Around the middle of the second century-BC- the Babylonians had divided the zodiac into 12 equal signs. They then began to apply myth to constellations and identify some of their Gods with the stars. For example, The queen of the Netherworld, Negral, was identified with Mars, and Ishtar, the Goddess of war and fertility, was aligned with Venus. It was the Greeks who then shaped the system of astrology into its modern form. They used the Babylonian idea of divination, using planets and applied mathematics and logic to formulate rules for how this could work.
Astronomer Sten Odenwald, director of Citizen Science at the NASA Space Science Education Consortium stated “There’s some indication that cave art shows this idea that animals and things can be imbued with some kind of spirit form that then has an influence on you, and if you appease that spirit form, then you will have a successful hunt. That was taken over by the idea of divination.”
Astronomy and divination were then used throughout the centuries, particularly as scapegoats for diseases. For example, it was believed that a major conduction of three planets in Aquarius were the cause of the Black Death in 1345. This is supported by many ancient philosophers and by Albertus Magnus in his book, Concerning the causes of the properties of the elements which says that the conjunction of Mars and Jupiter causes a pestilence in the air, especially when they come together in a hot, wet sign, as in 1345.
Whether you firmly believe in horoscopes, or view them as a bit of fun to test whether they’re accurate, they have been around for centuries and once governed the lives of our ancestors.
Written by Coco Clelland
Artwork by Zara Masood
