History of Astrology

Most historians and astrologers agree that the beginnings of astrology can be traced back to Babylonia (present-day Iraq) about 3500 years ago, in the first half of the Hummurabi Dynasty. The Babylonians, noted for their advanced culture, had a well-developed science of observational astronomy. This provided them with a calendar for when to plant, harvest, hold religious festivals and so on through the year.

By about 1000 BC, the Babylonians had developed a sense of planetary omens' and put their minds to setting their knowledge down in literature. Each planet was given importance and named in honour of their many gods and goddesses, such as Ishtar, now known as Venus, and Nergal, now known as Mars. Since Nergal was the god of war, when this planet shone brightly the Babylonians took it as a sign that it was a good time to wage war. As Ishtar was the goddess of love, a spring night in which that planet shone high in the west after sunset was considered a good time for romance.

By 600 BC the Babylonians had devised the twelve-sign zodiac. They developed markers in the sky which roughly corresponded to the months of the year. The concept of making predictions based on the signs began to develop. Eventually this process became so complex that the Babylonians were able to make a map of the heavens to use in Divination. The oldest known horoscope dates to 29 April 410 BC.

During the Greek and Roman classical eras, Babylonian astrologers sold their predictions throughout the civilized world. Greek astronomers scoffed at astrology, and in 44BC the Roman statesman Marcus Tullus Cicero wrote a damning critique of it. But the Greek and Roman public embraced it with vigor. Astrology grew in popularity, and people turned to astrologers for advice and information on all parts of their lives.

Nevertheless, the Babylonian astrologers had a rough time with the coming of Christianity, since early Christians were hostile to other gods and pagan religions. In Europe, Astrology had become almost extinct by the early Middle ages but was being kept alive in the Middle East by Islamic scholars. The Crusaders brought astrology back to Europe, and it became madly popular again.

The down of the age of science in the 1600s brought new thinking to astronomy and astrology, with the discover of elliptical solar system. The notion that the sun, not Earth was the centre of the solar system almost provided the end of astrology. By 1900, a French encyclopedia was describing it as a 'vanishing cult', with 'no young devotes'.

Then came a revival. The catalyst was British astrologer RH Naylor who, after World War I, invented the daily newspaper astrology column. Soon there were similar columns in other papers and magazines, spreading around the world. People were beginning to find in astrology a form of self-reflection that was absent elsewhere in their lives.

The result is that 90% of all Americans under the age of 30 know their Sun sign, and there are more than 10,000 practicing astrologers in the United States. Millions of dollars are spent annually in the US, Australia and Europe by people consulting astrologers. Ronald Reagan, the emperor Caligula, Claudius, Ptolemy, St Augustine and Queen Elizabeth have all looked to the stars for guidance