The History and Reality of Astrology, Tarot, and Holidays!
Astrology, holidays, tarot, and why Pluto is even in astrology all look like a whimsical fever dream when we look at the history and transformation of them throughout time. Will learning the origins of these shake off your belief in them?
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Click on one of the titles below to jump to that section:
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Capricorn - Goat-Fish Galore: Capricorn's Cosmic Identity Crisis
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Aquarius - Mythological Makeovers: Aquarius' Journey from Floods to Freud
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Taurus - Cosmic Cow: Taurus’ Tale of Love, Loss, and Bullfighting
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Gemini - From Underworld Guards to Starry Sky Guides: Gemini's Epic Evolution
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Cancer - The Zodiac Chronicles: Cancer's Crustacean Conquest
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Pisces - Mythological Fish: Pisces' Splash from Myth to Starfish
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Leo - Feline Overlord: Leo's Dramatic Reign Over the Stars
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Virgo - Heavenly Overthinkers: Virgo's Worry-Worn Path to the Stars
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Scorpio and Libra - Divine Divorce: How Scorpio and Libra Split the Sky
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Sagittarius - Starry Muddle: Sagittarius’ Mythical Identity Crisis
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Valentine's Day - Saints, Goats, and Love Lotteries The Real Valentine's Day
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Easter - From Pagan Party to Holy Holiday: The Curious Evolution of Easter
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St. Patrick's Day - Kidnapped, Cleric, Celebrated: The Wild Ride of St. Patrick
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Daylight Savings Time - Profit by the Hour: The Greedy Roots of Daylight Savings
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Christmas - Pagan Raves to Christmas Mass: A December to Remember
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Should Pluto be banned from astrology?
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Tarot Cards - Playing Cards with the Past: Tarot's Divination Deception
Be sure not to miss out on new content that will be frequently uploaded, and continue to explore the historical perspective of astrology, holidays, tarot cards, palm reading, and more! View the videos below, or visit my YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@ItsJustEvuhhlynn​​​​​​​​​
Goat-Fish Galore: Capricorn's Cosmic Identity Crisis
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The Origins of Capricorn
The Babylonians had a constellation that translates to Goat-Fish (SUHUR.MASH). Some people have theorized this may represent the Sumarian god Enki (Ea in Akkadian mythology) was depicted as a god with a human upper body, and the lower body of a fish. It is hard to say if there is a connection or not, Goat-Fish doesn’t match the name Man-Fish or Human-Fish as Enki was depicted.
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The Greeks had a few mythological concepts about the origins of the constellation of Capricorn. There are two versions about Amalthea, the goat. The first is Amalthea was a goat that nourished the infant Zeus with her milk. Another version is that Amalthea was a Nymph that owned a goat. That goat got her horn broken off by the baby Zeus from grabbing it, and it transformed into the cornucopia or “horn of plenty”, which symbolized abundance and nourishment. Later, Zeus placed Amalthea among the stars for his gratitude in both versions.
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Some people associate a different version of Greek mythology describing the origin of Capricorn was about Pan, the god of the wild, shepherds, and flocks. Pan was a Satyr, who was half human and half goat, and escaped a battle between the gods and the Titans by diving into the Nile river. To help himself escape, Pan transformed himself into a being with the lower part of his body a fish, and the upper part as a goat. There was no mention of how Pan ascended to the stars.
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With all of these myths, the personality characteristics associated with the Greek version of Capricorn was about nourishment, abundance, and adaptability in challenging situations. The planet Saturn, or Cronus for Greeks ruled over Capricorn. This constellation did not undergo much changes with the Romans, or during the Renaissance or twentieth century. This constellation is not very notable or bright in the sky, but does become visible during the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.
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Mythological Makeovers: Aquarius' Journey from Floods to Freud​​​​​​
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The Origins of Aquarius
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The ancient Babylonians had a constellation that translates to “The Great One” (GU.LA), and this is what we refer to as Aquarius. If there was mythology associated with it, then it was lost through time. During the Babylonian times, this constellation was visible during January and February, which was the rainy season during that time that would cause the rivers to flood and bring nourishment to the land. Over time through precession and changes in the Earth’s axis changes when the constellations are visible. Aquarius is now visible during February and March.
The ancient Greeks adapted this constellation to their culture, and desperately needed to come up with a mythological story to attach to this cluster of stars. This story starts with the royal prince Ganymede, who is also a water bearer. He was the son of Tros, the king of Troy, and Callirrhoe, who is the daughter of the river god Scamander. Zeus thought that Ganymede was so good looking, that he needed to be brought to Olympus to be the new cup bearer. The previous one didn’t look as good as Ganymede. He was to serve the Greek Gods with ambrosia and nectar. Another version of mythology was that Ganymede was placed among the stars as the constellation Aquarius. To the Hellenistic Greek astrologers, Aquarius represented the flow of ideas, creativity, art, and the pursuit of knowledge.
There is not much mythology mentioned by the Romans with Aquarius, but was used as artwork in water management architecture such as aqueducts and public baths. The 20th century astrologers decided the attributes of Aquarius should be changed with the psychological aspects of Carl Jung to represent: independence, innovation, good at problem solving, and being intellectual. Several other traits kept being added in over time to include negative aspects such as being emotionally disconnected, avoiding conflict, restless, resistant to routine, and prone to overthinking and anxiety.
Mythological Fish: Pisces' Splash from Myth to Starfish​​​​
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The Origins of Pisces
The Babylonians had a constellation that translates to the tails (ZIB.BATI), and any information about it has been lost over time. This brings us to the Hellenistic astrologers of ancient Greece. There are two mythologies that explain the origins of the constellation of Pisces. In one version, Aphrodite and Eros transformed themselves into fish to escape Olympus while under attack from Typhon. A different version tells us that a couple of fish carried Aphrodite and Eros away, and in gratitude, Aphrodite turned the fish into immortal celestial beings as the constellation of Pisces.
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The ancient Greek astrologers decided that those born under the sign of Pisces shall be imbued with the characteristics of empathy, sensitivity, artistic inclination, and intuition. It was also decided that Jupiter shall rule over Pisces. The Romans adapted Greek mythology with their own culture and depicted their gods Venus and Cupid. The planet Neptune was discovered during the nineteenth century.
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It wasn’t until the astrologers during the twentieth century decided that Neptune should be in charge of Pisces. This contributed to the additions of spirituality, illusion, and transcendence to the attributes of the Pisces constellation.
Zodiac Quirks: Aries and the Golden Fleece Fiasco​​
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The Origins of Aries
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The concept of the Aries constellation started with the ancient Greeks. The Babylonians viewed a similar set of stars and referred to that constellation as “The Hired Man” (LU.HUN.GA). That is all we know from the Babylonians, and many scholars believe the reference to “a hired man” is that this constellation may have appeared in the sky around the time of the year when extra farming help was needed.
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The ancient Greeks associated the mythology of Aries and the golden fleece with this constellation. This story starts with a royal family conflict on who will inherit the throne. King Athamas had two children with his ex-wife that was named either Naphele or Hera depending on the version. The king's new wife, Ino, wanted her children to inherit the throne instead of Nephele’s children, Phrixus and Helle. Ino bribed someone to cause a famine from drying out the wheat seeds, and then she tricked the messengers into saying that Phrixus will need to be sacrificed to end the famine. Naphele sent a magical golden ram that could speak and fly to rescue Phrixus and Helle. While flying over the ocean, Helle looked down and became dizzy and fell into the sea. Aries brought Phrixus to King Aeetes, which was in Colchis on the eastern edge of the Black Sea. Phrixus sacrificed the golden ram to the gods, and gave the Golden Fleece to King Aeetes. There is no mention in the mythology of how this ram ascended to the stars.
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The constellation of Aries in Greece was important in tracking the solar year, as it marked the spring equinox when the sun aligned with Aries. The Hellenistic astrologers assigned the planet Mars to rule over this constellation. They also assigned the personality traits to all people born under the sign of Aries to be imbued with the warrior spirit, and have the traits of courage, aggression, impatience, impulsiveness, and have a lack of foresight.
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The Romans adapted this mythology to their Roman names and gods. The ram Aries was ruled by the Greek god Ares which is the planet Mars, and the Greek god Ares is the Roman god of war, Mars, which is still the same planet, Mars. Many of the same qualities of Aries remained the same during the Renaissance period and the 20th century.
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Cosmic Cow: Taurus’ Tale of Love, Loss, and Bullfighting
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The Taurus constellation was not part of the original Babylonian Zodiac (MUL.APIN). Their version of Taurus, The Bull of Heaven, was created late during the last few centuries of the Babylonian empire. The mythology associated with this constellation is the Epic of Gilgamesh. In this story, Gilgamesh refused the romantic advances from the goddess Ishtar. The goddess was angry about this, and sent a bull to destroy Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh and his friend, Enkidu, defeated the bull, which made Ishtar even angrier. Later, Enkidu had a dream that the gods would punish them for obliterating the bull. He then got sick, and his life came to an end after much suffering.
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Gilgamesh became obsessed with overcoming death after Enkidu died. He went to search for Utnapishtim, who was granted immortality for building a boat to save his family and the animals from the great flood to destroy humanity, as commanded by god. A story very similar to the biblical story of Noah’s arc, but with slightly different cultural adaptations. After a challenging journey through remote regions, Gilgamesh reached the Waters of Death. He met a boatman that took him to Utnapishtim. Gilgamesh was given a test for immortality by Utnapishtim to stay awake for six days and seven nights, in which he failed. Utnapishtim’s wife convinced him to give Gilgamesh a consolation prize of a plant that will restore youth, but Gilgamesh lost it to a serpent on his way back to Uruk. Gilgamesh finally accepted his mortality, and became a wise and compassionate ruler.
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The Greeks mythological view on Taurus is up for debate. Some people have associated Taurus with the Cretan Bull, in which Heracles captured as one of the twelve tasks, while others see the Cretan Bull as a different entity than the Taurus constellation. A different story suggests that the Taurus constellation was a different love interest of Zeus, Io, was transformed into a cow to hide her from his wife, Hera. The Greek Hellenistic astrologers did make Taurus the second zodiac sign, and represents personality traits of those born under this sign to be reliable, practical, ambitious, and a love for beauty and comfort. It was also decided that Taurus should be ruled by Venus, which contributes to the traits of love, beauty, and art.
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The Romans didn’t change much from the Greeks about Taurus aside from the cultural name changes such as changing Zeus to Jupiter. The astrologers that decided the changes to astrology during the twentieth century added traits from the psychological archetypes of Carl Jung to all signs, and the additions to Taurus was stubbornness, materialistic, resistant to change, over-indulgent behavior, and dwells on their problems while isolating themselves from others.
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From Underworld Guards to Starry Sky Guides: Gemini's Epic Evolution
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The origins of Gemini starts with the constellation that translates to “The Twins” (MASH.TAB.BA.GAL.GAL). Some people associate the twin babylonian minor gods, Lugal-irra and Meslamta-ea with the constellation of Gemini, but there is no historical evidence of that. These gods were depicted as guardians and gatekeepers of the underworld.
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The Greeks created their own mythological concept of how those stars appeared in the sky and formed the constellation of Gemini. This story is about the twin half-brothers Castor and Pollux. Castor was mortal, and the son of King Tyndareus of Sparta. Pollux was the immortal son of Zeus. The brothers shared all of their adventures together, and were inseparable. After Castor died, Pollux begged Zeus to share his immortality with his brother. Zeus then made them both immortal as the constellation Gemini. The Greeks believed Gemini influenced the traits of adaptability, intelligence, eloquence, communication, intellectual curiosity, but also are potentially indecisive or dual-natured.
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The Greeks assigned the planet Mercury to rule over Gemini, and continues to this day. There were not many changes through Roman times and the Renaissance period. The twentieth century astrologists added psychological concepts to Gemini, focusing more on the behavior and social problems related to duality.
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The Zodiac Chronicles: Cancer's Crustacean Conquest
The Origins of Cancer
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The beginnings of the sign of Cancer brings us to the scarce information that survived through time from the Babylonian empire. The only thing we know is that they had a constellation that translates to “The Crab” (AL.LUL). The Greeks created such an incredible story of the goddess Hera sending a crab to distract Heracles as he battled against the Hydra. Heracles crushed the crab under his foot. Hera rewarded this little crab out of gratitude for its efforts, and was granted immortality amongst the stars into the constellation we know as Cancer.
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The Hellenistic astrologists decided it would be best for everyone if the traits of emotions, intuition, and protection were among the characteristics for all of those born under this zodiac sign. It is important to note that the Moon and water are assigned to Cancer, bringing extra emotions for everyone to enjoy. The Romans had their own twist on this fanciful tale, and used the name Hercules instead of Heracles. This sign that marks the beginning of Summer in its practical use has not seen any updates through the Renaissance and the 20th Century.
Feline Overlord: Leo's Dramatic Reign Over the Stars
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The Origins of Leo
The Babylonians had a constellation that translates to the lion (UR.GU.LA). Babylonian mythology often depicted lions with the goddess Ishtar, but no evidence of any mythology of lions connected to this constellation.
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Some people link the story of the Nemean Lion with the constellation of Leo, but there is no mention of how that lion reached the stars as an immortal. This mythological story is about the first task of Heracles, and he was to destroy the Nemean Lion that had an impenetrable skin, and terrorized the region of Nemea. Heracles was unsuccessful using his arrows, and had to strangle the lion with his bare hands. Heracles wore the skin of the Nemean Lion as his armor.
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The Greek Hellenistic astrologers decided that the Sun will rule over the constellation of Leo, adding the characteristics of creativity, pride, warmth, and generosity to everyone born under the sign of Leo. The Romans used their hero, Hercules instead of Heracles, but everything else was the same. The twentieth century astrologers added psychological problems to the sign of Leo including: having a short temper, overindulging themselves, being a perfectionist, and they often look for attention or validation.
Heavenly Overthinkers: Virgo's Worry-Worn Path to the Stars
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The Origins of Virgo
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The story of Virgo actually starts in ancient Greece. The Babylonians had a constellation that translates to “the furrow” (AB.SIN). We do know that a furrow is a narrow groove made in the ground, often from plows, for planting seeds and irrigation. We don’t know anything more from the Babylonians about this constellation.
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The Greeks tended to give humanistic traits to many things, and this is maybe why the constellation from Babylon representing a Furrow changed into a woman holding some wheat, and calls that a virgin. Some people associate the story of Persephone with the Virgo constellation. Her story of being abducted and trapped in the underworld with Hades was to reflect the seasons on the planet. The winter was to represent Persephone being trapped in the underworld. When she returned to the living world when Hades allowed her, it represented spring, bringing renewal, fertility, and the cycles of nature.
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Other people associate Demeter, the goddess of agriculture with the Virgo constellation, but there is no reference on how Demeter became stars in the sky. The third possible association with the Virgo constellation was about Astraea, the goddess of innocence, justice, virtue, and purity. Astraea was the last of the immortals to live among humans during the Golden Age; she left the world due to the evilness of humanity. Astaea was placed among the stars, where she became the constellation Virgo.
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Virgo is a large constellation, and is associated with the symbol, Spica, which is Latin for “ear of grain”, symbolizing harvest and nourishment. Astronomically, Spica is a binary star system, with its primary star a massive blue giant. This bluish color makes it a good star for navigational purposes.
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There were no changes to Virgo until the twentieth century astrologers decided to add psychological traits to people born under this sign to include, worrying, overthinking, prone to anxiety, resistant to change, and making excessive plans when stressed.
Divine Divorce: How Scorpio and Libra Split the Sky
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The Origins of Libra and Scorpio
The origins of Libra and Scorpio have been a mess throughout history. The Babylonians had constellations that translated to “The Balance”(ZIB.BA.AN.NA) and “The Scorpion” (GIR.TAB). Mythological concepts from Babylon have not made it through time. The concept of the Libra constellation made it to the Greeks from centuries of interaction with merchants and scholars. The original Greek Scorpius constellation was later separated into Scorpio and Libra around the third century BCE. The large claws of the Scorpius constellation were reduced in size, and the stars Alpha and Beta Librae were then known as Libra.
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This change in Scorpius into Scorpio made the Hellenistic Greeks decide that more changes should happen, and that the characteristics of intensity, depth, and transformation should be added to the warrior-like traits to Scorpio. They also believed each sign should have a planet to rule over them, so it was decided that Mars should rule over Scorpio, and Venus to rule over Libra. No constellation should ever be without a mythological background. The Hellenistic Astrologers thought long and hard, and came up with a story about a great hunter called Orion; who offended the Titan Gaia by boasting about being able to kill all of Earth’s animals and creatures. Gaia sent a giant scorpion to kill Orion, and succeeded in ridding the world of Orion. Both the scorpion and the perished Orion were sent to the stars by Zeus to continue the eternal chase. They will be on opposite sides of the sky with the scorpion always going after Orion.
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The Greeks did have a practical use for Libra, as it became visible in the sky during the autumn equinox, representing equal day and night. This helped give the Hellenistic Astrologers the idea to add the characteristics of justice, balance, equilibrium, and relationships to those born under this sign.
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No further changes were made until the 20th century. The discovery of the dwarf planet Pluto was discovered in 1930. Back then, they thought it was an actual planet. The astrologers during this time believed it is in the best interest of the world to change the planetary assignment of Scorpio from Mars to Pluto. These astrologers also took psychological aspects of the archetypes from Carl Jung to further personalize the signs. With Pluto in charge of Scorpio now, people born under this sign will be seen more as explorers of deep psychological exploration and self-transformative instead of assertive, courageous, and a warrior from when the planet Mars was in charge.
Starry Muddle: Sagittarius’ Mythical Identity Crisis
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The Origins of Sagittarius
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The history and mythology behind Sagittarius is a complete mess. Starting off, there is no constellation documented by the Babylonians about Sagittarius. Some people say on the internet that a mythological Babylonian deity, Pabilsag, correlates with the Sagittarius constellation even though there is no evidence of it. What we do know is that Pabilsag is a Babylonian deity that was often represented as a scorpion and a man, or a being with wings, with a human head, and a scorpion's tail. Both depictions show Pabilsag carrying a bow and arrow. This deity in Babylonian mythology was associated with healing and protection.
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The Greeks made things even more confusing. They envisioned Sagittarius as a centaur with a bow and arrow, with the arrow pointing to the heart of Scorpio, which is the bright star Antares. The mythological story behind this constellation is about a Satyr, not a centaur. This story is about Crotus the satyr that lived with the muses. He was known for his archery, and inventing the rhythmic clapping of hands to music. The Muses rewarded Crotus by granting his request to be placed among the stars. This half goat and half human now looks like a half horse and half human after being placed amongst the stars.
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The Greek mythological figure, Chiron, was depicted as an actual centaur, but is associated with the constellation Centaurus, which has no astrological significance. The mythology behind Chiron is that he was unlike other centaurs. Chiron had a divine lineage, and was born from the titan Cronus and the nymph Philyra. Chiron was depicted as more civilized and with more human features than other centaurs. He was a teacher to many Greek heroes, including Achilles, Asclepius, Heracles, and Jason. Chiron taught them medicine, hunting, music, and prophecy. Chiron was accidently shot with a poisoned arrow dipped in hydra venom by Heracles. This caused a wound to never heal, and cause intense pain. Chiron could not die, or escape the eternal pain of the wound. He gave up his immortality to escape the pain and misery from the poison, and was placed in the sky as the constellation Centaurus.
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The Hellenistic Greek astrologers decided to make the planet Jupiter rule over Sagittarius. Those astrologers also said that everyone that was born under the sign of Sagittarius would be optimistic, enthusiastic, have a strong sense of justice, ethics, and always in search of meaning and new experiences. There were not many notable changes done through Roman times and the Renaissance period. The 20th century astrologers added in the psychological traits of being overconfident, recklessness, impulsiveness, have a lack of focus, escapes to avoid problems, and other similar traits.
Saints, Goats, and Love Lotteries The Real Valentine's Day
The Origins of Valentine's Day
Valentine’s Day can be traced back to an ancient pagan Roman holiday called Lupercalia, and was celebrated from February thirteenth to fifteenth. This festival was dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, and to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus. Rituals and sacrifices were done to ensure the lands were fertile and to ward off evil spirits. Dogs and goats were sacrificed by the priests of Faunus, called the Luperci, and dedicated the sacrifices to Faunus, the Roman god of fertility, forests, and agriculture.
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Lupercalia was known for a matchmaking lottery, to help young people make connections and possible marriages. Young Roman men drew women’s names from an urn, and were coupled for the duration of the holiday, or longer if it worked out. Historically, it is unclear if Lupercalia was completely replaced with Valentine’s day, or if this Pagan holiday was transformed from matchmaking to the generalized celebration of love and affection as Christianity spread through the Roman Empire.
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February fourteenth was then associated with the legend of Saint Valentine. There were several people named Saint Valentine in reality, but a legend about a mythological Saint Valentine was that he became a martyr for performing secret marriages for young couples against the orders of Emperor Claudius II who outlawed marriage for young men.
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As we reached the middle ages, romance became more of a theme for Valentine’s day. In 1382, an English Poet, Geoffrey Chaucer, influenced Valentine’s Day with his artwork "Parliament of Foules", where he refers to February fourteenth as the day birds, and by extension, people; come together to find a mate.
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During the early 1800s, only the rich and social elite enjoyed Valentine’s day with handcrafted and intricately designed valentine cards made with paper, lace, and ribbons. During the 1840s, advances in printing technology made mass production possible. Esther Howland, known as the "Mother of the American Valentine," was the first person to sell mass produced valentine cards in the United States. Cadbury released their heart shaped boxes filled with chocolates during the late 1800’s, to specifically sell for Valentine’s Day. Current times have industrialized this holiday, and people spend billions of dollars annually, world-wide.
From Pagan Party to Holy Holiday: The Curious Evolution of Easter
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The Origins of Easter
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The earliest accounts of an Easter holiday goes back to a Pagan Germanic spring festival that was celebrated the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the spring equinox. This time of the year was associated with the balance between day and night, the end of winter, and the aspect of fertility of the land. The historical details about the Pagan goddess, Eostre, the goddess of dawn or light, is limited to that we know that a month was named after her by the 8th century monk the Venerable Bede. He never mentioned that she was associated with rabbits or eggs as some people and the internet suggest.
As with many Pagan holidays, Christianity transformed them into the holidays that we know of today. During the Christian rebranding of Easter, they kept the same day as the Pagan celebration that used celestial events and ancient timekeeping methods for Easter, and focused on the Christian belief of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This was done centuries after the death of Jesus, and historically, we really don’t know when Jesus was actually born, died, or even when he came back to life.
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The Council of Nicaea in 325 AD did many things, including standardizing the Easter Holiday within the church, as well as to resolve the controversy of Arius, a priest from Alexandria, Egypt, who taught that Jesus Christ was not divine but a created being. The Romans and the Church could not risk destabilizing their empire, and needed to stop all questioning and opposition to their religious doctrine. They condemned Arius and his teachings as heretical, his writings were banned, and he was exiled.
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English and Germans typically use the word Easter for their holiday, and most other languages use Pascha, which comes from the Hebrew word "Pesach," meaning Passover. That is associated with the Israelites' exodus from slavery in Egypt instead of Jesus coming back to life.
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During the early 1800s, Easter bunnies were made of pastry and sugar in Germany. Chocolate was a luxury item, and as it became more available, then more chocolate bunnies and exquisite chocolate eggs were made in France and Germany. During the 1960s is when Easter became heavily commercialized into the same holiday we know today.
Kidnapped, Cleric, Celebrated: The Wild Ride of St. Patrick
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The real Saint Patrick was born as Maewyn Succat in Britain in the late fourth century. Around the age of 16, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders, and spent six years in Ireland as a captive. He escaped back to Britain, became a cleric, and returned to Ireland as a missionary. There is a legend of him using a shamrock to describe the holy trinity, although there is no historical record of that. He later died on March 17th, 461 or 493 AD, as historians can’t agree on a year. It used to be a religious holiday with services and feasts in honor of St. Patrick.
The celebration of Irish culture on Saint Patrick’s day began in New York City on March 17, 1762. Irish soldiers that served in the English military marched through the city. This started an American Holiday that later evolved to green clothes, drinks, food, and green colored everything. About 141 years later, in 1903, Ireland made Saint Patrick’s day a national holiday and celebrated heritage and cultural events, music and dancing. Saint Patrick’s was celebrated before 1903 in Ireland, but there is not much detail about that in history.
During the last half of the 20th century, and especially the 1980’s, is when Saint Patrick’s day became associated with beer and alcohol. Irish beers, such as Guinness, and Irish brand alcohol became heavily advertised during this holiday.
There used to be conflicts in Northern Ireland about celebrating St Patrick’s Day until the Good Friday agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, was signed on April 10, 1998. This brought an end to the violence between the Protestants and Catholics.
Profit by the Hour: The Greedy Roots of Daylight Savings
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The Origins of Daylight Savings Time
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The first concept of Daylight Savings time was proposed by William Willett in 1907. He was a builder and outdoor enthusiast, and wanted to prevent people from wasting daylight hours in the morning, and do outdoor leisure activities in the evening. Nobody liked his proposal of advancing the clocks by 80 minutes 4 times starting in April, and reversing the process in September.
The first practical implementation of time change was during World War 1 in 1916. This was done to reduce how much coal is being burned for electricity. There is a big misconception about time change that was to extend farming hours, and agricultural groups were the first to be against Daylight Savings Time. It created more of an inconvenience for the farmers to adjust the schedules to get food to the market, and it disrupted the animals’ feeding routine.
There were a few reasons and groups that wanted Daylight Savings Time. The National Association of Convenience Stores advocated for the time change to get extra sales in the evening when people were finished working for the day. Sporting goods, Outdoor Industries, and retail stores in general would get more sales with increased daylight. The tourism industry can offer services with longer daylight hours. The Chambers of Commerce also see Daylight Savings Time as a way to stimulate the local economy with the extra money spent during the evening.
The Uniform Time Act of 1966 was introduced to standardize the start and end dates for Daylight Savings Time across the country. Before that, states and cities could decide if they implemented time change or not. That created a lot of confusion with broadcasting schedules for Television, train departures, and other problems in the transportation industry. In the USA, only Arizona and Hawaii do not use Daylight Savings Time.
Pagan Raves to Christmas Mass: A December to Remember
The Origins of Christmas
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Before Christmas was established, there were two ancient Roman festivals, Saturnalia and Sol Invictus, that have some Christmas traditions, and were at the end of December. Saturnalia was celebrated before and after the establishment of Rome. This festival was originally held on the 17th of December of the Julian Calendar, which is similar to today’s Gregorian Calendar. As Rome grew and evolved, Saturnalia became a weeklong Carnival from the 17th and the 25th of December. This holiday began with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn, a public banquet, candle lighting, and private gift exchanges. Traditional togas were replaced with colorful and festive attire.
Poets like Catullus referred to Saturnalia as the best of times with an abundance of food and wine, and the social norms of Roman society were turned upside down. The reversal of the role of slaves and their masters during this time was a major historical highlight. The slaves were able to wear their masters clothing, be served food by their owners that meant for their masters, and were able to say what they wanted without repercussion. A “Lord of Misrule” was chosen among the common people and slaves to preside over the festival. Gambling was normally illegal, but allowed during the week of Saturnalia. Social norms were suspended during this time, allowing for excess drinking and crazy sexual liberties that were deemed inappropriate for the rest of the year.
The next Roman pre-Christmas holiday was “Sol Invictus”, which was held on December 25th. This date was chosen since it was close to the Winter Solstice, and it symbolized the sun regaining its strength, renewal, and rebirth as it coincided with the days getting longer. Sol Invictus was known as the birthday of the unconquered sun (Dies Natalis Solis Invicti), and was depicted as a powerful and invincible figure driving a chariot drawn by four horses. Emperor Aurelian established the “Cult of Sol Invictus in 274 AD, and proclaimed the sun god as the supreme deity of the Roman Pantheon. This was the end of the old Roman Deities, Sol and Helios, that were associated with the Sun. Sometime during the 4th century AD, Sol Invictus was replaced with Christmas, as Christianity spread through Europe and the Roman Empire. This shifted to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ instead of a deity of the Sun, even though nobody knows the exact date of when Jesus was born.
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The Church often criticized the inappropriate behavior of the Pagans, and social norms became established as Christian holidays replaced the Pagan ones.
Should Pluto be banned from astrology?
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There was probably a lot of excitement about the discovery of Pluto back in 1930, and was mistaken for a planet back then. That correction was made in 2006. Modern astronomy has shown we have at least four other dwarf planets in our solar system other than Pluto, which are Makemake, Haumea, Ceres, and Eris.
Around the time of both of the world wars during the twentieth century, astrologers added psychological characteristics to astrological signs, and did a few changes to planetary rule over signs to incorporate Uranus and Pluto. The little dwarf planet Pluto was named after the Roman god of the underworld. The use of this name is why the twentieth century astrologers assigned the characteristics of deep transformation, the underworld, and rebirth to Pluto.
With astrology, we just need the name of anything floating in space to assign attributes to it. For example, the dwarf planet Ceres has the same name as a Greek goddess that embodies the attributes of nurturing, motherhood, and caregiving. The next dwarf planet is Eris, which also has the same name as a mythological Greek goddess that is associated with strife and discord. Haumea is an elongated misshapen dwarf planet named after the Hawaiian goddess of fertility and childbirth. Makemake is another dwarf planet that is named after the Rapanui god of fertility, and the creator of humanity.
Astrologers can easily pick a name like Eris and say that this dwarf planet can influence everyone in the world with strife, discord, or there may be a long cycle of change depending on what zodiac sign Eris passes through during its orbit.
What do you think about Pluto being a part of astrology when considering our expanding knowledge of astronomy has changed our understanding of how planets are classified? If Pluto is a part of astrology, then do you think of the other dwarf planets, and should they be included in astrology as well?
Playing Cards with the Past: Tarot's Divination Deception
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The Origins of Tarot Cards
The earliest known Tarot cards originated in the 15th century in Europe, possibly in Italy. This deck of cards was divided into two groups, the Minor Arcana and the Major Arcana. The Minor Arcana consisted of 56 cards further divided into 4 categories that may consist of cups, wands, swords, coins or pentacles. The minor cards are valued 1-14, with 10 numbered cards and 4 court cards. The 22 Major Arcana cards were numbered zero through twenty-one, each having specific imagery beginning with the Fool as the zero card.
These cards were made for a game called Tarocchi in Italy, Tarot in France, and Tarock in Germanic areas. The rules and the cards varied from each region. Some of the rules can be very complicated for different ways to play, but a general way this was played was geared towards 3-5 players, with the goal by winning the most points with the cards captured, or winning the round with specific tricks. The deck is shuffled, and evenly distributed to the players.
For a typical game of Tarot, the first player will put a card down, which can be a low number suit card, or any value card depending on the strategy of the player. The next player can put down a card that is a higher number of the same suit, or play a Major Arcana card. The Fool card is usually played near the end of the round, depending on the regional rules. If a Major Arcana card is played then all plays after that will need to be a Major Arcana of a higher number until the best card is played.
There is no forfeiting, so if someone puts down a Major Arcana card that you cannot win against, then put the lowest valued card down to conserve your better cards. Then the winning player gets all of the cards, scores points, or just wins the round depending on the gameplay.
Regional variations can affect the rules of the game. For example, the Fool card can have different properties, such as using that card in place of a valuable card, or it can have a high point value, or be reclaimed if the round is lost.
Here is a basic example round.
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Player one puts down a 3 of swords.
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Player two plays the 7 of swords.
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Player three plays the 9 of swords.
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Player four has no more sword cards, and will need to switch to the Major Arcana cards, and decides to play the Hierophant card with a value of 5.
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Player one must follow with another Major Arcana card of a higher value to stay in the game, and plays the Temperance card with a value of 14.
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Player two plays the tower card with a value of 16.
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Player three plays the world card, which is the highest value card in the Major Arcana with a value of 21, winning the round. Player four will start the next round.
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The transformation of Tarot from a game into occult practices started during the eighteenth century. The French pastor, scholar, and Freemason, Antoine Court de Gébelin, believed that Tarot originated in Egyptian schools of mystery that the secret wisdom of the ancient Egyptian priests, and be used for divination. There is no historical evidence to support that claim.
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The next eighteenth century figure is Eliphas Lévi, born Alphonse Louis Constant, was a French occultist and writer that believed that since there are 22 Major Arcana cards, and 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet connected the Tarot with Kabbalistic concepts. He also believed the Tarot cards could be used for spiritual development, achieving higher states of consciousness, and for divination.
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In 1909, a mass produced Tarot deck was available to the public known as the Rider-Waite-Smith deck with the artwork from Pamela Colman Smith under the direction of mystic A.E. Waite. These cards were more simplified, easier to interpret, and came with 78 cards.
The Thoth deck developed by the British occultist, mystic, and writer, Aleister Crowley with the artist “Lady Frieda Harris”. They revised the traditional Tarot cards with astrological, alchemical, and kabbalistic symbols. This deck was not published until 1969, which was years after their passing.
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Can we modernize Tarot Cards? Let’s give it a try.
A ten of Hearts is drawn from the deck, symbolizing a new love interest that will come into your life.
Next we have a Kings of clubs, this means the government will take away more of your rights.
Last we have the Joker, which can symbolize your life falling apart, or it may get better.
What do you think about the history of Tarot cards being transformed from a well known game throughout Europe before a few people from the 19th and 20th century changed how these cards became tools for psychics?