If you're looking for a no frills introduction to astrology, you've come to the right place. But this book isn't just the theory; Bruce Scofield brings a wide-angle-lens approach to this rich and diverse subject, so that by the end of the book you will have a good grounding in a variety of astrological techniques and be able to interpret your own chart to a reasonable level; you will also have benefited from a mountain-top view, overlooking astrology's fascinating and complicated past, and gain insight into how the different branches of the art developed and the battles with religion that ensued as they did so. For those who want to push further into the number-crunching a detailed Appendix teaches chart calculation from the ground up.

* Shares modern biological studies offering evidence that our solar system neighbors profoundly affect and shape life on our planet * Explores the early practice of astrometeorology, revealing the links between the solar system, weather, and climate over large spans of time * Looks at the history, philosophy, and methodologies of astrology, as well as its potential future applications in medicine and the social sciences Our ancient ancestors recorded the rhythms of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars, correlating these rhythms with weather, plant growth, and animal and human behaviors. From these early geocosmic recordings were born calendars, astronomy, and astrology. While astrology is now mostly viewed as subjective fortune-telling, Bruce Scofield argues that astrology is not only a practice but also a science, specifically a form of systems science--a set of techniques for mapping and analyzing self-organizing systems. Providing clear evidence that our solar system neighbors profoundly affect and shape life on our planet, Scofield shares modern biological and climatological studies on the effects of Earth's rotation, the Sun, the Moon, and the rhythms of light, gravity, magnetism, and solar radiation on terrestrial processes. He explores the early practice of astrometeorology, a method of weather forecasting used from ancient times into the Renaissance, revealing the links between the solar system, weather, and climate over large spans of time. He shares his own studies on the correlations between Saturn's position and terrestrial weather as well as presenting a wealth of evidence on astrological effects and the theories and mechanics behind them. Examining the history of astrology, he looks at its earliest foundations in Mesopotamia and its development by the classical Greeks into a mathematically informed body of knowledge. He explores the decline and marginalization of astrology during the Scientific Revolution of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, when astrology was transformed from a credible science to a controversial practice after being attacked by the Church and then abandoned by experimental scientists. Presenting a broad look at how the cosmic environment shapes nature, the author shows how the practice and natural science of astrology can expand its applications in modern society in such varied fields as medicine, history, and sociology.

'Astrological Chart Calculations' preserves and teaches the methods of the most basic astrological chart calculations and tells the story of its history. It addresses the disconnection between the actual process of mapping the sky and the arithmetic that is required to calculate a horoscope, a process required by some astrological certification exams. It presents the key concepts behind the celestial sphere, the keeping of time, the development of trigonometry and the nature of house systems. It is a general reference useful to any student of astrology, and anyone who has a reasonable grasp of algebra and geometry should be able to follow the explanations and worked calculations. It is hoped that a deeper knowledge of this traditional art of astrology, that is the challenge of mapping the sky and the mathematics of preparing a chart, will allow students to glean not only deeper insights into the subject, but also a unique contact with astrology's long history.

This is the new and expanded version of Day-Signs, originally published in 1991. In this edition there are some content and organizational changes in the introductory chapters, the listings of people born under each of the day-signs has been expanded, and the day-sign look-up tables now go to 2029. The original delineations of the 20 day-signs remain at the heart of the book, and these have been updated to include the author's latest insights. They are the first ever to be described in psychological terms, and the only ones produced by the analysis of over 400 examples. For those interested in astrology, it may come as a surprise to learn that the Maya and Aztecs of ancient Mexico and Central America had developed a comprehensive system of signs and cycles, very little of which has survived in the indigenous population to the present day. Tantalizing pieces of this astrological system do exist but there are many parts missing. One thing is known, however, and that is the central role of the 20 named days called day-signs. It is the reconstruction and reinterpretation of these symbolic images that is the subject of this book. The 20 day-signs are like a zodiac - a cycle of development that moves through various stages from origin to completion. Each of the day-signs has distinct qualities and as the 20 signs cycle through the calendar dates, they move with a secondary cycle of 13 numbers that deepen meanings. Finally, after 13 cycles of the 20 day-signs and 20 cycles of the 13 numbers, the larger cycle, called the Tzolkin by the Maya and Tonalpouhalli by the Aztecs, begins again. This 260-day cycle is at the core of the ancient astrology of the Americas and an understanding of it is a prerequisite to comprehending the other components of the system. Here, in this book, is a modern interpretation of each of the signs, translated from an ancient mindset into the shared reality of the present. Even though the rediscovery of ancient native American astrology is far from complete, readers will be fascinated that significant variations in personality, discovered in a strange culture a long time ago, are just as relevant today.