'ISLAMIC ASTROLOGY IS SERIOUS BUSINESS'

Note - The knowledge of astrology originated in Bharat, that is 
India. Please visit: 

A Brief History of Astrology

http://www.flex.com/~jai/articles/history1.html

The Daily Star article begins: 

Islamic astrology is serious business 

Professor explains field in lecture at German Orient Institute 

By Hannah Wettig 
Daily Star staff 
The Daily Star, Lebanon
October 21, 2003

Eva Orthmann doesn't like it when people dismiss her
studies as esoteric. ''Some people look at me as if I was
on another planet when they hear about my research,'' the
32-year-old assistant professor of Arabic and Persian at
the University of Zurich says. ''Others tell me their
ascendant (star).'' 

Orthmann studies astrology ­ to be precise medieval
Islamic astrology ­ and last Thursday evening, she gave a
lecture at the German Orient Institute in Beirut entitled
Islamic Astrology Between Religious Objections and
Profane Expectations. 

The impact of astrology must have been immense on early
Islamic societies, she believes. Rulers had horoscopes
done for their newborn sons and many miniatures from the
time depict Islamic astrologers with women queuing up to
them, handing them little sacks of coins. But the fact
that it was mainly women who consulted the astrologers
made many people suspicious of them and their motives.
''Many satirical verses about astrology are mixed with
erotic stories,'' says Orthmann. 

Another indication of the importance given to astrology
is the large amount of books that were written on the
subject, especially those that rejected the ''suspicious
science.'' 

Orthmann's lecture dealt mainly with those writings that
rejected astrology. 

Though some astrological writing can already be found in
pre-Islamic times, she says, the first translations from
Syriac and Aramaic into Arabic were done in the Abbasid
period around 900 AD. Among the critics were such
renowned writers as Ibn Sina, a Persian philosopher and
doctor known in the West by the name Avicenna. He
believed that the stars had an influence on people's
lives, but wrote that it was ''very daring to state more
precisely this influence.'' 

The philosophers of the 10th century fought over the
issue of whether or not planets were intelligent beings
and over which ones were male and which female. In the
astrological system each planet was either happy or
unhappy. Their position to each other could be lucky or
unlucky. 

Ibn Sina was especially critical of this concept: ''There
is no other meaning of the dragon's head and its tail
(the star) than to show us where is North and South. That
the head is lucky and the tail is unlucky is completely
arbitrary,'' he wrote. He also argued that absolute luck
or misfortune did not exist, while if it was to be
believed that somebody born in a particular bad or good
constellation, they should exist. 

Many critics pointed out that Islam prohibited the use of
astrology. According to one Hadith, the Prophet had said:
''learn as much Arabic to read the Koran, then stop.
Learn as much of the stars as to guide your way in the
night, then stop.'' 

Another one states that the astrologer is like the
fortune-teller and the magician, all of whom will all go
to hell. 

But astrologer Ibn Tawus concluded that these Hadiths
must not be correct and said  that the prophets and the
12 imams knew about astrology but the prophets didn't
need it because they got their knowledge directly from
God. 

''At first, there is no differentiation between astronomy
and astrology,'' Orthmann says, answering a question from
the audience. ''In the 14th century, I have found the
first mention of astronomy, but the books are still mixed
with some chapters being completely scientific and then
others astrological.'' 

The amount of books on the subject, however, is so huge
that Orthmann can't give a precise answer to most
questions she is asked after the lecture. 

''Maybe in 10 years, I'll be able to answer,'' she says.
''When I look for books under the index word Nujum
(stars) in the Library of Tehran, I get hundreds of
handwritten books, and it's the same in the Arab world,''
she explains after the lecture. 

The German Orient Institute lectures, which normally are
attended by a crowd of Arabist scholars, have with
Orthmann's seminar on astrology gathered a wider
audience. 

''There is scientific proof that the moon has an
influence,'' someone says during the discussion after the
lecture. But before he can elaborate, Orthmann
interrupts: ''Sure, sun and moon have an influence; night
and daylight have an influence on our life, right? But
beyond that you can't convince me.'' 

When later the little crowd gathers in the next room for
drinks and snacks, two women, a mother and daughter,
approach Orthmann. 

''I wanted to thank you for this beautiful lecture,'' the
young woman says. ''I will now look more into these
things.'' 

The older lady affirms that she has long believed in the
influence of the stars, ''Hairdressers cut hair on full
moon, because then the hair grows stronger,'' she says. 

The two are astonished when Orthmann repeats that she
herself does not believe in astrology. In Zurich, she has
the same reactions after her lectures, she says.
''Imagine that 30 percent of the Swiss believe in
horoscopes.'' 

The interest in astrology in Lebanon surprises her a bit,
however. ''The last texts on it in this region, we find
in the Kadschan period ­ that's 19th-century Persia. In
the 20th century it stops,'' she explains. 

When astrology became popular in Europe, it was strongly
influenced by the medieval Islamic writings, Orthmann
continues. ''Basically, they at first copied everything
from the Arabs. The Arabic writings, of course, are based
on ancient Greek studies, but they developed them a
lot.'' 

But in the 16th century the European approach
differentiated itself significantly. 

With the findings of Galileo Galilei that the earth is
not at the center of the universe, but circles the sun
like other planets, astrology had to change. 

This heliocentric worldview does not become prevalent in
the Arab world until the 19th century, though, says
Orthmann. 

''I would like to study the astrological consequences of
this,'' she explains. ''Also what happens with (the
discovery of) new planets? The astrologers I read didn't
know about Pluto, Uranus and Neptune.'' 

Source - http://www.dailystar.com.lb/features/21_10_03_a.asp

Jai Maharaj
Jyotishi, Vedic Astrologer
Varanasi born and raised
Creator of newsgroups alt.jyotish, alt.language.hindi, alt.religion.hindu
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Om Shanti

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