Have you ever gazed into the sky and realised that it has a million things to say about terrestrial life? Astrology is a pseudoscience that deals with studying the movements and relative positions of the celestial bodies in space and their supposed influence on human affairs and the natural world. The sky’s the home of many of the gods, who influence life on earth, and the patterns in the sky, like the constellations, must indeed reflect that influence. To know about the impact of stars and planets on your life, you must lookout for an astrologer in Hyderabad.
Astrology is as old as the 2nd millennium BCE. It has its roots in calendrical systems, which were used to predict seasonal shifts and interpret astronomical cycles as signs of angelic communications. Many cultures have attached importance to astronomical events, and some—such as the Hindus, Chinese, and the Maya— have developed elaborate systems for predicting earthly events from celestial observations. Western astrology, one of the oldest astrological systems still in use, started developing ages ago in 19th–17th century BCE Mesopotamia. It spread to Rome, the Arab world and ancient Greece and eventually, it reached Central and Western Europe.
Mesopotamia And The Babylonians
Astronomical observations began with the early civilisations of Mesopotamia, where the constellations were recognised and named soon after 3000 BC. The sky gazers of Mesopotamia identified the five wandering stars, which, with the sun and the moon, formed the seven original planets. This concept is known as natural astrology. The Babylonians started flourishing around the 18th century BC and are regarded as the first great astronomers. The minutes and seconds of modern astronomical measurement have been derived from the Babylonian number system.
The Babylonians also introduced the valuable concept of the zodiac. The Babylonians realised that the zodiac- a belt of the heavens including all apparent positions of the sun, moon, and most familiar planets- can measure celestial time if divided into recognisable and equal segments. Twelve constellations were selected to represent these segments, and many of them were identified by the names of animals. Later, the Greeks described it as the ‘animal circle’ (zodiakos kyklos). The concept of the zodiac is helpful to both astronomers and astrologers. The zodiac explains cosmic influences on terrestrial life by merging star positions with speculations about divine power.
The Greeks From The 6th Century BC
The Greeks made significant advances in the fields of both astronomy and astrology. Although they blinded the European astronomers for more than a millennium with the elaborately observed but entirely false Ptolemaic system, their analytical approach to the constellations led to early insights of great significance. The range and vitality of the Greek gods make astrology dramatic and exciting.
India And Other Places: From The 1st Millennium BC
The transmission of Mesopotamian omen literature to India occurred in the 5th century BC. The first relics are found in Buddhist texts of this period. Buddhist missionaries played an instrumental role in carrying this material to Central Asia, China, Tibet, Japan, and Southeast Asia. With Greek influence, during the Hellenistic period, the western version of the zodiac was introduced.
The original Mesopotamian material was modified to fit into the Indian conception of society, including the system of the four castes and the duty of the upper castes to perform the sanskaras (sanctifying ceremonies). Indian astrology or Jyotish is more popularly known as Vedic astrology or Hindu astrology. You should reach out to the top astrologer in Hyderabad to learn more about Vedic astrology and its importance.
Astrology Today
Following the end of the 19th century and the wide-scale adoption of scientific methods, researchers started challenging astrology on both theoretical and experimental grounds. They have shown it to have no scientific validity or explanatory power. Thus, Astrology lost its academic and theoretical standing, and common belief in it has largely declined until a resurgence in the 1960s. In most parts of the world, astrology started thriving again in the 20th century. It never really lost its importance in India. Many colleges offer courses in astrology which demonstrates its continued legitimacy.
Conclusion
Astrology has not been explained by astrologers yet. It is more of pseudoscience but continues to be added to the list of sciences in India. Western astrology is more entertainment-oriented, but Vedic astrology holds spiritual beliefs and no important decision is made without considering the stars.
