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Sejarah astrologi

Revisi sejak 12 Desember 2017 11.00 oleh Nadiantara (bicara | kontrib) (→Mesir pada era Helenistik)

Sejarah astrologi mengkaji perkembangan astrologi dari masa ke masa dalam berbagai kebudayaan di berbagai belahan dunia. Astrologi merupakan suatu jenis kegiatan ramal-meramal terhadap bumi dan manusia berdasarkan berbagai pengamatan serta intrepertasi dari benda-benda langit seperti bintang dan konstelasinya, Matahari, Bulan, dan planet-planet. Penggiat astrologi mempercayai bahwa dengan memahami pengaruh planet-planet dan berbagai bintang terhadap peristiwa yang terjadi di Bumi mereka dapat memperkirakan dan mempengaruhi takdir atau jalan hidup dari suatu individu, kelompok, bahkan negara. Meskipun dalam kajian sejarah astrologi dulunya sempat dianggap sebagai bagian dari sains, saat ini praktik-praktik astrologi dinilai sama sekali bertentangan terhadap kaidah-kaidah ilmiah keilmuan modern.

Astrologi
Lambang astrologi
Cabang Astrologi
The planets in astrology
Astrology project

Praktik-praktik astrologi dapat terlacak di berbagai kelompok masyarakat atau kebudayaan dalam berbagai periode waktu. Astrologi memiliki asal-usul sejak zaman prasejarah dan terus berkembang hingga ke zaman modern, yang mana bisa dimengerti melalui kajian etnoastronomi–astronomi yang dipraktikan dalam masyarakat. Dalam kebudayaan Barat, yang mana astrologi disini berasal dari peradaban Mesopotamia dan kemudian berkembang pada peradaban Yunani Kuno, telah mengalami berbagai pengkajian oleh peneliti-peneliti terkait. Namun, terdapat pula tradisi astrologi yang berkembang pada kebudayaan masyarakat India yang tetap bertahan selama 2.000 tahun. Selain itu, sistem astrologi yang cukup kompleks juga dikembangkan oleh kebudayaan Tiongkok dan Mesoamerika, ketika saat itu seluruh masyarakat tengah mencari keterkaitan aspek sosial-religius terhadap makna dari benda-benda langit dan pergerakannya.

Kemunculan awal

Astrologi dalam pengertian yang luas merupakan pencarian makna langit yang dilakukan oleh manusia— pencarian ini bertujuan untuk memahami keterkaitan benda-benda dan fenomena di langit terhadap sifat manusia baik secara umum maupun mendetail. Terdapat gagasan yang menyatakan bahwa astrologi mulai dipelajari di saat kehidupan manusia telah menyadari kemudian menghitung dan mencatat bahwasannya peristiwa-peristiwa yang terjadi di bumi seperti contohnya perubahan musim dapat di prediksi dengan menggunakan siklus astronomis tertentu.

Bukti tertua praktik-praktik ini berupa berbagai jejak atau guratan yang tertera di tulang-tulang dan dinding-dinding gua, yang mana menunjukan bahwa perubahan fase bulan telah dikenal oleh manusia setidaknya pada 25.000 tahun yang lalu. Ini merupakan langkah awal sebelum manusia dapt menghubungkan bulan dengan fenomena pasang-surut air laut atau menggunakannya sebagai patokan kalender dalam kebudayaan mereka. Dengan berkembangya teknologi pertanian pada zaman Neolitikum, masyarakat pada masa ini juga telah menyadari pentingnya pengetahuan terhadap konstelasi-konstelasi bintang tertentu untuk memprediksi perubahan musim atau banjir yang dapat mempengaruhi produktivitas pertanian mereka. Kemudian di akhir abad ke-30 SM, peradaban-peradaban manusia telah mengembangkan pemahaman yang cukup kompleks terkait benda-benda dan fenomena di langit, dan mereka juga telah melibatkan ini dalam kepercayaan mereka— dapat terlihat dari kuil-kuil atau pemakaman peninggalan mereka yang memiliki orientasi tertentu terhadap pergerakan matahari atau bintang-bintang tertentu.

Terdapat berbagai bukti yang menunjukan bahwa refrensi astrologi tertua dalam bentuk tertulis berasal dari periode ini, terutama yang berasal di Mesopotamia. Dari kuineform peninggalan Bangsa Mesopotamia yang diperkirakan di buat pada pemerintahan raja Sargon (2334-2279 SM) ditemukan catatan mendetail mengenai hasil observasi Venus di periode tersebut, dan juga terdapat kalimat-kalimat yang menghubungkan hasil ini sebagai suatu pertanda untuk kekuasaan Sargon. Selain itu terdapat juga catatan berupa pertanda astrologi yang dikaitkan dengan pemilihan raja, contohnya adalah saat raja Gudea dari Lagash naik tahta sebagai pemimpin Bangsa Sumeria (2144-2124 SM). Catatan ini menggambarkan bagaimana dewa-dewa memberi petunjuk kepada Gudea dalam mimpinya, suatu konstelasi bintang yang paling baik untuk menjadi arah orientasi dari kuil-kuil peribadatan. Bukti-bukti di periode selanjutnya (1950-1651 SM) menunjukan bahwa penggunaan astrologi paling awal sebagai suatu sistem pengetahuan terintegrasi dan telah memiliki kajian yang sistematik diatributkan pada dinasti-dinasti di peradaban Mesopotamia kuno.

Astrologi di peradaban lampau

Mesopotamia

Daerah Mesopotamia seringkali disebut sebagai tempat lahirnya peradaban manusia, dikarenakan banyak dari gagasan dan teknologi dari peradaban kuno di daerah ini yang kemudian diadopsi ke dalam peradaban modern.  Pada tulisan-tulisan di kuneiform (sejenis prasasti) yang ditemukan, diketahui bahwa sejak akhir abad ke-30 SM, peradaban di Mesopotamia telah mengidentifikasi dan membuat daftar yang berisi nama "bintang" dan konstelasinya di langit. Bintang dalam pengertian kebudayaan Mesopotamia adalah segala objek nampak yang ada di langit termasuk planet, komet, meteor, ataupun bintang dan konstelasinya. Dari berbagai kajian arkeoastronomi, benda-benda langit diketahui mempunyai peran yang sangat penting dalam tradisi Mesopotamia terutama untuk yang berkaitan dengan kepercayaan dan ritual peribadataan masyarakat. Salah satu tradisi peninggalan peradaban Mesopotamia yang paling terkenal adalah tradisi ramal-meramal atau pembacaan pertanda dengan merujuk fenomena-fenomena yang terjadi di langit. Tradisi ini juga diperkirakan telah muncul bersamaan dengan saat catatan-catatan mengenai pengamatan bintang dibuat, yakni di awal abad ke-30 SM dan kemudian menjadi cikal-bakal astrologi oleh masyarakat modern. Saat ini, terdapat ratusan peninggalan kuneiform yang menjelaskan berbagai pertanda atau ramalan yang dapat disimpulkan dari pengamatan benda-benda langit.

Bukti-bukti peninggalan lain yang berupa catatan sejarah mengenai pembacaan pertanda astrologi secara komprehensif dan sistematis diberi nama Enuma Anu Enlil. Catatan ini berasal dari kurun abad ke-16 dan terdiri dari 70 tablet kuneiform yang menjelaskan sekitar 7.000 pertanda yang dapat diamati di langit. Pada masa ini penggunaan ilmu astrologi hanya untuk hal-hal yang bersifat aplikatif seperti untuk meramal musim, cuaca atau yang berkaitan dengan politik. Pada abad ke-7 SM aplikasi dari astrologi di peradaban Mesopotamia semakin meluas, terdapat simbol-simbol astrologi yang merepresentasikan aktivitas-aktivitas masyarakat yang dilakukan berdasarkan musim seperti bertani, berburu dan menangkap ikan, atau mempersiapkan cadangan air untuk musim kemarau. Hal ini kemudian berlanjut dan pada abad ke-4 SM, perkembangan metode matematis membuat peradaban Mesopotamia telah mampu memprediksi pergerakan planet dengan akurasi tertentu yang mana kemudian membuat bermunculannya catatan-catatan yang lebih mendetail mengenai pergerakan benda-benda langit.

Astrologi yang berkembang pada peradaban Mesopotamia didasarkan pada keperluan ramal-meramal. Terdapat kumpulan lebih dari 32 kuineform berbentuk hati yang berasal dari kurun tahun 1875 SM, dan berisi tentang kaidah yang sama tentang bagaimana suatu pertanda di langit dapat diinterpretasikan. Jejak dan berbagai tanda yang kemudian ditemukan pada hati hewan kurban diinterpretasikan sebagai simbol-simbol yang berkaitan dengan pesan para dewa kepada raja.

Para dewa juga dipercaya mentransformasikan bentuk mereka ke dalam suatu benda-benda langit baik planet, bulan, ataupun bintang sesuai gambarannya masing-masing. Suatu pertanda buruk juga melekat pada planet-planet tertentu yang mana planet-planet tersebut dianggap sebagai indikasi ketidakpuasan atau kemarahan dewa-dewa yang digambarkan oleh planet tersebut. Indikasi yang diintepretasikan tersebut membuat kebudayaan Mesopotamia memiliki ritual atau cara tertentu untuk membuat senang para dewa. Ritual-ritual ini dilakukan agar kemarahan para dewa tersebut tidak berdampak banyak terhadap raja dan juga kerajaannya. Sebuah catatan astronomi menunjukan bahwa raja Esarhaddon menganggap gerhana bulan yang terjadi pada bulan Januari 673 SM merupakan suatu petunjuk tentang bagaimana upacara penggantian raja dilakukan. digabungkan dengan kepercayaan penuh terhadap hal-hal magis dan pertanda lainnya

Mesir pada era Helenistik

Pada tahun 525 SM, Mesir ditaklukan oleh Bangsa Persia dan diyakini setelah itu terdapat banyak pengaruh terhadap astrologi Bangsa Mesir yang diberikan oleh astrologi kebudayaan Mesopotamia. Pengaruh dari kebudayaan Mesopotamia dicontohkan pada dua simbolisasi dalam zodiak bangsa Mesir – zodiak Libra dan Scorpio pada zodiak Dendera bangsa Mesir.

Setelah pendudukan oleh Iskandar Agung pada 332 SM, Mesir berada dibawah kekuasaan dan pengaruh Bangsa Yunano. Kota Alexandria merupakan kota yang dicetuskan oleh Iskandar Agung setelah penaklukan tersebut pada abad ke-3 hingga ke-2 SM. Kota Alexandria di Mesir ini yang kemudian menjadi tempat bercampurnya astrologi Mesir dengan astrologi yang berasal dari periode akhir kebudayaan Mesopotamia. Astrologi Mesir kemudian memasukan berbagai konsep yang terdapat pada kebudayaan Mesopotamia seperti pentingnya pengaruh planet, konsep tripolisitas, dan pengaruh gerhana. Bersama dengan ini, Bangsa Mesir menggabungkan konsep pembagian zodiak kedalam 36 segmen (decan) pada suatu lingkaran langit, dan memberi penekanan terhadap konstelasi bintang yang dominan, sistem dewa-dewa Yunani yang berkaitan dengan planet, pertanda dari pemerintahan, dan empat elemen utama (air, udara, tanah, api).

Dekan merupakan suatu sistem pengukuran waktu yang didari pengamatan konstelasi bintang. Sistem ini dimulai oleh terbitnya konstelasi Sirius. Terbitnya suatu dekan tertentu di langit digunakan untuk membagi waktu (jam) pada suatu malam. Terbitnya suatu konstelasi bintang sesaat sebelum terbitnya matahari dianggap sebagai jam terakhir dari suatu malam. Setiap tahunnya, konstelasi-konstelasi bintang ini terbit sesaat sebelum matahari terbit selama sepuluh hari. Saat konstelasi-konstelasi ini menjadi bagian dari zodiak peradaban Hellenistik (323-30 SM; selatan Eropa-Timur Tengah ), setiap dekan dihubungkand engan 10 zodiak-zodiak tersebut. Catatan sejarah dari abad ke-2 SM memprediksi posisi dari suatu planet berdasarkan pertanda zodiak disaat terbitnya dekan tertentu, terutama konstelasi Sirius.Salah satu gagasan yang paling penting dan kemudian menjadi basis astrologi modern adalah pengembangan horoskop astrologi oleh Ptolemeus yang saat itu tinggal di Alexandria, Mesir.

Romawi-Yunani

Penaklukan wilayah Asia oleh Iskandar Agung membuka jalan bagi peradaban Yunani untuk mengelaborasikan gagasan dan tradisi mereka terhadap gagasan lain yang berasal dari Suriah, Mesopotamia, dan Asia Tengah. Peradaban Yunani kemudian mempelajari bahasa dan huruf yang terdapat pada kuineform sebagai bagian dari transmisi kebudayaan tersebut. Pada kurun tahun 280 SM, Brossus, seorang pendeta dari kota Babylon, melakukan perjalanan ke Pulau Kos di Yunani untuk mengajarkan astrologi dan kebudayaan Babilonia kepada masyarakat Yunani. Pada abad pertama sebelum Masehi, terdapat dua jenis astrologi yang berkembang di Yunani, salah satu jenis membutuhkan pemahaman terhadap horoskop untuk mengetahui detail akurat dari masa lalu, saat ini, dan masa depan, sementara yang satunya lagi bersifat sangat magis dan mengedepankan kuasa dewa-dewi yang ditunjukan dalam pertanda-pertanda yang muncul di langit. Namun, pembagian-pembagian ini tidak bersifat eksklusif dan bisa jadi saling beririsan, jenis astrologi pertama bertujuan untuk mencari informasi tentang suatu kehidupan, sementara jenis kedua lebih menaruh perhatian pada suatu transformasi yang bersifat pesonal dimana astrologi dianggap sebagai suatu jenis komunikasi terhadap dewa-dewa.

Seperti wilayah lainnya di bagian selatan Eropa, astrologi pada peradaban Romawi kuno sangat dipengaruhi oleh kebudayaan Yunani. Diantara kebudayaan Romawi dan Yunani, kebudayaan Babilonia mengidentifikasi astrologi merupakan suatu ilmu ramal meramal yang menggunakan planet-planet dan bintang sebagai pertanda. Ahli astrologi menjadi bagian penting dari kekaisaran Romawi pada masa itu.

Like so much else, astrology came to Rome due to Greek influence. Among the Greeks and Romans, Babylonia or Chaldea was so identified with astrology that "Chaldaean wisdom" became the synonym of divination through the planets and stars. Astrologers became very much in vogue in Imperial Rome. Indeed, the emperor Tiberius had had his destiny predicted for him at birth, and so surrounded himself with astrologers such as Thrasyllus of Mendes. According to Juvenal 'there are people who cannot appear in public, dine or bathe, without having first consulted an ephemeris'. Claudius, on the other hand favoured augury and banned astrologers from Rome altogether. It is perhaps not surprising, that in the course of time, to be known as a "Chaldaean" carried with it frequently the suspicion of charlatanry and of more or less willful deception. One of the more famous examples of Roman literature concerning astrology is the poem Astronomica, written in the first century AD by Marcus Manilius.

Peradaban Islam klasik

Astrology was taken up by Islamic scholars following the collapse of Alexandria to the Arabs in the 7th century, and the founding of the Abbasid empire in the 8th. The second Abbasid caliph, Al Mansur (754–775) founded the city of Baghdad to act as a centre of learning, and included in its design a library-translation centre known as Bayt al-Hikma 'House of Wisdom', which continued to receive development from his heirs and was to provide a major impetus for Arabic-Persian translations of Hellenistic astrological texts. The early translators included Mashallah, who helped to elect the time for the foundation of Baghdad, and Sahl ibn Bishr, (a.k.a. Zael), whose texts were directly influential upon later European astrologers such as Guido Bonatti in the 13th century, and William Lilly in the 17th century. Knowledge of Arabic texts started to become imported into Europe during the Latin translations of the 12th century.

Astrology was taken up enthusiastically by Islamic scholars following the collapse of Alexandria to the Arabs in the 7th century, and the founding of the Abbasid empire in the 8th century. The second Abbasid caliph, Al Mansur (754-775) founded the city of Baghdad to act as a centre of learning, and included in its design a library-translation centre known as Bayt al-Hikma ‘Storehouse of Wisdom’, which continued to receive development from his heirs and was to provide a major impetus for Arabic translations of Hellenistic astrological texts. The early translators included Mashallah, who helped to elect the time for the foundation of Baghdad, and Sahl ibn Bishr(a.k.a. Zael), whose texts were directly influential upon later European astrologers such as Guido Bonatti in the 13th century, and William Lilly in the 17th century. Knowledge of Arabic texts started to become imported into Europe during the Latin translations of the 12th century.

Amongst the important names of Arabic astrologers, one of the most influential was Albumasur, whose work Introductorium in Astronomiam later became a popular treatise in medieval Europe. Another was the Persian mathematician, astronomer, astrologer and geographer Al Khwarizmi. The Arabs greatly increased the knowledge of astronomy, and many of the star names that are commonly known today, such as Aldebaran, Altair, Betelgeuse, Rigel and Vega retain the legacy of their language. They also developed the list of Hellenistic lots to the extent that they became historically known as Arabic parts, for which reason it is often wrongly claimed that the Arabic astrologers invented their use, whereas they are clearly known to have been an important feature of Hellenistic astrology.

During the advance of Islamic science some of the practices of astrology were refuted on theological grounds by astronomers such as Al-Farabi (Alpharabius), Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen) and Avicenna. Their criticisms argued that the methods of astrologers were conjectural rather than empirical, and conflicted with orthodox religious views of Islamic scholars through the suggestion that the Will of God can be precisely known and predicted in advance. Such refutations mainly concerned 'judicial branches' (such as horary astrology), rather than the more 'natural branches' such as medical and meteorological astrology, these being seen as part of the natural sciences of the time.

For example, Avicenna’s 'Refutation against astrology' Resāla fī ebṭāl aḥkām al-nojūm, argues against the practice of astrology while supporting the principle of planets acting as the agents of divine causation which express God's absolute power over creation. Avicenna considered that the movement of the planets influenced life on earth in a deterministic way, but argued against the capability of determining the exact influence of the stars. In essence, Avicenna did not refute the essential dogma of astrology, but denied our ability to understand it to the extent that precise and fatalistic predictions could be made from it.

Eropa

Whilst astrology in the East flourished following the break up of the Roman world, with Indian, Persian and Islamic influences coming together and undergoing intellectual review through an active investment in translation projects, Western astrology in the same period had become “fragmented and unsophisticated ... partly due to the loss of Greek scientific astronomy and partly due to condemnations by the Church.” Translations of Arabic works into Latin started to make their way to Spain by the late 10th century, and in the 12th century the transmission of astrological works from Arabia to Europe “acquired great impetus”.

By the 13th century astrology had become a part of everyday medical practice in Europe. Doctors combined Galenic medicine (inherited from the Greek physiologist Galen - AD 129-216) with studies of the stars. By the end of the 1500s, physicians across Europe were required by law to calculate the position of the Moon before carrying out complicated medical procedures, such as surgery or bleeding.

Influential works of the 13th century include those of the British monk Johannes de Sacrobosco (c. 1195–1256) and the Italian astrologer Guido Bonatti from Forlì (Italy). Bonatti served the communal governments of Florence, Siena and Forlì and acted as advisor to Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor. His astrological text-book Liber Astronomiae ('Book of Astronomy'), written around 1277, was reputed to be "the most important astrological work produced in Latin in the 13th century". Dante Alighieri immortalised Bonatti in his Divine Comedy (early 14th century) by placing him in the eighth Circle of Hell, a place where those who would divine the future are forced to have their heads turned around (to look backwards instead of forwards).

In medieval Europe, a university education was divided into seven distinct areas, each represented by a particular planet and known as the seven liberal arts. Dante attributed these arts to the planets. As the arts were seen as operating in ascending order, so were the planets in decreasing order of planetary speed: grammar was assigned to the Moon, the quickest moving celestial body, dialectic was assigned to Mercury, rhetoric to Venus, musicto the Sun, arithmetic to Mars, geometry to Jupiter and astrology/astronomy to the slowest moving body, Saturn.

Medieval writers used astrological symbolism in their literary themes. For example, Dante's Divine Comedy builds varied references to planetary associations within his described architecture of Hell, Purgatory and Paradise, (such as the seven layers of Purgatory's mountain purging the seven cardinal sins that correspond to astrology's seven classical planets). Similar astrological allegories and planetary themes are pursued through the works of Geoffrey Chaucer.

Chaucer's astrological passages are particularly frequent and knowledge of astrological basics is often assumed through his work. He knew enough of his period's astrology and astronomy to write a Treatise on the Astrolabe for his son. He pinpoints the early spring season of the Canterbury Tales in the opening verses of the prologue by noting that the Sun "hath in the Ram his halfe cours yronne". He makes the Wife of Bath refer to "sturdy hardiness" as an attribute of Mars, and associates Mercury with "clerkes". In the early modern period, astrological references are also to be found in the works of William Shakespeare and John Milton.

One of the earliest English astrologers to leave details of his practice was Richard Trewythian (b. 1393). His notebook demonstrates that he had a wide range of clients, from all walks of life, and indicates that engagement with astrology in 15th-century England was not confined to those within learned, theological or political circles.

During the Renaissance, court astrologers would complement their use of horoscopes with astronomical observations and discoveries. Many individuals now credited with having overturned the old astrological order, such as Tycho Brahe, Galileo Galilei and Johannes Kepler, were themselves practicing astrologers.

At the end of the Renaissance the confidence placed in astrology diminished, with the breakdown of Aristotelian Physics and rejection of the distinction between the celestial and sublunar realms, which had historically acted as the foundation of astrological theory. Keith Thomas writes that although heliocentrism is consistent with astrology theory, 16th and 17th century astronomical advances meant that "the world could no longer be envisaged as a compact inter-locking organism; it was now a mechanism of infinite dimensions, from which the hierarchical subordination of earth to heaven had irrefutably disappeared". Initially, amongst the astronomers of the time, "scarcely anyone attempted a serious refutation in the light of the new principles" and in fact astronomers "were reluctant to give up the emotional satisfaction provided by a coherent and interrelated universe". By the 18th century the intellectual investment which had previously maintained astrology's standing was largely abandoned.

India

The main texts upon which classical Indian astrology is based are early medieval compilations, notably the Bṛhat Parāśara Horāśāstra, and Sārāvalī by Kalyāṇavarma. The Horāshastra is a composite work of 71 chapters, of which the first part (chapters 1–51) dates to the 7th to early 8th centuries and the second part (chapters 52–71) to the later 8th century. The Sārāvalī likewise dates to around 800 CE. English translations of these texts were published by N.N. Krishna Rau and V.B. Choudhari in 1963 and 1961, respectively.

In India, astrology, or jyotish, is a “vedanga”, one of the “sciences” necessary for

understanding the vedas the sacred texts. A vibrant tradition of astrology has

survived in India in an unbroken tradition since Greek horoscopic astrology was

imported and combined with Hinduism in the first century CE. It remains an active

part of Indian life and has both a presence in the temples and in mundane life. It is

used at the highest levels of politics: the date and time for Burmese independence in

1948 and the proclamation of the Republic of Sri Lanka in 1971 were chosen on

astrological grounds. The most widespread use of astrology is in marriage – to

confirm the prospective marriage partner and to arrange the date of the wedding.

Indian astrology’s interpretative functions are just one phase in a process in which, as human beings are creations of the cosmos, but not separate to it, they are active participants in it. There is therefore a second stage to the astrological process, which is to engage with whatever information the astrologer has imparted. The omens of future difficulties dispatched by astrological configurations can be dealt with by apotropaic rituals designed to avert a future problem or by prayer, meditation, ritual, pujas (purifications), and talismans. The Shwedagon pagoda in Rangoon provides an example in a Buddhist context. Around the base of the central 321-fthigh gilded stupa are located eight shrines to the planetary rulers of the days of the week the Sun (Sunday), the Moon (Monday), Mars (Tuesday), Mercury (Wednesday before noon), Rahu (the Moon’s north node, Wednesday afternoon), Jupiter (Thursday), Venus (Friday), and Saturn (Saturday). Dispatched by their astrologers, local people engage quietly with one of the planetary shrines, meditating in front of it, contemplating its beauty, making offerings of flowers, and pouring water or milk over it and lighting incense to carry prayers to heaven The principle is quite simple: if one is suffering from an excess of Mars – a fever perhaps or violent threats or spiritual agitation – one may counter this by performing the appropriate ritual at the Venus shrine, whose nature is calm and peaceful. On another occasion, perhaps, the solution might be to attend to the Mars shrine precisely in order to persuade the Martian principle in the cosmos to call off its threats. There are nine planets in Indian astrology: the seven traditional planets and the Moon’s north and south nodes (Rahu and Ketu). The organized planetary rituals are therefore known as nava (nine) graha (planet) rituals. Kemper (1980) described a navagraha ritual in Sri Lanka. The ritual begins with a prepubescent girl preparing a string of nine-strands, one for each planet, which then protects the client against malign planetary influence or signification. The priest then uses the string to conduct the ceremony while Buddhist monks chant protective verses, which reinforce the auspicious power of the girl and the planets as embodied in the string. Indian astrology is unique among the highly codified “cosmic” forms in that it survives in a very similar form to that practiced in the second century, unlike China where communism disrupted traditional learning and Europe, where “high” and “middling” astrology almost disappeared in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The academic study of its claims and practices therefore offers insights into wider Indian culture, as well as to studies of Indian archaeoastronomy.

Tiongkok

Chinese astrology has a close relation with Chinese philosophy (theory of the three harmonies: heaven, earth and man) and uses concepts such as yin and yang, the Five phases, the 10 Celestial stems, the 12 Earthly Branches, and shichen (時辰 a form of timekeeping used for religious purposes). The early use of Chinese astrology was mainly confined to political astrology, the observation of unusual phenomena, identification of portents and the selection of auspicious days for events and decisions.

The constellations of the Zodiac of western Asia and Europe were not used; instead the sky is divided into Three Enclosures (三垣 sān yuán), and Twenty-eight Mansions (二十八宿 èrshíbā xiù) in twelve Ci (十二次). The Chinese zodiac of twelve animal signs is said to represent twelve different types of personality. It is based on cycles of years, lunar months, and two-hour periods of the day (the shichen). The zodiac traditionally begins with the sign of the Rat, and the cycle proceeds through 11 other animals signs: the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.Complex systems of predicting fate and destiny based on one's birthday, birth season, and birth hours, such as ziping and Zi Wei Dou Shu (simplified Chinese: 紫微斗数; traditional Chinese: 紫微斗數; pinyin: zǐwēidǒushù) are still used regularly in modern-day Chinese astrology. They do not rely on direct observations of the stars.

The Korean zodiac is identical to the Chinese one. The Vietnamese zodiac is almost identical to Chinese zodiac except the second animal is the Water Buffalo instead of the Ox, and the fourth animal is the Cat instead of the Rabbit. The Japanese have since 1873 celebrated the beginning of the new year on 1 January as per the Gregorian Calendar. The Thai zodiac begins, not at Chinese New Year, but either on the first day of fifth month in the Thai lunar calendar, or during the Songkran festival (now celebrated every 13–15 April), depending on the purpose of the use.

Mesoamerika

The calendars of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica are based upon a system which had been in common use throughout the region, dating back to at least the 6th century BC. The earliest calendars were employed by peoples such as the Zapotecs and Olmecs, and later by such peoples as the Maya, Mixtec and Aztecs. Although the Mesoamerican calendardid not originate with the Maya, their subsequent extensions and refinements to it were the most sophisticated. Along with those of the Aztecs, the Maya calendars are the best-documented and most completely understood.

The distinctive Mayan calendar used two main systems, one plotting the solar year of 360 days, which governed the planting of crops and other domestic matters; the other called the Tzolkin of 260 days, which governed ritual use. Each was linked to an elaborate astrological system to cover every facet of life. On the fifth day after the birth of a boy, the Mayan astrologer-priests would cast his horoscope to see what his profession was to be: soldier, priest, civil servant or sacrificial victim. A 584-day Venus cycle was also maintained, which tracked the appearance and conjunctions of Venus. Venus was seen as a generally inauspicious and baleful influence, and Mayan rulers often planned the beginning of warfare to coincide with when Venus rose. There is evidence that the Maya also tracked the movements of Mercury, Mars and Jupiter, and possessed a zodiac of some kind. The Mayan name for the constellation Scorpio was also 'scorpion', while the name of the constellation Gemini was 'peccary'. There is some evidence for other constellations being named after various beasts. The most famous Mayan astrological observatory still intact is the Caracol observatory in the ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza in modern-day Mexico.

The Aztec calendar shares the same basic structure as the Mayan calendar, with two main cycles of 360 days and 260 days. The 260-day calendar was called Tonalpohualli and was used primarily for divinatory purposes. Like the Mayan calendar, these two cycles formed a 52-year 'century', sometimes called the Calendar Round.

Oseania

Traditional Polynesian astronomers tended to be divided into two groups: the sky

watchers, whose task was to watch for omens, keep the calendar, and arrange rituals

and festivals, and the wayfinders, who presided over the knowledge necessary for

navigation. The examination of celestial omens conforms to a broad definition of

astrology. In New Zealand, the Maori developed a class of experts, tohunga

kokorangi, who were versed in the entire range of celestial lore, including the

measurement of celestial positions and evaluation of their significance; Best (1955)

referred to these practices as “natural astrology”. An example of Maori practice

includes the following: a lunar occultation – when the Moon passes directly in front

of a certain star – is a potentially difficult military omen. If the star reappears when

the Moon has passed, it was said, a fort will be captured. One informant reported

that “the star knows all about the coming trouble. . . Just before the battle of Orakau

we saw this sign..As we were a war party of course our warriors made much of this

omen” (Best 1955, p. 68). The tohunga kokorangi would watch the sky for omens,

communing with celestial deities and purging his soul. If the tohunga kokorangi

saw a dangerous sign, such as a comet, he would recite ritual formulae in order to

defuse the threat and protect his people.

He may even have been actively engaging with the sky, acting as a cocreator, for

there was a belief that certain men, with sufficient power, could cause a solar halo to

appear at will.  

Astrologi di era modern

Kebudayaan Barat

In the West, political leaders have sometimes consulted astrologers. For example, the British intelligence agency MI5 employed Louis de Wohl as an astrologer after claims surfaced that Adolf Hitler used astrology to time his actions. The War Office was "...interested to know what Hitler's own astrologers would be telling him from week to week." In fact, de Wohl's predictions were so inaccurate that he was soon labelled a "complete charlatan," and later evidence showed that Hitler considered astrology "complete nonsense." After John Hinckley's attempted assassination of US President Ronald Reagan, first lady Nancy Reagan commissioned astrologer Joan Quigley to act as the secret White House astrologer. However, Quigley's role ended in 1988 when it became public through the memoirs of former chief of staff, Donald Regan.

There was a boom in interest in astrology in the late 1960s. The sociologist Marcello Truzzi described three levels of involvement of "Astrology-believers" to account for its revived popularity in the face of scientific discrediting. He found that most astrology-believers did not claim it was a scientific explanation with predictive power. Instead, those superficially involved, knowing "next to nothing" about astrology's 'mechanics', read newspaper astrology columns, and could benefit from "tension-management of anxieties" and "a cognitive belief-system that transcends science." Those at the second level usually had their horoscopes cast and sought advice and predictions. They were much younger than those at the first level, and could benefit from knowledge of the language of astrology and the resulting ability to belong to a coherent and exclusive group. Those at the third level were highly involved and usually cast horoscopes for themselves. Astrology provided this small minority of astrology-believers with a "meaningful view of their universe and [gave] them an understanding of their place in it." This third group took astrology seriously, possibly as a sacred canopy, whereas the other two groups took it playfully and irreverently.

In 1953, the sociologist Theodor W. Adorno conducted a study of the astrology column of a Los Angeles newspaper as part of a project examining mass culture in capitalist society. Adorno believed that popular astrology, as a device, invariably leads to statements that encouraged conformity—and that astrologers who go against conformity, by discouraging performance at work etc., risk losing their jobs. Adorno concluded that astrology is a large-scale manifestation of systematic irrationalism, where individuals are subtly led—through flattery and vague generalisations—to believe that the author of the column is addressing them directly. Adorno drew a parallel with the phrase opium of the people, by Karl Marx, by commenting, "occultism is the metaphysic of the dopes."

A 2005 Gallup poll and a 2009 survey by the Pew Research Center reported that 25% of US adults believe in astrology. According to data released in the National Science Foundation's 2014 Science and Engineering Indicators study, "Fewer Americans rejected astrology in 2012 than in recent years." The NSF study noted that in 2012, "slightly more than half of Americans said that astrology was 'not at all scientific,' whereas nearly two-thirds gave this response in 2010. The comparable percentage has not been this low since 1983."

India dan Jepang

In India, there is a long-established and widespread belief in astrology. It is commonly used for daily life, particularly in matters concerning marriage and career, and makes extensive use of electional, horary and karmic astrology. Indian politics have also been influenced by astrology. It is still considered a branch of the Vedanga. In 2001, Indian scientists and politicians debated and critiqued a proposal to use state money to fund research into astrology, resulting in permission for Indian universities to offer courses in Vedic astrology.

On February 2011, the Bombay High Court reaffirmed astrology's standing in India when it dismissed a case that challenged its status as a science.

In Japan, strong belief in astrology has led to dramatic changes in the fertility rate and the number of abortions in the years of Fire Horse. Adherents believe that women born in hinoeuma years are unmarriageable and bring bad luck to their father or husband. In 1966, the number of babies born in Japan dropped by over 25% as parents tried to avoid the stigma of having a daughter born in the hinoeuma year.

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