Astrology.

Despite the predominance of technology and science in our modern era, many of yesterday's belief systems linger with us. Much can be said about the disconnect between religious thinking and contemporary logic. But perhaps the oddest phenomena is the longevity of astrology. One night last week, I was sitting on a friend's porch and discussing all manner of topics with people I've known for several years. At one point, a few of them started talking about their zodiac signs as if they considered them a valid guide for interpreting their lives. It must be mentioned that these folks have college degrees, and have been known to read books about science. In fact, the biggest proponent of astrology was indeed a scientist.

I'll admit that there was a time in my life when I gave serious consideration to astrology. I was dating a girl in college that followed her horoscope daily. It just so happened that our birth signs were compatible, so I never had any real reason to voice my skepticism. Yet it never ceased to amaze me just how much confidence she was willing to invest in influences so totally out of her own control. Despite the auspicious feedback gleaned from a comparison of our astrological charts, the relationship eventually broke up. If nothing else I considered it a relief not to have to consider such factors again. Since then I have always smiled and held my peace whenever anyone has brought up the subject. While I think the whole thing is kind of silly, I don't hold myself up as any king of arbiter of the "one true reality".

It does seem reasonable to allow that celestial forces somehow affect our lives. It is a fact that I have indirectly dealt with the results of moon phases for years. Anyone who has ever slept with a woman, and worried about her menstrual cycle, has engaged in this type of thinking. Likewise the sun's effect on our lives is obvious. The relationship between our lives and the movements of the planets are quite a bit more abstract. And one would have to assume that the emanations of distant stars have a quite minimal effect in our daily life. They certainly wouldn't directly attribute personal characteristics to individuals based upon their organization and position at the time of one's birth. That notion just seems silly to me.

In order to invest any credibility in astrology, one would have to assume that ancient observers were compelled to see specific animal shapes that were somehow innately meaningful. Their interpretations would have to be preordained by some higher power. To me these clumps of stars are more like Rorshach ink blots than anything else. People put their own personalities and experiences into what they saw. I am confounded by the process by which these star groupings acquired fixed and virtually universal meanings. When I look into the sky I don't see any crabs, rams or lions. I merely see points of light. Upon whose authority were they originally catalogued? One can only imagine the arguments the ancient authorities had over these questions.

But even if we were to accept the premise that the stars formed themselves into undeniable images of creatures living on earth, who decided what attributes of character to associate with the crab, or the twins? This adds an additional layer of subjectivity to astrological interpretation. It also seems arbitrary to take an astrological reading on the day that we emerge from the womb. Wouldn't it be just as appropriate to examine the stars on the day of conception? Perhaps asking all these questions is simply missing the point. At some point these concepts entered our "collective consciousness" (if you are willing to even accept the existence of that amorphous formulation), and now many people give credence to them. So be it. If there is money to be made from it, then someone will exploit its possibilities.

Like many other dubious ways of extracting meaning from the chaos of life, astrology can be useful as a tool of personal meditation. Does it matter whether or not it has true value if it gets people to more closely examine their own lives and choices? Isn't this its function? Regardless, it's more material to have fun with. I've resumed the habit of reading the daily horoscope as it is placed at the counter of the local coffee shop. Sometimes it can be quite comical. In the last week, I've had two readings particularly worthy of comment. On one day, the advice for those born under my sign was that "not all friendships must be lifelong commitments". That seemed like a convenient justification to view people as instrumental. Today's paper offered this little gem- "Be wary of trying too hard". That seems like a nice little suggestion to end this post.