Astrology is a very vast and broad subject that discusses nearly every aspect of our lives. With a subject so broad, there are many common misconceptions, it is therefore best to start off by clearly stating what astrology is not. In a large sense, astrology is an abstract tool, like a mathematical operation. Abstract ideas can be hard to pin down so we should best clear out the junk and first state clearly what it is not.

As both a study and a practice, astrology is not science, religion, or even necessarily spiritual. Astrology is not simple, on the contrary it is complex to the point of being imperfect after centuries of practice, and theoretically may never be perfect. Though it is remarkably logical and consistent despite the complexity.

Many religious people instantly dismiss astrology because they feel it must be incompatible with their belief system. This is in fact far from the truth and astrological documents have often survived alongside many mainstream historical religions. In monotheistic practices where you believe one god created the universe, it naturally follows that the same force created the stars and planets, and set whatever order with them.

We live in an age where organized religion is a delicate issue. Historically, structured religion has been one of the biggest driving forces for war. No wars were ever fought over astrology. Today, many religions come under more and more public scrutiny. And there are increasingly militant groups of organized atheists. The core idea of religion that I want to reference here is a requisite of belief. One religion requires you to believe in a god. Atheism is it's own religion as it requires you to believe that there is no god. When anybody requires you to believe in their rules, to me that is religion and historically astrologers do not do this. Astrology is a subject that awaits anyone to come research it.

The core need for belief is embedded in every person. In this sense people get into religious debates about almost anything they have strong beliefs for. Baseball fans can be fanatical in the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry. Debating Republican and Democratic ideas in politics often comes down to religious debate. The same is true with Coke versus Pepsi. Computer users argue which is better: Apple, Microsoft, or Linux. The point is religious debates occur in every aspect of our lives Therefore, astrologers like all people are not immune to religious debates. Astrologers can have very intricate debates, because the subject can be inconsistent when the details emerge. Individual astrologers for the most part allow their beliefs to evolve when they feel they are wrong and have learned something - there is no one book of astrological dogma all astrologers follow. Still, the prevailing social belief in astrology is non-belief, and that is often a religious stance, from people not open-minded enough to look at the subject without prejudice. Even though such people espouse a scientific alliance, their argument is purely religious. Any rational analytical person who has looked at astrology sees that there is something there of value and remarkable consistency.

Astrology does not require belief in it. In fact, the best astrologers don't believe in it, as their open mindedness allows them to study, explore the subject and expand it - determining what works and what doesn't in an almost scientific manner.

Often astrology is cast in a scientific light to dress it up because of the social acceptance of technology and the products that science has brought us. Sometimes people tell me they appreciate the "science" of astrology and I admire the comment, it shows the individual respects and understands the discipline and rigor of the practice; but they are incorrect. In a strict sense, science, meaning the study and practice that uses the scientific method is about generating repeatable results within a close margin of error. These are mainly seen in the areas of physics and chemistry and this process is why we can mass produce wheels, nuts, bolts, computers, Clorox bleach, Coca Cola and jet engines. Real science uses mathematical data and a deductive process of looking at one concrete object, analyzing it, reaching a general rule, and then applying the knowledge of that rule to other concrete objects. Astrology uses astronomical/mathematical data and an inductive process of looking at everything - meaning existence as a whole, trying to see patterns that relate to an individual moment or person, so we can generalize about everybody again. It is akin to science in rigor and discipline, but it is a study that cannot produce identical, repeatable results in a lab. This is why scientific arguments against astrology are often religious, and always irrelevant. Furthermore, astrology often works in the realm of human emotion and psychology making clear results difficult to classify when obtained.

However, astrology is a rigorous study, and it does try to make predictions in its practice, and in this sense it resembles the study of weather and human health. Both subjects might be called science by some, but in the strict sense they are not. No weatherman can predict consistently, day after day, exact weather. No two days on earth have been identical - the system is too large and we can't fit the planet into a laboratory. The problems with trying to figure out the weather parallels astrology rather nicely. In human health, ultimately, every human being is unique, medicine cannot reliably predict the date of someone's death given a comprehensive medical analysis - let alone predict when someone will feel happy, sad, or contract a specific illness. That is not to say that these subjects don't contribute useful information to our lives. Treating weather and health as science has yielded many breakthroughs and good information. Subsets of these things are science. Applying the discipline and rigor of science - the mindset - to these subjects is what furthers them. But in terms of getting reliable, repeatable results, weather and health are not a strict science, and such is the case with astrology. Astrologers have been studying the subject for millenia now, and the subject has evolved greatly. Ultimately weather, health, and astrology are a study of statistics. Statistics is not science, it is just math and you see it all the time in health and weather. Clinical trials give percentage risk of some condition based on a sample group. Weather gives statistical likelihoods of some phenomenon to occur, but cannot predict the category hurricane makes at landfall until it is right on top of us. Astrology is a statistical study of correlating events, and much is learned by ongoing cycles of practicing, and researching the subject. Astrology does try to make useful practical answers for people, and often succeeds. A good astrologer can be as valuable as a good weatherman for predicting your wedding date.

What may be more scary about subjects like weather and human health is how infrequently the general populace pays attention to the failed predictions of those subjects. No one holds doctors or weathermen accountable, yet trust their predictions anyway. Yet astrology is assumed to be utter nonsense. But that is a discussion for another time.

When one looks at the entire cosmos and sees patterns in the chaos, you can't help at least refine your spiritual view. This tends to happen to the astrology student, but for it to work, a client consulting an astrologer doesn't even need to have any spiritual framework to garner useful information from it.

Though I am sure there must be con-artists out there who use astrology, I have yet to meet one. Really studying and learning astrology is a lot of work, and there are easier, more profitable cons to run on people. Every astrologer I have met has a genuine interest in the subject and does his or her best to give helpful answers to people. Whether or not the astrologer, his client, or anyone believes in it, and whether or not any predictions are correct - the benefit of counseling is real - sometimes people just need to talk, and this framework is more palatable for some. Astrologers are often accused (along with other so-called fortune tellers) of cold-reading people and getting agreement from their subjects. If this is the case, it is accidental, for the astrologer's intent is genuine. I personally like it when my subject tells me I am wrong, it is how I learn, I don't like clients who's eyes glaze over and believe everything you tell them. That isn't productive.

This is probably the most common misconception about astrology and has done the most damage. These daily "sun-sign" horoscopes give a false impression to the public. They are a double edged sword, while they serve to inform the general public that astrology is out there and it exists, their uselessness serves to only discredit the subject further. Daily horoscopes are little more than entertainment and historically came about to sell more newspapers. The reason they are flawed is that horoscope writers try to guess concrete things when the audience is so general that the advice can't be general or unique - it is somewhere in-between, too vague and brief. The other reason daily horoscopes are not astrology is that there aren't 12 types of people. Of course, almost everyone uses a phrase to compare people by saying - "there are two types of people ..." so perhaps 12 expresses a wider viewpoint for starters. But in reality, astrology is a system for analyzing how every moment is unique, and consequently, each of us in that time us is unique. Astrology gives us the tools to explore our uniqueness.

This usually rhetorical question amazes me because it demonstrates the ability of people to repeat what they hear without thinking about it. Whenever you see a debate about astrology on TV, typically the astrologer gives a correct interpretation then the skeptic firmly states something like "that could apply to everybody."

I've heard rational smart people make this argument with me in person. They assert as authorities of their own opinion that possible insights from astrology are there because they could apply to everyone, and shouldn't be taken seriously. But did they think about what they are saying? Do they themselves understand what they mean and have thought about it?

When you see an astrologer you are seeking personal advice. Can the astrologer's advice apply to everybody? The answer is yes of course it can. That's what advice is. The question that the advised needs to ask themselves is "does this apply to me?" Any advice is presented in language that is general to some extent, but again, because of social prejudice astrology is dismissed while other forms of advisers are not. If you go to your doctor and they advise you to quit smoking, do you deny their advice because it could apply to everybody? Of course not. After ending a difficult relationship your best friend might advise "tis better to have loved and lost." Do you deny the advice because that could apply to everybody? Lawyers give advice all the time, all by manipulating their knowledge of general ideas in the law. If they advise you to file a tax form one way instead of another, is their advice irrelevant because it could apply to everybody?

Advice by its nature is general. Language is a tool that conveys ideas in various levels of specificity. Each person doesn't have their own language, that's absurd. Anybody seeking advice needs to judge the character of the adviser with his or her own perceptive skills, and determine if they are working in his or her best interest. Someone receiving advice should determine how much it applies to themselves, and then how to proceed in the relationship. A good astrologer does his or her best to describe how the unique configuration of a chart applies to a person, but all he has is the general tool of language to give advice. Never mind the challenge that the astrologer has a vast amount of unknown variables. It is never an astrologer, or any adviser's job to plan the details of one's life for them. The responsibility lies with the person getting the advice.

Part of the problem is that people don't know what to expect from an astrologer so expectations are often elevated and nebulous. Astrologers are not psychics, or absolute prophets, or gods. Astrologers are human consultants using a detailed analytical system to notice timing patterns in life. It is a cultivated skill, but like any lawyer, an astrologer can be wrong sometimes and should therefore always be humble. TV depictions of fortune tellers along with the mystical presentation of some astrologers clouds this simple fact, so it is easy to understand why people have confused expectations.

Does the general advice astrologers give apply to everybody? Of course it can. But so can every other kind of advice. There is no litmus test for advice specifically tailored to you. No one should ever believe what they are told without questioning it themselves first. Anyone receiving astrological advice might find that some chart interpretations resonate strongly with them. It is their duty to decide for themselves if the effect is true or a form of self-delusion. All advice must be tested by the ego of the advised. Apparently many egos still have the implanted notion that general advice is not valid and should be ignored. Or perhaps it is merely that many people are lazy and always assume their lawyer and doctor must be right, and their astrologer is wrong, that way they don't have to think for themselves.

I encourage skepticism in astrology, I believe it is very healthy to a point. What I discourage is prejudice and closed-mindedness, in any context, astrological or otherwise.

Modern astrology dates back to Babylon over 4000 years ago. But astrology really developed in nearly every civilization. The history of astrology can be found elsewhere online so we don't have to get into it here. The interesting point of debate is whether or not astrology shares a common ancestry, or if other civilizations like the Chinese developed it independently. But what is certain is that up until recently, most humans have looked to the stars for navigation, predictions of seasons, and searched for answers to the questions about our existence.

As mentioned above, astrology is not a causal science therefore scientific attempts to prove or disprove it are invalid, we can only rely on the statistics. Modern physicists operate under different assumptions than astrologers and therefore have a difficult time explaining how astrology works and therefore discard it. The problem is they are looking for a cause-and-effect connection. Really astrology doesn't require there to be any physical force, it takes a different view of our existence. What best applies is the age old adage , "as above - so below." This isn't a religious statement, it is merely a philosophical acknowledgment that our universe is vast and we cannot isolate ourselves from it. From gazing at the stars man has always known that our world and beyond is part of something massive. Much of how we define our existence came from studying the heavens. This is where our system of keeping time in days, months, and years comes from. And as the planets move in the heavens, life goes on earth through night/day, seasons, births and deaths. All the subject does is correlate what goes on above to what goes on below. No forces are required - no heat, no light, no gravity. The operating principle is known as synchronicity. The metaphysical framework is that we are all connected to the same cosmic existence, and astrology tries to define our system of time. Put another way, people use a modern artifact called a calendar, to keep track of time. But the calendar has it's flaws and corrections such as leap years - to give us the true time, which comes from the motion of the earth around the sun.

So, how does astrology work? The best way I can explain it is: the planets are our clock. Here the term "planets" includes the sun and moon. Like a clock that has an hour hand, a minute hand, and a second hand, our real clock has a sun hand, a moon hand, a mars hand, all the way out to Pluto. These hands move very slowly, but their dynamic interrelationships change frequently. Saturn is associated with "old father time" because it is the farthest and slowest moving planet visible to the naked eye - it is the slowest hand on the clock. The planets as far out as Saturn have been known about for a very long time, perhaps before civilization began. In fact the case can be made that the ancient myths come from astrological events associated with the planets of those names.

I won't try to answer that question for you because it takes us to the realm of spiritual belief and I don't want to broach that subject here. I don't want to step on the toes of your particular religion, whether that is Christianity, or bio-electro-mechanics. That would be imposing my personal beliefs and I want to stick to truths. And as one would ask "why does gravity work?" the answer "because it does" just isn't good enough. There are some things like gravity where we can only describe how they work, not the why, and there is no clear logical answer without faith, or at least comfort with the unknown.

I mainly deal with what is called Western Astrology, but even Vedic astrology uses a similar zodiac. If you read a lot of astrology books you will see a remarkable consistency in the definitions of the 12 signs. The Babylonians gave us the zodiac, which is 12 equal divisions of a circle into 30 degree signs. The root word of Zodiac is "zoo" but not all of the figures are animals, many are human like Aquarius the water bearer, or even abstract like Libra the scales. The 12 signs of the zodiac roughly correlate to the 12 months out of the year and each sign most resembles the season of year the sign occurs in. For example, Leo happens during the middle of summer, and represents the sun and the adoration that comes with it.

Where many people have a hard time comprehending astrology is taking it too literally. This could be said of religion as well. In general, reading between the lines and understanding the big picture is always more valuable than taking words at face-value, especially when dealing with abstract tools. Astrological ideas are very abstract and isolating them is the first challenge, then trying to convey a useful meaning is the next. So when reading anything from an astrologer, once you have opened your mind, you must take the words with a grain of salt, not take them too literally, and realize they are one piece of a complicated and evolving picture.

In one sense, your astrological chart is a picture of your soul, which has far more ingredients than a birthday cake. So don't look at interpreting your soul as a list of ingredients in a cake recipe. Instead learn to enjoy the experience and the tasty cake, which can be viewed as more than the sum of its parts.

Like much of life, the truth is often somewhere in-between competing ideas. The reason why astrology appeals to many open-minded individuals including many cutting-edge scientists, is that they see consistent patterns at many abstract levels. Ultimately, everybody is unique, but everybody is the same. Astrology finds a good middle ground and explaining the uniqueness of someone in ways that we are all the same. That is the challenge and crux of the matter.

Every civilization has had an astrology of one kind or another. The three cultural areas that it survives today is Chinese, Hindu (or Vedic), and western astrology which mainly originated from the Greeks and Arabs. Astronomers often point out that the modern western zodiac is inconsistent with the stars, and they are correct. Due to the precession of the equinoxes, the zodiac shifts one full sign about every 2,000 years. But western astrology is not inconsistent. This effect was known to ancient astrologers and they accounted for it. The western zodiac sets 0-degrees Aries at the moment of the vernal equinox, and does so every year. The western zodiac is tied to the seasons. Vedic astrology uses the actual stars as zodiac constellations so it is inconsistent with the western zodiac by 1 full sign now. How do astrologers reconcile these inconsistencies? The answer is they haven't yet. It is a current issue in astrology but historically one must realize that for starters, both vedic and western astrology come from very different traditions. So while a zodiac will give different sign results, the same zodiac would give different judgments of people. Vedic often tries to predict things such as physical health, which western does not. Vedic often has a fatalistic quality associated with it, as is tradition in the east. Some view your fate or karma is unchangeable and astrology just helps you understand it. Western astrology believes that at least in these modern times we as free people do have freewill and astrology just shows us our innate potential. So yes there are different systems that will generate different results. But each system is consistent in and of itself. Comparing them is like comparing American football to Australian rugby. Both use an oblong ball, and are aggressive sports played on a grass field, but they are culturally very different, and ultimately play by different rules. But after a contest of either sport, we would refer to all of the players as athletes.

Even with inconsistencies in zodiacs there are certain qualities to astrological analysis that are universal. This includes geometric relationships called aspects, as in when planets oppose each other, or when they conjoin or operate in the same space. Regardless of zodiac, astrologers acknowledge solar eclipses in a similar way, and there is no inconsistency where and when they occur. The sky is a big place and is very complex, ultimately it's one sky, we just have many systems that try to understand what is going on, perhaps one day the systems will simplify and merge - though that task would be orders of magnitude harder than merging rugby and football.

A more recent development has been the re-classifying of Pluto as a "dwarf planet" and it is no longer a "planet" to astronomers. This is irrelevant to astrology. In fact many astrologers fill up their charts with asteroids, fixed stars, and theoretical points to attempt to find more information, while others try to keep it simple. The sun and moon are referred to as planets in astrology for the sake of simplicity, so these terminology details are semantic issues and of no consequence.

There are many answers to that question so I will give my personal take. When the so-called scientific revolution accelerated during the mid-1800s, many old subjects were thrown out. Astrology used to be a required course for most doctors in universities. Astrology was thrown out. So was crainiology. Astrology survived barely, but only a bit better than crainiology. We're lucky astrology didn't disappear altogether. Up until the early 1900's in the USA, fortune telling laws made practising astrology illegal. Today we think of the United States as being the source of great scientific advances and technology, we should remember that much modern science started in Europe, including important fields like endocrinology. Let us also not forget that while eugenics was popular among many countries during World War II - epitomized by German "race science," astrology as a serious science was vilified. Although actually, both the Germans and the British had teams of top aids to plan WW II astrologically, but that is a story for another time, which would lead us to the completely different subject on the ethical use of astrology.

Many other reasons astrology isn't mainstream anymore is part of the purpose for this FAQ - people just make wrong assumptions about it. People think it is incompatible with their religion, and they are wrong. People think it is incompatible with their science, and they are wrong. Astrology transcends both subjects and pursues its own truths. It is a subject of a higher order that genuine philosophers appreciate. It reminds us of the simple natures of our world which we cannot deny no matter how hard we try.

The world is full of lies and I am sick of it: "Life is an accident." "Jesus approves of war." "Coca Cola is refreshing." What's scares me is the number of people who believe these lies, they buy into them for some reason. I am a firm believer in seeking the truth in all its forms and that is all that matters to me. That's my hobby and passion. I also find it amazingly ironic how many of my fellow Americans devoted much of their life to watching a TV program called "Lost" - yes we are, many of us really are. Two centuries ago, before light pollution in cities smudged out the sky - when people were lost, they navigated by the stars.

The truth isn't very profitable which is why you never see commercials for broccoli. Sad thing is it's becoming so rare that it seems important and possibly worthwhile for someone like me to throw up a web page speaking the truth - in plain terms anyone can understand. Many people keep saying that there is a mass awakening going on and I tend to agree, so here is my contribution. Astrology is a subject that I personally have studied for over a decade, and after keeping an open mind, having plenty of reasonable doubt, I was surprised by it working one time too often. I'm not even surprised that it works anymore and I seem to have a natural talent for it that I should cultivate. Astrology works, and those of us who see it know it for a fact. There are those who can't see it and that's fine - I respect them if they take an honest look, but most people haven't and now I am asking them to. Like any technology it has its limits but as a tool for exploring ourselves and beyond it can be quite powerful.

Astrology is a technology, (though not an exact science) that is even more aided by the modern technology of computers. I personally believe any technology is meant to benefit all of mankind as a whole. That means it can apply to each and every one of us as an individual, and astrology certainly meets that requirement. And though the practice is very ancient, we now have the tools to advance astrology like never before. We can verify, refine, and throw out what doesn't work. And the more people we have investigating it the better, so I partly write this to inform my fellow man that this is here, it won't hurt you - come have a look.

Also I am inviting astrologers to behave more scientifically, and encouraging them to not fear social persecution. Astrologers naturally want to practice and hone their craft where they are comfortable, and not derided, so that means out of the public eye. That leaves astrology stuck in the mud with other new age hoo-haw when it can and should stand on its own. We need more research to advance this subject and I feel we can only achieve this out in the open. We need to develop statistical models, use computer databases and realize that only through a rigorous statistical analysis will we verify and advance things.

Astrology lives these days in a place I call the New Age Swamp, and it's pretty much stuck there. I really don't like it there, some of the people in it have questionable mental health or behavior patterns which can drag you down. I don't like preaching to the choir. And many people there automatically believe everything you tell them making logical determinations based on grounded feedback almost impossible. The more diversity of people you work with, the better an astrologer you will be as it keeps you honest.

Well, for starters I had a head-start being exposed to astrology as a teenager from a hippie family. I learned early on astrology described me really well - it resonated with me in ways that didn't just apply to everyone else. But I didn't do much with it at first, I didn't believe in it and I put it on the back burner when I went to college mastering conventional science and computer programming. But I kept an eye on it correlating charts with people in and seeing if there was a pattern. I just studied it as objectively as I could, and I feel qualified because I see everyone as I see myself, as a unique individual. As we are all unique with some similarities and customs, finding common ground between us becomes remarkable with the tools of astrology. I also liked it because it gave me a way to not judge someone superficially, but take their identity more seriously than say, judging them by the color of their skin or the clothes they wear. I also appreciate how humbling this is because reading a chart will never tell you 100% about a person, and you should always partly doubt your own abilities and judgments, and never work in absolutes. I did go through several cycles of not believing in it and questioning and doubting writers who would not cite their sources. What stabilized me was the practice and realizing that since the system comes from universal cosmic truths, it can be recreated without having to buy into any dogmatic belief system.

What I write here is the source of much practice and experience, as well as some research into books. I prefer the practice, but much of what I say here has been repeated in many other forms, by many other authors. The nice thing is that because astrology is true, and it does work, you can re-discover things that work without ever reading them - I have done this many times. This is like scientists independently discovering the same thing without knowing each other. So the main point I am trying to get across is the truth of astrology, not my beliefs in it. This is just a primer, no speculation or doubt in my mind here. I have absorbed much of this knowledge from great sources in the field, and am not referencing anyone in particular at this time, but if I were, I always cite my sources directly. This is all common knowledge to astrologers and many of them would probably start to point out where I am half-wrong or misleading on this page. Like science, the technical points can get confusing, and like anything the details can be muddled. My intention is for a general audience, centered on the US culture since that's where I'm from.

I by no means claim ultimate knowledge in the subject of astrology - in fact, quite the opposite. I am a student and will always be learning. It is not my religion. It is a favorite hobby of mine, that I hope to evolve into a practice useful in some measure to my fellow man. I require having a solid foundation in something before I stand on it, and I have finally built that after a decade. Now I feel it is time for me to put it to work. And even despite all my work and experience I still welcome in the idea that it could all be wrong and there might be a different explanation for the patterns I see. But so far the case keeps building stronger and stronger for astrology.

"What's popular is not always right. What's right is not always popular."

Titan O'Connell is many things. Aside from being a cheerful giant that no one forgets, Titan is a professional software engineer of many years with powers of logic that rival those of Mister Spock. Some say he likes astrology to balance his computer programming side, but he would tell you about the similarities between these two forms of wizardry. A native of the state of Vermont, Titan is among the many interesting, creative, and outside-the-box people that reside nestled among the beautiful Green Mountains. Also a growing health nut, Titan boasts of never having even tried any illicit drugs with alcohol and caffeine being the worst he has used. He continues to study astrology and hopes to make a solid contribution to the subject in time.

Titan has recently begun practicing astrology in a limited professional capacity consulting people on birth charts. Stay tuned for more information about his current practice.