Astrology and the Zodiac Man

Astrology: History

Astrological-medical miscellany,
 early 15th century BL MS Sloane

282 f. 18.  

 When we think about astrology today, we think of constellations, horoscopes and zodiac signs. Pair that with the hopes of our daily horoscope reading having some deep understanding of our life and we call that astrology; Medieval astrologers, however, call that natal astrology. Just one of the many branches of Medieval astrology.

The first horoscopes are dated all the way back to 2,400 years ago, some 300 years before any that were written in Greek and still resemble what we see them as today (4). In natal astrology for example, the heavens are divided into 12 equal parts. The signs of the zodiac move through these 'houses' with each house associating with a different sphere of life. The first house, which is generally life, was the beginning of astrological prediction. Relationships among celestial bodies and the signs of the zodiac in the remainder of the houses formed the basis for the horoscope, or life prediction (3). Astrology in Medieval times had many important uses, some of which are still used to this day. 

The Handbook of Medieval Culture defines astrology as an older word, signifying knowledge of the stars, yet Medieval astrology focused on the expansion of information from the Hellenistic period and applied it to the individual (4). Although no longer as widely regarded, you may recognize some of these techniques and strategies.

 

Predictions in Astrology    

    

Detail of a diagram of the planets' orbits, 
from Cotton MS Domitian A I, f. 23r

The use of astrology was labeled as an occult science, using the former word to represent what was not accessible to the five senses. The knowledge of the stars was used to predict many things, such as the assassination of Julius Caesar, to emperor Augustus using his horoscope to show that he was destined to rule, to the birth of Jesus (5). 

However, astrology was widely used to predict deaths by the use of a complex equation of planetary years. Depending on your birthday, time of day you were born, and a variation of the seven planets, astrologers were able to outline a person's life (to learn what your birth date says about you, click here). 

This methodology went against Christian beliefs as it challenged their belief in free will (5), therefore, astrology was banned along with other forms of prediction. 

Health in Astrology: The Zodiac Man

 

Zodiac Man, late 14th century. 
MS. Ashmole 391, part V, fol. 9r.
The Bodleian, Oxford University

However, astrology had many positive influences as well. The Medieval worldview was derived from ancient Greek cosmology of the four elements - fire, air, water, and earth, with their complementary qualities of heat, dryness, moisture, and cold, and the corresponding four humors in the body: choler (yellow bile), blood, phlegm, and melancholy (black bile)(6). 

If a person's humors were in balance, they were considered to be healthy, if unbalanced they were considered to be ill. The humors also coincided with signs of the Zodiac. The Zodiac Man was the idea that as earth was divided into regions influenced by the planets, therefore the body was divided into regions controlled by the signs of Zodiac (2). 

During this period, astrology then was thought to influence health. Medical practitioners regarded different signs of the zodiac and the planets as having governance over different parts of the body, as controlling different diseases, and as affecting the usefulness of different drugs. For example, to be effective, plants and herbs had to be collected during the times in which their associated planets were visible. These times were calculated from an almanac in which the rising and setting times of planets were given. To gather the medicinal plants and herbs at any other time would prevent them from being effective (1). 

Astrology also helped doctors and surgeons decide whether it would be right to perform a surgery or not, relying upon the positioning of the moon. It is said that if the moon was in the sign of the body part in question, it was not recommended. To see which part of the body your sign controlled click here.  

 

                                                        Additional Reading

Medieval astrology textbook “Tratado de astrología y magia”
attributed to Alfonso X the Wise. Rome BAV Reg. lat.1283

The world of astrology in Medieval times is very vast, ranging from the alignment of the stars to fluids in the body. For further reading about:

• The seven planets click here
• The Zodiac Man in medicine click here
• The influence of the stars click here
• The four humors and bloodletting click here
• A quick overview of Medieval astrology click here
• A comprehensive look at Medieval astrology click here 

Works Cited 

(1) Duchan, Judith Felson. “Astrology and Medicine in Medieval Times.” Judy Duchan's History of Speech - Language Pathology, 12 May 2011, www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~duchan/new_history/middle_ages/astrology_and_medicine.html.

(6) “Four Humors - And There's the Humor of It: Shakespeare and the Four Humors.” U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, 19 Sept. 2013, www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/shakespeare/fourhumors.html.

(2) Jokinen, Anniina. “Zodiac Man: Man as Microcosm in the Medieval Worldview [Homo Signorum; Medieval Medicine and Astrology; Microcosmic Man].” Luminarium, 4 Oct. 2009, www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/zodiacman.htm. 

(3) Lucas, John Scott. Astrology and Numerology in medieval and Early Modern Catalonia. [Electronic Resource] : The Tractat de Prenostication de La Vida Natural Dels Homens. Brill, 2003. EBSCOhost,search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=cat05986a&AN=buc.9910852520003556&site=eds-live&scope=site. 

(4) “Medieval Astrology FAQ.” Medieval Astrology Guide, www.medievalastrologyguide.com/medieval-astrology-faq.html.

(5) Willard, Thomas. “Astrology, Alchemy and Other Occult Sciences .” Handbook of Medieval Culture, by Albrecht Classen, vol. 1, De Gruyter, 2015, pp. 102–119.