(Christina Sarich) NASA says they’ve done the math, and they’ve recently introduced a new zodiac sign. They’ve thrown ages-old astrology charts totally out of whack with the announcement of Ophiuchus. What used to be utilized by die-hard astrology enthusiasts to plot and plan their lives could now be thought of as heresy.
Related: The 12 Cell Salts and Their Astrology Signs
by Christina Sarich, August 19th, 2017
If ever the New Age advice to “check the stars” before taking action, were counterbalanced with scientific reason, which supposes heavenly bodies have no impact on our lives whatsoever, we’d see we are at odds – these seemingly disparate entities have now entered a new territory of antipathy, or have they?
NASA says they didn’t change any astrological signs. They “just did the math,” and found that there is an additional zodiac sign between Sagittarius and Scorpio, called the “serpent bearer,” because it appears in the middle of the Serpens constellation.
It’s interesting to note that Ophiuchus — located near the celestial equator and one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy — is just one of thousands of possible constellations that could have been “added” to our astrological influences, however, the sign, which wasn’t previously added because the sun barely touches it through its movement in space, is named after a Greek God that handles serpents.
This isn’t exactly new-found knowledge that NASA is divulging either, since the constellation was found more than 3,0000 years ago. So why has NASA chosen to upset astrology charts now with a serpent-bearing addition to the 12 signs?
To find an answer we can look at the mythology behind the sign.
Ophiuchus represented the god Apollo to the Greeks. He “handled” the snake that guarded the Oracle of Delphi at her temple. The Oracle of Delphi was the prophetic priestess Pythia, known for her ESP powers.
Apollo wasn’t too shabby in his own right. He was quite complex and powerful as the son of Zeus, and Titan Leto. He also had powers of divination and moved the sun across the sky every day. So, why was a guy who did these Godly feats removed from our 12-sign astrological charts? Especially considering they are based primarily on the movement of the earth juxtaposed against heavenly bodies and the sun?
There’s the odd fact that the ancient Babylonians created the 12 signs of the zodiac to match their 12-month lunar calendar, but the answer may also lay in Apollo’s relationship to the Oracle. (As an aside, the Babylonians are also credited with creating usury, or the injurious use of interest to enslave people.)
The oracle at Delphi is shrouded in mystery to this day. She spoke for the god Apollo and answered questions for the Greeks about foreign relations, colonization, religion, and power. More notably, the oracle existed long before Apollo found her.
As the story goes, Apollo also “conquered” the oracle’s temple – only two of which are in recorded history, even though myth has it there were at least five temples of the oracle. The Earth mother kept her holy serpent at Delphi. Apollo killed the serpent and then tried to keep the oracle’s powers for himself. This is why Delphi is also known as Pythia – in honor of the killing of the snake.
According to Yahoo News, the new 13-sign calendar plays out like this:
- Capricorn: January 20-February 16
- Aquarius: February 16-March 11
- Pisces: March 11-April 18
- Aries: April 18-May 13
- Taurus: May 13-June 21
- Gemini: June 21-July 20
- Cancer: July 20-August 10
- Leo: August 10-September 16
- Virgo: September 16-October 30
- Libra: October 30-November 23
- Scorpio: November 23-November 29
- Ophiuchus: November 29-December 17
- Sagittarius: December 17-January 20
So, is NASA’s “math” accurate, or are we to dismiss the contemporary zodiac? Does the zodiac affect us at all, anyhow?
What affects us may not be so much the calculations and alignment of the heavenly bodies, but what we’ve accepted as our own myth – what Joseph Campbell would term our “call to duty,” or rites of passage.
These myths – insinuated by powerful forces and carried in our own psyches for millennia – outline deep archetypal emotions and hardships we all must face to become spiritually realized.
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