Astrology in the words of a physicist- Dr V V Raman

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Dr.

Varadaraja V. Raman received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in

Physics and Mathematics from the University of Calcutta before doing

his doctoral work on the foundations of quantum mechanics at the

University of Paris where he worked under Louis de Broglie.It is a great honor to have Dr V V Raman on this forum and share his thoughts.

 

Astrology

One of the most universal of ancient beliefs was astrology. The Chaldeans are sometimes said to have been the first to suspect that the sun, the moon, the planets and the constellations of stars affect human life and destiny, but most scholars would agree with what Otto Neugebauer wrote decades ago, that " we know equally little about the origin of astrology or astronomy…" One way or another astrology became a powerful force in many ancient cultures. It continues to thrive in our own times in many parts of the world.

The basic assumption in astrological thinking is that life on earth is influenced in predictable ways by matter and motion in the skies. More exactly, the relative positions of planets and constellations have tangible impacts on human lives. It used to be also believed that unusual phenomena in the heavens, such as the appearance of a comet or the conjunction of planets, portend unusual events in human history.

Details of how an individual's life is influenced by planets can be obtained from a professional astrologer who (usually on payment of a fee) can calculate such things from his knowledge of the precise aspect of the heavens at the moment of the individual's birth - some hold, at the moment of one's conception. The astrologer will tell you, for example, that if you were born under the aegis of Taurus, you will come under the rule of Venus. This means that you will be stable, calmly confident, and will have great enthusiasm for living. You will also be faithful, obstinate, and jealous. And peace will be one of your goals in life.

Astrologers inform us that specific colors, stones, and metals, as well as specific qualities are associated with vari­ous planets. For example, the color red and ruby go with Mars, the planet which is also supposed to govern our muscular system, especially between the ages of 40 and 50. Wearing a ring or a medallion made of metal or stone of the appropriate color will win favorable influences from the planet.

Such are some of the basic beliefs of astrology. Until the rise of modern science there was no distinction between astro­logers and astronomers. In our own times, however, they are poles apart in their notions about the sky and the heavens.

In the ancient world, some unfortu­nate astrologers were tortured, or killed more humanely, when they had made erroneous predictions. Some sensitive ones committed suicide in shame or in deep disappointment on seeing events quite different from their projections. Usually, such unpleasant ends came only when predictions involved royalty. Or else, the entire profession might have disappeared long ago. Generally speaking, however, there was a happy relationship, as there still is, between astrologers and the public: the former explained away unrealized prophesies which the latter forgot anyway.

A periodically recurring theme of astrologers relates to the end of the world. In the Arab world the mathematician Al Battan (ninth – tenth century C.E.) computed the time of the origin of the world in terms of celestial configurations and made the prediction that the whole world would come to an abrupt end when planetary conjunctions next occurred in the constellation of Pisces. But this date was way into the future.

But when, in the year 992, Good Friday and the Day of our Lady coincided, astrologers were let loose to interpret this simultaneous occurrence in terms of global disasters. The volcano Vesuvius erupted soon thereafter, there occurred an epidemic, and then there were the Huns and the Normans rampaging all over Europe. It was not difficult to see in all of this forebodings of the ultimate catastrophe that was imminent; all the more so, since the round number year of 1000 C.E. was fast approaching. It did not occur to anybody that this calendar reckoning has significance only to Christians and has no global, much less cosmic, significance. In any case, news of events yet to happen often tends to have greater impact on our minds than of things that have already occurred, perhaps because imagi­nation is given free rein in this case. So, panic struck whole townships in Europe, crowds thronged to places of worship, communal prayers became more than a habit, and there was much genuflecting on the part of a frightened population with more terror than hope. Yet, no one seems to have been surprised when the fateful year came and went without any noticeable effect on the large scale features of planetary life: the sun and the moon rose and set; seasons changed, flowers blossomed in spring and birds chirped in peaceful indifference. World and man were here to stay.

In 1179 an astrologer by the name of Juan de Toledo predicted on the basis of astro­nomical data that within the next seven years the planets would all align themselves with the constellation Libra. From this he concluded, or rather stated categorically, that the earth would experience the most devastating earthquakes which would crush sinning mankind un­derground. Once again the dismal news of a future event spread far and wide, and panic-stricken reactions were no less intense than two centuries earlier. Underground shelters were dug up, days of repentance and atonement were declared, palaces closed their doors tight, and people fasted and prayed. One might argue that all this proved to be very effective, for even though the plane­tary conjunction did occur in 1186, no major catastrophe marred the normal course of life in Europe or beyond.

In 1524 again, according to expert astrological insights, the world was going to be sub­merged in a massive deluge. There is ample reason to believe that this dire prediction did not come to pass. But it did cause its share of panic and consequent prayer. The fact that the awesome flooding did not occur has not prevented others from making or believing in similar disasters time and time again.

The early contributors to modern science, such as Kepler, Galileo, and Newton, all took astrology quite seriously. In our own times, not only damsels in distress, but also business executives, corporations, politicians, first ladies, and monarchs are known to consult professional astrologers so as to ensure greater success in their enterprises or at least avert unnecessary hurdles. No wonder astrology has become lucrative business, with computers, calculators, and all.

Instances of modern astrological thinking in relation to public events are many. It has been claimed, for example, that the development of the atomic bomb occurred because of the discovery of the planet Pluto in 1930. The uninitiated may wonder what the relation is. One eminent astrologer gave the following explanation: The first atomic bomb utilized in its construction the Trans-Uranic element Plutonium. Clearly, the use of Plutonium would not have occurred if Pluto had not been discovered.

In the mid-fifties, in the panic of the Suez War, some astrologers made the cruel announcement that Britain's Queen Elizabeth was entering a period of grave personal danger to her. Causing even greater concern to more people of that cheerful island, they blurted out that the British Empire was on the verge of an imminent collapse. Resorting perhaps more to their betting instincts than to planetary studies, and inspired as much by newspaper headlines as by celestial symbolism, astrologers declared that in less than a century the Soviet Union would be the major power in the world. This in itself may not have seemed an altogether impossible occurrence, but to place blame or give credit for this on Uranus is somewhat unfair to a planet which has done us no harm or good to us.

All these are instances of the fact that astrology has been an intrinsic part of the mindset that is fettered to the framework of ancient science. Modern India is making significant advances in science and technology. It is therefore ironic and unfortunate that astrology still has a hold on the minds of millions of her people, both educated and uneducated, such as in few other nations in the world. Only mass education in the basic sciences of physics, astronomy, and biology will eradicate astrology and other similar ancient misconceptions from the minds of the people in any society. Like the eradication of many other superstitions and the inequities of the caste system, this too will happen in the course of this century..

Professor V. V. Raman

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