h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

If your attitude is 'it's all rubbish and I dont believe a word of it', then you're never going to discover the truth either way, you'll just go on thinking you already know.

Astrology works sort of the way that pagan spell casting and such works nowadays - if you *think* it has any sort of impact on your life, it will. (cue gratuitius Matrix quote of "What's really gonna cook your noodle later on is...") I do occasionally read my horoscope for fun (Cancer, if anyone's curious), and about 90% of the time it's wrong. I do, however, read it *after* the day's over so there's no influance in any way.

It is strange that the character traits for each zodiac sign do seem to have some truth to them as far as I'm concerned. I don't mean they're 100% trustworthy, but all the Cancers I know are a lot alike and like their descriptions; my bf's very Virgo, etc, etc. Strange.

How can the position of planets millions of miles from Earth possible have any affect on mine, or any elses combation birth sign?
They can't astrology is rubbish

"It is strange that the character traits for each zodiac sign do seem to have some truth to them as far as I'm concerned. I don't mean they're 100% trustworthy, but all the Cancers I know are a lot alike and like their descriptions; my bf's very Virgo, etc, etc. Strange."

Could being born at a certain time of year affect personality in that your formulative months mean you are exposed to certain amounts of spring/summer/autumn/winter weather and air pressure etc?

I ask as it is apparently fact that a notably large number of schizophrenics are born in winter months.

Just curious.

Incidentally, whilst visiting some "hippyish" friends we found a book that claimed to describe your personality by your birthday. The description for mine was read out and seemed very accurate. As a natural sceptic, I chose other dates at to see if they were also "accurate". Funnily enough, they weren't.

Why not believe in Astrology, as good as believing in a god, or in fate.

I agree that beleiving in astrology is no less rational than most religions.

From an atheist who doesn't believe in astrology

Was it a Dirk Gently story where he had an aquaintance who wrote a newspaper horoscope column and always chose a bad one for Dirk's star sign?
"Aries : You are too fat, and that hat doesn't suit you at all."

I think there's excerpts from the astrologer in all three dirk stories.

I know in Salmon of Doubt it's something like "TODAY YOU WILL MEET A THREE TON RHINOCEROS CALLED dESMOND" OR SOMETHING SIMILAR.

Okay, that lot was NOT meant to be capitals. Effing caps lock button. Right next to th A key as well.

There's a lot more to astrology than newspaper horoscopes, and it's more difficult to discredit than it might seem at first. The philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn liked to criticise rival philosophies of science (such as Karl Popper's) by showing that with their definition of science you could plausibly argue that astrology was one.

Of course, newspaper horoscopes are nonsense but are almost universally received in the spirit in which they were intended. That is, nonsense, but fun if you like that sort of thing. It's mostly an excuse to have a chat with friends about what you've been up to and what you're looking forward to or thinking about and so forth. Unfortunately, it's usually considered bad manners to tell people that that's what they're doing, even though they know already.

Personally, it really annoys me that I even know what my star sign is, I wish I didn't. It really bugs me when people read out my horoscope - I have to cover my ears and hum.

I personally don't really believe that much in astrology. I'll ready my horoscope from time to time, just for shits and giggles, but I don't take much stock in it. What I don't understand is those who get so insulting about those who do. Okay, it's perhaps a touch extreme if someone refuses to do *anything* without checking their horoscope or calling their pet astrologer or whatever first, but to start insulting people and being nasty to them simply for their beliefs is terribly intolerant.

PJL

I don't understand how you can dismiss planets affecting our lives as 'rubbish' just because you don't believe in it. But then again, I've come from the haunted house thread, where there are those who dismiss it all as rubbish because it doesn't fit in with their beliefs.

The simple fact is We Don't Know. There is No Proof either way. Therefore we cannot state our opinion as fact, just because that's what is most acceptable to us.



The moon affects our oceans, the solar winds affect all sorts, the gravitational pull of whole galaxies near us could have an effect.

There are however definitely similar traits in typical star signs. Part of my problem with my recent ex-boyfriend was that he was tooo much like my mum (both Aries )!!

I'm worried now I'm tending to avoid Arieans, Leos (same as me), and Pisceans (same as my siblings)!

Remember all that stuff years ago where they'd discovered that extra planet which meant there would be an extra star sign?
I would've been Cancer, and there are certainly no traits in the typical Cancerian description that apply to me

That's a good point about times of year and weather conditions etc. though.

Q

The best explanation given to me by someone seriously into astrology was "If the Big Bang theory holds true then we all started out as universal matter. Through time the planets were formed and then followed life. If we were formed from this matter then we (the stars, the planets, and the life on the planets) are all connected in some cosmic way. Therefore if we are connected why is it so absurd to believe that the position of planets and stars and such does not have an influence on the way we think, act and feel?"

It was sensible and it made sense so I'm sort of on the fence over the whole astrology stuff. Not the general crap in the papers that caters to a twelfth of the population but the full star chart and birth chart stuff. But that being said it's difficult to get a full, personal astrology chart without paying for it. So maybe they are all in it for the money.

My stars said I would be very indecisive today so maybe the is something to it! Or maybe not.

Astrology seems to depend on the positions of the stars and planets - celestial houses etc. The problem I have with that is it doesn't take into consideration the existence of other planets in our solar systems - especially the tenth planet which lies beyond Pluto. The other problem I have is that it is a hotch-potch of different systems from different cultures, usually with little in common - the constellations we use today are a mixture of Greek and modern (coined in the 18th century onwards), and bear no relationship to ancient constellations (except Greek of course).

Personally I don't believe (not the right word really but can't think of a better one at the moment) in astrology, but if it helps people reach a decision (difficult or not) then it can be helpful as a tool.

Perhaps it's like a self-fulfilling prophecy - if you believe in something strongly enough then it will come true. Curses, I believe, work the same way - you can place a curse on someone but if they don't believe in curses then it will have no power over them.

Belief in astrology is no more irrational than a belief in a God or aliens, and in the end we all need something to believe in. Science, beneficial as it can be, cannot supply the answers to all the questions we ask.

The gravitational effects of the other planets on us -- even Jupiter -- are so small as to be meaningless:

http://www.thursdaysclassroom.com/30mar00/article1.html

A very, very, very slight breeze will have more effect. Considerably more effect.

The only other effect that reaches us from them is light. Have you ever seen Jupiter?... well, I haven't. So I doubt it's affected me all that much.

"Astrology seems to depend on the positions of the stars and planets - celestial houses etc. "
It's the positions of the Sun, Moon and the planets in relation to the place/time of birth. The stars only come into it as a way to describe those positions.

"The problem I have with that is it doesn't take into consideration the existence of other planets in our solar systems - especially the tenth planet which lies beyond Pluto."

That's a little like refusing to believe in time if it's only given in hours and minutes because it doesn't take the odd seconds into consideration. The far out planets like Uranus, Neptune and Pluto (and any others further out) move so slowly that they will appear to be in the same or similar position for weeks at a time and many, many birth charts. Their influence (assuming they have one) is more 'generational'and is only apparent when taken in context.


"Have you ever seen Jupiter?... well, I haven't. So I doubt it's affected me all that much."

Yes I have. It's one of the brightest things in the sky at night. With a half decent pair of binoculars you can even see a couple of moons circling it.
TSF

To borrow soem theories from Rankin...

Astrology is true, however it deals in celestial proximity first. Hence why the youth of today wear brand-named clothes, brand name trainers and listen to manufactured pop.

They were born under the sign of the Sky TV satelite...

as has been said the horoscopes in the paper are not really astrology (though they can still be fun). they are based on sun signs (which is one out of 10 common planets), and are extremely generic.

if you were having an astrology reading done, the astrologer would look at the planets in your birth chart overlaid on the zodiac signs in the context of 12 houses dependant on the time you were born. all this would be compared to a chart drawn up for the day in questioneg today. its called a transit reading and is a fairly sophisticated system. what you get in the paper compared to this would be the equivalent of reading only the front page of this site and thinking you knew what h2g2 was.

some astroloogers use transit readings to pretend to tell the future. i'm not into that use of astrology. there's a well known quote the goes something like "the stars incline they don't compel"


astrology is a complex pyschological and mystical system that is culturally specific. western astrology hold much of european mythology and collective psychology. jung was very influenced by astrology for this reason.


you don't have to "believe in it" to find it useful. i suspect what the original question means is why do people find it a useful tool in their lives. the main reason is because when used properly it works. science might not be able to explain it yet, but there are alot of things science can't explain that still work (traditional chinese medicine is a good example)



oh and the planet beyond pluto is called persephone, but i think its existence is hypothetical still isn't it ?

Well Quaoar (sic) is the big lump of rock they've discovered that their calling the 10th plante. Problem is, theres a hell of a lot of big lumps of rock out there...

there's a whole branch of astrology that deals with asteroids.

and chiron, considered a planetoid, is significant in astrology too.