TRUE SIDEREAL ASTROLOGY
ASTROLOGY is the pseudoscience of human evolution in relation to the movement of celestial bodies. It is a symbolic language that maps patterns in the universe and brings meaning and perspective to our conscious experience in the natural world.
True Sidereal astrology, otherwise known as astronomical astrology, is based on the current visible planetary sky. Sidereal astrology uses vedic corrective systems called ayanamsas that account for Earth’s precession of equinoxes over time. This precession shifts the north pole by 1° every 72 years, and in effect, the sun's path along the ecliptic.
Western astrology, which uses the popular tropical system, is based on Earth’s fixed seasonal cycles in the Northern Hemisphere, starting the zodiac at the Vernal Equinox. Western astrology also pairs the 12 month Gregorian calendar with the path of the sun through 12 constellations along Earth’s elliptical, each assigned 30° to match 30 days of the month.
True Sidereal astrology however accounts for real constellation degree spans, which vary between 12° and 48°, and includes the constellations Ophiuchus, Cetus and Orion that also sit along the ecliptic. The Sidereal mid-mula house system starts the zodiac around 0° Sagittarius which points directly to the galactic center of the milky way and happens to synchronize with the current Winter/Summer Solstices. In my opinion, this is the most logical point of entry for the zodiac in our day.
Tropical and Sidereal astrology were once aligned in Year 0 AC, when the Sun hit 0° Aries on the first day of spring and started the clock for both systems. Since then, the earth has wobbled putting the Vernal Equinox at around March 21 in the constellation of Pisces, and all other planets about 24° (or 24 days) behind the fixed seasonal dates of the tropical system.
Even though both eastern and western astrology systems are valid in helping us understand the scope of human development and potential, True Sidereal astrology better calculates planetary transits, timeline of a native’s soul journey and their true location in the cosmos. Some astrologers believe that astrology is simply a mythology that does not need to be astronomically accurate, but I disagree -- astrology should be based on the current language and perspective of the stars, as I assume the system was originally intended, not based on the zeitgeist of fixed collective memory.
It is important to note that the IAU defines 88 constellations as an area in the sky surrounded by its boundary or “body”. Some constellations overlap and even have large gaps between them, so planetary transits are always approximate and should be considered a blend of the constellations if it is between or within 3° of each other.
Lastly, the lunar calendar, which is similar to the International Fixed Calendar, divides our solar orbit evenly into 13 months of 28 days each - a type of perennial calendar that synchronizes with earth's great satellite - the moon. As evident in the farmer's almanac, solar and lunar cycles are the most effective way to work with time, plan for the future, and establish rhythms that are in sync with the natural world.