into the vibration of the times, both on the inidividul level and and on the level of larger events.

Hand "planets in houses" very good and insightful.

WTF!!!! back-asswards.

That's a fake chart.

A theory is superfluous when there is nothing for the theory to explain. Once a phenomenon has been proven to be real, then we can work on the theory to explain how it works. Astrology does not work, so it doesn't matter whether the earth's magnetic field influences our brains in the womb or not, or whether gravity influences us, or why not dark energy/dark matter since together they make up 97% of the universe? Oops, astrology doesn 't even address that!

It is not a fake chart. It's an event chart, for the date, time and place I was when I decided to run a chart. What are you talking about, "fake" chart"?

It's also a chart for about the time I discovered water leaking from the ceiling in my bedroom closet, which might end up costing me a fortune, because we don't know where the leak is coming from, and there is a question of who's responsible, me or my upstairs neighbor. I'll be here all day tomorrow waiting for the plumber to come.

Ray Merriman is a financial astrologer who has been around a long time. He is very accurate but you need to subscribe to his service. However, it seems he has a column, which I've just discovered. Under the long term section, he quotes his books from ten or so years ago, predicting this time. Very interesting.

http://www.themetaarts.com/pages/raymerriman1.html

Here is his website if you want to order
http://www.mmacycles.com/

FTR, so sorry about the leak. I hope it gets resolved soon with no hardship for you. Now looking at that chart (about which I'm no expert), it looks to me like that leak was born in Pisces. Highly appropriate.

Yes! In Pisces in the 12th, with a packed 12th house -- perfect because the leak is hidden.

Here's a chart for just now when the plumber called to say he would be here. Neptune on the IC and Uranus in the 4th, interesting, no?

FTR, I'm not sure how to read the Neptune and Uranus part (would be very interested if you have time to explain it) but I seem to see Mercury, the planet of communication, in the first house, which would suggest to me the plumber got back to you quickly. (How'm I doing?)

Three weeks ago I noticed that my tire was flat after work (this is always fun). I had to buy a new tire because there were 7 (SEVEN!) nails in it. Then my central air conditioning went totally phhhhtt and I had to buy a new one. The hot water heater caught fire last night and threw a breaker (thank god) which stiffled the fire but my guy is currently looking for a new unit for me because I am at work.
This current retrograde is supposed to be over by Wednesday and if my current string of misfortune is not caused by this then I am haunted by gremlins and need some powerful gremlin poison.

Oh and my left rear tooth is sensitive to pressure and feeling absessed. Is it Wednesday yet?

Sounds like the only thing left for you is a plague of locusts!

Imatchgrl, it's at times like this that astrology comes in particularly handy. It's such a relief to be able to blame things on Mercury in retrograde, or the opposition of Saturn to Uranus. Takes a lot of worry out of having to figure things out! If nothing else, astrology can provide a convenient escape valve that gives you some space to think of these things with a bit of detachment and try to put them in perspective. I hope all your troubles dissipate soon!

Mercury is in the 11th, in Libra. I've been up and down the stairs ever-so-sweetly trying to convince my neighbor that this is serious. He can't grasp the idea that he will have to be inconvenienced. That's Venus in the 1st.

Neptune = water and Uranus = sudden, bolts from the blue. In the 4th house, the house of home. Just brainstorming.

FTR, here's hoping that a dry planet will roll around to your fourth house soon! (Believe it or not I'm following what you're saying.)

Well I'm a Libra too. Oct 15. What's it say?

RUN!!!!

;-)

FWIW, my computer's OS, after working fine for three years straight, contracted a nasty virus last week and was utterly decimated... $100 just to to allow me to reach Desktop again...

....and even then, I was dissatisfied with its performance, once home, and opted to do a complete wipe-and-reinstall of WINDOWS.

Plenty of information and documents were lost... including some free-lance work I'd been working on... I now have to re-load all programs that were important to me. [Minus the many little freeware programs and silly documents that can clutter up an OS over three years' time!]

I had to explain to my client why all this work he'd assigned me was lost. Fortunately he is a nice guy-- he could've farmed the work out to someone else while my 'puter was in the shop--- but I rather felt that this mishap occurred too early in our professional relationship, making me look foolish and amateurish.

But I have great faith in Mercury Retrograde's antics: he is "crazy like a fox". The bigger task of Mercury Retrograde, as we've discussed before, is to get "everybody on the same page of music", as it were. I think, in a perverse way, Mercury was daring me to be real with my new client, to be honest with him, so our professional relationship could take on a more emotional significance, and not just be a routine, perfunctory exchange of money and services... Though it may seem like I did my client a clumsy disservice, pure and simple, I think there was something fortuitous he was "supposed" to get out of the mishap as well. Time will tell.


Annoying and even seemingly senseless errors in communication abound.... FORCING us to come together and communicate well, even intimately. John Updike said (and I paraphrase) "The truth is the only thing worth writing because it is the only thing that can be built upon."

Then, when Mercury goes direct, we find our relationships are bound with some pretty sinewy cords, having withstood all the confusion (and embarrassment and inconvenience, etc., etc., etc.,) of Mercury Retrograde.

I don't 'believe' in astrology or anything of that ilk. Mainly because the stock characteristics of my astrological sign don't fit me at ALL. But. I own that big old doorstop of a book called The Secret Language of Birthdays by Joost Elfers and ...someone else, which isn't totally astrology, but has a little numerology, tarot cards, etc. mixed in. Basically, each day of the year gets a page full of information on what your characteristics, strengths, weaknesses and so on are (sounds to me like they took the distinguishing traits of famous people who share your birthday, threw everything into a computer along with the recipes for each astrological sign, and voila, there you go, a vague profile of everybody from Pisces to Aquarius). Now, the strange thing is, the info for me, for my birthdate, is the usual gobbley-de-gook, and doesn't seem to relate to me at all. But the info for the birthdate for the day BEFORE is spot-on, and eerily accurate in describing my traits, good points, bad points, etc.!!! Just a coincidence? Was I born under the wrong sign? Should I have been born a day earlier? What the heck???

Sali, is there any chance there was an error made in recording your birth date or time? Or, if you were born very early in the morning on the actual date, the characteristics could be closer to the day before. Just trying to think of some possibilities...

The only way to get an accurate reading is from a real astrologer using time, date, place of birth. Anything else is generalizing and hit or miss and for entertainment purposes only.

C'est ça.

Benjamin Franklin was an avid astrologer, and was instrumental in having the Declaration of Independence signed at a particular day and moment.

I think a lot of the signers were Free Masons, too; hence, the symbols on our money.

I KNOW! I do. This is opening a door that you may regret. imho