Astrology/psychology
Despite the fact that you will find most of the information on astrology in the New Age section of your bookstore, the science and philosophy of astrology is far from new. In fact, it existed before science, and in this sense could be called anti-scientific, because astrology was a central feature of the magical worldview which science radically took the place of (Davies, 1988). Before the scientific revolution, astrology held and honored and central place in cultures, but it has since been discredited. For many intelligent people, astrology's claims appear ridiculous, a crutch for the weak and dependent, a false and superficial system which survives as a relic from an era long ago, among the uneducated and superstitious. Astrology has been accused of being simplistic, fatalistic, and anachronistic. It doesn't have a place in our schools, is scorned by almost all branches of modern learning, and is condemned by the church as heretical. In 1975, a statement attacking and disavowing astrology was co-signed and published by 186 leading scientists, including 18 Nobel Prize winners. The article, (The Humanist) challenged astrology's believers, saying "...that there is no scientific base for its tenets." and that the
Hall, M.P. (1936). The philosophy of astrology. Los It is important to recognize that astrology was never disproved by methods of science. Student who may have taken an interest in the field turned to a science that was similar, but more compatible with modern principles - psychology. In the 17th century, psychological empiricism was the denial that the human soul was shaped by innate ideas and characteristics which originated in the mind of a Universal Being (Lowry, 1971). John Locke insisted that there were no innate ideas and all mental content came directly from experience. We are - as he said, a "blank slate". By the 18th century, not only was the soul stripped of its innate ideas but its very existence was doubted. Where astrology viewed man as a partially divine performer in a cosmic drama, the new psychology considered him to be an animal inhabiting a blindly mechanical universe (Smith, 1982). Modern psychology has held true to these beliefs. Our lives are dependant on random external forces (nature/nurture) th! Understanding astrology's worldview takes you back to the pre-modern world which science was yet to conquer. For thousands of years people all over the world shared a common belief: the Universe was alive. The Sun, moon, and stars were experienced as a vast network of living consciousness governed by an infinite intelligence (Smith, 1982). This Being wasn't separate from the world, but was part of the processes and cycles of nature. While different religions referred to this Being by various names, the idea was the
Some common words found in the essay are:
John Locke, Isaac Newton, Astrology Despite, Carl Jung, Nobel Prize, Bradley Olsen, Schuster Dossey, Aldine Smith, Press Lowry, Hall MP, innate ideas, smith 1982, scientific revolution, dossey 1989, lovejoy 1936, philosophy astrology, lowry 1971, davies 1988,
Approximate Word count = 1051
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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