Tropical astrology is a type of astrology based on a zodiac whose points of reference are the tropics. Astrology (from Greek grc ἄστρον astron, "constellation star" and grc -λογία -logia) is a group of Systems Zodiac denotes an annual cycle of twelve stations along the Ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun across the heavens through the Constellations that divide the ecliptic The Tropics are centered on the Equator and limited in Latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' (23 The word tropic comes from the Greek for "turning point," and originally meant the point at which the sun at sunrise and sunset appears to turn, and to move north along the horizon after the winter solstice or south after the summer solstice. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Solstices occur twice a year when the tilt of the Earth's axis is most oriented toward or away from the Sun, causing the Sun to reach its northernmost and southernmost extremes
Tropical astrology is based on the idea that early astrologers (mid-to-late first millennium BCE) defined the star signs according to the seasons in which the sun rose in them; it wishes to preserve the seasonal associations of those star signs by laying out new horoscopes against a first-millennium sky. Astrological signs represent twelve equal segments or divisions of the Zodiac. In Astrology, a horoscope is a chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun Moon planets the Astrological aspects, and sensitive angles For tropical astrologers therefore it is irrelevant that the solsticial points (tropics) have drifted from one constellation to another over the millennia, due to the precession of the equinoxes. In common usage a constellation is a group of celestial bodies that are connected together in some arrangement typically stars to form a visible figure or picture In Astronomy, Precession refers to the movement of the rotational axis of a body such as a planet with respect to Inertial space. The underlying philosophy remains unchanged in spite of precession, because it is based on the earth's (and therefore our) relationship to the sun, not to the stars. The names of the zodiacal constellations that became the star signs are supposed to suggest the characteristics of (the sun in) each segment of the year. Astrological signs represent twelve equal segments or divisions of the Zodiac. Thus, Aries (House 1), representing the sun just returning to the northern hemisphere at the vernal equinox, symbolises unruly beginnings; Leo (House 5), representing the powerful sun of mid-summer, symbolises fertility and self-display; Sagittarius (House 9), representing the retreating or meditative sun close to the winter solstice, symbolises the search for understanding. An equinox is the event of the Sun passing over the Earth's equator in its annual cycle
In its emphasis on the symbolic or metaphorical meaning of the star signs tropical astrology differs from sidereal astrology which claims intrinsic meaning for the star signs and wishes to preserve those meanings by laying out horoscopes against the actually occurring sky. "Symbolic" redirects here For other uses see Symbolism (disambiguation and Symbolic (disambiguation. Metaphor (from the Greek: μεταφορά - metaphora, meaning "transfer" is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects Sidereal astrology is the system of Astrology used by some Western and all Jyotish astrologers who base their interpretation around the use of the
In the tropical zodiac the sun at the vernal equinox is considered to be in the first degree of the star sign Aries. An equinox is the event of the Sun passing over the Earth's equator in its annual cycle An equinox is the event of the Sun passing over the Earth's equator in its annual cycle This is because when astrology was being developed by the Babylonians and the Hellenistic Greeks the sun actually was in the constellation Aries at the vernal equinox (whereas now it is in Pisces). Babylonia was an Amorite state in lower Mesopotamia (modern southern Iraq) with Babylon as its capital The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions Even by the time the earliest horoscopes were written, however, in the fifth century BCE, the equinoctial point had drifted -- to about the 28th degree of Aries. An equinox is the event of the Sun passing over the Earth's equator in its annual cycle The last time the vernal equinox was in the first degree of Aries was around 1900 BCE, give or take a hundred years, depending on how you read the ecliptic. The ecliptic is the apparent path that the Sun traces out in the sky during the year
The tropical zodiac in astrology is largely exclusive to The Americas and Western European astrologers. The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the Continents of North America and South America Some Western astrologers choose to practice sidereal astrology, and criticise the tropical approach as erroneous because it does not align with the actual position of the stars. Astrology (from Greek grc ἄστρον astron, "constellation star" and grc -λογία -logia) is a group of Systems Sidereal astrology is the system of Astrology used by some Western and all Jyotish astrologers who base their interpretation around the use of the Siderial astrologers also point out the absurdity of applying northern hemisphere seasons to the whole planet when there are now large populations within the southerm hemisphere who experience seasons six months apart from those in the north. Tropical astrologers counter that there may be many ways of interpreting the relationship of the current night sky to the pattern of star signs. This is a long running dispute within Western astrology. Western astrology is the system of Astrology most popular in Western countries
References
- Barton, Tamsyn. Ancient Astrology (London: Routledge, 1994)
- Rochberg, Francesca. Babylonian Horoscopes (Cambridge University Press, 2004)
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