‘Sun Sign Astrology’ versus Astrology: why I cannot write Sun Signs columns

This post is in response to a friend’s suggestion that, in order to boost the popularity of my site on social media, I could post monthly or weekly readings for the Signs of the Zodiac. The reason why I cannot do that lies in the huge difference between Astrology and Sun Sign Astrology.

While a lot of people check the Sun Signs columns in newspapers, magazines and the internet, no one really take them seriously. And, in truth, they shouldn’t. The sweeping generalizations of those readings make them, I am afraid, worthless for most people. In my view and that of many other astrologers, the practice of Sun Sign Astrology is what has contributed to give our Art a bad reputation, while, at the same time (paradoxically) helped to popularize it enormously. The fact that this version of Astrology is so popular doesn’t make it legitimate though, like the popularity of trash fiction doesn’t make it literature.

Of course there are astrologers who manage to convey well the possible effects of some important transits on all Leo, Virgo etc., despite the unavoidable generalizations, especially when making long term predictions, for the year ahead for instance. Many of those do a great job at assessing the impact of certain important transits, like New Moons, Full Moons, Eclipses etc and slow moving transits of Chiron, Uranus and Pluto, for people born under a certain Sign. Those astrologers are however very few when compared to the numbers who write Sun Sign columns. Some even use ghost writers to pen their daily or weekly columns because they cannot cope with the amount of work needed to keep up with regular publishing!

Risking to sound arrogant or precious I just cannot write Sun Sign columns. I know this doesn’t help my popularity with the general readers, or increase my income, but there is nothing I can do about it.

With more than thirty years experience behind me, I know how difficult it is to predict the effects of certain transits on an individual’s life, even when I am studying a proper Birth Horoscope. I could not predict anything for all people born in a certain month of the year, irrespective of their date and time of birth (when available), phase of the Moon active at the time, the positions and mutual interaction of nine celestial bodies, apart from Sun and Moon, Lunar Nodes, etc. etc., all factors needed for a proper astrological reading.

Sun Sign columns, in my opinion, may have also a negative effect on people who might be interested in pursuing the study of Astrology but give up on the idea because no one seem to take the subject seriously. Because of the popularization of Astrology the profession itself is considered by many disreputable, just another money making enterprise of no value whatever.  This is a real pity because, when investigated in depth, Astrology is one of the most fascinating and rewarding subjects of study, one that can literally change your life, expanding your mental horizon until the sky will truly be the limit!