- Astrology is a belief system that studies the position of celestial bodies in relation to the time and place of a person's birth, which is used to bring an understanding about an individual's personality and habits. Astrologers believe that the positions of certain celestial bodies such as planets, the sun and the moon directly influence human life on Earth. Many astrologers consider astrology more of a symbolic art form rather than a true science. The scientific community at large considers astrology to be a pseudoscience or folklore.
- Astrology is based on the position of the eight planets, the sun and the moon in our solar system. The position of these celestial bodies correspond to certain days and months in a year, divided into 12 groups to correspond to the 12 months of the year. This division into 12 parts is called the Zodiac, which consists of 12 different constellations that the sun, moon and planets travel through in the span of one year. Each constellation is given a certain significance as the 12 signs of the Zodiac (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces). Depending on the time in the year of a person's birth, each individual falls under the jurisdiction of a particular sign. According to astrologers, certain personality traits and unique habits of the person born under a particular sign are decided by that sign. Another aspect of astrology is horoscopes, which are small predictions of the future also based on a person's Zodiac sign.
- In the United States, the Zodiac is the main type of astrology that people follow. However, there are many other types of astrology in the world besides Western astrology. Chinese astrology is one of the most popular types of astrology outside of the Western world. It consists of certain symbolic animals such as the ox, rooster, dragon, tiger and monkey that correspond to different years. Other types of astrology include Egyptian, Babylonian and Indian. Egyptian and Babylonian astrology are very similar to modern Western astrology and also incorporate the 12 signs of the Zodiac into their belief system.
