Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Different cultures have employed forms of astrology since at least the 2nd millennium BCE, these practices having originated in calendrical systems used to predict seasonal shifts and to interpret celestial cycles as signs of divine communications. Most, if not all, cultures have attached importance to what they observed in the sky, and some—such as the Hindus, Chinese, and the Maya—developed elaborate systems for predicting terrestrial events from celestial observations. Western astrology, one of the oldest astrological systems still in use, can trace its roots to 19th–17th century BCE Mesopotamia, from where it spread to Ancient Greece, Rome, the Islamic world, and eventually Central and Western Europe. Contemporary Western astrology is often associated with systems of horoscopes that purport to explain aspects of a person's personality and predict significant events in their lives based on the positions of celestial objects; the majority of professional astrologers rely on such systems.
A horoscope is an astrological chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, astrological aspects and sensitive angles at the time of an event, such as the moment of a person's birth. The word horoscope is derived from the Greek words ōra and scopos meaning "time" and "observer". It is used as a method of divination regarding events relating to the point in time it represents, and it forms the basis of the horoscopic traditions of astrology. Horoscope columns are often featured in print and online newspapers.
Western astrology is the system of astrology most popular in Western countries. Western astrology is historically based on Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos, which in turn was a continuation of Hellenistic and ultimately Babylonian traditions.
Jyotisha or Jyotishya is the traditional Hindu system of astrology, also known as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and more recently Vedic astrology. It is one of the six auxiliary disciplines in Hinduism, that is connected with the study of the Vedas.
Horary astrology is an ancient branch of horoscopic astrology in which an astrologer attempts to answer a question by constructing a horoscope for the exact time at which the question was received and understood by the astrologer.
Astrological beliefs in correspondences between celestial observations and terrestrial events have influenced various aspects of human history, including world-views, language and many elements of social culture.
Astrology and astronomy were archaically treated together, but gradually distinguished through the Late Middle Ages into the Age of Reason. Developments in 17th century philosophy resulted in astrology and astronomy operating as independent pursuits by the 18th century.
Mundane astrology, also known as political astrology, is the branch of astrology dealing with politics, the government, and the laws governing a particular nation, state, or city. The name derives name from the Latin term mundus, 'world'.
Astrology software is a type of computer programs designed to calculate horoscopes. Many of them also assemble interpretive text into narrative reports.
Olivia Barclay was a British astrologer who played an important role in the revival of traditional forms of astrology in the late 20th century. Much of her focus in the latter part of her life was on the work of the 17th-century astrologer William Lilly.
Horoscopic astrology is a form of astrology that uses a horoscope, a visual representation of the heavens, for a specific moment in time in order to interpret the inherent meaning underlying the alignment of the planets at that moment. The idea is that the placement of the planets at any given moment in time reflects the nature of that moment and especially anything that is born then, and this can be analyzed using the chart and a variety of rules for interpreting the "language" or symbols therein.
Psychological astrology, or astropsychology, is the result of the cross-fertilisation of the fields of astrology with depth psychology, humanistic psychology and transpersonal psychology. There are several methods of analyzing the horoscope in the contemporary psychological astrology: the horoscope can be analysed through the archetypes within astrology or the analyses can be rooted in the psychological need and motivational theories. There might exist other astrological methods and approaches rooted in psychology. Astrologer and psychotherapist Glenn Perry characterises psychological astrology as "both a personality theory and a diagnostic tool".
Richard Harold Naylor, better known as R. H. Naylor, was a British astrologer, and the first sun sign astrologer. His horoscope of the newly-born Princess Margaret for the Sunday Express, led to a regular column that was soon copied by other British newspapers.
Katarchic astrology is the implementation of a type of horoscopic astrology in order to determine when would be most beneficial and rewarding moment in time to take a venture or undertaking, and is also known as electional astrology. Electional astrology is typically used to interpret the level of success of a moment that has already taken place. In modern time, electional astrology is more commonly known as inceptional astrology. Hellenistic and Byzantine traditions used the term katarchē in order to refer to electional astrology and inceptional astrology, which is also part of Katarchic astrology. Katarkhé was used to discover and confirm events of the past. These events include following the history and path taken by a certain illness, or tracking missing items and people such as criminals or those escaping slavery.
Babylonian astrology was the first known organized system of astrology, arising in the second millennium BC.
Hellenistic astrology is a tradition of horoscopic astrology that was developed and practiced in the late Hellenistic period in and around the Mediterranean Basin region, especially in Egypt. The texts and technical terminology of this tradition of astrology were largely written in Greek. The tradition originated sometime around the late 2nd or early 1st century BCE, and then was practiced until the 6th or 7th century CE. This type of astrology is commonly referred to as "Hellenistic astrology" because it was developed in the late Hellenistic period, although it continued to be practiced for several centuries after the end of what historians usually classify as the Hellenistic era.
Horā ) is a branch of the Indian system of astrology known as Jyotiṣa. It deals with the finer points of predictive methods, as distinct from Siddhānta and Saṃhita.
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems that hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events or descriptions of personality in the human world. Astrology has been rejected by the scientific community as having no explanatory power for describing the universe. Scientific testing has found no evidence to support the premises or purported effects outlined in astrological traditions.
Ashtamangala prasnam is a certain type of practice of the prasna branch of Hindu astrology. The terminology indicates the use of eight (ashta) auspicious (mangala) objects in its practice. These objects are ghee lamps, mirror, gold, milk, yogurt, fruits, book, and white cloth. The practice of ashtamangala prasnam is highly popular and held in high esteem in the Indian state of Kerala and Tulu Nadu. In fact, the author of Prasna Marga, an authoritative book on its practice was written by Narayanan Nambutiri, an astrologer from Edakad, Thalasseri in Kerala. Prasna Marga was written in 1649 CE.
