They Said You were a Leo, but They Were Lion |
Despite the fact that you may not want to hear it, most of us were born one sign sooner than we think. From Earth's point of view, the constellations along the ecliptic have shifted about 30 degrees (one month) west from where they were 2000 years ago when the original zodiac chart was designed. Therefore, there are now huge discrepancies between the astronomical (i.e., real) zodiac and the popular astrological zodiac.
Mind you, I'm in no way a "believer." But there's no denying that horoscopes and zodiac signs are very much a part of our culture. Many people's self-image is shaped, maybe a little, maybe a lot, by what sign they are. Even I get a kick out of the notion that Scorpios are the sexiest. (At least I used to. Sniff!) And, hey, don't most folks read horoscopes and try to fit what they read into the Procrustean beds of their lives?
So, in light of all this fuss, the fact that the standard astrological signs are mostly wrong, and that most people don't know what sign they really are, is fascinating to me. And I've become even more fascinated since I've gotten some people very upset with this revelation.
The astrological zodiac signs are supposed to be based on where the sun is in the sky when you're born. For instance, Scorpios are Scorpios because the sun is within the 30-degree arc centered on the constellation Scorpio at their births. And, as a result, Scorpio's constellational emanations are focused on them through the sun's "lens," shaping their destiny. Right? Wrong! If there are any emanations, they certainly aren't coming from the constellations people think they are.
How wrong are they? Here's a comparison of the astronomical zodiac (which may vary a day or so from year to year) and the more familiar, almost completely spurious astrological zodiac:
| Astronomical | Astrological |
| Capricorn Jan 20 to Feb 15 | Dec 22 to Jan 19 |
| Aquarius Feb 16 to Mar 11 | Jan 20 to Feb 18 |
| Pisces Mar 12 to Apr 18 | Feb 19 to Mar 20 |
| Aries Apr 19 to May 13 | Mar 21 to Apr 19 |
| Taurus May 14 to June 20 | Apr 20 to May 20 |
| Gemini June 21 to July 20 | May 21 to June 20 |
| Cancer July 21 to Aug 10 | June 21 to July 22 |
| Leo Aug 11 to Sept 16 | July 23 to Aug 22 |
| Virgo Sept 17 to Oct 30 | Aug 23 to Sept 22 |
| Libra Oct 31 to Nov 22 | Sept 23 to Oct 22 |
| Scorpius Nov 23 to Nov 29 | Oct 23 to Nov 21 |
| Ophiuchus Nov 30 to Dec 17 | -- |
| Sagittarius Dec 18 to Jan 19 | Nov 22 to Dec 21 |
So, I hate t' break it to ya, but if you thought you were a Gemini, you're a Taurus, Babe. No bull! And we Scorpios have been de-clawed. Most of us are Libras and some are even (shudder) Virgos. Furthermore, Scorpio now lasts only 7 days. So, real Scorps are rare. (And here everyone was blaming the decline in promiscuous sex on the Republicans!)
You'll note another weirdness in the chart. There are 13 signs! Ophiuchus? What is Ophiuchus?
Ophiuchus is a constellation depicting Asclepius, god of medicine, holding a snake, the symbol of healing. What a cool sign: The Healer. If you think it's too awkward to say "Ophiuchus," consider this: it lends itself very well to lovers' nonsense talk, as in "How's my widdle Ophiookums?"
About one in 20 people are Ophiuchuses and don't even know it. Here's a list of 10 famous Ophiuchuses: Aleksandr Solzhenitzyn, Rita Moreno, Generalissimo Francisco Franco, James Thurber, Alexander Haig, Cathy Rigby, Walt Disney, Fiorello LaGuardia, Maria Callas, and Redd Foxx. What do they have in common? Well, isn't it obvious?
So, what does this revelation mean for astrology? To quote John Mosley of the Griffith Observatory, "So much for the effect that the stars have on our lives. The astrological effect…follows the drifting sun, not the stars. If astrology works, its mysterious forces come from arbitrary directions in space that have nothing to do with the stars that lie in those directions." (http://www.griffithobs.org/SkyOphiuchus.html)
Does it matter? Oh, I don't know. Maybe it does, and then again, maybe it doesn't. I'm a Libra—I can't decide…