Is Astrology Real? Debunking the Zodiac

If you’re a fan of astrology you’ve likely heard the dull tune on more than one occasion that “astrology isn’t real!” Whether it was your ex boyfriend or your annoying uncle, it seems like everyone’s got an opinion on the ancient, world wide study of the planets. However, if you want to be armed with the ammo to fire back at the “non believers,” look no further as we debunk the common misconceptions about astrology. So, is astrology real?

Astrology is a Pseudoscience

So close, it’s actually a language for interpreting patterns! You would never claim that Gaelic isn’t real just because you can’t speak it, the same goes for astrology. More than anything else it is a language, one that holds the key to many concepts about life and the universe.

Astrology has never once claimed to be a science, but it’s understandable that many people look to science for definitive answers. Science is the best tool we have for uncovering the vast mysteries of the world, but many people forget that science is built on curiosity. When our curiosity is stifled by a sometimes egoic need to be “right or wrong” we do ourselves a disservice.

Yes, it is true that some research has been done in order to find out if astrology works or not, and the information that came back was that it doesn’t. And yet, for 5,000 years people from every single corner of the world have used astrology in some way, shape or form. For centuries humans have gathered their own empirical and personal evidence of its validity. To close one’s mind off to the possibilities of astrology is frankly unscientific.

Horoscopes are Vague

Yes, they are and they are meant to be.

Transit astrology deals with the relationship between the planets in our solar system and the planets in our own charts. Your astrology chart is as varied and unique as your fingerprints. So yes, reading the horoscope for Aries is not going to be nearly as accurate as a personalized transit reading.

You also may be reading for the wrong sign! More and more people are talking about how transits are written for your rising sign. Why is this? Because the rising sign designates where the houses fall in a natal chart. So if Uranus is about to enter Gemini, we know that Gemini risings will be most affected since it will be in their 1st house. 

Fun fact, in the 1970s when people asked “what’s your sign?” they weren’t asking about your sun sign, but your rising sign since it is the placement more so associated with your personality.

Everyone Born Under One Sun Sign CANNOT Possibly All Be the Same!

Yes, exactly, they’re not!

While social media meme astrology can be very fun (and mostly harmless), it is like dipping your toes into the water. In reality, the study of astrology is as deep as the deepest valleys of the ocean floor.

I like to think of the sun sign as the blueprint. Is yours a skyscraper or a barn? Maybe it’s a school or an old Victorian. Once you understand the blueprint, you use the rest of the chart to build the structure. In short, no, not everyone born under the same sun sign is the same. You need to take into account the entire chart.

Astrology is Only Real For Narcissists

While there’s nothing wrong with getting deep into your own astrology chart, the mark of a future astrologer is whether or not they move on to study the charts of their family and friends with as much fervor as their own.

So yes, narcissists can be drawn to their own astrology, but for most people it goes beyond that. It gives you the opportunity to see that not everyone thinks, loves or heals the same way. In fact, the deeper you go into astrology, the more empathy you gain for your fellow humans.

What About Ophiuchus? Doesn’t That Constellation Prove Astrology is FAKE?

No, it merely proves that most people don’t have even a basic understanding of astrology.

There are many branches of astrology, and some do use Ophiuchus. Sidereal astrology accounts for the procession of the equinoxes, which is the 1° that Earth rotates backwards in relation to the stars. Some people think that astrologers are unaware of this slight backwards rotation, but there is no astronomy without astrology. It was the fascination of ancient people with the night sky that gave birth to both disciplines.

Western astrology typically uses the Tropical format. This places 0° of Aries to be a fixed point coinciding with the Spring Equinox in the northern hemisphere. A little over 2,000 years ago, sidereal and tropical astrology were using the same map, since 0° of Aries was at that location in the sky. 

This is truly a fascinating topic and I highly recommend that any astrology enthusiasts dive much deeper into the precession of the ages and the zodiacal wheel in order to expand your knowledge.

The Planets Don’t Control Anything Here on Earth

2 words: the moon.

We know for a fact that the moon affects life on earth. Just go to the beach or an emergency room on a full moon and tell me what you see (actually, please try to avoid the ER, but you know what I mean).

Also, 8 words: We are all made up of star stuff.

To speak the language of science, energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Everything that once was still is and theoretically always will be. It is a lie of the West that we are individual and separate when we are so deeply connected to all matter.

It is a fallacy that anything is independent.

Of course you are affected by the movement of Mars, how silly of you to think otherwise.

Final Thoughts: Don’t Fight a Pointless War

Be cautious of entering into any discussion where the other person is immovable. The point of conversion isn’t to sway others to your point of view. Conversation should be a sharing of information, and yet people often seek out heated debates with the purpose of “winning.”

There are no winners when our minds are closed off to the opinions of others. This goes both ways, faith and doubt go hand in hand. Always keep your own mind open to new information, but always avoid confrontation with an aggressive individual whose main objective is not to listen to you, but to dominate you with their words.