By Jessica Nguyen, Staff Writer
The idea of fate and destiny has been around for centuries. Humans have been looking at the stars since forever to plan their lives. The ancient Egyptians used the skies as calendars; the rising of Sirius, the Dog Star, marked the annual flooding of the Nile. Stars have been used as compasses by travelers as well, but should they be used as sources of mystical direction for people’s lives?
Horoscopes, astrological charts that account for the positions of the sun, moon, stars, planets and more, are just that. For each star sign, a chart is made that is compared to the transiting planets. Depending on things like a moon conjunct or in opposition to the Sun, the life of a person could be determined.
So, why do people believe in horoscopes? Is it that we are, as hippies and astrophysicist Carl Sagan perpetuated, “made of star stuff”?
Is that why we believe in stars—because they are a piece of us that we want to listen to?
What if you only believe the things that horoscopes tell you because they are the things that you want to believe? You want to believe that you will end up with this someone or that this is your personality. Some people are unhappy with their lives and hoping that the stars—some magic—will bail them out.
In fact, a 1982 study concluded that people who seriously consult astrology are undergoing stress that makes them feel as though they are not in control of their lives, indicative of an external locus of control. The comfort that they are never in control makes any problem that arises in their life an act of fate rather than something that they can change themselves. Even though they know that astrology is nonsense, that tiny hope that it might be true keeps them coming back.
The truth is that astrology is not scientifically proven. Often times, horoscopes are general and relate to anyone despite promising to be tailored to one person; this is achieved in a psychological phenomenon known as the Barnum effect. They cannot be relied upon to tell you how your life is going to go.
While horoscopes may be fun to read, don’t make choices based on them; you make your own decisions. Don’t let some words hold you back because you are a star. Go where you want, do what you like, but just remember to keep shining, Barons!
