Mera Bhavishya

A S T R O L O G Y

HOROSCOPES FOR POPE BENEDICT XVI

It was certainly no coincidence. [I believe in coincidences as much as I believe in astrology].
The day after I received a request to write an article on astrology, I came across the July 2005 issue of The
Astrological Magazine at my dentist’s. It had two janampatris [birth charts] on our new Pope Benedict XVI,
drawn according to the principles of Indian astrology.
One was Conservative Aquarian by Madhu Nair; the other was New Shepherd in the As It Strikes Me column.
Each has drawn up a different astrological chart of the Pope: The only thing they both agree on is the time and
date of the Pope’s birth. Which is not a matter of astrological prediction.
Chart one says: “Born… at 49 N 53, 19 E 20 with a balance of 1 year 7 months 23 days of Moon Dasa at birth.”
Chart two says: “Born… at 48 N 15, 12 E 51 with a balance of 6 months 27 days of Moon Dasa at birth.”
Also the Pope’s Rasi-Navamsa chart of the first astrologer is quite different from that of the second.
Yet, using press-reports, they proceed to analyse the Pope’s life, ‘proving’ from this ‘ascendant’ and that
retrograde’, from which planet ‘ruled’ and what ‘angle’ formed, what ‘stars’ influenced all Ratzinger’s policies,
decisions, actions and character and how they resulted in his becoming Pope. For instance, the arrangement of
certain stellar ‘houses’ “along with the presence of Sarasvati Yoga accounts for his knowledge of ten languages and makes
th th
him quickwitted and a stimulating conversationalist.” And, “The presence of the 10 lord Mars in the 5
receiving the aspect of Jupiter (religion) led to his donning the cloak of priest… The exalted Sun trines his MC* bringing
in the kingdom of the Vatican.”
Most Christians know that this is a whole lot of rubbish. And the differences in the two charts in the SAME
issue of the most prominent astrological monthly which is over 50 years old, confirms it.
Yet, for thousands of years, man has payed homage to the stars at the temple of astrology. *Mundane Chart
?
CHINESE ASTROLOGY
Chinese astrology has twelve ‘signs’ or animals [dragon, rat, pig etc] which correspond to twelve different
years. Currently we are in the Year of the Rooster. Last year we were under the Monkey, and next year we will
be under the Dog sign. We are all supposed to inherit the characteristics of the animal that rules the year of
our birth. As in western astrology, the date and time of birth are also factors in the individual horoscope, with
those born on New Year’s Day showing the most marked characteristics of a sign. It is said that the Buddha
invited all the animals to celebrate the New Year with him, but only twelve came. As a reward he named a year
after each of them in the order in which they arrived in his presence. Each year of the cycle is a lunar year
based on the phases of the moon, consequently beginning on a different date according to the western
calendar, falling sometime between January 21 and February 21. The ancient Chinese consulted a horoscope
disk called the lo-king plate in order to predict the future. The twelve animals appear around the outside, and
details of the stars and the planets within, in concentric circles. [The Illustrated Weekly of India December 25,
1983]
Western astrology has twelve signs for twelve houses in one year. We refer mainly to that in this article.
Indian astrology will be dealt with under a separate section. [see page 18f]

PAGAN ORIGINS
Astrology is the belief that the destinies of mankind [individuals as well as nations] are determined by the
relative positions of the heavenly bodies, the sun, the moon, the planets and the stars. These destinies can be
discovered by a study of horoscopes or charts drawn /erected / constructed by astrologers. It is believed to
have originated when the ancient Chaldeans observed the orderly movement of the planets and assigned them
godlike character and powers. The planets eventually were worshiped as gods. Each planet came to be the

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ruler of certain areas of life. The astrologers, who advised kings and rulers, interpreted the
pattern of planets as omens or signs of what was to come. Speculation is that these early
peoples noticed the rhythmic movement of certain celestial bodies – the planets – in contrast to the fixity of the
more distant stars. This movement seemed purposeful, and therefore the planets were ascribed powers and
divinity. They were seen as gods or as the homes of gods. 1.
Observing the planets’ positions, as well as those of the sun and moon, at certain times and connected to
events on earth confirmed the belief that the positions and events were cause and effect.
Towers called ziggurats were built as observation, and possibly worship, platforms.
The planets were given names and personalities and said to “rule” certain constellations. The quick – moving
Mercury was considered a sly trickster and messenger. Jupiter, known as Marduk, was seen as the most
powerful. As time passed, the associations between planets and constellations became stronger. This continues
today with Mars being considered the ruler of the Aries constellation, the Sun the ruler of Leo, etc.

Eventually astrology spread to other areas of the world, developing differently in the East. After first resisting
astrology, Greece later absorbed it. The word “horoscope” comes from the Greek “hora” for hour, and “ skopos”
for watcher, meaning literally a “watcher of the hour”.
The Romans later adopted Greek astrology, giving the planets the Roman names by which we know them today.
The earliest form of astrology was ‘mundane’ astrology, which was connected with the worship of the stars, or
tsabaistism, and was used to predict the future of kings and nations. Astrological predictions were used by the
courts of every great civilization- Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, China and India, but it could not save any of
them. Because of the Greek emphasis on individuality, astrology was personalized for the first time as a tool for
the people other than the kings and rulers. In his Tetrabiblos, Ptolemy of Greece [early second century AD] is
credited with finalizing the how-to of casting horoscopes for the masses using the time of a person’s birth,
[purported to reveal the person’s destiny], hence called ‘natal’ astrology, and the seven major known heavenly
bodies, the sun, moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. This is the system in use today.
The actual heavenly observations of early astronomers was a legitimate ‘science’, but what went wrong was
their assumptions, the interpretation of their observations, and the cultic idolatrous practices that emerged.
Astronomy had metamorphosed into astrology. Because of this, God repeatedly warned the people of Israel
and Judah through His prophets against astrology, which was practiced by the pagan nations that surrounded
them.
[Astronomy is a branch of physical science dealing with the physical constitution, motion, and relative positions
of the earth and other planets, the stars and galaxies, and the other heavenly bodies that make up the
universe.]

THE ZODIAC
The zodiac signs are not the actual constellations, but rather an imaginary fixed zodiac belt projected around
the earth against which the planets are moving in their orbits as seen from the earth. It is divided into twelve
houses of 30 degrees each, each house given a sign which corresponds to an observable constellation of stars.
It was first formulated in Babylon around the fifth century BC. A calendar is broken down into twelve sections,
with dates defining the period for each house. For instance, “born on April 16, 1927 at 4h.06m.31s.(ZST)”, the
Pope’s “rising sign is Aquarius… Since Aquarius is ruled by Saturn, Saturnine qualities will be predominant…”
Because it forms an excellent reference system for the position of the planets as seen from the earth, the
zodiac is still used by astronomers. Astrology however ascribes various personal qualities to these impersonal,
and in a sense, imaginary [because of their arbitrary formulation] entities.

Western ‘tropical’ astrology uses the vernal equinox, the sun’s position at the beginning of spring [see page
7], and at least five different methods of calculating the houses. Its Indian counterpart, called ‘sidereal’
astrology, uses at least forty-five methods, and starts with various fixed or ‘sidereal’ points among the stars.
The difference between the tropical and sidereal zodiacs is at present roughly twenty degrees. In the Western
methods, the junctions of the houses can come in very different positions, but the predictions from the houses
are not changed. In India, the houses are either identical with the signs or are found by calculation.

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‘Experts’ differ on the number of ‘houses’ of the zodiac- some systems use ten, others twenty-
four, etc.
“A new book by an astrologer, titled Astrology Fourteen, asserts that there are actually fourteen constellations
in the zodiac,” Larson’s New Book of Cults, Bob Larson, 1989 page 141.

THE CHART
There are three main components of the chart: the planets (and the sun and moon), the zodiac signs and the
twelve houses. The chart contains the 360 degrees of all twelve zodiac signs (each one being 30 degrees), and
the planets are placed around the chart according to the degree they are in at a person’s birth….The chart is
calculated with mathematical formulae based on local birth time and latitude and longitude of the birthplace.
The planets represent people and aspects of the emotional, mental or spiritual self. The zodiac signs describe
the way in which the planets are limited or expanded. The houses represent various areas such as self, home,
marriage, career, etc. Thus, the planets are “who” or “what”, the zodiac signs are “how” and the houses are
“where”. Additionally, the different angles (number of degrees between the planets) must be considered.
Ninety degrees, a square, is considered difficult or challenging; 60 degrees, a sextile, is interpreted as
harmonious.
Present and future influences are read by comparing the present movement of planets to the birth chart, a
method called “transits”. Another method, the progressed chart, is calculated with each day after birth
equalling a year in real life. This process is called “updating a chart”.
Three types of astrological charting include the Personal Chart for an individual; Mundane astrology for an
event, public figure, country or city; and Horary astrology formulated to answer specific questions such as,
“Should I quit my job ?”, based on the time the question is asked. Although based on similar principles, the
methods of interpretation for these types of charts are somewhat different. The chart delineates a personality
and course already ordained by the planetary influences. Aspects of the chart were seen as either beneficial or
adverse.

THE EARLY CHURCH AND ASTROLOGY

The early Church was as hostile to natal astrology as the Old Testament [see page 14] was to mundane astrology.
Christians were asked to burn their magic paraphernalia, which would have included astrological material [Acts
19:18-20]. The Didache of the early second century warns, “My child, be no dealer in omens, since it leads to
idolatry, nor ...an astrologer, for from all these things idolatry is engendered.”
At the Council of Laodicea [AD 345] astrology was forbidden and astrologers barred from the clergy [Canon
36].
St. Augustine was himself an astrologer by his self-admission in his classic Confessions [7:6]. He gave up
astrology when he was convinced that it was full of trickery and deceit, it robbed man of his dignity because it
taught him that he was not responsible for his actions, and because he found that ‘true’ predictions were a
result of chance.
He said, “We should silence those people who believe that the planets, outside any decision of God, manipulate
our good or bad deeds, our works and our thoughts. We should not hear them because such a belief means
that God has no relationship with the movement of our life.” [see page 16]
Why, he asked, do identical twins [see pages 8,12] with the same genetic make up and the same horoscopes,
turn out to be so different from each other ? [Astrology has never been able to answer that question].

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According to astrology, the lives of ‘identical’ twins should be the same in
all respects. Genesis 25 gives the true account of the twin brothers Esau and Jacob
whose lives and temperaments were as dissimilar as they could be.
The Council of Toledo, Spain, in AD 447 said, “If anyone holds that astrology and interpretation of stars ought
to be believed, let him be anathema.” [‘Anathema’ means “he is not Catholic”.]
The Council of Braga, Portugal, in AD 561 held, “If anyone believes that souls and human bodies are bound by
fatal stars, as pagans and Priscillians have affirmed, let him be anathema.”

The re-introduction of Aristotlean philosophy and the rapid expansion of the Church brought astrology back into
favor. By the time of the Renaissance, it was popular with royalty and commoners alike. Astronomy and
astrology were viewed as one and the same ‘science’. The Reformation in Europe, however, took a strong stand
against the art. For instance, in England, it was penalized under the Witchcraft Act of 1735 and the Vagrancy
Act of 1829.
Even so, the practice continued to flourish till the findings of Copernicus challenged its basic tenets.
Ptolemy had assumed that the earth was the centre of the universe and that the seven bodies circling the earth
focused their powers on it to determine the destinies of its inhabitants. With Copernicus’ finding that the earth
was just one of several planets orbiting the sun in this galaxy, instead of Ptolemy’s geo-centred universe,
people began to abandon astrology. The beginning of scientific astronomy spelt destruction for astrology.

NEW LIFE THROUGH THEOSOPHY

Despite the scientific revolution, following which it was generally dismissed, with a few notable exceptions, as
mere superstition and lost importance, the late nineteenth century saw the secularization of Christianity and the
founding in the West of religions like Theosophy which promoted occult practices like astrology. It is a belief
system with origins in Hinduism. founded in 1875 by the occult seer, Madame Helena Petrovna Blavatsky.
Alice Bailey (1880 – 1949), a follower of Theosophy, wrote Esoteric Astrology which included channeled
information from her ‘Tibetan’ spirit guide, Djwal Khul or ‘D.K.’

These spiritual ideas, which were the forerunners of the New Age Movement [NAM], promoted
Reincarnation, the belief that one returns after death many times in order to evolve; a spiritual hierarchy of
Ascended Masters who guide those on earth to higher spiritual understanding; and Pantheism, the belief that
god is all and all is god. Thus, everyone has an inherent divine nature and is evolving toward godhood. Many of
these ideas were developed for chart interpretation by astrologer Isabel Hickey (who died in the 1960’s). She
placed emphasis on reading one’s karmic lesson (lessons from previous lives) in the chart, and on spiritual
interpretations.
Before World War II, only 20 percent of Europeans believed in astrology. Today 80 percent read their
horoscopes in daily newspapers and 60 percent believe in their efficacy.
3.

MODERN ASTROLOGY : A MARRIAGE WITH PSYCHOLOGY

Astrology and psychology both include the description of personality. In fact, Carl Jung claimed that astrology
contained all the psychological knowledge of olden days [The Secret of the Golden Flower R. Wilhelm and C.G.
Jung 1942 page 143]. The major influence on the practice of western astrology today, aside from New Age
spirituality, is humanistic and transpersonal psychology. Humanistic views centered the chart on the
person as the master of his\her fate. The birth horoscope became a set of possibilities and choices for the self
– aware, and was used to delineate the personality, character and potentialities of the individual. The
psychological approach was first popularized by Alan Leo (1860 – 1917), a member of the Theosophical
Society.

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Transpersonal Psychology, a legacy of Jung and others, shaped the chart into a tool for
understanding the self as part of the whole, and how the self connects to the collective
unconscious, believed to be the common unconscious shared by all humanity. The three outer planets, Uranus,
Neptune and Pluto, became the ‘collective planet’ since they move so slowly through the chart. Thus, these
three planets came to symbolize generational influences, as well as unconscious influences on the inner
personal planets. Both humanistic and transpersonal astrology were especially pioneered by an influential
astrologer of the 20th century, Dane Rudhyar (1895 – 1985).
In his book, The Practice of Astrology, 1975, page 21, he states that “the astrologer has authority as one who
deals understandingly and effectively with… the occult.”
The signs of the zodiac are interpreted as twelve psychological types. Planets and signs merely indicate effects,
they do not cause them. There is little interest in systems of auspicious times.
Psychology smashed the fatalistic attitude of earlier traditional astrology [see pages 6, 20]. Interpretations
are more flexible, and chart symbols are viewed as having both negative and positive possibilities, planets
being interpreted as principles, rather than either benefic or malefic. Mars, for instance, represents the principle of
energy and activity. This is a development from the earlier concept of the malefic planet Mars with its war-like
character.
With these developments, it is inaccurate to believe that astrologers think we are ruled by the planets. They see
the chart as a blueprint for the self and soul, a pattern that can be rearranged in various ways by the self – aware
individual.
Astrology is justified by this school along the lines of Jung’s concept of synchronicity, the idea that two events
occurring simultaneously but seemingly unrelated have a spiritual symbol for that person, i.e. a meaningful
coincidence of events which are not connected by ‘causation’. Jung introduced this to explain certain strange
occurences including parapsychological phenomena such as clairvoyance and predictive dreams and visions.
It is difficult to believe that a predictive dream is actually caused by the future event it reveals, so causation is
given up as an explanation of these experiences.
This view is highly popular with contemporary astrologers- it enables them to dispense with the idea that
astrology is a matter of physical influence of the heavenly bodies, which is a causal process, and in the NAM.
The goal is to evolve through self – awareness. Astrology is a tool to “know thyself” as well as a tool of
divination. Modern astrology rejects readings of a fixed future, and prefers to call interpretations of the future
“forecasting” or “coming trends”, building on the belief that one has choices. Many astrologers are also
practicing psychologists.
Some modern psychologists make use of astrology, according to Anthony Stone [A Christian looks at Astrology p
42].

WHAT’S YOUR ‘SIGN’ ? WHAT’S YOUR ‘STAR’ ?

This is an email which was received by this ministry:
Dear Michael, [withheld] had gone for the KAIROS Youth Convention held recently in Chennai and I found a
leaflet with your website in one of the magazines [ ] bought. I am interested for several reasons. They are
1. Alternative medicine;
2. Astrology and occult – I am bombarded with email from astrologers saying that I have negative waves
around me and that’s why I am not successful - something to do with my past karma as per one.
I even paid an astrologer to remove these negative waves. I was not aware that it was occult and only realised
this when I attended a retreat at Divine Retreat Centre. I got interested in astrology somewhere in my teens
and have the habit of reading forecasts, although I do not believe in them fully. So I wanted to know more
about astrology and its context with Christianity.

HORROR-SCOPE
Astrology is big business. India, and increasingly now, the western world, has hundreds of thousands of part-
and full-time astrologers. From horoscope vending machines to telephone hot lines, from ‘computerised
astrology’ to websites [‘Daily personalized predictions, astroyogi.com or astrospeak.com…. Get them in your
mailbox!’], trinkets and talismans, bumper stickers and t-shirts proclaiming your allegiance to Scorpio or

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Gemini, not forgetting your newspaper and favourite weekly [which fear that their sales would
drop if they omit the forecasts column], astrology is right inside your home.
What is astrology’s appeal ? It’s fun, and looks harmless. Nothing sells well if people don’t like it. It seeks to
instruct on matters of the soul without being morally demanding. It’s popular also because it ‘works’.
4.
Couples put their astrologer above their doctor, deciding by Caesarian section to fix an ‘auspicious’ time for
their child’s birth. Horoscopes are ‘matched’. Some of my Catholic friends’ wedding invitations have had days
and times that seemed odd. For instance the wedding may have been fixed on a Monday instead of the usual
convenient weekend, or the time of the Mass service was printed as 12:05 pm. My suspicions were always
confirmed on enquiry: the dates and times had been fixed astrologically. I avoid attending such ‘Christian’
weddings.
The New Indian Express of January 27, 2005 reported on the 41-page wedding invitation of a Catholic couple in
Chennai, that gave, among other things, handy information on numerology and birth stars.

ASTROLOGICAL VOCABULARY
Ordinary people who are into astrology claim to be able to tell one’s star or sign or house simply by reading
one’s personality [‘You must be an Aquarian!’]. In the CHARISINDIA of October 1995, ‘Do the Stars Foretell ?’,
Ollie D’Oliveira truthfully admits that he has “heard such remarks and questions in …even charismatic circles.”

You can tell how deep your Catholic friend is into this occult art by the questions asked
of you or by how quickly he/she skips through the pages of the latest magazine to reach
the ‘What the Stars Foretell’ column.
Many Christians use what I call ‘astrological’ vocabulary. The word ‘fortune’ and all its derivatives
[‘unfortunately’, etc.], ‘augur’ [from ‘augury’*. ‘It does not augur well for you…’], ‘luck’ [good and bad],
‘chance’ [in the sense of ‘luck’], are better avoided. From diligent practice, I have found that I can express
myself equally well by using ‘Christian’ equivalents that give the credit and glory to the living God who controls
our lives. Christians also do not have a ‘good day’ or ‘bad times’. I can produce many references from the Book
of Acts and from the lives of St. Paul and others to support my statement. In fact, salutations exchanged
between early Christians, still observed in some orthodox churches have nothing to do with the secularized
greetings of today. Konkani-speaking people, for example, ask for God’s blessings on one another with
‘Daevaatchen Bessaavn’ or ‘Daev Borem Korum’.
I receive a fair amount of superstitious email as ‘forwards’ from Catholic well wishers. [Details in my write-up
on SUPERSTITIONS.] I have had to overcome a temptation to acknowledge by signing off “Yours fatefully.”
And there is the ‘auspicious’ word: auspicious time, auspicious place, auspicious event….
For the believer, there is nothing that is either auspicious or inauspicious. However for those involved in
idolatry, astrology, superstition and syncretism, the use of words like all of the above is inescapable because
‘the mouth speaks what the heart is full of’.
Recently I came across this one:
“Satsangs and spiritual discourses often take place under an auspicious Tree”, Fr. Sebastian Painadath SJ,
article in Saccidanadaya Namah, page 14 [Tree, with a capital T!] [see my report on Catholic Ashrams and New
Age].
In Esther 3:7, Haman used a method of casting the lot to choose an auspicious day for his plot to massacre the
Jews. The result was that he himself was hanged [9:24f]. On the other hand, before Esther risked her life in
going to the king unsummoned, she and her friends fasted, and presumably prayed to God, and her mission
was successful [4:15f; 5:2]. * Augury: divination from studying the flight of
birds.

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AGAINST THE FIRST COMMANDMENT – OTHER GODS !

In What Your Horoscope Doesn’t tell You, Charles Strohmer says, “You would think twice if you realized that
when you turn to astrology you are actually turning to advice from the ancient gods of a polytheistic religion… As
you look deeper into its texts, you realize its not the planets you’re interpreting, it’s the gods they’re named
after… Astrology talks about ‘planets’ when it really means ‘gods’. There is a great difference between a thing
that is real [a planet] and a thing that is imaginary [a god]. By its literary metamorphosis of ‘god’ into ‘planet’,
astrology subtly indoctrinates us into believing that we are being taught about the bodily details of the physical
forms and how they affect us, when we are actually absorbing imaginary ideas about mythical deities” [pages
19, 25].

All astrology books are outfited in planetary nomenclature. The authors of books on astrology insist that it’s the
planets that influence us. I could give the reader scores of references to underline this point. Continually
hearing the words ‘planet’ or ‘planetary’ creates a connotation of real-ness. Astrology therefore, is intellectually
abusive. It pervert’s one’s thinking. When we are hurt and need help, we are asked to turn to something
imaginary, not real, which has no life. Since both astrologer and client are trained to think planet, they talk
planet. One never hears an astrologer say, ‘You have this god in the third house’. Rather, his conditioned
response is ‘You have Saturn in the third house’. For the Greeks and the Romans, greater-than-human powers became
gods. The powers of the sky became Zeus to the Greeks, later called Jupiter by the Romans. This is also true of the
‘signs’. Taurus represents a bull and was placed among the stars to commemorate the form that Zeus took when he
carried Europa off to Crete. Roman myths couldn’t stand up to subsequent scientific scrutiny, yet its remains are
buried in the foundations of astrology.
For some reason, astrology does not want us to see clearly. It wants to hide the fact that it is placing the
mythical gods of ancient polytheistic religion before us. So, when we practise astrology or read our horoscope
we are paying obeisance to false gods, which is breaking the First Commandment, a grievious sin.
5.
Christians must have a reverent ‘fear of the Lord’, not of their ‘stars’. Some claim that they read their horoscope
out of curiosity, but, for most it is an addiction which they cannot ignore. After a few coincidental incidents that
confirm the forecasts, they are hooked for life. It’s a short trip from dabbler to devotee. The use of astrology in
some form or the other is probably the most common occult bondage among Catholic youth in India.

At a retreat given a couple of years ago by Bangalore preacher Fritz Mascarenhas for around 300 Catholic
women students at the Stella Maris College in Chennai, he called for a show of hands of those who needed to
repent for involvement in the occult, astrology etc. At least 75 percent of the girls raised their hands, a
shocking indictment of the lack of solid Biblical teaching in the Catholic schools from which all of them have
graduated.
My reply to the questions on my star and my sign: My star is the Star of Bethlehem, and my sign is the Sign of
the Cross. I do not know what the future holds, but I know for sure Who holds it !

QUESTIONS YOUR HOROSCOPE CANNOT ANSWER

Astrology appears to provide answers to man’s problems; it removes a sense of guilt and responsibility for the
reasons and consequences of his actions, offers guidance, provides hope and a sense of control over the
future.
Does astrology really control our lives ? If the gravitational pull of the moon determines the speed of the earth’s
rotation and its tides, can it also affect the human body which is 65% water ? Astrology developed in ancient
times as an attempt to understand the relationship between heavenly bodies and ourselves. Seeing that the
sun infuses the earth with fresh energy, the Chinese deduced that it must also infuse their rulers with life, and

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called their emperor the ‘Son of Heaven’, even as Indians called their kings surya-vanshi,
‘Descendants of the Sun.’

If our ‘stars’ are impersonal entities, there is little that we can do to change their influence on us. We are mere
pawns in their ‘hands’, and so become fatalistic [see pages 4, 20]. We cannot set our goals as our future is
predetermined. We can neither take pride in our achievements nor be held accountable for our own failures.
Is this healthy for us ? Could a human being’s individual uniqueness be the result of celestial influence ?
Other questions that need to be answered are: Is astrology a harmless game or is it scientific ?
Why does it appear to ‘work’ sometimes ? Why do so many intelligent people believe in it ?
Does the Bible support the practice and is it legitimate for those who wish to follow God’s way ?

THE HOROSCOPE vs. THE TELESCOPE

Modern astrologers call themselves astro-scientists, scientific astrolgers etc., so it is good that we take a look at
astrology from the perspective of science.
1. Ptolemy’s was a geo-centric universe in which the sun rose in the east and set in the west and depended on
what man saw with his naked eyes, and his mystical worldview saw man as the focus of the cosmic energies of
the universe and precluded any other creative intelligence. Copernicus’ revolutionary theory attacked the
foundational ‘religious’ concept of astrology that man was the centre of the universe, and showed that, after all,
appearance may not correspond to reality. In reality, the earth was moving and the sun was standing still.
Because modern astrology is based on Ptolemy’s twin erroneous convictions, and not on science and reality, the
claim that it is a science is absurd. Without its original ‘religious’ foundation, astrology cannot exist.
2. Using the seven bodies known to him, Ptolemy set forth in his Tetrabiblos the calculations to be used to
draw up a horoscope. Uranus was discovered in 1781, Neptune in 1846 and Pluto in 1930, proving an
embarassment to astrology. As I write this article, BBC News reports [7/30/2005] that it is possible that a new
tenth planet has been discovered. The next day, astrologers said that planet 2003 UB313 “will in no way affect
astrology”.
These planets’ being excluded from Ptolemy’s calculations should consign horoscopes to the dustbin of history.
But astrologers came forward with defensive explanations, all of which are, to say the least, absurd. In Indian
astrology, two imaginary, non-existent ‘planets’ rahu and ketu are included in the calculations!
They are actually points, not physical bodies, so they cannot exert any physical influence. The same objection
may be raised in the case of the subsidiary planets postulated in Indian astrology [see pages 21, 27].
In the Hamburg System of Astrology, Alfred Witte included eight planets [Cupido, Hades, Zeus, Chonos, Apollo,
Admitos, Vulcan and Poseidon] that are supposedly ‘hiding’ in the universe but exert influence on us.
The solar system contains a large number of minor planets [the asteroids] between the orbits of Mars and
Jupiter which are not considered in astrology.
3. Ptolemy’s zodiac is based on constellations which are simply optical illusions. The sign Taurus was given that
name because the stars ‘comprising’ the constellation looked like the outline of a bull. Leo looked like a lion.
But, telescopes reveal stars previously unseen by human eyes, which disrupt the imaginary lines that
supposedly make up the constellations. If they were included, the constellation named Leo for instance, would
not continue to ‘exist’ [look like], or ‘function’ as Leo.
6.
4. Ptolemy’s calculations are based on the assumption that the constellations are real and fixed, whereas they
are actually imaginary and moving. The stars are speeding away from us at enormous speeds, and even
‘winking out’. While Ptolemy ‘saw’ the sun in the constellation Aries on March 21, 2,000 years ago, today it is in
Pisces on March 21. The positions of the constellations relative to earth have changed.
When an astrologer today says that the sun is in a particular sign of the zodiac, it is actually in the preceding
sign.
5. Ptolemy’s earth was not round but flat. He assumed that everyone saw the same stars that he did.
His ‘tropical’ zodiac works only if one can see what point of the zodiac is ascending on the horizon.
But a person located at a latitude above 60 degrees cannot see this.

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This means that for people living in Alaska, Finland, Northern Canada, Siberia etc. no horoscope
can be drawn. Are we to believe that these people escape the ‘influence’ of the zodiac?
6. Ptolemy’s astrology was based directly on the religious presupposition of planetary worship. The ‘stars’ were
gods, attributed human characteristics: Venus, love; Saturn, evil. [Attribution of human characteristics to things
is called anthropomorphism]. Some planets are ‘male’, others ‘female’. In India Ashwini and Krutika are male,
Bharani is female. [How were their genders determined ?] Having made the planets in our image and likeness,
it was easy for best-selling astrologer-author Linda Goodman to actually suggest a return to polytheistic planet
worship. How, in these circumstances, can astrology claim to be scientific?
7. Light from the sun takes eight and a half minutes to reach the earth.
Light from the planets too take as much time as their distances from earth, and the speed of light, to reach us.
So when we ‘see’ a planet, or ‘fix’ its position, we see it or fix it in a position that it actually occupied earlier.
So much for astrological accuracy and the effects on human beings of the relative positions of the stars!
8. Ptolemy assumed that the earth’s axis of rotation was fixed, that it always pointed directly to the Polaris star
which marks the North Celestial Pole. To draw horoscopes, astrologers must have a fix from the day of the
vernal equinox [the point occupied by the sun when it is overhead on the equator in spring] the day spring
begins.[p. 2]
In actuality, the equinox moves, and spring arrives twenty minutes earlier each year. This is called the
precession of the equinoxes. Since the signs of the zodiac are determined by the equinox, the backward
movement of the equinoxes means that we must all move one sign backward in the zodiac. Those who thought
that they were born under Cancer were really born under Leo. We have all been reading the wrong horoscope
columns!
Again the astrologers have attempted to find plausible explanations which only led to more confusion.
The New Age astrologers’ school however use this fact to ‘prove’ that we are now in the Age of Aquarius.
Corrections attempted by astrologers to solve some of the above problems posed by new scientific discoveries
has only resulted in division and mutual recrimination among them as they continue to diasgree with one
another.
Wrong predictions are so common an occurrence [and why wouldn’t they be?] that Gayatri Devi Vasudev,
editor of The Astrological Magazine [July 2005] “bemoaned the tendency amongst certain astrologers to
publicize wrong predictions of fellow astrologers under the mistaken notion that they were being objective [in
doing so]”.

A PSEUDO-SCIENCE
Science progresses because it keeps rejecting disproved theories, and accepts one when its validity has been
firmly substantiated. At the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Francisco, 1980, Rolf
M. Sinclair said, “Astrology froze around two thousand years ago and simply hasn’t changed much.
That unchanging character is what allows me to say that astrology is a pseudo-science.” [pseudo = false]
Patrick Moor, in The Mitahall Beazley New Concise Atlas of the Universe, page 82 wrote, “In the pseudo-
science of astrology, the zodiacal signs were given mystical significance, but astrology has no logical or
scientific basis.”
In The Week’s March 17, 1996 cover story “Why Are We So Superstitious?” the writers conclude that “no one is
fooled” by astrology’s claims of a scientific basis.
Dr. Geoffrey Dean, [see page 12] a scientist and former astrologer based in Perth, Australia said, “Astrology
has no acceptable mechanism, its principles are invalid, and it has failed hundreds of tests. But no hint of these
problems will be found in astrology books, which, in effect, are exercises in deception.” [The Hindu August 31,
2003]
Yet, it is a science course at the University of Manchester and other British colleges. [NIE August 6, 2001]
“I believe that astrology is nothing more than a pseudo-science,” says Yash Pal, former chairman, University
Grants Commission [India Today September 17, 2001] [Also, see page 20, reference from The Hindu]
Now, the persons quoted above are not Christians who might have a bias against astrology. They are scientists.

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The most that science can say about practices like homoeopathy and astrology is that they are
not scientific or ‘pseudo-scientific’ or ‘impossible’. It does not have the authority to pronounce
them as the occult practices that they are, which can only be done in the light of the revelation of the Bible.
In a Sep.-Oct. 2001 CHARISINDIA article ‘Astrology In Universities!’’ Fr. John Mialil SJ writes, citing astrologers’
failed predictions concerning Rajiv Gandhi:“The predictions of astrologers are to be taken not with ‘a grain of salt’,
but with sacks of salt. It is this pseudo-science that they are trying to ram into the heads of the future hope
of India and taking them back to the antiquated century-old superstitions! May right thinking people oppose it”
[see page 25].

OTHER DIFFICULTIES WITH MODERN ASTROLOGY

1. Astrologers are literally tearing each other’s horoscopes to pieces because they draw up conflicting charts for
the same person. This disagree on which zodiac to use: sidereal or tropical; the year of commencement of the
Aquarian Age: it varies from around 1900 to the present time; the number of houses in the zodiac; the basis of
prediction: conventional astrology or the ‘sun’ sign model of celebrities like Linda Goodman [which bases
readings on the position of the sun at the time of birth] and which serious followers term as ‘slop’ or ‘pop’
astrology, etc.
An example, from India Today October 20, 2003: Osho disciple and tarot reader Ma Prem Usha says, “The sun-
sign system gives an accurate insight into people’s personality traits.” K.N .Rao, editor of Journal of Astrology
diasgrees, “Sun-sign based divination is pure humbug, not predictive astrology.”
The American astrologer Buell D. Huggins finds that the western method of secondary directions is unreliable
and that the western system of aspects is false; also that the planetary rulerships generally apply only to the
sidereal and not to the tropical signs [The Astrological Magazine January 1967 page 33]. W.J. Tucker agrees
[Ptolemaic Astrology 1961 p 6]. On the other hand, Jeff Mayo says that the system of sidereal signs has
completely failed whenever he tried to use it within western astrology [Teach Yourself Astrology 1964 p 186].
Ingrid Lind sees nothing in favour of using sidereal signs for the astrological description of personality
[Astrology and Commonsense, 1964 pp107,179].
2. Astrology explained the physical and psychological characteristics of people as being solely determined by
the stars. With the discovery of DNA and advances in other branches of science it is now known that such
things are the result of an interplay between genetic imprints, environmental forces and the free choices that
people make.
3. Astrologers have never given any rational or scientific explanation as to why a person’s destiny, as fixed by
the stars, is decided at his time of birth and not at conception, puberty or any other time. Ptolemy arbitrarily
chose the time of birth, which while convenient, does not make it more valid. As a starting point for
calculations, why not use the place of a person’s birth, since the location of the planets are the basis of the
zodiac ?
Why is a baby’s potential horoscope inhibited before birth merely because the child is in the womb?
4. Babies born at the same time and in the same place [latitude and longitude] should have the same natures
and futures. Identical, fraternal and time twins should share the same kind of personality, career, experiences
and death. Scientific studies have failed to establish even the slightest hint of any such relationship. In fact,
proof cases of these “astro-twins” publicised by astrological magazines have been verified to be half-truths or
outright frauds. The real factors that make each person unique are his heredity, environment, learning, beliefs,
and choices. Conversely, when twins, or any other babies, are born at practically the same time and place, and
have very different characters and lives, [like Esau and Jacob in Genesis 25], the correct predictions from their
identical horoscopes would have to be very diferent. The main astrological counter-argument is that there is a
spiritual part of every person that is not dealt with by astrology. But if the single horoscope of twins is capable
of such widely different interpretations, so is anyone’s horoscope. [see pages 3, 12]
5. Astrology assumes that we can know a person’s horoscope, but mass tragedies [eg. The Holocaust] render
all natal horoscopes invalid. The excuse given then is that mundane astrology overrules natal horoscopes.
Yet, this is an impossible answer. Natal astrology claims to determine the destiny of an individual according to
planetary influences on him from birth till death, so everyone should live and die in a very different way.
6. Astrology claims that it works because it can correctly identify a person’s star sign by his personality, which,
they also claim, can be verified by personal experience. But personal experience can never be accepted as

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proof of reliability. If one uses an objective scientific test to check the evidence, one finds that it
is against astrology.
Adolf Hitler addressed the 1936 International Congress on Astrology. A devout believer, he consulted
astrologers for all his military plans. Before his death, they were still predicting a great future for him and for
Germany.
7. Astrology claims that the horoscope of an individual determines that person’s destiny, personality, the kind
of occupation he will enter, etc. For example, Mars is strong in the horoscope of military personnel; those born
under Libra will be artistic because Venus, the planet of art and beauty rules Libra. Noted journals have
published a number of studies conducted to attempt to verify such claims, all of which were completely
disproved.
8. Since the claim is that astrology is true because it works, it is reasonable to believe that its practitioners,
after so many years of using it, would be among the world’s richest men. This is not found to be true.
9. Astrologers claim that they have accurately foretold the future in such detail and on so many occasions,
which shows it works. But they publicise only the ‘success stories’ and never admit any failures.
Most statements are non-specific: ‘There will be a major accident shortly’, ‘Good things will come your way’.
Such prophecies can be proved as true. A prediction that can be fulfilled by anything cannot be validated by
anything.
Daily horoscopes are so vague and ‘woolly’ that any prediction under any sign will seem to be fulfilled. Several
thousand people may read a prediction like ‘Expect triumph’, or ‘You will receive news from a distant source’.
The argument that a fulfilled prediction proves astrology, logically means that a failed one disproves it. But its
defendants then argue that the stars impel, they do not compel, and the person did not cooperate with the
stars.
10. Astrologers claim that the Bible supports astrology. Scholarly study shows no evidence [see pages 12,
13].

8.
11. Other astrologers argue that the Church has suppressed and excluded from the Canon certain ‘lost books’
like The Aquarian Gospel and The Unknown Life of Christ which have evidence that Jesus believed in astrology
and in reincarnation. In his book Modern Apocrypha, 1956, Dr. Edgar Goodspeed, a New Testament scholar
examines these books and demonstrates that they are complete frauds.
12. Some astrologers, such as India’s mathematical genius Shakuntala Devi, affirm a belief in astrology
because of the ‘interconnectedness of everything’ in the universe. The Whole or macrocosm [universe] is in the
same as the Part or microcosm [man]. They refer to the discovery of the new physics that electrons remain
mysteriously ‘interconnected’ even when separated from each other. [New Agers claim that this finding
substantiates one of their foundational beliefs that ‘all is one’.] Astrologers assert that this interconnectedness
proves that we are also connected to the heavenly bodies, that man is a reflection of the universe.
If everything in the universe is interconnected, that is precisely what makes it futile to single out a few planets
and stars that supposedly are an influence on our lives and personalities. If everything in the universe is inter-
connected, what about the influence on us of the people and objects in close proximity to us at our births?
13. A person’s sign is the one which the sun occupied at their birth.
A newspaper astrologer gives March 21-April 19 as the birthdays corresponding to the first sign, although this
may not be correct for someone born on March 21 [or April 19] itself.
14. We will see [page 18f] that the Indian systems are inconsistent in themselves from reckoning the houses
to interpretation of data, and they differ from the western system which again is different from the Chinese.
“V.S. Lovelekar who runs an astrology school in Bhopal points out that while western astrology focuses on
traits, personalities, and relationships with the emphasis on the Sun, in India it is a planetary tool for far-
reaching insights into a person’s ancestral history, past, present and future.” [India Today October 20, 2003]
15. Astrology claims to be verified by the findings of astro-physics: the effect of the sun’s radiation and sun-
spots, and the gravitational influence of the moon on tides, human beings and earth life etc.
The sun affects us. By sunstroke due to overexposure to it. The moon too certainly affects us, as a
honeymooning couple at the Taj Mahal may confirm; but they do not determine whether I become a criminal or
a lawyer.

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There is no logical connection between astrology and the findings of astro-physics. Astrologers
are here referring to facts which have nothing to do with the position that they wish to prove.
Our arguments are :
a) Astro-physics shows only general influences from the sun and the moon, and not of the other five bodies.
b) The effect from the sun and moon is temporary and changeable. Astrology demands that the seven
heavenly bodies act together to produce unchangeable and permanent influences.
c) The effect from the sun [radiation] and moon [tides] is universal. In astrology, the influence from above is
said to affect only certain individuals, babies, and that too, only at one time in the life of that individual, at
birth.
d) In astrology, the five planets of the zodiac are more influential than the sun and moon in drawing
horoscopes. But for supportive evidence they point only to the sun and moon.They have nothing to say about
the five planets.
Since astrologers appeal to evidence that the sun and moon affect us, then we can appeal to the same kind of
evidence that reveals that the five planets which are more important to them, do not affect us.
Astronomer Dr. George Abell points out that the moon’s gravitational pull on a person was less than the weight
of a mosquito [Don Bosco Salesian Bulletin, February 2004]. In the Los Angeles Times of 14 Sep. 1975, he said
that the tidal force of Mars at its closest to earth is about 50 million times less on a human being than that of a
copy of the Times lying on a table six feet away. Dr. Carl Sagan supports the same fact in Other Worlds, 1975,
p. 123.
Lee Ratzan in ‘The Astrology of the Delivery Room’, The Humanist, Nov./Dec. 1975, page 123 calculated that
the doctor in the delivery room has a greater gravitational effect on the baby than does any of the zodiac
planets.
Caught in this predicament by their using the argument of measurable physical effects, astrologers have
responded that the effects of the stars on us are not on a physical but on a spiritual or ‘astral’’ level.

SOME FAMOUS UNFULFILLED ASTROLOGICAL PREDICTIONS

Inconsistency is an essential part of the nature of astrology. But this inconsistency does not destroy it as it
would destroy any other subject. The truth or falsehood of astrology is not tested by examining its rules, but by
examining the predictions of astrologers. But all evidence that is presented below demonstrates its failure in
this area too.

1. Bonatto, a renowned 13th century astrologer predicted his own death inaccurately.
2. Galilieo in 1609 drew a horoscope for the Duke of Tuscany indicating long life. He died two weeks later.
3. Horoscopes showed that Voltaire would die at age 32. When he was 60, he published an apology.
4. Hitler consulted astrology for his military campaigns. They promised him victory. He was defeated.
5. Astrologers failed to predict President Kennedy’s assassination and had predicted a long life instead.
6. Astrologers predicted that California would fall into the sea in 1969. It didn’t.
7. It was predicted that China’s Communist government would fall in 1970. It is still around.

9.

FAMOUS ASTROLOGER – ‘PROPHETS’

NOSTRADAMUS
He is referred to by astrologers as the example par excellence of astrologers’ ability to predict the future.
Born a French Jew in 1503, he became a Catholic. He was physician and astrologer at the court of Charles IX.
He wrote about a thousand ‘prophecies’ covering the period from his time until AD 3897, when he believed the
world would be destroyed in a deluge. Most of his prophecies are written in quatrains, verses of four lines each.
The verses are written in an ambiguous style, and any desired meaning can be interpreted from them.

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Translators of his work[like Chetham and Roberts] have given different meanings to the same
verses, for instance
9:36 President Kennedy / King Louis XVI of France
1:26 The assassination of President Kennedy / Hitler’s invasion of Czechoslovakia
2:6 Hiroshima and Nagasaki / Divided Berlin
8:77 reportedly prophesied the downfall of Nazism, so Hitler arranged a fresh, favourable translation of
Centuries.
Nostradamus’ prophecies were first published in his ‘Centuries’ [100 verses in each group] in 1555, followed by
an expanded edition in 1558. His life and prophecies are immortalised in the film The Man Who saw Tomorrow.
According to C. MacRay, Extraordinary Popular Delusions, 1932, page 280, Nostradamus’ prophecies “take so
great a latitude, both as to time and space, that they are sure to be fulfilled somewhere or other in the course
of a few centuries.” Some of his many unfulfilled predictions:
1. Astrologers would be persecuted in 1607.
2. The Catholic clergy would collapse in 1609.
3. China would subdue the whole “northern section of the world” by 1700.
4. Venice would become a great world power by 1792.
5. Persecution against the Catholic Church would arise in 1792.
The Church banned Centuries in 1781, reportedly because of a prediction concerning the death of the then
Pope Pius VI [which was supposedly accurately fulfilled in 1799].
In the second verse of the first book, he writes: “When I take the magic wand in my hand, immediately a
wave wets my legs and clothes. I hear the heavenly voice and I become very pale because the heavenly light
and the divine revelation descend upon me.” Nostradamus did not have the gift of prophecy. His prophecies
were made, by his own admissions, on the basis of his observations of the stars and the planets, and from
occult powers that he experienced as a ‘voice’. Since the Bible condemns astrology [see below], the ‘voice’
could not have been that of God. His is a classic case of how dabbling in astrological practices can lead a
Christian into occult delusion.

MRS. JEANE DIXON

Perhaps the most famous astrologer of modern times, this American, too, was a Catholic, and a daily Mass goer
and communicant. She is credited with dozens of predictions that came true, but by her own admission there
were many of her prophecies that were not fulfilled. In her book Yesterday, Today and Forever: How Astrology
Can Help You Find Your Place In God’s Plan, 1977, page 9, she says, “actually, much of what I know about
astrology, I learned from a Jesuit priest, who was one of the best-informed scholars I have ever met.”
Some of her famous fulfilled predictions were that China would become communist, that Gandhi and Kennedy
would be assassinated and that Marilyn Monroe would commit suicide. Her failed prophecies include the start of
World War III in 1954, the admission of China into the UN in 1958, that Castro would be overthrown and die by
1966, Russia would land the first man on the moon, that Jackie Kennedy would not remarry, etc.
God revealed through Moses that just one false prediction would make a prophet a false one [Deut. 18: 21,22].
Jeane Dixon herself believes that “All my predictions are based on prophecies received from the Lord Jesus
Christ. Just as the Spirit of God gave prophecies to Isaiah, Jeremiah and John the Baptist, in the same way the
Spirit of God gives me prophecies. God has given me the gift of predicting future events… I empty out my
mind so that I may get filled with the Spirit of God. Finally during my meditation… God talks with me… I know
this message is not from the devil… I understand very definitely the difference between these two kinds of
messages.
So, in accordance with my wisdom I believe that this message is from God… I have been shown the future upto
AD 2037.” [The Call of Glory, 1972, pages 42, 43, 175]
When Jeane was a young girl, a gypsy woman gave her a crystal ball and tarot cards, saying, “Jeanne has the
powers of astrology.” [This is in itself an admission that astrology is not a simple analysis of the stars and
there are occult forces at work in it.]
She also uses other ‘tools’ of astrology such as astrological books and horoscopes. The prophets did not use
tools in the exercise of their gift. And their prophecies were God’s spiritual commands, moral guidelines, and
warnings to His chosen people not to adopt pagan ways or experience his corrective wrath. Dixon’s prophecies

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are about bad and sad, wordly and sensational events, and have nothing whatsoever in common
with the prophets’.
Her admission of her ‘empty’ing out her mind and meditating, is particularly worrisome. The Bible nowhere
encourages one to empty one’s mind or to meditate on anything but God, His works and His Word [see
separate article on MEDITATION]. An ‘emptied’ mind could be the playground of the dark spiritual forces.
10.
The Bible in 2 Cor. 11:14 says that “even Satan masquerades as an angel of light.” It says [2 Chron. 18: 1-34]
that a ‘lying spirit’ spoke through 400 prophets to King Ahab of Israel that he would be victorious in battle.
Micaiah, the true prophet of God, prophesied defeat, and it happened exactly so. No prophecy of God [Word of
God] turns out to be false [Isaiah 55:11, Matthew 24: 34, 35].
No human being has the power to make his own predictions. Prophecy can either be from God or from Satan.
The New Testament gives an instance of a slave girl who was possessed with a spirit of fortune-telling or
divination, which is what astrology really is [Acts 16: 16-18].
Dixon also used to have visions. Her first one, on 14th July 1952 was that of a large dragon that “climbed on my
bed and came and sat on my chest and focusing his eyes on mine, he said ‘Daughter, have courage. You have
yet to know many more truths’.” She then says that Jesus Christ gave her this vision. Later she herself writes,
“The argument of students of the Bible that Christians believe the dragon to be a metaphor for the devil is
altogether correct” [My Life and Prophecies, 1969, pages 194, 203.]
Rene Noorbergen wrote of Dixon’s prophecy about the birth of a child [at 7:00 am on 5th February 1962] who
would grow up to “integrate all the religions of the world into one religion” which would “become the
foundation of a new Christan religion.” [The NEW AGE one world religion ?] But after great opposition to this
prediction, Dixon changed it, to say that “This child is really the antichrist… He will deceive the entire world in
the Devil’s name”, says Noorbergen [The Soul Hustlers, 1976, page 121].
People who went to Dixon for advice have later suffered serious mental, moral and spiritual harm.
The Bible states that “…the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” [Rev. 19:10], which means that any
prediction, if it is from God, will bring glory to Jesus. Dixon’s predictions do not. Neither do Nostradamus’.
Her story is told by New Age author Ruth Montgomery in A Gift of Prophecy. Authoritative books on
spiritualism, also known as necromancy and spiritism, include “works of self-styled prophets such as Edgar
Cayce, Jeane Dixon and Nostradamus” says William Watson in A Concise Dictionary of Cults and Religions,
1991, page 217.
EDGAR CAYCE [1877 – 1945]
Called the “sleeping prophet” because he gave his prophetic readings while he ‘slept’, founder of the
Association for Research and Enlightenment [A.R.E.], a spiritualist organization in Virginia Beach, USA in 1931.
He taught reincarnation and that Jesus had lived as Adam, Melchizedek, and the father of Zoroaster, and that
he himself had lived as the grandfather of Zoroaster. I have found his books at the St. Pauls bookstore in
Bangalore.
The 14,000 readings Cayce gave in trance are considered the largest single body of psychic information in the
world. Almost 2,500 of them refer to past incarnations and specific astrological or planetary influences. When
asked if it was right to study astrology, the spirits that spoke through Cayce said, “very, very, very much so,”
according to Margaret Gammon, Astrology and the Edgar Cayce Readings, 1987, page 15, reading no. 3744-3.
“Even his proponents admit his prophecies have proved to be only 90% accurate. Critics place his rate of
accuracy even lower.He failed.. by declaring that New York would be dumped into the sea in the 70s. People are still
looking for the
elusive Atlantis which he prophesied would arise in the 20th century” New Book of Cults, Bob Larson, 1989 p.
132

LINDA GOODMAN

Her books [Love Signs, 1968; Sun Signs, 1978, Star Signs and Relationship Signs] have
been best sellers and I have seen copies in the hands and homes of Catholics, including,
sadly, close relatives. She denies that Jesus is the Christ, and states that he was only a

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man. She suggests a return to male/female polytheism. She even claims that
the original sin of Adam and Eve was good, and not evil [Love Signs, pp 8,
20, 21].
The Bible says, “Who is the liar? Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ… this is the antichrist” [1 John 2:22].

EPITAPHS FOR ASTROLOGY

A. In the play King Lear, Shakespeare makes Edmund, one of his characters, say, “This is the best kind of
madness. When we get tired of our luck- which actually results mostly from our excess in conduct- then we
hold sun, moon and stars responsible for our calamities. To hold the stars responsible for the unsteady nature
of man is an admirable excuse of that infatuated man.”
B. Rev. Jayanand I. Chauhan gives the following references in his What Astrology is All About, 2000 [page 58]:
1. In 1940, the conclusion of the American Society for Psychological Research was, “Astrology has not a single
proof to make known the past, present, and future, and man has no reason whatever to believe that prediction
of social events can be done through astrology.”
2. In 1949, the German Astronomical Society declared astrology to be ‘blind belief’, ‘false medicine’, and ‘a
mixture of great exaggerations’.
3. The same year, a committee of thirty specialists in various fields at the Ghent University in Belgium came to
the same conclusion.
C. Viktor Makarov, head of the Russian League of Professional Psychotherapists who conducted an official study
of the business concluded that half the practitioners were fakes and another quarter mentally ill.[DBSS, Feb
2004]

11.
D. The March 12, 1969 issue of Time magazine: “There are so many options and variables to play with that the
astrologer is always right. Break a leg when the astrologer told you the signs were good, and he can
congratulate you on escaping what might have happened had the signs been bad. Conversely, if you go against
the signs and nothing happens, the astrologer can insist that you were subconsciously careful because you
were forewarned.
E. Paul Couderc, an astronomer at the Paris Observatory examined the horoscopes of 2817 musicians for any
link between their place and time of birth and their musical talent. He concluded that “musicians are born
throughout the year on a chance basis. No sign of the zodiac or fraction of a sign favours or does not favour
them. The assets of ‘scientific’ astrology equals to zero, as is the case with commercialized astrology. [Astrology,
Who Am I? 1961]
F. In 1975, 186 scientists from all over the world, including 19 Nobel laureates, among them India’s own S.
Chandrasekhar, issued a statement against the propagation of astrology that ended by stating that the “time
has come to challenge directly and forcefully the pretentious claims of astrological charlatans.” The Hindu April
19, 2001
This was reported on the front page of the Los Angeles Times, September 3, 1975.
“Their declaration pointed out, “The time has come to challenge directly and forcefully the pretentious claims of
astrological charlatans. It’s simply a mistake to imagine that the forces exerted by stats and planets at the
moment of birth can in any way shape our future” Larson’s New Book of Cults, Bob Larson, 1989 page 140.
G. “No one needs to study astrology in all its detail… to come to the conclusion that it is unscientific. The
funda-mental premise of astrology is that heavenly bodies exert influences on the daily lives and behaviour of
human beings on earth. This is simply not true, and the evidence of such a connection is completely lacking…
Indeed, given the state of scientific knowledge for the past several centuries, we can assert that there can be
no such interaction between heavenly bodies and human beings that would provide a foundation to astrology.
The heavenly bodies exert no force that can affect individual behaviour. Nor is there any likelihood that future
developments in science will discover such a force. The existing fundamental laws of nature are too well tested
to be modified in the way they need to be if astrology has to have a scientific basis.” T. Jayaraman of the
Institute of Mathematical Studies, Chennai, inThe Hindu April 20, 2001.

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BIGGEST STUDY EVER

H. Dr. Geoffrey Dean [see page 7] and Ivan Kelly, a psychologist at the University of Saskatchewan, carried
out analyses of two scientific researches [Telegraph Group, London / The Hindu, August 31, 2003 and India
Today October 20, 2003] in the biggest study ever, and here are their findings:
1. For several decades researchers tracked over 2,000 Piscean babies, born within minutes of each other, as
part of a study begun in London in March 1958. They looked at more than 100 different aspects of the lives of
these ‘time twins’, [pages 3,8] which were monitored at regular intervals on the basis of the popular ‘sun-sign’
predictions.
They found no evidence of any similarity between the ‘time twins’, and that astrologers were unable to match
birth charts with the personality profiles of the randomly selected persons, and said “The test conditions could
hardly have been more conducive to success, but the results are uniformly negative.”
2. They reversed checked the process by asking astrologers to make birth charts according to characteristics.
None matched with personalities. For this, they reviewed evidence from more than 40 studies involving over
700 astrologers including some from India. They found the results “no better than guesswork.” The results
were reported in the current issue of the Journal of Consciousness Studies, ‘The Hindu’ said.
K.N. Rao, editor of Journal of Astrology said, “We must concede that this is the first sound research that has
questioned astrology.” However, he argues that the attack is on the sun-sign based western astrology.
D.S. Mathur, IAS, Chief Electoral Officer of Madhya Pradesh felt that “The study did not consider prarabhda,”
[destiny, which is the accumulation of karma in our previous lives, and leaves an impression on the birth chart],
“it is the interpretation of the horoscope that matters.”
SEEING STARS !!!
I. “Prabir Ghosh, general secretary of the Science and Rationalists’ Association of India is an astrovigilante who
exposes astrologers and has tripped up more than 100 of their ilk, mostly on TV and radio shows. He contends
that astrology has no organized database that a science should have. Also, astrologers who recommend gems
or home-made cures for problems rarely check if they worked, so there’s no method of testing and inference.
During a radio show in 1997, Ghosh dressed three successful businessmen as a peon, a guard, and a cheap-
liquor seller. When the astrologers were asked to guess their incomes, they were misled by the get-up and
grossly under-valued their subjects’ worth, and this was heard live by thousands.” [India Today September 17,
2001]

OBJECTIONS FROM CHRISTIANITY

ATTEMPTED USE OF THE BIBLE TO SUPPORT ASTROLOGY
We have seen that astrology has failed to deliver the goods over and over again, and not simply in the case of
unfulfilled predictions. This would have spelt doom in the case of any other discipline, but because of godless
man’s innate desire to ‘know’ what is ‘hidden’ in his future, astrology thrives. For those die-hard proponents
and consulters of astrology who tout its ‘successes’, success does not automatically determine its value.
12.
Some actions, such as stealing or cheating in examinations, can be successful but have to be judged as morally
wrong. The critically important question about astrology therefore is not whether it works but whether it is
legitimate. For non-Christians, the answer may be found either subjectively or in arguments from science.
While it is sufficient to revert to scientific proof, the Christian answer to the question will require to consider the
different ways in which astrology impinges on the Christian faith, by using an an objective standard, the Word
of God which is the Bible.

In ‘A Christian looks at Astrology’, Anthony Stone writes, “Astrology has two functions. Its basic function is to
provide practical guidance in life. Less well known is the fact that many believers in astrology take it as a
PRIMARY TRUTH in their view of the world. Furze Morrish, a western astrologer, has said that THE TWO
ULTIMATE THINGS ARE YOGA AND ASTROLOGY [in An Outline of Astro-Psychology 1952 page 189]. Such an

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attitude uses astrology as a key to understanding the universe. The Bible is viewed as a book
that needs to be fitted into this pattern.
M. Wemyss, The Wheel of Life or Scientific Astrology, page 126, believes that much of the Bible needs an
astrological interpretation for its fuller understanding. This view is a direct challenge to the supremacy of Scripture”
[see page 8].
Three kinds of ‘astrological’ passages are alleged to occur in the Bible:
1. Passages supporting the truth or legitimacy of astrology
2. Passages in which the writer has drawn on astrological ideas
3. Passages which admit of a correlation with some astrological elements such as the signs of the zodiac.
Now, the actual connection of any Biblical passage with astrology was:
1. No connection; in which case any astrological interpretation is imposed from outside
2. An unconscious or unintentional reference to astrology; as when we use the names of the days of the week
without giving any thought to their astrological origins
3. A ‘cosmological’ use of astrological terms giving glory to the Creator, as would be the case if the zodiacal
constellations were mentioned as part of His handiwork
4. A conscious astrological reference.
Only in the last case would astrology have any significant bearing on the interpretation of the passage.
A close study of the passages that astrologers refer to for Biblical support for astrology reveals that many of the
suggested correlations are imaginary and arbitrary, being supported by no evidence other than their own
appeal.

1. Origen, an early Christian writer [3rd century, Philocalia, 23], gave an astrological interpretation to the
creation story, Genesis 1:14-18. He held that the heavenly bodies were ‘signs’ in the astrological sense,
showing, but not causing, things which would happen or which have happened, according to the rules of
astrology.
He also believed that the sun, moon, stars and planets were among the ‘principalities’ mentioned in Colossians
1:16, so that their first rule was as rational beings [First Principles, 1.7]
To make a long explanation short, to ‘rule’ here means to ‘shine’, they dominate by shining [the same Hebrew
word is used] as in Psalm 136:9 [The moon and the stars rule over the night]. Parallels in Sanskrit are
dinakara, day-maker, and dinapati, lord of the day; nishakara, night-maker and nishapati, lord of the night,
used for the sun and the moon. These are pure literary terms and have no astrological connotation.
2. Jeremiah 10:2 [see page 19] is important [for those who propose] to the idea that the heavenly bodies
may be taken as astrological signs. The signs of the heavens cause dismay to the Gentiles and are bad omens to
them.
These false ideas and customs of the pagans are not to be followed by the Hebrews [v. 3ff].
3. Other references are to God’s signs. At the day of the Lord the heavenly bodies will be darkened [Isaiah
13:9f, Joel 3:14f]. There will be portents in the heavens [Joel 2:30f, Isaiah 13:13, Mathew 24:29f, 2 Peter
3:10] etc.
At Jesus’ crucifixion, the sun was darkened [Luke 23:44f]. These signs do not recur, as omens must, but occur
at unique times. So, the Bible does not support the idea of the heavenly bodies as astrological signs.
4. The ‘dominion’ of the heavens in Job 38:33 has sometimes been interpreted as the astrological influences.
These are the ‘ordinances’ of ‘decrees’ or ‘fixed order’ [RSV] of heaven which are the laws of nature apllying to
the heavens, for the same word is found in Job 28:26, Jeremiah 31:35, Jeremiah 33:25.
5. The seven days of Genesis 1:1 to 2:3 have been correlated astrologically with the seven planets. Christian
scholars like Anthony Stone have conclude that all the evidence indicates that the text itself contains no hint of
astrology, the procedures are arbitrary, and the correlations are imposed on the text from without.
6. Philo [De Somniis, 2.16] took Joseph’s second dream [Genesis 37:9], in which the sun, moon and 11 stars
bowed down to him, as indicating a connection between the 12 sons of Israel and the 12 signs of the zodiac.
The sun and the moon stand for his parents [v.10]. In Joseph’s time [c. 1750 BC] there were Babylonian lists of
36 stars or constellations in 3 belts of 12, parallel to the equator. Later there were lists of 16 constellations
along the zodiac. The 12 zodiacal signs of 30 degrees each probably date from the 4th century BC. Hence the
astronomy of the patriarchal period had nothing to do with the 12 signs of the zodiac, and even the set of 12

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zodiacal constellations is not attested as a separate entity at that period. The dream is thus no
evidence for a correlation.
7. The statement that ‘the stars in their courses fought for Sisera’ [Judges 5:20] is often claimed to refer to the
astrological influences of the stars. However this verse comes in the Song of Deborah, a poem employing
hyperbole and other figures of speech. It poetically expresses the fact that the Lord was responsible for Israel’s
victory [4:15]. All nature is on God’s side because it is controlled by God.
8. Astrologers claim that the Bible supports astrology because of the ‘three wise men’ or Magi of Matthew 2, its
many ‘predictions’ including Noah’s of the Great Flood, the prophets’ warnings, etc. The prophets, including
Noah did not consult the heavenly bodies to know future events, but the living God. We see below in detail that
the Bible always condemns astrology as a form of occult divination, as did the Council of Laodicea and St.
Augustine.
And the Magi were not pagan astrologers [though a Tamil translation calls them ‘josiar’- magicians or
astrologers] but Gentile converts to Judaism who knew Balaam’s prophecy, “A star will come out of Jacob…”
[Num 24:17] which referred to the coming of the Messiah. Herod did not use astrology but the Old Testament
to check out where the Messiah was to be born, and the Magi did not use astrology to find out Herod’s intent to
kill them.
An angel warned them to flee. And the ‘star’ that the Magi followed did not have the regular movement expected of a
star or planet. Its origin was unprecedented and presence temporary- a supernatural phenomenon.
Even conceding that the Magi were astrologers, and that astrology was practiced by them, it is clear that God
too was involved. God chose the time for the birth of his son [Gal 4:4]- in the star, for he controls the stars
[Isaiah 40:26] and the extraordinary signs [Joel 2:30f]. There are many instances in the Bible where God
worked through imperfect means and persons. One example: Balaam was a diviner [qasam, Num 22:7] who
sought omens [nachash, Num 24:1] and both practices are condemned in Deuteronomy 18:10. Yet God twice
used Balaam to proclaim a message even while involved in ways which he forbade to the Israelites [Numbers
23:5, 16; 24:1f].
9. The Book of Revelation contains a lot of imagery including 7 lampstands and 7 stars which were correlated
with the 7 planets, the 4 living creatures, etc [ch 1]. The imagery has to be understood in the light of the Word
of God as seen in its entirety. The imagery in Revelation 12, the sun, moon, 12 stars, signs in the sky etc. can
be traced to Old Testament sources, without any astral identifications. Revelation 21 with its 12 foundation
jewels has been correlated with the 12 signs of the zodiac, which are the 12 apostles [v. 14].
In any case, in the New Jerusalem, there was neither sun nor moon.

BABEL vs. THE BIBLE

The Old Testament The heavenly bodies were made by God and they point to their Creator [Psalm 19:1].
Their worship is explicitly forbidden in the First Commandment as well as in Deuteronomy 17:2 f.
There are references in the Bible to all the planetary deities, and these are consistently unfavourable.
Wherever they appear as spiritual beings in the Bible, they are always in opposition to God.
The Babylonian god Marduk [identified with Jupiter] is shown to be powerless in Jeremiah 50:2 under the
names of Merodach and Bel. Bel and Nebo [Mercury] are similarly shown as powerless in Isaiah 46: 1-4.

Some Bible scholars say that the tower of Babel [Babylon], of Genesis 11: 1-9, “with its
top in the sky,” was identified by archaeologists as a ziggurat, an astrological
observation tower for viewing and worship of the heavenly bodies. It was destroyed by
God. They also say that the golden calf that Aaron fashioned [Exodus 32] was the idol
of Egyptian astrological God Taurus. King Jeroboam made two bulls [1 Kings 12:26-
29] for the people, saying, “Here are your gods, O Israel.” “And this became a sin”
[verse 30].
King Rehoboam not only erected images of Taurus, but of Aries, the goat [satyrs, Lev 17:7, 2 Chron 11:15].

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Molech [Lev 18:21, 20:1-6] was another astrological god. It represented the sun and was
worshipped by casting live children into the fire in its belly. The worship of Molech and Rephan or
Saturn is condemned in Acts 7:43 : “therefore I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.”
Acts 14:11-18 tells how Paul and Barnabas were thought to be Zeus and Hermes, the gods of the planets
Jupiter and Mercury, whose worship, Paul says in verse 15, is worthless.
God’s warning to His people through Moses is uanambiguous. “And when you look up to the sky and see the
sun, the moon and the stars, and all the heavenly array, do not be enticed into bowing down to them and
worshiping things that the Lord your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven” [Deut 4:19].
2 Kings 10:28-31 indicates that the record of the rise and fall of the kings of Israel and Judah includes whether
they practiced astrology or banned it. When godly kings like Josiah arose in Israel, they cleansed the nation of
the elements of astrology. 2 Kings 23:4-7 says that he removed and destroyed “all the articles made for Baal
and Asherah… to the sun and the moon, to the constellations, and to all the starry hosts.” Lange’s
Commentary, 1960, notes that the phrase “to the constellations” actually says “twelve signs [of the zodiac” in
the Hebrew.
Baal, the Phoenician sun-god, is mentioned in the Old Testament nearly one hundred times. Apostate Israel
built temples, and even install horses and chariots, dedicated to the worship of Baal [2 Kings 23:11]
Asherah or ‘Astarte' is the Syro-phoenician worship of either Venus or the moon, or both combined, as the
goddess of love, fertility and good luck, says C F Keil, in the Book of Kings, 1950.

14.
Jeremiah rejected the worship of “the Queen of Heaven,” the moon [Jer 7:18, 44:17-25] and prophesied divine
judgement upon Israel for astrological worship [Jer 9:13].
Ezekiel condemned the women of Israel for “mourning for Tammuz” [Ezek 8:14] and the men of Israel for
worshipping the sun [Ezek 8:16]. According to Keil in Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel,
Tammuz, or Adonis, the Babylonian god of fertility, “introduced the worship of the seven planets and twelve
signs of the zodiac and… was exalted to a god after his death and honoured with a mourning festival.” In fact,
paintings of the zodiac creatures were actually placed on the walls of the temples and worshiped [Ezek 8:10,
11].
The evil was not simply idolatry but divination of the future as in Jer 8:1, 2a: “…the sun and the moon and the
stars of the heavens which they have… consulted and worshiped.”
God condemned Israel’s involvement in astrology or divination because it was part of the occultic cultures of
the surrounding nations which God promised to drive out before Israel, “…you shall not learn to imitate the
detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who practises divination…” [Deut 18:9-
12]
The Hebrew words ashshaph and gzar used in these and other OT passages translate as ‘conjuror’, ‘enchanter’,
‘soothsayer’ and ‘astrologer’. Often the translation into English as ‘conjuror’ or ‘soothsayer’ includes astrologers.
In a classic confrontation between horoscope and divine revelation, Israel singled out the kingdom’s astrologers
for predicting that Israel would not fall, while God revealed through him it would: “Let the astrologers stand
forth to save you, the stargazers who forecast at each new moon what would happen to you… they cannot
even save themselves… Thus do your astrologers serve you, whom you have consulted from your
youth.”[Isaiah 47: 11–15]. The prophets based their hostility to astrology on two things: Astrology was a form
of polytheism and lead to worship of creation. The people should consult God for their need, and not the stars
or astrologers.
It was said of the people brought into Samaria to replace the deported Israelites [2 Kings 17:29f] that they
worshiped both the Lord and their own gods, including Nergal [Mars], disobeying His explicit instructions
[v.34f].
Israel’s final doom was linked to its involvement with astrological worship: ‘They forsook all the commandments
of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. They
bowed down to all the starry hosts and they worshpied Baal. They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the
fire. They practiced divination and sorcery… Therefore the Lord rejected the people of Israel… and gave them
into the hands of plunderers, until he thrust them from his presence” [2 Kings 17: 16-20].

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From the very early times, God’s methods of guidance to His people included direct speaking,
theophanies, signs, dreams and visions. Scripture developed from Moses to Malachi. The Urim
and Thummim [Numbers 27:21,
1 Samuel 23, 2 Samuel 2:1, 5:19 etc] were sanctioned under Moses. The words mean ‘lights and perfections’.
Their purpose was to give God’s guidance to civil leaders in matters of national importance.
They were important until David, in whose time the prophetic movement was growing in importance. After
David, inquiry of the Lord through the Urim and Thummim is not recorded, but only inquiry through the
prophets.
From the time of the last Old Testament prophet, Scripture was the most important source of guidance.

The New Testament reveals that Christ has subjected all orders of spiritual beings such as principalities
[archai], authorities [exousiai], powers [dynamai], dominions [kyriotes], etc., under Himself [1 Peter 3:22] on
the cross [Colossians 2:15]. They were created by Christ to be subject to Him [Colossians 1:16]. They are
powerless to separate the Christian from Christ [Romans 8:38f]. They are the dark rulers of this world but can
be resisted successfully in God’s strength [Ephesians 6:12f]. At the end, He will bring them all to nothing [1
Corinthians 2:4].
Could we understand these passages this way? What they are saying is that those spiritual beings which were
considered to control the world, including those considered to exert astrological influence through their control
of the heavenly bodies, have all been conquered by Christ as part of the salvation which He offers.
Created by Him, they revolted and still enjoy a certain freedom which is now certain to be ultimately
terminated.

Post- New Testament, God’s guidance included mainly interpretation and teaching of Scripture by the
Church.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church says: All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to
Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead, or other practices falsely supposed to ‘unveil’ the future. [Jer 29:8].
Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in
the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor,
respect and loving fear that we owe to God alone. CCC 2 116 [under the section ‘THE FIRST
COMMANDMENT’].
The cover story of the Don Bosco Salesian Bulletin [February 2004] ‘Bluff or… Is It Sinful ?’ discusses astrology
along with other forms of divination, also referring to CCC 2115 to 2117.
I particularly liked a very short and simple article “Your Horoscope” by Kunnel Appachen in the 2000 September
SHALOM TIDINGS. For those who felt threatened by their stars, the author quoted several Scripture passages
to recommend that they turn to the Bible, which is drawn by God for man, and is his most reliable ‘horoscope’.
15.

WHY ASTROLOGY IS OCCULT

“Astrology is defined by Webster’s Dictionary as an occult art.” The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary defines
astrology as “the art of judging the occult influence of the stars upon human affairs.” Cult Watch, John
Ankerberg and John Weldon 1991 pp. 213,205. In my vast library, there is no book that does not include
astrology as occult.
In Dr. Paul Martin’s Cult Proofing Your Kids, 1993, astrology is listed under psychic/occult/divination, pp 26,
103.
“It plays a leading role in the dissemination of occult practice and philosophy within our culture. In our full-
length book Astrology: Do the Heavens Rule Our Destiny, 1989, we document eight converging lines of
evidence to show that the real source of power behind the effective astrologer is often the spirit world… this
form of divination… means that people are really being influenced by evil spirits (demons)… In examining two
dozen ‘chaneled’ books, [revelations given by a spirit possessing someone’s body], astrology was endorsed in almost all
of them” [ibid. pp 203,214]
Says Charles Strohmer, himself an astrologer for eight years, “Astrology is without doubt the most acceptable
occult pastime of our age,” in What Your Horoscope Doesn’t Tell You, 1988 [page 9]. Saying that he “stayed

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with it because it worked,” he concludes that on becoming a Christian he realized “that this was
not reason enough. This may seem obvious, but not until then did I grasp that just because
something works, it is not necessarily synonymous with what is right and true. That a thing works does not
mean that it should be used. Some things when they work, explode and maim… There is power in astrology..
but we have already noted the false explanation of its major pillar, planetary influence…” [pages 11, 23].
Many Christians use homoeopathy [see separate reports] for a similar reason: it works. If it did not ‘work’, it
would not have found mention in the Vatican Provisional Report on the New Age. It too is scientifically
impossible, like astrology. Many astrologers and homeopaths are sincere people, but to be sincere is not
necessarily to be correct. Apart from coincidence, these arts have been found to ‘work’ because of the occult
power behind them.
“You can never be involved even a little bit with the occult and be in harmony with the will of God; that is like
being a little bit pregnant” avers Strohmer [page 107].

The word ‘occult’ describes those tools, skills, and rites which the Bible forbids because they are satanic in
origin and power. When the Church outlawed all occult practices because they were condemned [in the Bible]
by God, they had to be done in secret. Hence the Latin word occultus which means ‘hidden’ or ‘unseen’ was
used to describe them. People became involved in occult practices like astrology for one or all of the following
reasons:
(i) To gain supernatural knowledge of the future.
(ii) To gain supernatural power to change one’s present condition and the future.
(iii) To gain access to the spirit world to contact the dead
(iv) To contact Satan and the demonic host.
St. Augustine said that any remarkable successes in astrological prediction were due to the inspiration of astrologers
by evil spirits [City of God, 5.7,9] [see page 3]. Catholic Bishops have declared that astrology is occult [see
page 18].
In an August 4, 1856 encyclical, the Holy Office forbade the use of occult practices like future-telling and
divining.
In 1919, it answered ‘No’ to these questions: “Can theosophical doctrines be in harmony with Catholic doctrines
? Is it permitted to join theosophical societies, attend their meetings, and read their books… and writings ?”
The occult religions like Rosicrucianism and Theosophy [founded 1875], both named in the Vatican Document
on the New Age, have strong connections with astrology. I have in my library a book titled A Study in
Astrological Occultism- An Astrological Approach to Vedantic Philosophy and Yogic Discipline by Bepin Behari.
The author says, “The inner depths of astrology, alchemy, yoga, tantra, and rituals are known only to those
who have acquired higher levels of initiation.” The author quotes not only the teachings of the Theosophical
founders but also of their spirit-guides, like Alice Bailey’s entity Djwal Khul.
“Although heavily laden with psychological terminology, astrology is firmly planted in the occult. It is a form of
divination, the use of ungodly supernatural forces, or the reading of omens for ‘hidden’ information.
The occult always seeks hidden meaning below the surface or in patterns that have no apparent meaning
beyond the obvious. Practicing astrology enhances powers, often brings on supernatural experiences to the
reader and the client, and increases interest in the occult,” says Marcia Montenegro, a Christian writer on New
Age themes.
Some astrologers have stated that ‘psychic intuition’ is necessary in drawing up accurate horoscopes.
Omens are often included in the study of astrology to determine whether things will go well for one, or not.
Ancient cultures have thought of heavely bodies as spirits, stoicheia in Greek, which has been translated as
‘spirits’, ‘principles’, or ‘elemental powers’ [Galatians 4: 3,9; Colossians 2:8, 20]. But as Wim Rietkirk says in his
book The Future Great Planet Earth, 1989, these ‘spirits’ were often identified with stars.
In a 1981 Readers’s Digest article ‘Into the Unknown’, Ludwick Steuber, a student of Witte, gave examples
knowledge of past events and of correct predictions based on this system. Such knowledge must have an occult
source.
In Wisdom from India- Astrology, 2000, Vishal Mangalwadi writes, “this viewpoint is honest in admitting that
astrology is outside the limits of physical science and rational discussion. Some of them also admit that
astrology is not a science but an aspect of spiritualism.”
16.

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Dr. Anthony Stone’s extensive research led him to write in his book Hindu Astrology, 1981, that
when astrologers do get accurate results which cannot be attributed to chance or common sense,
then their predictions are often comunications received from spirits or demons. [He is the author of A
Christian Looks at Astrology, 1974].
In eastern India, even today, “Tantra is both religion and occult. Sanyasini Debakini, a tantrik practitioner from
Kolkata, insists that tantrik astrology is a science” [India Today September 17, 2001].
Even a Brahmin agrees that astrology is occult. AVN Namoodiripad writing from Kochi to the NIE, October 26,
1999, protesting against Prof. Abbas’ article [see page 26] says, “I would like to point out that astrology is an
occult science.” Of course, for many New Agers, as for Mr. Namboodiripad, the occult is a ‘good’ thing.
In some bookstores, astrological works are stocked in the section on occult or New Age books.

INTUITION
Astrologer B.V. Raman says that astrologers work more by ‘intuition’ developed through practice, than by
blindly following astrological rules [Hindu Predictive Astrology, 1963 page xi f].
Anthony Stone says that it is “clear that success in astrological prediction (or delineation of character) depends
more on the astrologer than on ‘astrology’ as a set of statements. They also point to the conclusion that
astrological prediction is a parapsychological procedure for which the astrologer seeks to develop a knack.
Astrology then is only one among a number of methods of divination… The systems used in astrology are merely
sets of divinatory objects which can be varied to suit the practitioner” [A Christian Looks At Astrology page 38].
As a former astrologer, Charles Strohmer finds a ‘hook-up’ between the divinatory spirit and the spokesperson,
the astrologer. Explaining this ‘intuition’, he says that when an astrologer studies a horoscope, a certain detail
about the client’s life seems to pop up before him, drawing his attention and making him see its relevance to
the client. He believes that it is “a detail that a familiar spirit is privy to. It is the spirit that is somehow doing
the focusing. The focusing is influenced not by a planet… but by a deceptive individual being who knows both
the spokesperson and the client” [What Your Horoscope Doesn’t Tell You, page 60].
Ankerberg and Weldon [op.cit. page 213, 217, 218] confirm this: “Astrology employs occult practices such as
divination… It appears to work best when the astrologer himself is psychically sensitive, what most astrologers
would term ‘intuitive’… Prolonged use of astrology often leads to the development of psychic abilities…
Astrologers prefer the word ‘intuitive’ because for many people the term ‘psychic’ has too many negative occult
connotations, while the word ‘intuitive’ is far more neutral, positive, and universal to people’s ears…
Astrologer Julien Armistead said, ‘I don’t think you can read an astrological chart if you’re not intuitive’.”
In his book Astrology for the New Age: An Intuitive Approach, page 6, astrologer Marcus Allen thanks “my spirit
guide for his insight and clarity and presence.”

A CHALLENGE
76-year old Canadian-born James Randi, author of nine books, has lectured at NASA, the White House and top
universities, throwing down the gauntlet to psychics, homoeopaths, pendulum dowsers and astrologers with an
offer of $1 million to anyone who could prove these phenomena scientifically [NIE December 4, 2004].
[A transcript of Randi’s $1 million BBC-aired challenge on homoeopathy, which he won, is on the website.]
As I have repeatedly said, all that science can say is that secular conclusions can be only that these are non-
sciences. But a Christian would do well to remember that there are no neutral powers in the spiritual world.

ASTROLOGY AND THE ‘NEW AGE’ OF AQUARIUS

“The New Age Movement draws its beliefs and practices from eastern mysticism and the occult, with an
emphasis on psychic phenomena, astrology and spiritism,” says Dr. Paul Martin in Cult Proofing Your Kids,
1993, page 97.

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“Christ had all seven ancient planets… all conjunct in Pisces… so he was the supreme, the
ultimate Pisces… and so he initiated the Age of Pisces which is now coming to an end with the
dawning of the Age of Aquarius, which is initiated by the second coming of the Christ Life in all of us… In the
Age of Aquarius everyone is the avatar, everyone is tuned in to their higher self…” writes Marcus Allen,
astrologer, in Astrology for the New Age, page 117.
Anthony Stone who has been quoted by me several times, came to India in 1956, was in Bengal and Kerala,
and on the staff of St. Stephen’s College, Delhi when he wrote A Christian Looks at Astrology in 1973. New
Ager Marilyn Ferguson published her pioneering work The Aquarian Conspiracy in 1980. So, Stone in India was
far ahead of his time when he correlated astrology with the emerging New Age in the West when he wrote,
“The coming of Jesus and the rise of Christianity are connected with the entry of the vernal equinox into
sidereal Pisces. Current interest is focused on ‘the Age of Aquarius’ (vernal equinox in sidereal Aquarius) which
is considered to be a time of spontaneity, …and movement towards universal brotherhood” [page 80].
Devoting several pages to a study of the different views of history, distinguishing the cyclic one of Hinduism
from the linear one of Christianity, he shows that in Christian history the different periods occur only once, are
discerned only by faith, and have nothing to do with the stars. Avoiding the relation between time and eternity,
they are:
before creation, from creation to Christ, from Christ to His second coming, and the age to follow. The
uniqueness of the periods follows from the central fact that the death of Christ is unique in time.
17.
“The modern attempt to connect the coming of Jesus with the entry of the vernal equinox into sidereal Pisces,
as also the current interest in the Age of Aquarius, is completely unbiblical” says Stone [page 82].

NEW AGE : RESPONSES FROM THE CHURCH

“Jesus Christ, the Bearer of the Water of Life: A Christian Reflection on the New Age”
A Provisional Report issued by the Vatican, February 3, 2003. The following quote is from note no. 20:
“It is worth recalling the lyrics of this song, which quickly imprinted themselves on to the minds of a whole
generation in… America and… Europe: ‘When the Moon is in the Seventh House, and Jupiter aligns with Mars,
then Peace will guide the Planets, and Love will steer the Stars. This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius,
Aquarius… dreams of visions, mystic crystal revelation and the mind’s true liberation. Aquarius’.” The note was
a reference to “the first symbols” of the NAM, the theme song ‘Aquarius’ of the musical ‘Hair’ [n 2.1].
It was written by a rock group called The Fifth Dimension in 1968. There have been a number of rock songs
with lyrics that look forward to the destruction of Christianity. One of them is Nina Hagen’s 1985 album
‘Ekstasy’.
It had a record titled ‘Gods of Aquarius’ which is deceptively Christian, but, like most of her evil music, actually
looks to the coming of the antichrist: “The gods of Aquarius are coming with UFOs
…The good old communication with Holy Spirits, Of God’s creation, Is true but our church denies it… What I
want is automatic writing… The Golden Age of Aquarius, The Second Coming of the glorious….”

“The beginning of the Third Millennium comes not only two thousand years after the birth of Christ, but also at
a time when astrologers believe that the Age of Pisces- known to them as the Christian age- is drawing to a
close.
These reflections are about the New Age which takes its name from the imminent astrological Age of
Aquarius.”
[n1.1]. “According to astrologers, we live in the Age of Pisces, which has been dominated by Christianity. But
the current Age of Pisces is to be replaced by the New Age of Aquarius early in the third Millennium” [n2.1].
Marilyn Ferguson, author of pioneering New Age best-seller The Aquarian Conspiracy, 1980 “devoted a chapter
of [it] to the precursors of the Age of Aquarius” [n2.3.2]
So, the NAM is a spiritual movement [many Christians now describe it as a ‘religion’] which owes its very name
and description to an astrological conspiracy whose aim is “…Christianity has to be eliminated and give way to a

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global religion and a new world order”[n4]. Could this be summarised as “Astrology seeks to
destroy the Church”?
An important attribute of astrology is defined as ‘New Age’: “…God is reduced in certain New Age practices so
as furthering the advancement of the individual” [n1.1]. In astrological practice, the little ‘gods’ as represented
by the controlling stars and planets, are consulted, manipulated, appeased, and propitiated, while the individual
is not required to make any moral choices: “this involves a rejection of the language of sin and salvation”
[n2.4]
The Document also has many references to theosophy which as we have seen has strong astrological links.
“The Age of Aquarius has a high profile in the New Age movement largely because of the influence of
theosophy, spiritualism and anthroposophy” [n2.1; n2.3.2, etc].

1. In the International Theological Video Conference, 27 February 2004, THE DECLARATION ON THE
“NEW AGE’, Cardinal Georges Cottier OP, General Topic: The Church, New Age and Sects, said:
“According to astrologers we are currently in the age of Pisces – dominated by Christianity;
this era is about to leave space to a new era, the age of Aquarius which will be marked by a universal religion
in which all religious differences will vanish...
Inspiration provided by esotericism and Gnosticism, as well as theosophy, anthropology and spiritism are clear.”

2. A Catholic Response to the New Age Phenomenon, A NEW AGE OF THE SPIRIT ? was prepared by
the Irish Theological Commission in 1994. It says,
“Astrology has found a new popularity with the arrival of Hinduism into the west. A newspaper without one’s
‘stars’ is unusual nowadays. One even finds astrologers being consulted regarding political events as we saw on
Sky News during the 1992 British elections, and the astrologers got it right where the opinion polls got it
wrong!
They said that John Major’s chart showed good signs for him, but not for the opposition.

Consulting one’s stars is part of the Yogic system of belief. There are essentially two forms of it.
Natal astrology deals with individuals. Mundane astrology deals with world events and history.
Accepting astrology reinforces the belief in the law of karma, [see pages 20, 21, 22] as your chart may have
‘good’ or ‘bad’ signs for you right now, and this may apply to a country also.
Astrology was important in the ancient world, but Christianity dealt strongly with it, and for centuries it died
down. It revived in Europe in the latter half of the nineteenth century with the rise of Theosophy, but it had
remained popular in China, India and the Islamic world. It did not revive in the west until the twentieth century,
but it has gained steadily in popularity ever since, with polls claiming that 40% of Americans now believe in it.
The claims of astrology have been thoroughly discredited by scientific research. The physical planets in the
universe do not direct and guide the lives of living beings, for they are non-living objects. Astrology belongs to
the occult and the magic arts. See Understanding Cults and New Religions, 1987, p. 79. See also What your
Horoscope Doesn’t Tell You, Charles Stohmer, Word Publishing, 1988. This author is a former expert astrologer,
who after some success with astrology decided to investigate its mysteries. He points out the occultic
nature of this magical art, and agrees that there is nothing scientific about it.
Many Christians seems to think that it is harmless to consult an astrologer, and to follow the ‘stars’ in one’s
everyday life. This is not so, for one is being guided by a false system of mythology and ancient so-called
‘gods’. For many it is the beginning of a journey that leads into the occult proper, and into other NAM activities
that are dangerous to one’s spiritual life. It also rejects the teaching of Jesus and the Church that we should
trust Divine Providence in our daily lives. The need to know one’s stars seems to stem from a need to have
something in our lives under control when there is so much happening all around us that is not in our control.”

3. ASTROLOGY IS FORTUNE-TELLING AND A DOOR TO THE OCCULT

A Pastoral Letter dated 4/1/1996 from Most Rev. Donald W. Montrose, Bishop of Stockton, CA., USA.
“Do not go to mediums or consult fortune tellers, for you will be defiled by them. I, the Lord, am your God”
Lev. 19:31. “Should anyone turn to mediums and fortune tellers and follow their wanton ways, I will turn
against such a one and cut him off from his people” Lev. 20:6.

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Fortune tellers try to predict the future through the use of occult, magic, or superstition. It is
forbidden to seek knowledge of the future by using playing cards, tarot cards, the crystal ball, the
study of the hand, the stars, examining the liver of dead animals, shooting arrows, the Ouija board, or any
other superstitious means.
A medium is a person who has immediate or secret knowledge either by some questionable power of his own
or through the power of an evil spirit that works through him. In l Samuel chapter 3, read how King Saul
consulted a medium and died the next day. 1 Chronicles 10:13 says that Saul died because of this.
Jeremiah 10:2, “Thus says the Lord: Learn not the customs of the pagans and have no fear of the signs of
the heavens, though the pagans fear them.” By studying the stars and planets an astrologer casts a horoscope
on the basis of the month and the day of an individual’s birth. The horoscope is a prediction of events likely to
occur in a person’s life based upon the movement of the stars and planets. Even though millions of people
follow horoscopes with greater or lesser interest, this is still a type of fortune telling. Even if you say you do not
believe in horoscopes, and only read your own for fun, you should abandon this practice. The daily horoscope
can easily influence us from time to time. It is a way in which we open ourselves to the occult.
If you want to live in the Kingdom of God, renounce horoscopes and all other means of fortune telling.
Any playing cards, Ouija boards, or other things used for fortune telling should be destroyed…
In Confession (the Sacrament of Reconciliation) there is Divine Power needed to free one from the influence of
evil… Jesus is Lord and God. He is Lord and therefore has dominion over both the Kingdom of Light and the
Kingdom of Darkness. Satan has no dominion over the Kingdom of Light.
He is allowed a limited dominion over the Kingdom of Darkness.
Therefore, if I am baptized and am living in the Kingdom of Light in the state of Sanctifying Grace, Satan has
no dominion over me unless through fear I open the door to his influence. Sanctifying Grace means that I am
sharing in a mysterious way in the life of God Himself and He is dwelling in my soul (Rom. 5:5; 2 Cor. 6:16;
John 14:23). However, when I commit a mortal sin, a serious sin, then I lose Sanctifying Grace and begin to
live in the Kingdom of Darkness. Even though I have been Baptized and possibly Confirmed, I become
somewhat vulnerable. As I persist, unrepentant in serious sin, I become vulnerable to the influence of Satan.
When we are living in the Kingdom of Light, in the state of Sanctifying Grace, we should simply reject all fear,
and place our confidence in God and in Our Lady, then live according to the advice previously given in this
article as far as the Kingdom of Darkness is concerned.
Again, however, there is the difficulty of defining sin in our present age. We have to define sin
according to the Gospel and the official teaching of our Church as it has been handed down by the
Church’s Magisterium and not define it by the viewpoint of the modern age which has been
contaminated.
Many people live in sin and have false peace, because their conscience has been formed, not by the Gospel,
but by the spirit of this age. They may be leading very respectable lives, be law-abiding citizens, and in the
estimation of people, leading good lives. But if they are not living according to the Ten Commandments, the
Gospel, and the moral teaching of the Church, even in just one area that concerns serious sin, they are
probably living in the Kingdom of Darkness. The Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist, (as well as all
of the sacraments) are very special weapons that Jesus gave to his Church to overcome the Kingdom of Sin
and Darkness.
We need to use these sacraments as Christ meant them to be used and have no fear of the enemy. If one has
a heavy problem in this regard, I suggest daily Mass and Communion. [EWTN Library]
19.
4. NEW AGE SEEN PENETRATING CATHOLIC CIRCLES says Adviser to Argentine Bishops
José Baamonde established the Service for the Elucidation of Sects and New Religious Movements (SPES)
Foundation, in 1989. In a lecture on “The Permeability of New Age in Religions” at Madrid’s Autonomous
University, he recalled Pope John Paul II’s words to a group of U.S. bishops in 1993: “At times New Age ideas
make headway in preaching, catechesis, congresses and retreats, and thus succeed in influencing even
practicing Catholics, who perhaps are not aware of the incompatibility of those ideas with the faith of the
Church.”
Baamonde demonstrated the point with a survey of the SPES Foundation, which canvassed 1,098 young
people, in the fourth year of Argentine Catholic secondary schools in Buenos Aires and other cities.

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Six of the main topics of New Age were selected: UFOs and extraterrestrials; magic and
witchcraft; reincarnation; astrology; communication with the dead; and divination. The young
people were asked about their degree of belief and adherence, and about the means of access to these issues.
The result: more than 50% of those surveyed showed belief in one or more of the New Age tenets [Zenit, July
2005, ZE05071802].

THE STARS OR THE SCRIPTURES ? ASTROLOGICAL REVELATION vs. CHRISTIAN

REVELATION

Astrology lies. In Astrology, 1963, R. Davison notes that according to one survey, 75%
of US astrologers believe in reincarnation [page 12]. Astrologers call upon the theory of
reincarnation to explain why we all have different destinies. Linda Goodman believes
that astrological destinies are determined by one’s karma [Love Signs, page 12] [see
pages 18, 21, 22]. Hebrews 9:27 teaches us that there is only this present life in which
to prepare for eternity. Jesus’ death in man’s place rendered karmic incarnation as
unnecessary as it is untrue.
Astrology is charlatanry. The astrological personality traits are usually very cleverly clouded in
generalisations, and most often given in synonyms, with all the traits under all the signs guaranteed to fit
everyone. Astrologers interpret the same planetary positions in different ways,not a coherent philosophy.
Astrology is built on erroneous and imaginary concepts and its results are not validated by science, whereas all
its claims have been invalidated.
We cannot, and should not, trust astrology. Psalm 37:5 says, “Trust in the Lord, and He shall bring it to pass.”
Jesus said in Matthew 6:25 that we should “take no thought” for what might happen in the future, but to trust in
God.
Astrology is false prophecy. Astrologers have failed repeatedly to predict the future.
But, whenever the Bible predicted an event, it came to pass.
When you compare the failures of astrology to the reliability of the Bible, astrology comes out the loser.
Moses laid down a rule concerning predictions: “You may ask yourselves ‘How can we know when a message
has not been spoken by the Lord?’. If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or
come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken it presumptiously. Do not be afraid
of him” [Deut. 18:21,22]. Just one false prediction makes a false prophet. Modern astrologers are false
prophets too. They are like the Old Testament false prophets “who speak visions from their own minds, not
from the mouth of the Lord” [Jeremiah 23:16]
Astrology is anti-Christian. Since a Christian is one who believes in the inerrancy of God’s word and obeys
it, no true Christian can believe in something which God has explicitly condemned as error.
Christian writers label astrology as an ancient anthropomorphic polytheistic religion which attempts to clothe
itself in twenty-first century terminology, whereas Christianity is strictly monotheistic.
Astrology is occult. Its presuppositions are embedded in ancient planet worship, mysticism and magic.
We have seen what the Bible and Church teachings say on its occult nature [see pages 15 ff].
Astrology is idolatry. In the book of Deut 17:2-5, God demanded capital punishment, “you shall …stone him
to death” for those who would “serve other gods, or worship the sun and the moon or any of the host of the
sky against my command…” Astrology was one form of worship the deities personified by the sun, moon and
planets.
Astrology is fatalism. [see pages 4, 6] One is not in control over his life or responsible for his actions:
heavenly bodies are. Astrology sees man as the plaything of the stars which govern every facet of his life.
Sixty year old Chennai professional astrologer K. Parthasarathy hanged himself using his angavastram [sacred
thread worn by a Brahmin] on the 18th of January, 2005 because he ‘foresaw’ his death on the 21st, and
decided to end his life anyway[NIE January 19, 2005]. This is one prediction that certainly did NOT come true!

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Parthasarathy was a third generation astrologer, had been a Professor of Politics and Public
Administration and also practised numerology, extra-sensory perception and telepathy.
Astrology is spiritual slavery. Taken to its logical conclusion, astrology would completely enslave man in
every aspect of his life. It is an all-consuming worldview which would bring about alienation from God and the
complete destruction of all human and Christian values. Acts 7:42 says that when the people of God sinned by
idolatry, He “turned away and gave them over to the worship of the heavely bodies.”
The sun and the moon do govern our planet, and they must be studied; but for dividing space and time into
understandable and manageable parts, to create clocks, calendars and maps. The planets and the stars are not
gods that influence our destinies. They are creations of God for specific beneficial purposes for us.
God created human beings to rule over the earth, not to be subject to it.
20.
God did not want us to be enslaved to nature. We are made not in the image of the stars but in the image of
the God who created the stars and rules over them.
“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place” [Ps
8:4]
For the Christian, the stars’ function is to “declare the glory of God” and to “proclaim his handiwork” [Psalm
19:1]
and not to guide his destiny. It is idolatry to ascribe to the stars that which belongs to their Creator.
He chastised His people when they indulged in any form of divination. The Bible freed western civilization from
bondage to these forms of spiritual slavery.
“When we were children, we were in slavery under the elemental powers… But now that you know God, …how
is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable elemental powers? Do you wish to be enslaved by
them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years. I fear for you…[Gal4:
3, 9-11].

INDIAN ASTROLOGY- ORIGINS, PHILOSOPHIES AND PRACTICES

Stephen Quong’s article ‘Vedic Astrology, Yoga and Spirituality’ in the Winter 2001 issue of Yogalife magazine,
confirms not only that astrology is a pagan religious practice, but that is connected with the philosophy of yoga:
“In India, astrology is considered a spiritual science. The Sanskrit name for astrology.jyotisha, is made up of
two components: jyoti meaning light and ishta, knowledge or science… The study of jyotisha is an integral part
of vedic knowledge. The Brahmins, the priestly caste, studied the Vedas. After they learned one or more of the
principal Vedas, they also studied the six secondary branches of Vedic knowledge, which are called shad
vedanga. The sixth and most important of these is jyotisha. It is considered the eye of the vedas… and through
it we can have an idea of the future and the nature of cosmic and planetary influence upon a certain time and
place…The most important is the Rig Veda which mentions the sun and moon and their movement across the
twenty-eight constellations*. There are other ancient scriptures related to the study of astrology, such as
Vedanga Jyotisha and Surya Siddhanta. All the holidays and festivals in India are based upon astrology.
In ancient times astronomy and astrology were considered two branches of the same science; the same people
studied both sciences.It was the rishis and the brahmins who were the students and protectors of this
knowledge.
Vedic tradition states that this knowledge came directly from Brahma who gave it to his disciple Narada, and
Narada gave it to the seven great sages or saptarishi who passed them on.
So there is an unbroken lineage of this knowledge directly from God to the present time.

There is always some kind of spiritual initiation involved with the study of astrology.
Certain mantras are given to enhance intuition and the astrologer is encouraged or
required to live the life of a yogi, to practice pranayama and meditation, to know about

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mantras and pujas, and to have some knowledge about ayurveda and the
healing arts. Parashura, the grandson of Vashista [who was the teacher of
Rama] is credited with compiling the ancient texts on vedic astrology. His son
Vedavyas is credited with compiling the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, etc.
According to the Vedic tradition, the four goals of human existence are dharma or spiritual life purpose, artha
or wealth and prosperity, kama or pleasure, and moksha or spiritual liberation. Each of the nine** planets and
twelve zodiac signs can be associated with one of these four goals. The ancient textbooks on astrology say that
the birth chart is the map of our karmas from past lifetimes. [The author regularly uses phrases like “past lives”
and “lifetime after lifetime” underlining the link between astrology and reincarnation].The tradition was that
people would go to a sadguru for spiritual knowledge- knowledge of the Self and ways to realize the Self- and
to an astrologer for understanding their karmas and the most direct path for transcending these karmas. But
many great spiritual teachers knew astrology too, and many astrologers were knowledgeable in spiritual
philosophy.
Each of the nine planets represents a certain deity. In fact, each of the major deities in the Vedic tradition
controls one of the planets or zodiac signs, and they also control the twenty-seven important constellations*.
The worship of a specific Vedic deity can help us to overcome the negative aspects of the particular karma.

Vedic astrology has a close association with ayurveda. [For details, see my article on
AYURVEDA].
The combined study of astrology and ayurveda is called medical astrology.
In the Vedic tradition, only Brahman is real, the world is unreal, Brahman and the world are one. Ultimately,
there is no separation between the material and the spiritual world. This perception of separation instead of
unity is caused by the veiling power of maya, which we are all trying to overcome through the practice of yoga
and the study of vedanta.May the knowledge of jyotisha assist you on the path to unity through yoga and Self-
realization.
Om Namah Sivaya.” [I don’t believe that the above explanation of astrology needs any comments from me.]
*The 27 stars or star groups through which the sun, moon and planets were seen to move are called
nakshataras or constellations. Abhijit, which made up the number to 28 was far away from the others. Its exact
position varies according to different writers. When used, it is given a small portion of two adjacent
nakshataras.

21.
**The nine planets are the sun, the moon, the five known planets earlier mentioned, plus rahu and ketu, the
two nodes of the moon’s orbit, popularly known as ‘dragon’s head and tail.’ They are imaginary [not real]
entities. Rahu was the demon responsible for eclipses by swallowing up the sun or moon.
Dhuma Ketu was probably the inauspicious comet [ketu] later known by that name [see page 6, 27].
The Rig Veda contains three hymns about birds as omens [2:42, 43; 10:165]
The same Veda [10:85:13] shows that the calendar was used to fix marriage times. Astrological omens are
mentioned in the Atharva Veda [19:9:7-10]. This early period of Indian astrology was rather observational.
Several methods of determining the houses of the planets were used. One was devised by Varahamihara, 6th
century AD; the other from the 11th century, with houses usually not of equal extent, is still popular today.
The rules originally omitted rahu and ketu but later they were included, and the rules for them are not the
same in all texts. Another innovation was the use of invisible ‘subsidiary planets’ such as Gulika and
Yamaghanta, who are better known for their auspicious and inauspicious periods each day, whose positions
were calculated according to certain rules. There are several different forms of this system.
Two main schools of astrology are the Parashari [named after astrologer Parashara who predates
Varahamihara], and the Jaimini, after an astrologer of that name who lived a few centuries before Christ. The
length of life and its division into stages called dashas is an important astrological topic. The Jaimini Sutra

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mentions about twelve different kinds of dashas. In their present forms the Jaimini Sutra and the
Brihat Parashara Hora are much later works.
The two systems for birth horoscopes are very different. Janardhan Joshi [Oriental Astrology, Darwinism and
Degeneration, 1906 page 91] says that Jaimini’s conclusions are nearly opposite to those in other works.
Auspicious and inauspicious times come under the subject called muhurta which includes religious rites,
journeys, marriage, house construction, first entry into a new house, and the installation of idols.
“Jyotisha was one of the six limbs of the Vedangas (kalpa [sacrificial rituals] and nirukta [intonation methods
for mantras] etc.). Scholars refer to the use of astrology in the Indian epics: Valmiki quotes the planetary
positions of Ram’s birth naming his nakshatra and lagna, while Vyasa wrote about coming eclipses as portends
of great wars. The portends were all allegories of the theory of karma, the ultimate basis of all Indian
astrology… Kerala’s best known practitioner of Vaastu Shastra [separate article], Kanipayyoor Krishnan
Namboodiripad, feels traditional disciplines like Jyothish, from which Vaastu originated, should be taught to the
present generation. Even Ayurveda is based on astrological principles according to some Indian scholars.”
[India Today, September 17, 2001]
Aryabhatta who wrote Aryabhattiya on mathematical astronomy in 499 AD, and Bhaskaracharya are the well-
known Indian astronomers of old.
Although Hindu astrology takes account of its religious basis by recommending propitiation of the heavenly
bodies when they are inauspicious, this is not an essential part of astrology as such. Rather, it is part of the
acceptance of astrology by Hindu religion. Worship of the stars and some of the planets is as old as the Vedas.

NON-SCIENCE NONSENSE
Sunspots are known to coincide with high rainfall on earth says B.V. Raman, Astrology and Modern Science,
1958, page 64. But Varahamihara [Brihat Samhita, ed. V.S.Sastri, 1947] says just the opposite [BS 3:12-16].

The Hindu view of astrology holds that a birth horoscope shows the effect of past
karma, i.e. the effects of actions done in previous births [see pages 18, 20].
Varahamihara says, “The horoscope reveals the development of the good and bad
karma acquired in a previous birth” [Brihat Jataka 1:3, ed. V.S.Sastri, 1929]
According to Anthony Stone [A Christian Looks at Astrology, Anthony Stone 1974, page 27],
“Astrological works are considered by some to have been written by ancient sages who saw the inner reality of
things by the power of yoga, which is now lost.”

ASTROLOGY IN TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY INDIA

Our politicians, film stars, and sportspersons meeting this godman or visiting that temple makes good news,
and their dependence on astrological predictions is legendary. Delhi astrologer Ajai Bhambi, author of ‘Be Your
Own Astrologer’ has analysed the horoscopes of Vajpayee, Kapil Dev, Sachin Tendulkar, Priyanka Gandhi,
Rekha, Amitabh Bachchan, and others [India Today January 26, 2004].
There are other forms of ancient astrology practised in modern India, some of them having western or far-
eastern origins. Tarot, a western form, will be dealt with separately.

TANTRIC ASTROLOGY
The Tantras, which reject many of the values of orthodox Hinduism, reject orthodox astrology as well.
According to a Tantric manuscript, “Devi said [to Shiva], ‘Neither lunar day nor nakshatra nor the moon have
power. Give me the knowledge which ensures success in everything, O Lord’.” Shiva then expands the tantric

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system of prognostication by observing the breath, a system which has some connection with
astrological ideas…
There are other Tantric methods of giving answers to all kinds of queries, including those about lost
horoscopes.
The letters of the alphabet are given numerical values, and arithmetical operations are performed on the
numerical value of the words of the question or of the name of some object which the inquirer is asked to
choose.
In Tantra there are goddesses known as yoginis, and in Tantric astrology they indicate auspicious directions for
travelling. Tantric astrology also links up with Tantric religion in other ways such as in the use of talismans,
worn to ward off bad circumstances and to promote good ones. The Tantras prescribe the rites and rituals to
be done in preparing talismans. Some of them involve propitiation of the planets, so that the wearer will escape
their influence when it is bad. [A Christian Looks at Astrology , Anthony Stone 1974 pages 21, 22]

NADI ASTROLOGY
The nadi sastras [‘palm leaf astrology’] are believed to document the lives of every living person. Called Brighu
Samhita, they are believed to have been written down intuitively by Tamil sages Agastya and Kausika.
One source says that “they were compiled by Maharishi Bhrigu, the father of Shukracharya or the planet Venus
which is supposed to represent the beginning of all creation”, and carried on by his disciples. Again, it is said:
“Maharishi Bhrigu with Lord Ganesha compiled a database that can draw up approximately 45 million horoscope
charts.” Another story is: There was a Brahmin family well versed in the four Vedas and the Puranas that was
poor because in their devotion to Saraswati [goddess of learning], they neglected Mahalakshmi, [goddess of
wealth and good fortune]. To seek an nend to the problems of the Brahmins, Maharishi Bhrigu began
worshiping Mahalakshmi who finally appeared to him and advised him the methods of divining the past, present
and future.
“Thus started the occult practice of Vedic astrology.” Lakshmi revealed that if mastered by Brahmins it would
remove their poverty while enhancing their knowledge and would lead the masses to seek them out.
Several astrologers, including a Pandit in Delhi, claim to have parts of the Bhrigu Samhita.
The famous, [Indira Gandhi, Narasimha Rao, Shankar Dayal Sharma etc.] have always made a beeline for the
Kodihalli Mutt of Shivananda Swamy near Arsikere in Karnataka which has a collection of nadi sastras.
It may take upto five hours for you to find the palm leaf reading concerning your future. ‘Nadi’ means ‘those
who are destined to come’. Some people are asked to return at a later date or perform a puja in a specific
temple before they are permitted to see their leaf. It can tell you about your past lives and whether you will be
reborn.
Jyotisha was considered the fifth Veda [after Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva] compiled during the Treta Yuga.
[Deccan Chronicle January 23, July 30, August 6, 2005]
IT, September 17, 2001 says that a Brahmin family in Hoshiarpur, Punjab, claims to possess the Bhrigu in the
original, written in Sanskrit, “allegedly containing entire life-cycles pre-recorded on antique palm leaves.”
And, the nadi manuscripts are “scattered over various temples in South India, particularly the Vaitheeeswaran
kovil. The thumb print of the applicant is used to find his birth chart. Quite inexplicably, the applicant finds his
name and birth details which are revealed to him as a pre-written horoscope. Defies all scientific logic.”

AUM ASTROLOGY
The DC of May 25, 2005 introduces us to RKS Muthukrishnan who predicts the future “using the powerful
cosmic symbol of the Sri Chakra.” He uses “my intuitive powers to see the future through the shapes and
angles of the triangles.” He calls his method AUM [Anthro Uni Matric] Biometry in which he transforms his
experimental results along with his intuited knowledge of the energy field of an individual into a colour
vibration.
He claims to have predicted that Rajiv Gandhi would be killed and that Sonia Gandhi would not become PM.

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PYRAMID ASTROLOGY
In The Hindu of January 1, 2005, N. Ramabadhran, a hereditary astrologer also known as ‘Pyramid Badhran’,
popularises the implications of the use of pyramids in astrology and gives his forecast for the year 2005.
He is the author of astrological books, and has been awarded by the Lions Club for his ‘research’ on pyramids.
“In the pyramid, all the effects of a mantra are absorbed”, he says. “After examining the individual’s horoscope,
we perform pujas and chant mantras [over the pyramid] to ward off the evil effects of the planets.”

PRASHNA SHASTRAM
Originating in Kerala, it relies on occult disciplines and esoteric mathematical scholarship: the time and birth
date are not mandatory for prognostication. Based on the principles of sympathetic magic, it is widely used in
all major temples. Says Chennai practitioner K. Unnikrishnan, “The person who makes predictions should be
very pure.”
Prashna practitioners use cowrie shells arithmetically to foretell the future.

23.

TEA LEAF READING

Brooke Bond hired successful Bangalore fortune-teller Ms. Nawal Gani to read the lives of customers from the
dregs of tea leaves. The clients were asked to drink the tea and then blow into the cup. “I go deep into you,
through your womb, and come out when you breath into the cup,” she says. [India Today, December 8, 2003]

ASTROLOGICAL NUMEROLOGY

It tells an individual how to calculate lucky numbers from his date of birth [separate article on NUMEROLOGY].

GEMOLOGY
Astrology promotes the use of charms such as zodiac jewellery. Each house or sign has its gem stone. So
does each planet. They supposedly protect the wearer from adverse influences of the planets.
Gold and ruby are ruled by the sun, considered a benefic planet in astrology.
In Hermetical astrological medicine each of the twelve zodiacal signs had a corresponding stone and plant. Only the list of
plants has come down to us, so the stones are not known, says Anthony Stone, A Christian Looks at Astrology, page
75.
Union Minister Jagannath Mishra used to present rings with gem stones along with expert advice to his political
opponents, not with any good motive, but simply to ensure their ‘patta saaf ‘’- to see them defeated.
A jeweller in Chennai advertises in the Mylapore Talk April 3-9, 2005 for gem stones to suit your birthstar, to
influence shani, etc. Your prospects might be decided by the number of faces in your rudraksh beads !
Anisha Dutta, writing in ‘Gems of Wisdom’ [The Statesman April 29, 2002] says, “From time immemorial gems
have been used by those with vested interests to exploit people under the guise of religion…
Astrologers continue to reap a harvest by touting their ability to counter ill efects… of the planets…”
Not only are specific stones to be worn on specific fingers, but they have to be periodically changed to keep on
course with the changing positions of the heavenly forces. [separate article on HEALING WITH GEMS AND
CRYSTALS]

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FUSION ASTROLOGY
Many famous astrologers of the past are known to have been involved with witchcraft,
psychometry, numerology, crystal gazing, the use of sorcery, the Qabalah, seances, trances, mediums and
spirits.
Anything goes in the New Age experimental mix, as India Today reports [October 20, 2003]:
“The recycled menus of tarot,I-ching, the occult, palmistry, forehead reading, tantra and mantra now play
musical chairs with planetary astrology. If one method doesn’t work, people junk it to try something else.”
“This predictive pot-pourri has rapidly gained popularity over the decades. Many feel that the multiple
disciplines enhance the foretellers insight. Says Mumbai-based astroguru Bejan Daruwalla, “Few astrologers
practise pure Vedantic forms. Most use an eclectic mix.” [India Today, September 17, 2001]

ANY OLD ASTROLOGY

In his book Krishnamurti Padhdhati, K.S. Krishnamurti expounded a new system of prediction of his own, in
which the traditional nine planets each rule three of the twentyseven nakshataras, each of which is divided into
nine unequal parts ruled by the nine planets. Similarly, each astrologer tends to construct his own astrology out
of the basic entities. There is no agreed procedure for rejecting inadequate systems, but each astrologer
subjectively rejects any system which does not work for him. Consequently, the picture of astrology from its
total literature is one of inconsistency, since all systems are found in it.
This means that the modern search for a scientific and consistent astrology is mis-conceived; there are few
rules, if any, which would be universally agreed upon.

APPLIED ASTROLOGY
1. “The NIE of April 12, 2005 carried an article on Vedic astrology, “a powerful tool” for health. Its many
recommendations include chanting the Mahamrityunjaya and Gayatri mantras, “wearing the gemstone of the
ascendant Lord after the consecration and performance of rituals”, and pacifying the malefic planets by
chanting their unique mantras and wearing rudraksha beads. The mantras should be chosen at an auspicious
time, and chanted in the adequate number facing the correct direction at the same time daily. You are advised
to “converse with the planetary deity causing the problem and try to find out what karmic lesson it wants you
to learn.”
In extreme cases one may perform “havan/homas/yagyas… offerings of sacred articles to the holy fire.”
2. The Regional Forest Research Centre, Rajahmundry, has developed a garden with trees that match with the
twelve raasis and twenty-seven nakshatras of Indian astrology.
Their positioning and location have been done according to the Jyotisha and Vaastu Sastras, so that “people
could be in communion with the deities when they meditate under the trees that match their raasis…
We only want to show how people worshiped trees from time immemorial in our country.” [NIE April 5, 2005]
24.
Speaking of trees, [see page 5], S. Krishnamurthy [Mylapore Times October 2-8, 2004] “dipping into the
Hindu tradition of venerating trees, finds a connection between your star and trees, giving different trees one
of the 27 different star signs after much “solid research” on their ‘star characteristics’. “A person born under the
star Bharani is adept at calming an irate person, and his ‘star tree’ is the coolant gooseberry… There are no
authentic texts available to support my theory,” he admits. “All my data has been compiled by word of mouth
from respected living sidha yogis who still reside in the forests. So I cannot provide any scientific proofs as of
now.”
3. Of late, the sani [shani] or Saturn cult has been gaining prominence. A marbled temple on the banks of the
Gomti in Lucknow, which was till recently a tin-shed, now draws the rich and famous. The reason: “The
malefics of Saturn are increasing and people are coming here to save themselves from it.” Astrologers are
blaming Saturn for all troubles, and the people hasten to propitiate the Sani devta. The overflow Saturday rush
of devotees has caused a number of satellite Sani temples to mushroom. [DC June 2005]. An offering of a few
coins will suffice to appease the planet-god. Sani images are usually of iron, this metal being under this planet’s
rule in astrology.

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ASTROLOGY LEGITIMISED
It was at the International Astrologers’ Meet in Delhi in 1997 that the demand was first made that astrology be
made compulsory in all Indian universities [NIE September 12, 1999].
Khushwant Singh [Deccan Herald, August 20, 2000] commented on these “M.Sc. degrees for nonsense”. When
“primary education for all is as distant as the stars, for the University Grants Commission[UGC] to sanction
money for teaching astrology in colleges is truly mind-boggling. What kind of dunderheads comprise the UGC?”
he asks.
The courses were original proposed as sciences, but because of opposition from within the UGC itself they are
now Bachelors and Masters degrees in Arts. The ‘Jyotir Vigyan’ curriculum will be followed by twenty
universities.
The branches of Vedic astrology under study “include Jatakshastra [study of horoscopes to find out man’s
future], Tajikshastra [finding out the future based on the time and date of birth] and Prashanshastra [finding
out the future through a specific question]… Other topics include timing of events from Yoga.” [NIE August 6,
2001]
“Can astrology be made a course of formal study?” is a question that P.K. Doraiswamy tried to answer in The
Hindu of September 25, 2001. First, he said, astrology does not qualify as a science because it does not use the
methods of science such as repeated examination and attempted falsification. One argument to that is that
politics is not a science, yet is being taught as political science, but he said, in the case of astrology, no serious
research has been done. “Our beliefs about Indian medicine and yoga are also on a similar not-so-firm footing,
and yet these are being taught in government educational institutions” says Doraiswamy.
“Can we start teaching black magic, levitation or urine therapy simply because someone in authority thinks
these are worth being taught in a university… or because there is a long-standing belief in them?” he asks.
He questions the use of public funds for all such research and teaching. They cannot be compared to
technology forecasting and futurology “which constantly try to improve their knowledge base and repertoire of
techniques.”
One of the prophetic and courageously published articles in CHARISINDIA was ‘Astrology In Universities!’’ by
Jesuit Fr. John Mialil in its Sep.-Oct. 2001 issue. It reported on the UGC’s decision, under chairman Prof. Hari
Gautam, to introduce “the unscientific and superstitious” astrology at the graduate and postgraduate levels in
Indian universities “with the blessings of the BJP government at the centre… And generous financial assistance
is assured, obviously public funds. Another bold attempt to surreptitiously smuggle in Hindutva” [see page 7].

GOING RETRO
India Today devoted its September 17, 2001 issue to the subject ‘Astrology, Science or Sham ?’
Editor Aroon Purie does not leave his opinion in doubt when he asks, “Should the state be encouraging the
study of such a regressive subject.” The result of an extensive survey by the staff of India Today left “little
doubt in their mind that astrology with its emphasis on individual interpretation can hardly constitute a
science.”
The government faced accusations of engineering the saffronisation of education, while supporters spoke of
promoting our traditional knowledge. Purie bemoaned our condition, “Perhaps only the stars can redeem us.”
India Today reported [October 20, 2003], “According to London’s Financial Times, more than 100 scientists and
300 political and social scientists had protested by writing to the government…. Astrophysicist Jayant Narlekar,
[director of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) see page 26] said that ‘the
elevation of astrology to that of a university subject would take India back to medieval times’.”

MUMBO-JUMBO
During the second half of April 2001, a daily duel between the protagonists and the antagonists of astrology
raged in The Hindu. It started with the scientists of every major Indian scientific institutions’ demand, by a
signed statement, for the resignation of the UGC chairman. A major issue was Gautam’s statement that the late
Nobel laureate C.V. Raman had called astrology a science. Prof. S. Ramaseshan, a scientist, nephew and close
associate of Raman told The Hindu that Raman “did not believe in astrology at all and considered an irrational
subject.”

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The statement criticised the UGC move to teach “mumbo-jumbo, to use Raman’s phrase, like
Vaastu Shastra, Vedic rituals etc. as a regular course in universities to be treated on par with
other sciences.” [April 19th] 25.
Ramaseshan said that “Prof. Raman held that astrology had no rational basis. He would have been outraged to
learn” about the UGC move. As many as 38 scientists from the Raman Research Institute in Bangalore called
the proposal ‘a retrograde step’. The scientists stated that “neither astrology’s basic assumptions nor its
predictions conform to the rigorous discipline that science demands. To project the subject as vigyan [science]
is therefore misleading… It is unfortunate that the studies in this subject are sought to be linked to another
pseudo-science that goes by the name of vaastu shastra today.” [April 20th]

T. Jayaraman of the Institute of Mathematical Studies, Chennai wrote, “Scientists must have minds that are
open to new ideas. That is the sine qua non of their profession. But they must not have minds that, as the
witticism goes, are so open that their brains fall out! Astrology is very much a case in point.” [April 21st]
The repartees of Ms. Gayatri Devi Vasudev, editor of The Astrological Magazine, Bangalore, [see page 1] in
The Hindu of 20th April, 23rd April etc. are simply not worth quoting from.

Even before the government’s move, astrology was being taught “as a part of Sanskrit” in 16 universities in
India.
The Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit Vidyapeeth in Delhi ran an astrology department as part of its Sanskrit faculty.
In Banaras Hindu University’s internally funded course, graduates were conferred with the title of ‘shastri’.
The UGC plan was welcomed as they and others would now receive full membership- and public funding.
In the first year of its operation, Rs 2 crore of tax-payers money was allotted for the courses on this occult art.

“Thanks to former [BJP] HRD Minister Murli Manohar Joshi’s decision to include astrology in the university
course curriculum, the subject is finding takers.” [NIE December 31, 2004]
The UGC approved 20 universities [out of 45 that applied] to offer courses. On February 26, 2001, a new
course in Human Consciousness and Yogic Sciences for 10 universities, that includes parapsychology and the
‘seven levels of consciousness’ in its syllabus, was approved. It was accepted by, among others, Delhi’s
prestigious JNU.
Yet another graduate course, pourahitya, the Hindu priestly rituals, has been foisted on Kashmir University and
the North-East Hills University, in minority-dominated Muslim and Christian states.
The Sri Jaganath Veda Karmakanda Mahavidyalaya in Puri, Orissa, affiliated to the University Grants
Commission, offers a post-graduate diploma in astrology. One of the oldest courses is offered since 1965 in
Bhubaneshwar, but it is not ‘recognized’. In Kerala, the B.A. course at the Sanskrit College in Trivandrum is
recognized; while the Potti Sriramulu Telugu University, Hyderabad, has both diploma and post-graduate
courses in Jyotirvasthu, a combination of astrology and vastu. Bangalore city has over half a dozen institutions
that teach astrology.
The UGC’s course follows the principles based on the concept of a fixed zodiac with the earth at its centre.

INDIAN SCIENTISTS DEBUNK ASTROLOGY

Eminent astrophysicist Jayant Narlikar [page 25] called the government decision “a great leap backwards.”
Interestingly, the former UGC chairman Yash Pal calls the establishment of a department to teach astrology,
“Vedic or any other kind,… a retrogade step. There is no point in going back to the cradle. In the present day it
is ridiculous to literally think of Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, the moon and the sun as gods” [India Today Sep 17,
2001]
Rajesh Kochhar, astrophysicist and director of the National Institute of Science, Technology and Development
Studies, Delhi co-authored a book titled Astrology in India: A Perspective with astrophysicist Jayant Narlikar,
which disqualifies astrology as a science. Nuclear scientist H. Narasimhaiah debunks astrology as random
speculation: “Occasionally a prediction by an astrologer may come true. But even a clock which is not working
will show the correct time twice in a day.” N. Kumar, director of the Raman Research Institute, Bangalore says,

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“You can study astrology if it is interesting, but it is definitely not a science.” [India Today,
September 17, 2001].
Giving notice for a calling attention motion on the UGC issue in the Rajya Sabha, nuclear physicist and Member
of Parliament Dr. Raja Ramanna, former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission said that astrology and
palmistry had no foundations to be able to predict events involving human activity. [“Raja Ramanna flays UGC”,
The Hindu April 22, 2001]

In his book Priestcraft Exposed, the Indian social reformer Jotiba Phule attacked astrology which he saw had
become a tool for deceitful exploitation of the masses from birth to death by unscrupulous priests.

As Khushwant Singh said, “I know my countrymen and women.They will fall for
anything which makes nonsense.”
It is not as if mostly Indian scientists and Christians only disbelieve in astrology. In response to an India Today
[October 2, 2003] article “It’s Not in Your Stars”, three letters from lay Hindus were published in the Nov. 3
issue:
“It is sad that many take astrology seriously, believing that the positions of the planets control our lives,”
Makhija.
“It is time we hold the prophets of doom accountable for spreading false knowledge,” Sharma.
“I strongly urge leading newspapers and journals to discontinue their horoscope columns, because no two
people, even under the same zodiac sign, are similar,” Bhatia.
26.

WRONG PREDICTIONS
Prof. Afsar Abbas, a scientist at the Institute of Physics, Bhubaneshwar, writing in the NIE of September 21,
1999 reports that the prediction of astrologers that the solar eclipse of August 11 would spell doom, was
proved wrong.
Even the earlier eclipse of 1995 was predicted by famous astrologer B.V.Raman to bring catastrophe as “the
sun’s life-giving rays are blocked.”. Says Abbas, “He forgot that for any part of the earth where it is night, the
same ‘life- giving rays are blocked’ by the rest of the earth. This happening all the time.” To the same extent, a
layer of clouds has the same effect. He says that it has been estimated that ninety percent of all predictions are
wrong.
“Back in 1991,” continues Abbas, “all the astrologers got Rajiv Gandhi’s horoscope wrong. No one had predicted
his assassination… All these failures would have ensured that we… would have chucked astrology long ago.” [see
page 16]
The NIE of October 26, 1999 carried a rebuttal to the above from V.S. Kalyanraman. His arguments in favour of
astrology are of the order of those that we have discussed earlier and are not worth reproducing. His main and
oft-repeated argument is that ‘real astrology’ is based on sound principles and “must not be confused with the
money-making adventures of sooth-saying and fortune-telling” of commercial astrology.
Arati Chakraborty predicted in 1999 that the Vajpayee government would last only for two years and that the
next general elections would be held in 2001. That did not happen.
Amritlal, the Kolkata astrologer who predicted Indira’s assassination said in 1998 that Vajpayee would not be
the next prime minister and that the new government at the Centre would be a Congress-led coalition.
Vajpayee became the PM while the Congress failed to forge the predicted alliance.
P. Khurrana, renowned Chandigarh astrologer said that the next prime minister in 1998 would be a Leo whose
name would begin with M or T. He also said that Vajpayee had no chance. He was dead wrong.

A CONFESSION : LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK

Bejan Daruwalla, himself an eminent Indian astrologer, in a Dec. 25, 1983 article “Astrology Is For Asses”
“laughs at the gullible fools who succumb to the stars” as says the blurb in the defunct Illustrated Weekly of
India.

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“Astrologers do make asses out of well-heeled clients. And, they do lead one up the garden path.
Nice and easy. Tall claims, big predictions. Nothing ever happens. Torture by hope,” he says. “In
the interpretation of the chart,
…the unknown factor, intuition, which I call ‘Ganesha’s Grace’ comes into play in a mighty big way… The smite
of Saturn, the dreaded ‘sade-saathi’ a period of roughly seven and a half years everyone of us has to go
through, has been a familiar ploy of astrolgers for shanti or appeasement of Saturn. This may or may not work
depending on the need, the efficacy of the mantras and religious rites… but it does lead to the lining of the
astrologer’s pockets for sure. Next only to Saturn are the baleful ones, Mars, Rahu and Ketu. They are also
money spinners for the astrologer.” Daruwalla writes that people want to hear only good things about their
future, and that the astrologers are there to serve them. And if something bad happens when something good
is forecast, then the astrologer reminds the individual that if he had not done that shanti, he might have been
totally ruined! Whatever astrologers say or do, “Nobody raises an eyebrow. My own family seeks my blessings,”
he arrogantly says.
This Bejan Daruwalla is the same person who is described in ‘It’s Not In your Stars’, India Today, October 20,
2003, as “among [the] world’s top 1,000 astrologers” and notes his failed prediction “After June 24, 2003, all
terrorist activities will stop. Kashmir issue will be resolved by 2003 in a tripartite manner.”
For predictions he uses the sun-sign system which was discredited by the ‘biggest study ever’ [see page 12].

INDIAN ASTROLOGICAL TID-BITS

1. We all know about the enmity between Jayendra Saraswathi, the Kanchi acharya and Madhavan. The
February 23, 2005 NIE says that there were wrangles between the two since the seer is a Saivite, and
Madhavan, a Vaishnavite. According to the Public Prosecutor’s argument, the acharya’s Lord Siva was remedied
[neutralised] by Madhavan’s Lord Perumal. Hence the seer attacked Madhavan. The story actually goes back to
the vedic lore: “Once upon a time Lord Siva, afflicted by Saturn, was roaming without knowing what to do. He
came to the Perumal temple [and…] prayed that he be got rid of Saturn, and Perumal obliged.” This story
delighted the Vaishnavites but offended the Saivites. The dispute between the two men developed from this
background.
2. As I write [2nd August], the heavens have opened up over Maharashtra, and Olga Tellis for the Deccan
Chronicle [DC] reports “astro-consultant” Rasesh Shah in “Astrologer says rain result of bad stars”: The reason
for the deluge is that “Saturn and the Sun are both transiting Cancer” which is a ‘watersign’, and occupy the
same house. A couple of weeks earlier, the New Indian Express reported, “SMS astrology predicts disastrous
future.” Airtel had sent an SMS to its subscribers that, according to its astrologer, one Banuji, due to the transit
of Mars, “Aries benefits but world affairs suffer.” He predicted wars at national and international level, major
fires and natural calamities. This caused “panic and gloom among a section of Chennaiites.”
3. The Supreme Court has ruled that the Indian government will not accept a horoscope as proof of a person’s
date of birth. [NIE March 16, 2005]
27.

ASTROLOGY-RELATED FESTIVALS
AADI In Tamil Nadu, marriages during the month of aadi [mid-july to mid-August] are superstitiously avoided,
even by Christians, as it is an ‘inauspicious’ period for any new venture. Despite every precaution, marriages
fail, and tragedies occur, sometimes shortly after the wedding ceremony, as one has read in the newspapers.
Our younger son is getting married on the 6th of August, and this has prompted a lot of curiosity among our
Catholic friends. Dr. Felix Moses of Madras Christian College speculates that a superitious belief about the
inauspiciousness of the period was spread to ensure that childbirth would not occur during the peak summer
months of April to June to ensure the health and safety of both mother and newborn child. Subsequently, even
other child-bearing mothers were separated from their husbands and sent to their parental home during the
month of aadi. But Dr. Arasu of Madras University adds, “The concept of what is inauspicious follows the
Sanskritisation of folk religions and worship of the big deities.” [NIE July 12, 2005]. During this period shops
offer huge discount bargains. Aadi Perruku, the 18th day of aadi month as a unique festival in the Cauvery
basin of Tanjore and Trichy districts. When the water levels rise, it is a practice to throw in fruit, saffron cloths

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etc. “in the belief that these rivers are… female deities… It is a significant occasion to offer
worship to Mother Cauvery” [NIE January 11/August 3, 2005].

AKSHAYA TRITIYA The 11th of May of this year was an auspicious day for mass child marriages, griha
pravesh for constructions, and shubh arambh of any new venture. Called Akha Teej in the North and
Akshaya Tritiya in the South, it is believed to be a lucky day to buy gold. “It falls on the third day [tritiya] of
the bright half of the month Vishaka. The sun and the moon are believed, astrologically, to be at their most
exalted brightness that day. It is also the birthday of Mahavishnu’s sixth avatar, Parashurama.
Our ancestors passed on the belief that with such good vibrations in the universe, any project or relationship
begun that day would be long lasting. Akshaya means ‘eternal’. But it’s praying to Mahalakshmi this day and
donating to charity that’s considered most auspicious for individuals and companies.[NIE May 9, 2005]
THAI This auspicious time falls in the month of January. The important festivals are Pongal, the festival of the
harvest here in Tamil Nadu, called Sankranti in other States and in the North, and Bhogi and Mattu [= cow]
Pongal which are celebrated on the days preceding and succeeding Pongal. Mattu Pongal is ccelebrated as
Kanum Pongal when women pray for the welfare of their brothers. In Punjab the festival is called Lohri.
“The Sun God is worshiped during this festival on the second day… It is the time when people thank God, earth
and their cattle for the wonderful harvest… The special rice dish or Pongal [literally ‘boiling over’]… is offered to
the Sun God and taken as prasad. When the rice is bolied, and when the water comes up in the clay pot and
spills down, there is a strong belief associated with it which represents the good and bad omen in the house.
The third day is devoted to worship of cattle.” [NIE January 11, 2005]
Another article in the same issue gives this information: Sankranti is an opportunity to pay homage to the
forces of nature that nurture us. It marks the beginning of the sun’s journey to the northern hemisphere, and is
the only festival that follows a solar calendar & not a lunar one. The festival signals the onset of Uttarayana
Punyakulam, an auspicious time in which people worship the sun and take holy dips in the Ganga to purify
oneself of one’s sins. For us, Nature is not just a mother goddess… it is also a priestess who with her holy
touch cleanses our spirits. It is on this day that thousands head for the Sangam at Prayagraj, the confluence of
the Ganga, Jamuna and the mythical Saraswathi, and on which the Great Kumbh Mela is held every twelve
years at Prayagraj.
According to the Mahabharata, Bhishma lay on a bed of arrows awaiting the dawn of this day to give up his last
breath so that he could win freedom from the cycle of birth and death.
All these feasts are related to the worship of the forces of nature, and of the heavenly bodies, as in astrology.

A TESTIMONY [PUBLISHED BY THE VINCENTIAN ASHRAM, AMBATTUR, CHENNAI]

My name is George (formerly Mohan Prasad). Born and bred in a Nair family, I was a well-known astrologer,
witch-doctor, a life-member of the Indian Council of Astrological Sciences, and one who hated the Christian
religion with all his heart.
My life was filled with happiness! Or so I thought, till August 1994 when I was afflicted by a strange illness. It
was as if a dark cloud overshadowed my life. A strange malady which showed no symptoms whatsoever,
incapacitated me to such an extent that I could not walk any more. Though a witch-doctor by profession, I
could not diagnose my illness or prescribe a remedy. I resorted to witchcraft four times with no effect.
Ayurvedic, allopathic and unani treatment only prompted the doctors to declare I had no disease at all. But I
was totally helpless, bed-ridden, unable even to stand without others help. The whole body racked with pain.
When my family, who depended on me, were grief – stricken, I lost my mental balance.
A Christian friend, who visited me, advised me to go to the neighboring St. Anthony’s Church and pray. I went,
supported by my wife. As I was praying, I heard a voice saying, “Weren’t you told to go for prayer?”
At once I remembered a friend’s suggestion made long ago to go to Divine Retreat Centre, Muringoor.
In November ‘94, I participated in a retreat at Divine Retreat Centre. All the pain in my body disappeared. 28.
But I was not ready to acknowledge and testify that Jesus was the healer. Thinking that Jesus was one of the
gods, I thanked him as well as the others. But I realized that deep within me radical changes were taking place.
I returned to my home in Madras. The puja room, in which the Hindu deities stood in a row, made me restless.
I began removing the idols one by one. In their stead I installed Jesus Christ in my heart and in my home.
After a fierce, terrific battle, my mind was in peace. On that day, my life found new meaning. Hope budded
afresh in my family. A new chapter opened for me with the advent of Jesus Christ in my life and in my family.

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Though I took so long to come to know Jesus as the only Saviour and Lord, today we experience
true Christian joy. Today it is Jesus and the Bible which control and direct all my activities.
From Deuteronomy 4:19; 18:10-13 and Leviticus 19:31;20:27, I understood that witchcraft and astrology were
wrong. I made a bonfire of all my books on these subjects. Today, I’m actively engaged in the ministry of the
word in the Vincentian Ashram in Ambattur, Chennai. The tongue that revelled in the recital of mantras and
sharnam calls, is now constantly praising and singing “Halleluia” with new vigour and enthusiasm.

WESTERN ASTROLOGICAL TID-BITS

1. The first horoscope column appeared in the London Sunday Express in 1930, according to the Los Angeles
Times, July 5, 1985 page 1.
2. A CNN report cited astrologers who claim that “at least 300 of the Fortune 500 companies use astrologers in
one way or another” Cult Watch, John Ankerberg and John Weldon 1991 page 211.
3. The Economic Times [7th October 2004] reported the death of Joyce Jillson who “was consulted for the best
opening days” of Hollywood movies, and also “divined the stars on behalf of the Ronald Reagan
administration.”
Astrology has had great influence on President Reagan’s government as is seen in former Chief of Staff Donald
Regan’s For the Record: From Wall Street to Washington, 1988 and astrologer Joan Quigley’s What does Joan
Say?: My Seven Years as White House Astrologer to Nancy and Ronald Reagan. According to Regan’s text For
the Record, page 3, the influence of astrology at the White House extended to “every major move and
decision.”
4. Marina Bay, a Russian astrologer filed a $300 million lawsuit against the NASA, claiming compensation from
the US space agency for bombarding the comet Tempel 1 with a probe, as it “will upset her horoscopes and
violates her spiritual rights.” She is convinced that she has suffered a “moral trauma” because “any variation in
the orbit or the composition of the planet will affect her own fate.” [DC 5/7, NIE 6/7/2005]

ARGUMENTS FOR ASTROLOGY, AND HANDY REPLIES

1. Astrology has great antiquity and durability. SO HAS MURDER
2. Astrology is found in many cultures. SO IS CANNIBALISM
3. Many great scholars have believed in it. OTHERS HAVE NOT
4. Astrology is scientific and has been proved by research. NOT TRUE
5. Astrology is not a science but an art/philosophy. NOT A REASON FOR BELIEF
6. Extraterrestrial influences do exist. TRUE. BUT NONE ARE RELEVANT TO ASTROLOGY
7. Non-astrologers are not qualified to pass judgment on astrology. SO WHO JUDGES MURDER ?
8. Astrology works. SO DOES A BOMB

CHRISTIANS’ FINAL WORDS

Anthony Stone [op. cit. page 100] concludes that “astrology is illegitimate for Christians [because]”:
1. It does not provide any key to the understanding of the Bible
2. It is not found among the methods of guidance provided by the Lord
3. It is a method of guidance forbidden by the Bible
4. It cannot show the Christian the Lord’s will
5. ANY USE OF ASTROLOGY LAYS ONE OPEN TO THE POSSIBILITY OF DEMONIC INFLUENCE
Ankerberg and Weldon [op. cit. page 225] conclude that “astrology is condemned in the Bible because”:
1. It is futile and worthless : it has no power to save men from their sins
2. It is a form of idolatry [exchanging the heavens for God] : it robs God of the glory due to him
3. It constitutes involvement with occult powers : IT OPENS MEN TO DEMONIC DECEPTION

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END NOTES
1. We have read the excerpts from CHARISINDIA’s excellent article against
astrology. This and other charismatic magazines have begun to carry articles exposing
the evils and errors of the New Age in general, as well as some of its specific practices
like Yoga, Pranic Healing, Vipassana, the Martial Arts etc. The Charisindia article was
a rare exception. It specifically mentioned Hindutva and the Bharatiya Janata Party in
unfavourable terms.
That required spiritual and moral courage. The BJP’s saffron brigade and its Hindutva policy, which presume to
represent the majority community, are powerful forces to contend with.
29.
There is also the delicate position of the Indian Chuch to appreciate. It has to be fearless in defending Biblical teaching
while at the same time keeping in mind the religious sentiments of those of other faiths. Its pronouncements must be
‘politically correct’. [A separate article, that will compare the Indian Bishops’ protests to the government on important
issues, as against those of Bishops of other countries, is under preparation.] Still, it must not be seen as being on the
backfoot or apologetic or reticent when it comes to identifying those elements of other religions that, if practised by
Christians, would endanger their eternal salvation.
And, it is the charismatic publications, [of which there are several in India, praise the Lord for that], that should be
competing with one another, not simply to provide faith-building or Christian art-of-living write-ups [of which there are
plenty in the non-charismatic magazines], but also to pursue a prophetic ministry, prophetic not in the sense of prediction,
but a fearless proclamation of truth, even if there may be a price to pay for it. Haven’t we heard that the blood of the
martyrs is the seed of the Church? Or is it more convenient, and safe, to forget it?
Let me be more clear. Sri Lanka is a nation with a Buddhist majority and Christians there are beginning to find life difficult.
Now, if I wrote an article on, say Zen, or Vipassana, which are meditations that are Buddhist in nature, and if I insisted that
they are occult, and if they were published, most Buddhists would not simply disagree with me, but would protest, many
vociferously. No matter how ‘charismatic’ a Christian magazine, its editorial staff would have to draw on its deepest spiritual
resources to agree to the publication of such an article.
In the Indian context, a parallel could be drawn with an article on Yoga. Writing on astrology and writing on yoga are two
different things. Astrology is largely regarded as a superstitious practice, not one with any overt religious implications,
despite its obvious connections with Hindu deities and Vedic lore. Many devout Hindus who worship a personal deity are
themselves opponents of the practice mainly because it has been deemed both unscientific as well as superstitious. But the
same Hindus might not exhibit the same toleration of a criticism of yoga labelling it as an occult practice as far as Christians
are concerned. As Rabi Maharaj, pujari-turned-preacher and author of ‘Death Of A Guru’ said “Yoga is Hinduism and
Hinduism is yoga”.
So, my argument is, for a charismatic or any Catholic periodical to publish an article on yoga, calling a spade a spade, would
require one to dig much deeper.
Yes, I could turn out an essay on yoga, [or other similar subjects], that would manage to explain it to Christians without
explicitly condemning it as the occult practice that it is, without ruffling too many clerical and charismatic feathers, without
indicating the yogic trojan horses in the Church [both organizations, as well as individuals] that a few of the Bishops or
charismatic leaders are either supporting or steadfastly turning a blind eye to [but that will be the focus of another article].
Or I could give the picture as it is. How many Bishops or leaders in the Renewal would genuinely welcome such criticism for
publication ? Certain recent developments have me concerned that a few good people, who should be more supportive of
this ministry than they were earlier, have instead apparently distanced themselves from it because of these very criticisms.
It is time that charismatic publications fulfilled the role in these days that the prophets did in the Old Testament times,
warning the people of God in the most EXPLICIT terms, to turn away from the worship of the false gods.
In the New Testament Church, Christians were warned of those persons in their midst who were a danger to their faith, by
naming them. May such prophetic voices be raised in the Indian Church today. And, may there be more articles, like the
one in Charisindia by Fr. John Mialil [pages 7, 25] on astrology, accepted for publication.

2. We have seen that in astrology there is a popular fatalism [pages 4, 6, 20] which ascribes all the circumstances of life
to an unchangeable fate, and some people believe that astrology reveals this fate. If it is objected that this belief is

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inconsistent with prayer and religious propitiation [shanti] aimed at modifying the circumstances, it is
counter-argued that one’s fate may force one to pray or perform ‘shanti’ [as in Krishnamurti Padhdati, K. S.
Krishnamurti page 28]. However, free-will, which most people believe they have and is part of the Christian view of man, is
incompatible with a completely rigid determinism. Additionaly, such determinism removes our responsibility for our actions.
It might also be argued against astrology that free-will and responsibility are destroyed by the mere existence of fore-
knowledge. For, if the future can be known, it is determined. This objection ought not to be held by Christians
however,since the Bible shows God with fore-knowledge and yet presents man as free and responsible for his actions
[Isaiah 46:9f, Acts 2:23, Romans 1:18].

3. Even though the former UGC chairman condemned the introduction of astrology in universities as a retrograde step, he
was willing to accept its proliferation as a “harmless pastime”, which sadly, it is not. It would not be easy for him, or for any
of the other scientists who voiced their protests against the decision of the UGC, to understand astrology the way a
Christian sees it, or for a Christian to convince them, because of the different worldviews.
Again, because astrologers and those who consult them are attracted to the underlying spiritual beliefs of astrology,
scientific arguments against astrology are futile. Like New Age, astrology is a religion, not a science.
“Debates and verbal criticisms of astrology will not convince them, because the battle is spiritual. Attacks usually serve to
confirm to astrologers that others cannot understand the esoteric importance and meaning of the art due to ignorance.
Astrologers believe higher spiritual laws explain the success and value of astrology.
Astrologers, like the followers of the New Age, base truth primarily on experience. Having witnessed astrological charts
provide some accurate information, astrologers and their clients are convinced that the chart is working based on spiritual
and mystical universal laws. The problem is that they do not understand these “laws” are operating on occult supernatural
power. Despite this deception there is often hidden frustration in the fact that constant chart readings and insights usually
do not yield more than a temporary improvement or respite. Other problems replace earlier personal triumphs,” says Marcia
Montenegro. Astrologer-turned-Christian Charles Strohmer confirms this in his book What Your Horoscope Doesn’t Tell You,
1988.

The incessant emphasis on self becomes empty. The quest for self-fulfillment and spiritual satisfaction only leads to a
constant searching, and a thirst that can only be quenched by the living water of Jesus Christ (John 4:14).
30.
[The above article was abridged and serialised in “Streams of Living Water”, the publication of the Calcuttta
Catholic Charismatic Renewal, issues of Oct-Nov. 2005, Dec-Jan 2006, Feb-Mar 2006]

A TESTIMONY
FROM ASTROLOGY TO GOD’S LIGHT Homily by Fr Tommy Lane, Ireland. frtommylane.com
One person who experienced the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of Jesus coming to her in a profound way that totally
changed her life was Sr Emmanuel in Medjugorje. She grew up in a good Catholic family but as a teenager
while attending a boarding school in Paris she began mixing with girls who were using spirit boards and ouija
boards. They did it for hours every week. It was a fascination for them. At this time Emmanuel began to lose
her sleep and could not sleep properly at night any more. She used the boards with her companions for two
years until she left boarding school. Sometime afterwards she went to India setting up some business between
India and Paris. She was asked to go to an astrologer to see if the business plans were good. He interpreted
everything in her life as if it were all controlled by the movement of the planets. She said the astrologer sowed
seeds of despair in her heart because he implied everything in her life was written in the sky instead of being a
gift from God.
She said that interpretation of her life cut her off from the love and care and tenderness of God.
She said she couldn't care less what way the planets moved and she felt like an orphan.
In the months after that she experienced things she had never before experienced; nightmares, words of
hatred against her family and friends, she wasn't attracted by food any more, she was tortured more and more
by anxiety. She lost the desire to continue living. Her sister came to her and said that she had been to a
Catholic prayer group in Paris and that everything in the Acts of the Apostles is real, the miracles and the
coming of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Holy Spirit and that it happens now also. The next day was
Pentecost. Emmanuel went to the prayer group and noticed that the young people there were so full of joy
and the Holy Spirit. She said there was something heavenly about them but as she sat beside them she felt like
hell beside heaven. She felt imprisoned. She remembered a prayer she had said a long time ago when she
was young; she had prayed that here on earth she would meet people like those in the Acts of the Apostles.

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She said if she met people like them she would go with them and give herself to God 100%. But
now that she met them she felt it was too late.
During the prayer meeting a woman from the Pentecostal church spoke under the influence of the Holy Spirit
and said there was a woman present who going to death because a long time ago the devil took hold of her
when she began to use ouija boards and divination and asked her to go to the leaders and ask for prayer since
God had the power to free her from Satan. Emmanuel went to them for prayer and the woman said to her
that Jesus through his cross and resurrection has the power to heal her and make her joyful and happy and
peaceful.
It was the first time she had heard someone say that Jesus could touch her heart now. They prayed powerful
prayers of liberation over her invoking the name of Jesus and she felt her
anxiety and torture and despair going. She felt like rivers of cleansing water going through her.
In this she experienced her first deep encounter with the living Jesus.
She said she was doing her will instead of God's will which is why Satan acted with such power in her life.
Then she gave her life to God 100% and that was her first commitment to Jesus…
I found the information about Sr Emmanuel in an interview she gave which has been recorded on a cassette
tape entitled From Astrology to God's Light. I recommend to you the beautiful rosary meditations by Sr
Emmanuel which I filmed and have reproduced for you in video in my page on the rosary.

ADDITIONAL :
CHRISTIANS WRITE:
1. HERBALISM. MEDICINE OR MYSTICISM? By Doug Ecklund R.Ph. Douge93@cs.com .
Source: http://logosresourcepages.org/herbalism.htm EXTRACT:
… What is the origin of [the] mystical Yin and Yang?
It can be found in the philosophy of Feng Shui, which is “the culmination of China’s faith in Taoism, one of
China’s oldest religions; of China’s faith in the science of astronomy; and of China’s faith in superstitions, in
astrology, shamanism, and fortunetelling…
…It is evident, that inherent in herbalism, is the danger of indoctrination and subsequent entanglement and
commitment to witchcraft. Herbalism can be a precursor to involvement in astrology as well. Healing Herbs
and Health Foods of the Zodiac, by Ada Muir, “unites two of earth’s oldest traditions, herb lore and astrology, in
their modern incarnation. Herbal preparations are the oldest medicines in any culture, astrology is our oldest
system of understanding and organizing our personal and social world.”(36) Astrology is incorporated in the
Chinese five elements of healing, by virtue of planet designations in relation to human physiology; and
planetary “rulers” are ascribed to herbs in the book, Magical Herbalism, as well.
(36) Healing Herbs and Health Foods of the Zodiac by Ada Muir 1995 Llewellyn Publications St Paul, Mn.
31.
2. HSI Issue #66 April, 10, 2005 Holy Spirit Interactive: New Age #6
Astrology: What It Really Is by Marcia Montenegro
Astrology is more than the horoscope columns in the newspapers and in magazines. Astrology is an occult
practice, rooted in ancient Babylon. It originated, historians believe, when the ancient Chaldeans observed the
orderly movement of the planets and assigned them godlike character and powers. The planets eventually were
worshipped as gods. Each planet came to be the ruler of certain areas of life. The astrologers, who advised
kings and rulers, interpreted the pattern of planets as omens or signs of what was to come.
History
There is no clear evidence of how astrology began, but most historians believe that the Chaldeans were the
first to develop it. Speculation is that these early peoples noticed the rhythmic movement of certain celestial
bodies - the planets - in contrast to the fixity of the more distant stars.
This movement seemed purposeful, and therefore the planets were ascribed powers and divinity. they were
seen as gods or as the homes of gods. Observing the planets' positions, as well as those of the sun and moon,
at certain times and connected to events on earth confirmed the belief that the positions and events were
cause and effect. Towers called ziggurats were built as observation and possibly worship platforms.

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The planets were given names and personalities and said to "rule" certain constellations. The
quick - moving Mercury (known by another name) was considered a sly trickster and messenger.
Jupiter, known as Marduk, was seen as the most powerful. As time passed, the associations between planets
and constellations became stronger. This continues today with Mars being considered the ruler of Aries,
Mercury the ruler of Gemini, the Sun the ruler of Leo, etc.
Eventually astrology spread to other areas of the world, developing differently in the East. After first resisting
astrology, Greece later absorbed it. Because of the Greek emphasis on individuality, astrology was personalized
for the first time as a tool for the people other than the kings and rulers.
The word "horoscope" comes from the Greek "hora" for hour, and " skopos" for watcher, meaning literally a
"watcher of the hour". A chart of the planetary position at birth purported to reveal the person's destiny.
The Romans later adopted Greek astrology, giving the planets the Roman names by which we know them
today.
The Chart
There are three main components of the chart: the planets (and the sun and moon), the zodiac signs and the
Twelve houses. The chart contains the 360 degrees of all 12 zodiac signs (each one being 30 degrees), and the
planets are placed around the chart according to the degree they are in at birth.
One's sun could be at 19 degrees of Virgo, the moon at 24 degrees of Pisces, Venus at 6 degrees of Leo, etc.
The chart is calculated with mathematical formulas based on local birth time and latitude and longitude of the
birthplace.
The zodiac signs are not the actual constellations, but rather a fixed zodiac belt projected around the earth
against which the planets are moving as seen from the earth.
The planets represent people and aspects of the emotional, mental or spiritual self. The zodiac signs describe
the way in which the planets are limited or expanded. The houses represent various areas such as self, home,
marriage, career, etc. Thus, the planets are "who" or "what", the zodiac signs are "how" and the houses are
"where".
Additionally, the angles (number of degrees between the planets) must be considered.
Ninety degrees, a square, is considered difficult or challenging; 60 degrees, a sextile, is interpreted as
harmonious. There are several types of angles.
Present and future influences are read by comparing the present movement of planets to the birth chart, a
method called "transits". Another method, the progressed chart, is calculated with each day after birth equaling
a year in real life. This process is called "updating a chart".
Three types of astrological charting include the Personal Chart for an individual; Mundane astrology for an
event, public figure, country or city; and Horary astrology formulated to answer specific questions such as,
"Should I quit my job?" or " Will John propose?", based on the time the question is asked.
Although based on similar principles, the methods of interpretation for these types of charts are somewhat
different.
Traditional Astrology
Astrology was fatalistic until the middle of the 20th century. The chart delineated a personality and course
already ordained by the planetary influences. Aspects of the chart were seen as either beneficial or adverse.
Until the discoveries of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto (1781,1846 and 1930 respectively), interpretations were
restricted to the inner planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, in addition to the sun and the moon,
often known as the two "lights". The planets symbolized very specific persons or things in the person's life, and
the emphasis was on what would likely happen in the future.
32.
A major spiritual influence on traditional astrology which continues to shape astrology today was Theosophy, a
belief system with origins in Hinduism founded in the 1800's by the occult seer, Madame Helena Blavarsky.
Alice Bailey (1880 - 1949), a follower of Theosophy, wrote Esoteric Astrology which added in Bailey's own
channelled information trom her spirit guide, D.K.
These spiritual ideas promoted Reincarnation, the belief that one returns after death many times in order to
evolve; a spiritual hierarchy of Ascended Masters who guide those on earth to higher spiritual understanding;
and Pantheism, the belief that god is all and all is god. Thus, everyone has an inherent divine nature and is
evolving toward godhood.

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Many of these ideas were developed for chart interpretation by prominent astrologer Isabel
Hickey (who died in the 1960's). She placed an emphasis on reading one's karmic lesson (lessons
from previous lives) in the chart, and on spiritual interpretations.
These spiritual ideas were the forerunners of today's New Age Movement.
Contemporary Astrology
The major influence on the practice of astrology today, aside from New Age spirituality, is humanistic and
transpersonal psychology. Humanistic views centered the chart in the person as the master of his\her fate; the
chart became a set of possibilities and choices for the self - aware.
The psychological approach was first popularized by Alan Leo (1860 - 1917), a member of the Theosophical
Society.
Transpersonal Psychology, a legacy of Carl Jung and others, shaped the chart into a tool for understanding the
self as part of the whole, and how the self connects to the collective unconscious, believed to be the common
unconscious shared by all humanity. The three outer planets, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, became the collective
planet since they move so slowly rough the chart. Thus, these three planets came to symbolize generational
influences, as well as unconscious influences on the inner personal planets. Both humanistic and transpersonal
astrology were especially pioneered by one of the most influential astrologers of the 20th century, Dane
Rudhyar (1895 - 1985).
In contemporary astrology, the outer planets are seen as powerful and beyond one's control. Yet astrologers
believe that one can still choose how to use that particular force, or how to reap growth through an
uncontrolled event. Astrologers also believe that sometimes the planetary lesson is to let go of control and
merge with the particular energy of that planet (such as learning to be flexible, different or independent with
Uranus, a planet of unexpected events and change).
Psychology smashed the rigidity and fatalism of earlier traditional astrology. Interpretations are more flexible,
and chart symbols are viewed as having both negative and positive possibilities, rather than neither beneficial
or adverse. Therefore, it is inaccurate to believe that astrologers think they are ruled by the planets.
Astrologers see the chart as a blueprint for the self and soul, a pattern that can be rearranged in various ways
by the self - aware individual.
There is also belief in the concept of synchronicity, the idea that two events occurring simultaneously but
seemingly unrelated have a spiritual symbol for that person.
This view is highly popular in contemporary astrology and in the New Age Movement.
The core goal is to evolve through self - awareness. Astrology is a tool to "know thyself" as well as a tool of
divination. Modern astrology eschews readings of a fixed future and prefers to call interpretations of the future
"forecasting" or "coming trends",building on the belief that one has choices. Many astrologers are also
practicing psychologists.
Astronomy vs Astrology
Early study of the planets and stars involved both scientific observation and measurements as well as divination
based on esoteric interprepations. As science developed, astronomy and astrology grew more separate,
especially during the Age of Reason in the 18th century.
Most astrology today is geocentric, plotting the planets' positions as though they and the sun move around the
earth. Due to the precision of the equinox, the zodiac periods have shifted backwards and no longer correspond
to the previous 12 periods of time. The dates for the zodiac signs in the horoscope columns are no longer
accurate.
Astrology and the Occult
Although heavily laden with psychological terminologgy, astrology is firmly planted in the occult. It is a form of
divination, the use of ungodly supernatural forces or the reading of omens for "hidden" information.
The occult always seeks hidden meaning below the surface or in patterns that have no apparent meaning
beyond the obvious. Astrological symbols are woven into other occultic arts such as tarot cards, palmistry,
numerology, the use of sorcery and the Qabalah.
Many astrologers are involved in these or other occultic practices in addition to their astrological work.
33.

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Practicing astrology enhances powers, often brings on supernatural experiences to the reader
and the client, and increases interest in the occult. Astrology, although scientifically faulty and
often incorrect, seems to work often enough to impress both the astrologer and the client.
Astrology likes to pass itself off as a scientific and psychological tool, ignoring its roots in pagan worship of the
stars and in occultism.
Biblical Response
The Bible condemns divination and worship of the heavens, both of which astrology is a part.
Occult divination and reading omens is condemned in Deut. 18:9 - 12 and Daniel 5:7a. The Hebrew words
"ashshaph" and "gzar" used in these and other Old Testament passages translate as "conjuror", "enchanter",
"soothsayer" and "astrologer". Often the translation into English as "conjuror" or "soothsayer" include those
who practised astrology.
Astrology originated in worship of the stars and heavens which is condemned in Deut. 4:19, 17:3 and Acts
7:42.
Seeking guidance from astrology or any type of divination can replace seeking God for advice and is
condemned in Daniel 2:27 - 28 and Isaiah 47:13. Astrology is explicitly condemned in the latter passage.
Astrology is not 100% accurate and is therefore not of God as described in Deut.18:21 - 22.
Because astrologers and those who consult them are attracted to the underlying spiritual beliefs of astrology,
scientific arguments against astrology are futile. Debates and verbal criticisms of astrology will not convince,
because the battle is spiritual. Attacks usually serve to confirm to astrologers that others cannot understand the
esoteric importance and meaning of the art due to ignorance. Astrologers believe higher spiritual laws explain
the success and value of astrology.
Astrologers, like the followers of the New Age, base truth primarily on experience. Having witnessed
astrological charts provide some accurate information, astrologers and their clients are convinced the chart is
working based on spiritual and mystical universal laws.
The problem is that they do not understand these "laws" are operating on demonic supernatural power.
Despite this deception, there is often hidden frustration in the fact that constant chart readings and insights
usually do not yield more than a temporary improvement or respite. Other problems replace earlier personal
triumphs.
The incessant emphasis on self becomes empty. The quest for self-fulfillment and spiritual satisfaction only
leads to a constant searching, and a thirst that can only be quenched by the living water of Jesus Christ (John
4:14).

3. HSI Issue #107 March 26, 2006 Holy Spirit Interactive: New Age NEW #15
Horoscopes:To Read or Not to Read by Marcia Montenegro
Marcia Montenegro was a former professional licensed astrologer who practiced astrology for over 8 years.
She was also President of the Metropolitan Astrological Society, Chairperson of the Atlanta Board of Astrology
Examiners and a teacher of astrology for over 5 years.
Have you ever glanced over at the horoscope column in a newspaper or magazine just for "fun" or out of
curiosity?
Do you even deliberately look for it each day? As you do so, maybe you say things like, "I don't take this
seriously," "it's just like reading the funnies," "I know a lot of people who do this," or perhaps "I don't really
believe in astrology so it's okay." Or maybe you are really looking for guidance.
The word "horoscope," which comes from the Greek and means, "watcher of the hour," was first coined in an
ancient, declining Greece that began to tolerate astrology after long resisting it. Horoscopes, as innocuous as
they may appear, are not just products of the imagination. The authors of these columns are usually
astrologers; some are psychics. Astrologers have purposely studied what they believe to be the meanings of
the planets, the zodiac signs, and other astrological data. Along with this information, they consider the present
positions of planets (and the sun and moon), and how they interact with the sun signs of Aries, Taurus, Gemini,
etc., in order to give horoscope advice.
Since the moon changes signs every 2.5 days, its position is a key element in the forecasting.

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Astrological philosophy is based on the occult worldview that asserts "as above, so below."
According to this view, everything in the universe is one and is connected; therefore, the patterns
of the planets reflect our lives on earth.
As a former astrologer, I can tell you that although many astrologers scorn horoscope columns as "pop"
astrology of little value, the astrological worldview is essential even to the writing of a horoscope. When you
read such a column, you are in a subtle way either accepting that worldview or assigning some kind of value to
it.
The belief that the patterns and movements of the planets, sun and moon reflect our lives is contradictory to
the view of a living, omniscient God who created the heavenly bodies to reflect and proclaim His glory, not
ours.

34.
Astrology also is often intertwined with the teaching that since we are all connected to the universe by a force
or energy (which is sometimes considered to be divine or to be God), then everything in the universe is one
and therefore, there is no true distinction between man and nature; this is called monism (all is one and one is
all).
Identifying God as one with the universe is pantheism (God is all, all is God) or is sometimes panentheism (God
is contained within the universe), and is totally at odds with the belief in a Creator who created the world out of
nothing and is distinct from His creation. God is present in the world and transcends it, but He is distinct from
it.
Since astrology is an occult practice of divination severely condemned in God's word, even horoscope columns
are rooted in the occult. They may be marketed in trendy magazines with the latest slang, but this packaging is
deceptive. If you take reading horoscopes lightly or "in fun," you are denying that the occult is forbidden or
possibly dangerous.
As someone who was involved in this and related areas for a number of years, I can attest to the dangers
inherent in these practices. In the Deuteronomy passage, God warns us against divination, sorcery, spiritism
and interpreting omens; such systems are not from Him. To read horoscopes is to take God's word lightly and
is trifling with the occult.
The very roots of astrology are in ancient paganism and worship of the planets as gods, making astrology a
true form of "fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness " (Ephesians 5:11). Most astrologers are involved
in other forms of occultism and New Age practices such as tarot cards, numerology, belief in reincarnation,
having spirit guides, Eastern meditation practices, and so forth. Thus, reading horoscopes (as well as consulting
an astrologer) is to be receptive to something coming from this kind of spiritual worldview.
Being an occult art, astrology is connected to the paranormal powers of the occult. This paranormal effect
manifested for me when I would concentrate on a chart in preparation for a reading or during the session with
the client:
I would feel a distinct energy flowing between the chart and myself. I called it "tuning into the chart." I usually
felt guided through the chart, and seemed to know where to go in the chart for information and which
information was relevant for the client. I also experienced psychic "flashes" which came to my mind in words or
pictures. I usually thought this guidance was coming from one of my spirit guides or that I was tapping into a
psychic data bank. Surprisingly, direct clues from the client distracted rather than helped me; I preferred not to
know anything about the client other than their birthdate, birthplace, and time of birth, information that was
needed to compute the chart.
I often recorded charts on tapes for absent clients whom I had never met, and this was sometimes easier than
having the clients physically present. I learned from talking to other astrologers that they shared these
experiences.
The longer I practiced astrology, the stronger the guidance and psychic flashes.
I realize now that this information and "guidance" comes from demonic sources much the same way a medium
or psychic receives some of their data, and it was accurate enough to "hook" clients into coming back and
recommending me to friends, as well as validating astrology for my own benefit.
If you are reading this as a Christian, please take God's word to heart and do not consult horoscopes, even in
fun.

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It's easy to get in the habit of reading them. If by coincidence a horoscope forecast is right one
day, you would become even more curious and captivated, and actually might get interested
enough in astrology to consult an astrologer.
If you are reading this as a non-Christian, or even as someone who practices astrology, please realize that I am
not attacking you or astrologers. This is about the practice of astrology and what God has to say about it; it is
not about being "against" anyone. Please keep an open mind, and consider whether it is the Creator who
should be consulted rather than a divinatory practice using the Creator's creation. God reveals Himself as
Creator in nature and in the design of the universe, and in the fact everyone has a conscience, automatically
knowing there is a right and wrong.
But the fullest revelation of God came in His son, Jesus Christ, who suffered on the cross the penalty for our
sins, who bodily resurrected the third day, and who will come again to judge the living and the dead.
We also have God's revelation in His word, the books of the Bible.
Divination and looking to creation or psychic powers
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one
who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer." Deuteronomy
18.10
Then they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and practiced divination and
enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking Him. 2 Kings 17.17
When they say to you, "Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter," should not a people
consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?" Isaiah 8.19

35.
You are wearied with your many counsels; let them stand forth and save you, those who divide the heavens,
who gaze at the stars, who at the new moons make known what shall come upon you. Behold, they are like
stubble; the fire consumes them; they cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. Isaiah 47.13-14a
They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator.
Romans 1.25 The heavens and God LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set
your glory above the heavens. Psalm 8.1 The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is
declaring the work of His hands. Psalm 19.1
Jesus Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the
Prophets wrote--Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." John 1.45 Long ago, at many times and in many ways,
God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he
appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. Hebrews 1.1-2
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and
everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" John 11.25-26

CATHOLIC
1. A NEW AGE OF THE SPIRIT ? A Catholic Response to the New Age Phenomenon. Prepared by
the Irish Theological Commission in 1994:
Astrology has found a new popularity with the arrival of Hinduism into the west. A newspaper without one's
'stars' is unusual nowadays. One even finds astrologers being consulted regarding political events as we saw on
Sky News during the 1992 British elections, and the astrologers got it right where the opinion polls got it
wrong!
They said that John Major's chart showed good signs for him, but not for the opposition.
Consulting one's stars is part of the Yogic system of belief. There are essentially two forms of it.
Natal astrology deals with individuals. Mundane astrology deals with world events and history. Accepting
astrology reinforces the belief in the law of karma, as your chart may have 'good' or 'bad' signs for you right
now, and this may apply to a country also.
Astrology was important in the ancient world, but Christianity dealt strongly with it, and for centuries it died
down. It revived in Europe in the latter half of the nineteenth century with the rise of Theosophy, but it had
remained popular in China, India and the Islamic world.

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It did not revive in the west until the twentieth century, but it has gained steadily in popularity
ever since, with polls claiming that forty per cent of Americans now believe in it.
The claims of astrology have been thoroughly discredited by scientific research. The physical planets in the
Universe do not direct and guide the lives of living beings, for they are non-living objects. Astrology belongs to
the occult and the magic arts. See Understanding Cults and New Religions, 1987, p. 79.
See also What your Horoscope Doesn't Tell You, Charles Stohmer, Word Publishing, 1988. This author is a
former expert astrologer, who after some success with astrology decided to investigate its mysteries. He points
out the occultic nature of this magical art, and agrees that there is nothing scientific about it.
Many Christians seems to think that it is harmless to consult an astrologer, and to follow the 'stars' in one's
everyday life. This is not so, for one is being guided by a false system of mythology and ancient so-called
'gods'. For many it is the beginning of a journey that leads into the occult proper, and into other NAM activities
that are dangerous to one's spiritual life. It also rejects the teaching of Jesus and the Church that we should
trust Divine Providence in our daily lives. The need to know one's stars seems to stem from a need to have
something in our lives under control when there is so much happening all around us that is not in our control.

2. SPIRITUAL WARFARE: THE OCCULT HAS DEMONIC INFLUENCE.

A Pastoral Letter by Most Rev. Donald W. Montrose, Bishop of Stockton, CA. EWTN Library 4/1/1996

The Kingdom Of Darkness And Forbidden Knowledge

"Do not go to mediums or consult fortune tellers, for you will be defiled by them. I, the Lord, am your God"
Lev. 19:31. "Should anyone turn to mediums and fortune tellers and follow their wanton ways, I will turn
against such a one and cut him off from his people" Lev. 20:6.
Astrology, Horoscopes Are Pagan Customs
Fortune tellers try to predict the future through the use of occult, magic, or superstition. It is forbidden to seek
knowledge of the future by using playing cards, tarot cards, the crystal ball, the study of the hand, the stars,
examining the liver of dead animals, shooting arrows, the Ouija board, or any other superstitious means.
A medium is a person who has immediate or secret knowledge either by some questionable power of his own
or through the power of an evil spirit that works through him. In l Samuel chapter 3, read how King Saul
consulted a medium and died the next day.
1 Chronicles 10:13 says that Saul died because of this.

36.
Jeremiah 10:2, "Thus says the Lord: Learn not the customs of the pagans and have no fear of the signs of the
heavens, though the pagans fear them." By studying the stars and planets an astrologer casts a horoscope on
the basis of the month and the day of an individual's birth.
The horoscope is a prediction of events likely to occur in a person's life based upon the movement of the stars
and planets. Even though millions of people follow horoscopes with greater or lesser interest, this is still a type
of fortune telling. Even if you say you do not believe in horoscopes, and only read your own for fun, you should
abandon this practice. The daily horoscope can easily influence us from time to time.
It is a way in which we open ourselves to the occult.
If you want to live in the Kingdom of God, renounce horoscopes and all other means of fortune telling.
Any playing cards, Ouija boards, or other things used for fortune telling should be destroyed.
The Kingdom Of Darkness And Forbidden Power
Witchcraft or superstitious magic is used to produce effects that are beyond the power of man. These effects
may be good or bad and are brought about by the use of magical words or gestures, or the use of magical
herbs, powders, liquids or similar things. There is often a specific invocation of the devil.
Physical evils are directed against individuals because of hatred or jealousy. We have all heard about sticking
pins in dolls, the evil eye, the eating of cursed food or drinking a liquid, that through the power of darkness is
to cause harm, sickness, or death. This is witchcraft. Today, witches can be found almost everywhere, and
often they are presented in a positive light. Just remember everyone involved in false worship, seeking
forbidden knowledge, or using forbidden power should be absolutely avoided.

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There is also an increased interest in African witchcraft—voodooism. The gods of voodooism are
good and bad. Usually a voodoo service begins after sunset and ends in the early morning. It
often includes a bloody sacrifice of a goat or chicken. There is prayer and singing. The gods are supposed to
briefly enter into the persons during the ritual. In voodooism and witchcraft, Catholic objects such as images of
saints, crucifixes, candles, holy water and Catholic prayers are sometimes used, as well as other objects and
prayers. Do not be fooled by the apparent religious nature of what happens.
If you have any objects or written prayers that have been used in witchcraft or given you by a witch, they
should be completely destroyed.
If you have been involved in witchcraft you must renounce the devil, renounce the witchcraft in which you have
been involved and all witchcraft, ask God's pardon, and confess your sin to a priest. In Confession (the
Sacrament of Reconciliation) there is Divine Power needed to free one from the influence of evil.
Charms And Amulets
This is a form of magic in which the particular object is believed to have power to attract the good or to ward
off evil. These are particularly bad when given to us by a fortune teller, spiritualist, "curandero" or some person
involved with the occult. When the object is worn on the person or carried in the purse or placed in the home,
it means that the influence of evil is always present there with us.
Examples are: carrying garlic in the purse in order to always have money, keeping an open pair of scissors for
good luck, keeping special herbs in a jar, wearing a crescent around the neck or a necklace of garlic, putting
alfalfa and flowers in front of a statue, placing figures of oriental or Indian gods in the house, and so on.
Much of the modern jewelry worn about the neck is now actually representative of something used in
witchcraft. Usually people wear this jewelry innocently.
We must be careful not to use religious medals or statues in a superstitious way. No medal, no statue, nor
religious article has any power or luck connected with it. A medal, statue or candle is only a sign of our prayer
asking the saint to intercede with God for us. All worship is given to God and to Him alone.
All of the objects described above or any other objects used in a superstitious way should be effectively thrown
away or destroyed. If we are wearing jewelry that corresponds to a zodiac sign, or if we wear something that is
representative of witchcraft, we can open ourselves unwittingly to the kingdom of darkness. People wear
religious medals because they seek the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary or the saints, and they desire
the protection and the blessing of God. Wearing something that represents the occult, even in an innocent way,
is symbolic of our being under the power of darkness. We should not hesitate to get rid of this type of jewelry.
Either we want to be in the Kingdom of God or we don't.
Renounce Satan and the use of charms and ask God's pardon. If you deliberately carved such an object to
ward off evil or to attract good luck, it would be well to mention this when you go to Confession. Place your
faith, not in the kingdom of darkness, but only in Jesus Christ who cures, who saves, who protects and who
loves us…
… The "Evil Eye" Or "Hex": A Special Note
Once in a while people are afraid because they believe that someone has looked upon them with an "evil eye,"
placed a "hex" upon them or has done something by means of witchcraft to bring them under the destructive
power of the enemy. What about this problem?

37.
My own personal beliefs are as follows: Jesus is Lord and God. He is Lord and therefore has dominion over both
the Kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness. Satan has no dominion over the Kingdom of Light. He is
allowed a limited dominion over the Kingdom of Darkness.
Therefore, if I am baptized and am living in the Kingdom of Light in the state of Sanctifying Grace, Satan has
no dominion over me unless through fear I open the door to his influence. Sanctifying Grace means that I am
sharing in a mysterious way in the life of God Himself and He is dwelling in my soul (Rom. 5:5; 2 Cor. 6:16;
John 14:23). However, when I commit a mortal sin, a serious sin, then I lose Sanctifying Grace and begin to
live in the Kingdom of Darkness.
Even though I have been Baptized and possibly Confirmed, I become somewhat vulnerable. As I persist,
unrepentant in serious sin, I become vulnerable to the influence of Satan.

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When we are living in the Kingdom of Light, in the state of Sanctifying Grace, we should simply
reject all fear, and place our confidence in God and in Our Lady, then live according to the advice
previously given in this article as far as the Kingdom of Darkness is concerned.
Again, however, there is the difficulty of defining sin in our present age. We have to define sin
according to the Gospel and the official teaching of our Church as it has been handed down by the
Church's Magisterium and not define it by the viewpoint of the modern age which has been
contaminated. Many people live in sin and have false peace, because their conscience has been formed, not
by the Gospel, but by the spirit of this age. They may be leading very respectable lives, be law-abiding citizens,
and in the estimation of people, leading good lives. But if they are not living according to the Ten
Commandments, the Gospel, and the moral teaching of the Church, even in just one area that concerns serious
sin, they are probably living in the Kingdom of Darkness. The Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist,
(as well as all of the sacraments) are very special weapons that Jesus gave to his Church to overcome the
Kingdom of Sin and Darkness. We need to use these sacraments as Christ meant them to be used and have no
fear of the enemy.
If one has a heavy problem in this regard, I suggest daily Mass and Communion.

3. THE DECLARATION ON THE "NEW AGE', His Eminence Cardinal Georges Cottier OP, International
Theological Video Conference, 27 February 2004, General Topic: The Church, New Age and Sects
According to astrologers we are currently in the age of Pisces – dominated by Christianity; this era is about
to leave space to a new era, the age of Aquarius which will be marked by a universal religion in which all
religious differences will vanish. This change however does not involve rejecting all that came previously.
Inspiration provided by esotericism and Gnosticism, as well as theosophy, anthropology and spiritism are clear.

4. New Age Seen Penetrating Catholic Circles says Adviser to Argentine Bishops José Baamonde
MADRID, Spain, JULY 18, 2005 (Zenit.org).- New Age thinking has been penetrating Catholic realms, says an
adviser to the Argentine bishops' conference.
José Baamonde established the Service for the Elucidation of Sects and New Religious Movements (SPES)
Foundation, in 1989. He currently heads the foundation's documentation-and-research section.
In the context of a congress on "Psychological Manipulation, Sectarian Groups and Other Alternative
Movements," which closed Saturday at Madrid's Autonomous University, Baamonde gave a lecture on "The
Permeability of New Age in Religions."
According to the expert, a fundamental element of New Age is man's self-divinization, explained as follows:
"God is within me; God and I are one same conscience; I am God."
… Baamonde, who is a professor of psychology at Madrid's San Pablo-CEU University, also warned against "the
capacity of New Age concepts to subtly impregnate even those who practice classic and traditional religions,
including the Catholic" faith. In this connection, he recalled Pope John Paul II's words to a group of U.S.
bishops in 1993: "At times New Age ideas make headway in preaching, catechesis, congresses and retreats,
and thus succeed in influencing even practicing Catholics, who perhaps are not aware of the incompatibility of
those ideas with the faith of the Church."
Baamonde demonstrated the point with a survey of the SPES Foundation, which canvassed 1,098 young
people, in the fourth year of Argentine Catholic secondary schools in Buenos Aires and other cities. Six of the
main topics of New Age were selected: UFOs and extraterrestrials; magic and witchcraft; reincarnation;
astrology; communication with the dead; and divination. The young people were asked about their degree of
belief and adherence, and about the means of access to these issues. The result: more than 50% of those
surveyed showed belief in one or more of the New Age tenets, Baamonde said…. ZE05071802

38.
5. TIME TO RE-EXAMINE ASTROLOGY?
THE CHRISTIFIDELES PIZZA AND THEOLOGY SOCIETY FAITHFULCHRISTIANS.ORG Time to re-examine Astrology?
http://www.cpats.org/cpatsanswerdirectory/Answers_to_Questions/2006_04AprilQuestions/2006AprilIsItTimeToReexamine.cfm

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Barbara B. Foley wrote: Hi Mike:
I found your site because of "googling" done using Roy Schoeman as my entry. My husband and
I had the privilege yesterday of hearing Roy speak at the Magnificat Women's breakfast at the RIT Inn in
Rochester, NY. Roy signed the book I brought, his "Salvation is From the Jews". The book was bought in
September of 2004 after I had seen him interviewed on EWTN.
Since l958 I have had an interest in the art of astrology, having been introduced to it by an immigrant
European woman. Natalie Nuth had been a highly educated woman before the Second World War separated
her and her two children from her husband. They were eventually reunited and brought to the United States by
a Lutheran Aid society. Natalie told me that most Europeans put stock in the art of character interpretation
carried down through the centuries in astrological lore. As a faithful, practicing Catholic I made many inquiries
regarding the subject as I began my studies. However, I have always remained an amateur. Through the years
I have read many studies done by astronomers and other scientists about the dating of events in the life of
Jesus. My main interest has been in the many natal horoscopes done regarding his birth, hence my interest in
Schoeman's idea about 4 BC being the natal date. Many works indicate that the Chaldean Magi were influenced
by the prophecies of Zarathrustra regarding a Prince to be born when certain constellations showed the time
and the seasons were ripe. From all these books in my little collection I have put together my own
interpretation of an ideal time for Christ to be born. Let me pretend to be somewhat of an Ann Rice writing
about his nativity. I would use Johannes Kepler's chart for His birth but tweak it from February 28th 6. B.C. to
March lst 6 B.C. I think it falls on a Sunday. Midnight would give him about a 14 degree Sagittarius ascendant.
That would make sense as his form and features would be similar to the Shroud and the Veronica of
Manoppello. Sagittarius, ruled by Jupiter, is the sign of the prophet and priest. The cluster of planets in the sign
of the Fishes, Pisces, would be opposed by a powerful Pluto - the god of the underworld. This chart would give
him a grand trine in water; Moon in sensitive cancer, Neptune in the sign of the psychologist, Scorpio, and Sun
and the benign planets Venus, Mercury, etc. close to His Sun in the mystical Pisces -- which the Chaldeans
regarded as the sign of the Jews. This chart also has powerful links with major fixed stars which play their
symbolic role in His Passion. In his book, "The Dead Sea Scrolls", scholar Geza Vermes gives his interpretation
of 4QMess ar: A Messianic Horoscope. Among his translations of that text is the prophecy that the Messiah
would have red hair and a birthmark on his thigh, etc. Alleged witness reports to Rome say Jesus had chestnut
hair. When I was at Qumran in l989 the guide showed me the room where the Essene monks produced their
horoscopes. A wheel, found in that room, depicting the signs of the zodiac, is now in the Rockefeller Museum in
Jerusalem. Many mosaic floors of old synagogues in Israel show the horoscopic wheel. At Capurnam I saw a
carving of the sea-goat, symbol of Capricorn.
What is interesting to me nowadays is that the author of the notorious Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown, has a chart
that is antithetical to the chart of a person who may have the above chart. Also, a few years ago astronomer
Michael Molnar wrote about his finding of an ancient coin with a ram insignia. Molnar thinks that this coin refers
to Christ and his dating of the coin would make Christ an Aries, born in 6 B.C. The psychological profile for the
March lst birth would be more fitting for my chart.
Two years ago I read the very interesting book by Harvard historian T. Dooley. The book received such a
favorable review in "America" that I ordered it from the library and was sent the Williams' college copy.
"Morandi's Last Prophecy" is a work based on the research of Dooley in Italy regarding a notorious monk,
apparently not a good astrologer, from the time of Urban III. Urban eventually published a bull against the
study of astrology - although he had been an advocate - before Morandi wrote a letter predicting his imminent
death. Galileo had been one of the many, including clergy, who had used the library that Morandi had amassed.
Dooley suggests that this may have played a large part in Urban's displeasure about the work of Galileo.
Apparently a priest, also an astrologer, visited Morandi before the letter was circulated and told him that his
calculations were wrong and that he expected Urban to live on for 13 more years; which he did. Morandi
conveniently died in prison after his arrest. It apparently was God's will that astrology be removed from
Universities; Colbert saw to that in Louis IV's reign. However, it might be the time and the season to reexamine
it -as the New Agers consider it their study along with the gnostic heresies. A Jesuit at St. Peter's College
taught the subject for many years. I have his essay on the subject.
Astrology is not only a psychological study but involves math. Alas, I am incompetent in such studies such as
math and astronomy and what I suggest in my horoscope for Jesus is a compilation of the work of others and

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their math using the coordinates for Bethlehem.
Hopefully you will find my studies somewhat interesting. Respectfully, Barbara B. Foley
Mike Humphrey replied:
Hi Barbara, I was very concerned about the content of the e-mail you sent me.
The Catechism teaches faithful Catholics that:
39.
CCC 2116 All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or
other practices falsely supposed to "unveil" the future.48 Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading,
interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire
for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate
hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone.
Astrology is part of the New Age cult. I do remember watching part of an investigative TV series on the New
Age by Fr. Mitch Pawca. He stated that all the phony horoscopes are off by one month astronomically! This is
one thing Astrologers won't tell you. We would recommend Fr. Mitch's book: "Catholics and the New Age".
For short the Church teaches:
astrology: stay away from it.
The study of the positions and aspects of celestial bodies in the belief that they have an influence on the course
of natural earthly occurrences and human affairs.
astronomy: is fine!
The scientific study of matter in outer space, especially the positions, dimensions, distribution, motion,
composition, energy, and evolution of celestial bodies and phenomena
You said: About Astrology.
It apparently was God's will that astrology be removed from Universities, Colbert saw to that in Louis IV's reign.
However, it might be the time and the season to reexamine it - as the New Agers consider it their study
along with the gnostic heresies. A Jesuit at St. Peter's College taught the subject for many years.
The Church HAS: CCC 2116. The Catechism was published in 1994. That's less then 10 years ago! To hear that
a Jesuit has been teaching this for many years is a scandal to the Catholic faith Jesus founded on Peter. For
short: He's teaching heresy!
I am certainly not a historian, but found some of what you said questionable, e.g., "Essene monks produced
their horoscopes" and was not familiar with some of the names you mentioned in your e-mail.
You said: Two years ago I read the very interesting book by Harvard historian T. Dooley. The book received
such a favorable review in "America" that I ordered it from the library and was sent the Williams' college copy.
We believe that "America" is a very heterodox/unorthodox magazine and would not put it on the
recommended list of magazines to read on a regular basis. There are many articles which directly undermine
the Church's authority. I'm going to let my other colleagues put in their two cents on what you have written.
Hopefully they have a deeper knowledge of history and some of the names you mentioned, than me. I
questioned a lot of your e-mail, though I'm sure you have a good heart.
My advice: Live a sacramental life by going to daily Mass in a state of grace, and get to confession at least
once a month. Take care, Mike
Mary Ann replied: Barbara,
I agree with Mike completely. I would add that St. Paul says in Colossians that "God's secret is Christ Himself;
in Him lie hidden all God's treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I tell you this to save you from being talked
into error by specious arguments." Read the rest of chapter 2 of that letter. There are many other times that
St. Paul speaks against those who would lead us into the confusing path of false knowledge via charts and
genealogies and divinations and levels of knowledge and special diets and all manner of things that were
current then and are current again now. Swear off astrology now. Renounce it in the name of Christ, even if
you don't feel that you want to do so. Just ask God's help and say the words. Someone in Magnificat should be
able to direct you to someone orthodox, preferably a priest, who has a deliverance ministry.
As for all the pseudo-historical information, bear in mind that the Israelites sinned by using divination and
worshipping false gods, so it is not surprising to find evidence of pagan beliefs in the Holy Land. God bless you.
Mary Ann

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CATHOLICS USE ASTROLOGY

Satsangs and spiritual discourses often take place under an auspicious Tree thus recognising that the
Tree is the primal teacher of humanity. For meditation one sits on the floor: earth is experienced as the
27
body of the Lord and as the primordial mother of all living beings.
27
Bhavavad Gita, 11, 10ff, Atharva Veda, X11, t,1-63.
The Spiritual and Theological Perspectives of Ashrams A Tribute to Santivanam, 50 Years
Fr. Sebastian Painadath, SJ. The author is the founder-Director of Sameeksha Ashram, Kalady 683574, and is
the Vice-President of the Ashram Aikya. See Document titled ‘CATHOLIC ASHRAMS’.

40.

ACADEMICS, OPPOSITION LEADERS OPPOSE 'BIASED' EDUCATION PLAN

INDIA ---- ACADEMICS, OPPOSITION LEADERS OPPOSE 'BIASED' EDUCATION PLAN 16 Aug 2001

NEW DELHI (UCAN) -- Indian opposition leaders and academicians have opposed a government plan allegedly
aimed to push Hindu theocracy through education. Education ministers from opposition-ruled states resolved
Aug. 6 to reject federal government moves to amend the curriculum for schools across India.
The ministers, who met Aug. 4-6 for a seminar on "National convention against communalization of education"
in New Delhi, demanded that the federal coalition led by pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian peoples
party) withdraw immediately its proposed National Curriculum Framework.
The framework that the National Council of Educational Research and Teaching formulated, proposes to replace
currently used history textbooks and to introduce Sanskrit as a compulsory language in all schools.
The council, established in 1961 as an autonomous body, aims to improve the quality of education and develop
curriculums and textbook schemas for grades 1-12 besides preparing training material for teacher education.
The ministers' resolution cited the proposed changes as an example of turning "education and academic
bodies" into "instruments" that implement the Hindu ideology.
The resolution also urged stopping astrology and yoga courses introduced in some universities as
part of imparting "indigenous systems" of knowledge.
The state education ministers expressed a "deep sense of regret" over the BJP allies' silence to its "policies and
programs" against "India's secular traditions." Such silence, they warned, will undermine India's nationhood.
Chhattisgarh state Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, a Christian, told UCA News Aug. 6 that the federal government
finalized the curriculum proposal without consulting state governments. His eastern Indian state rejected it, he
said…
Catholic Bishop Thomas Dabre of Vasai described such moves as an "abuse of political power."…
According to Arun Ghosh, a school teacher in Bihar, the proposed changes are a ruse to channel state funds to
help upper-caste Hindus spread their views.

EXTRAS- PERSONAL, FOR FUTURE USE

*The old has passed away; we are at the dawn of a new and sinister era, an Age of Aquarius which even the
astrologers had correctly predicted.
**It does not AUGUR well for you….
***SPELL-BINDING. Spells bind !!

www.merabhavishya.in