I am a skeptic (or at least I was) but I came across a book yesterday and decided to kill some time by reading my description. I, as it turns out, am a Gemini Rooster. The description was dead on correct. I read a few of my family member’s descriptions and they were right on also. I was thinking that maybe the writers of this stuff just classified people by there personality types, which would make it possible to describe people as detailed as they do.<–(there’s something wrong with that sentence but I cant figure out how to fix it.)
Does anyone know where this stuff origionated? Is it really cooincidental that these descriptions cooincide with people?
Also you say your reading was accurate. So do you think that the millions of people who share your details are like you? Try asking people to select which reading is theirs and see how accurate it is.
Astrology is (basically) the belief that the stars & planets that are rising (or falling, or within the constellation of Horace the plank maker) at the time of your birth will profoundly affect your personality & major life events. But how could it work- the only planetary forces that could have affected you at the time of your birth (assuming you were born in a hospital or any closed room) was their gravity. But the gravitational pull of the obstetrician is many times greater than the nearest planet.
You’d have to fall back on magic to make any “serious” argument for astrology.
I believe that it is mere coincidence that people just happen to find similarities between their personalities and those dictated by their astrological signs. I defy anybody to carve up the world’s population into twelve groups and claim that each group has personality x and will be subject to fate y.
Actually, the planets have a greater gravitational influence than most people suspect. I’ve seen where a couple of people have done the calculations. I believe that at closest approach Jupiter exerts about the same gravitational pull as standing next to a car.
Not that that “proves” astrology. Just because the pull is measurable doesn’t mean it has anything to do with anybody’s personality.
According to my calculations, the greatest gravitational exerted by Jupiter is about equal to being 13cm from the center of mass of a 75kg person, (ie Being held by an adult) or being about 40 cm from the center of mass of a 750 kg automobile. Bear in mind that this is less than a millionth of the gravitational pull of the Earth. So I think it is safe to say that, “actually” the planets have exactly the gravitational influence that most people think, which is damn little.
A step ahead of you, the fact that some of my family members and friends’ were also remarkably accurate is what interested me enough to post in the first place. I don’t know about millions, but a few of the people I trust were kind of intrigued as well.
This may contradict my skeptical attitude a little, but where would magic come in? Even though it seems a little far out of an idea, it sounds like everything is backed by astronomical facts. I ,too, believe that people just happen to be able to relate to these descriptions but it’s very odd to me that my sign fits me so well, where someone els’s is completely wrong for me.
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Originally posted by Chronos
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Syehoc, what’s wrong with this thread? I would be glad to delete it, but I don’t see any problem here
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Thanks for not deleating right away, Chronos. I think it was a combination of the fact that I misspelled originated and the fact that I had no replies when I checked that upset me.
Or read all of the other sign descriptions and see how many work for you. Or for those who don’t know what their sign is supposed to be, write down three or four words that best describe your personality and see if those come up for your sign, and how often they come up for other signs.
The descriptions are usually vague and complimentary - who doesn’t want to be known as intelligent or will deny that you “appreciate all the good things the physical world has to offer” (from my description) A good writer can sound very specific while ensuring that few people are going to disagree with the “analysis”
And if someone has grown up knowing about their sun sign, you have a strong case for self-fulfilling prophecy. Children have a strong need to validate their actions and personality, and a horoscope telling you that you are going to be stubborn because of when you were born is a strong reinforcement to that behavior.
The “Gravitational pull of the planets and the stars” is incredibly silly pseudo-science attached to superstition - there is entirely too much symbology in astronomy. Why pray tell, would having a planet (that happens to be named after the Roman goddess of love - Venus) visually in the same area as a group of stars that someone thought looked like a pair of twins(Gemini) indicate that my love life is going to have a split personality? Or for that matter, why does having the Sun near the Leo constellation mean someone is going to be arrogant (like a lion)
Having said all of that, I enjoy astrology. However, I treat it like a game - fun when it works, insignificant when it doesn’t. One especially fun day was the day when my divorce was finalized - “It’s time to finish up this paperwork and make time for love in your life” I’ve even done my chart (free somewhere on the web).
It also has some cultural ties - for instance Taurus (the bull) encompasses one of the main holidays for the Mithraic cult, which dealt heavily with bulls. Mostly these ties have to do with the naming of the constellations, which trace back to Rome.
My favorite bit of the fakery is the appeal to the masses. In most horoscope sections I have seen they rate your day by a star sytem (i.e. 1 star = don’t get out of bed; 6 stars = your ship will come in).
The average of the 12 signs is always well above the median of their system. In fact I can’t ever recall seeing any sign listed with only one or two stars (not that I ever seek this “info” out).
Now if they could only dispense useful advice (Buy Micron! or Watch out for the gravel truck!) I might pay attention.
I’ve even done my chart (free somewhere on the web).