Astrology has always been a stomping ground for critics. It does not matter whether the school of thought is Eastern or Western, scientific bodies as well as individual scientists do not accept astrology as a science. Similarly, a great deal of lay people feels the same way and places a great deal of distrust in the subject. The question arises; have astrologers really done their best to develop astrology to a more acceptable philosophical level and how comfortable would astrologers feel if they were to be called frauds?
Some years ago chiropractors were also in a similar predicament. They were not accepted as being professionals, their practice were also not considered to be a part of any health and wellness system and they were labeled as practicing some form of jungle science. Yet they have been successful in bringing themselves to be a force to be reckoned with. The same level of discomfort exists today with stem cell development. Do astrologers have that determination to become a force to be reckoned with or are the critics going to silence them?
Ignoring the criticism achieves nothing. Instead it allows room for further criticism. Astrologers need to communicate why astrology should be taken seriously. Both Eastern and Western astrology have been developed from very strong backgrounds and history and it is necessary to find out why traditional science finds it so threatening if not intimidating. Is modern science afraid of what astrology is or is there a fear of what it might be?
Everything considered to be scientific has been based on experiments many of which produced negative results at first. However, because of continued rational approach success was eventually achieved. Several brilliant minds in the field of astrology have conducted many experiments and have met with great success so, there is already a motivated start. The claim then that astrology is not based on truth is therefore unfounded. Be that as it may, it becomes the challenge of the astrologer to demonstrate that truth itself evolves and is not a fixation. Arguably the critics version of truth is unchanging and absolute and completely rejects any possibility of astrology being a part of anything that represents truth.
So then the real question comes, is astrology really a science? According to the Hindus, astrology scientifically maps the simple dynamics of the solar system and superimposes it on the natural rhythms of life. This makes it different to standard science like mathematics, physics or even medicine; it is in fact a science of a higher order. Its existence as far back as 900 to 1500 BC indicates that it is the oldest science in the history of mankind. A great deal of work was done by several people who left behind valid information for continued research and development of the science. Astrology is the science that skeptics cannot disprove, simply because they do not have the patience to prove what it is.
