I think all of us who practice astrology have gone through this phase: to interpret astrological data in a rather rigid, “deterministic” manner. Studying, i.e. a chart and concluding that because the person has such and such planetary positions (aspects, domifications, etc.), then s/he unquestionably has such and such traits in his/her character, while a specific set of events will befall him/her in the near (or distant) future!
These future events are supposed to be explicitly depicted in the person’s chart (through Transits, Progressions, etc.). Thus, the astrologer begins to describe the immediate and distant future of his/her client, as if it were crystal clear in front of him/her and as if there was no doubt that the subjectively determined (by the astrologer) set of events will manifest and unfold exactly the way s/he predicts!
It seems an exaggeration, but very many astrologers continue to interpret charts this way, as we speak. That’s definitely bad astrology! We may literally call it a disservice on the part of an astrologer! No human person is an unmistakable prophet; many of the astrologer’s predictions will inevitably fail, and as a result, the average customer will lose faith in astrology and astrologers, in general.
The fact is that Astrology operates in a higher, transcendental realm. Therefore, anyone who attempts to drag it down, put it in boxes and force it to obey a linear logic is effectively disconnecting it from its “roots,” causing it to “malfunction”! Astrology is then compromised, offering us only a fraction of its enormous celestial potential!
Thomas Gazis
Copyright: Thomas D. Gazis
Greek Astrologer 