HELLENISTIC ASTROLOGY
[A]
Hellenistic astrology contains strong ties based off of Babylonian
astronomy. The Greeks, who are the orchestrates of Hellenistic
Science, built their craft upon Babylonian astrological traditions, and
developed their theoretical and technical doctrines using a combination
of Stoic, Middle Platonic, and
Neopythagorean thought. [1]
{
Astrology, loosely defined as a method of correspondences between
celestial events and activity in the human realm, has played a role in
nearly every civilization. Its role in the late-Hellenistic era is of
special concern, particularly due to its complex interaction with Greek
philosophy, as well as its claims on the life of an individual. A
horoscopic chart (also 'birth chart', 'natal chart', or 'horoscope') is
a list of planetary positions against a backdrop of zodiac signs,
divided into regions of the sky (with reference to the rising and
setting stars on the horizon) on the basis of one's exact time and
place of birth. Such charts form the basis of 'natal astrology' or
'genethlialogy', which started in Babylon but was later developed in
Hellenized Greek speaking regions. } [1]
Astral religion, or astrology, can be traced far back into Mesopotamian
history. Stars (mainly constellations) were considered
representations of Gods and were frequently prayed to using
incantations and magical arts. Mesopotamian astrology
played a dominant role in developing a metholodical way of developing a
sophisticated way to create horoscopes and predict the future, but it
is very difficult to come to solid conclusions about the theoretical
ground for the practice of the earliest horoscopic
astrologers.[1] On the other hand, Hellenistic astrology has
provided more extensive textual evidence, which makes it an influential
source in the study of astrology. One of the best sources related
to Greek philosophy are works provided by Homer, namely the
Odyssey. I've provided a link to a translation of The Odyssey
provided by Samuel Butler. The Odyssey illustrates the direct
impact Gods were perceived to play on the lives of humans.
{The most noteworthy consideration about the Hellenistic period is the
transformation that occurred through the synthesis of the Persian and
Chaldean astrology, with Egyptian religion and astronomy, and the Greek
Natural philosophy. This single event would appear to be the catalyst,
which changed the oracular to the very personal. While I use the term
event, I use it rather loosely here. In the "time-line" of history, it
fills a rather large period from about 800 - 100 B.C.E. As you can see
it did not "happen over night".} [2]
I'll now give a brief overview of each of the zodiac signs described by
Hellenistic Astrology. The different zodiac signs are correlated
with the orientation of the sun within the zodiac at different times of
the year. It can be referred to as the astronomical zodiac. (This
is of course the perceived position of the sun and its motion through
the zodiac because the motion is caused by the Earth moving around the
Sun) The zodiac signs associated with Hellenistic astrology
are: Aries, the Ram; Taurus, the Bull; Gemini, the Twins; Cancer,
the Crab; Leo, the Lion; Virgo, the Virgin; Libra, the Scales; Scorpio,
the Scorpion; Sagittarius, the Archer; Capricorn, the Sea Goat;
Aquarius, the Water Bearer; and Pisces, the Fishes. [2] Take a
look at the links below to review your sign!!!
note: I was picky about which site I used for the definition of
the zodiac signs. The links I used were located on a website
containing an article written by a reliable source; Stephen Birchfield.
Aries, the Ram
(Mar 21- Apr 19)
Taurus, the Bull (Apr
20- May 20)
Gemini, the Twins (May
21- Jun 21
Cancer, the Crab (Jun
22- Jul 22)
Leo, the Lion (Jun 23- Aug
22)
Virgo, the Virgin (Aug
23- Sep 22)
Libra, the Scales (Sep
23- Oct 22)
Scorpio, the Scorpion
(Oct 23- Nov 21)
Sagittarius, the Archer
(Nov 22- Dec 21)
Capricorn, the Sea Goat
(Dec 22- Jan19)
Aquarius, the Water Bearer
(Jan 20 - Feb 18)
Pisces, the Fishes (Feb
19- Mar 20)
In
my episode over Hellenistic Astrology, the main point I wanted to
address is that Hellenistic astrology can be vaguely determined to be
the beginning of astrology. I use the word vaguely because it is
apparent and rather obvious that astrology was practiced in Mesopotamia
a good deal before the time the Greeks were even recognized as a
culture. Babylonian astrologers were able to act as scribes and
record data onto stone tablets, but most of the predictions and methods
to determine the predictions were passed on verbally. There was
no easily written way of determining a horoscope , birth chart, or
natal chart before the Hellenistic period. However, the use of
the zodiac to determine these predictions was present in Babylonian
culture. Hellenistic astrology was able to bring the science of
astrology out of its dominant highly intellectual status, studied by
high societies such as Enuma Anu Enlil, to the normal Greek
scholar. (who was also normally classified as high class, but not
as much so as in previous cultures)
I will continue with the theme of my overall web project, which is to
compare the studies of astronomy with astrology over various time
periods. My next episode will concentrate on Asian astrology and
its ties to Hellenistic/Babylonian astrology. I want to compare
the different signs of the zodiac over the different cultures.
How much was Asian Astrology influenced by Hellenistic Astronomy?
We've already prove that Babylonian astrology transitioned into
Hellenistic astrology, but this would be expected since the are both
geographically close to each other? The Asian astrology would
have had to cover great lengths to interact with Hellenistic
astrology. I'm interested to see the results of the comparative
study between Hellenistic and Asian astronomy!!!!
Home Page
Project
Page
[A]
Mars the God of War:
weblink: "Mars
the God of War"
[1] Marilynn Lawrence
(West Chester University of Pennsylvania) , "Hellenistic
Astrology"
http://www.iep.utm.edu/a/astr-hel.htm Located in the Internet Encyclopedia of
Astrology
[2] Steven
Birchfield, "An Introduction to Hellenistic Astrology", http://www.astrologycom.com/hellenistic.html,
Located in the Astrology on the Web website, Steven Birchfield is an
astrologer with over 30 years
experience in astrological
practice and social services, Steven is now studying for his PhD in
Medieval
Astrology
{Site edited and maintained by Brian Lewis}
Author's Notes
The secondary source I used can be
found on the internet using the link listed above. I found it to
be credible as it was located in the Internet Encyclopedia of
Astrology. It also had a name attached to the website.
My primary source is the The Odyssey
by Homer. I didn't include the source in my bibliography because
I did not site or use the source while constructing my website. I
only include the link to show people how mythology and astrology were
related in the Hellenistic period.