Astrology and the Academy
As I sit outside on my deck and watch the Moon and Venus setting I ponder the AFAN exchange on questions around how to legitimize astrology, and astrology’s possible acceptance into the academic world. I am an academic, and an astrologer, and a licensed counselor. I spent 9 years at the University of Pittsburgh, a research institution (as opposed to only teaching, therefore in the academic world, way superior) and was given full funding and fellowships. I got my Ph.D. in Religious Studies in 2004. My studies and dissertation focused on ritual and cosmology. I have given papers at numerous academic meeting, and still am involved in my professional organization, the American Academy of Religion and am giving a paper at the annual meeting this coming November. Over 6000 religious scholars attend these meetings and getting a paper accepted is considered a significant accomplishment. And I have published in academic journals and taught at various universities. As an astrologer since 1985 who was very tired of being considered sub-worthy and rather dim witted, I decided to get a Ph.D. with the goal of showing that astrologers were not dim witted and also moving forward in legitimizing astrology as a worthy profession. (Do you sense a strong Saturn here?)
When I graduated I really questioned whether I wanted to work on getting astrology to be considered legitimate by the academy. I decided, after some consideration, that it was a waste of my time and a nearly impossible task. My ideal image of the academy, that of inquiring minds who want to know, was crushed by the realities. Academics are interested in their particular discipline, and are very territorial. Astrology and alchemy are questionable in the academic community. I thought it was very prejudicial that a Christian could study Christianity, and a Jew could study Judaism, but an astrologer was considered suspect, and unable to render anything intelligible. My husband, a life long academic and former head of his department, agrees and says that there is a lot of prejudice against astrology, and that academics are arrogant anyway, and they are especially arrogant about their prejudices. (that is a quote!) I came to discover that one could study astrology as a cultural phenomena, for example astrology in India, or historical, like Mayan or Medieval astrology. But I decided it was a waste of my time and my knowledge to try to convince academics that I had something legitimate to say, when there are so many interested people in the world who are genuinely interested in what astrology offers. I decided to put my focus on moving astrology forward among those who are interested rather than trying to convince uninterested people about the value of astrology. If anyone is thinking of pursuing an advanced degree I would be glad to talk to you about possible ways to contextualize your astrological research to fit into the academy. Now there are some excellent colleges that might be considered alternative or progressive that do embrace astrology. I’m not referring to them; I’m talking about the hard core research oriented academic institutions of which I have been a part, and of which I think this forum has been referring.
As far as psychics and tarot readers are concerned: I love the Tarot and believe it to be a fantastic means for inner knowledge and a tool for guidance. I did my Master’s thesis at Hunter College in NYC on the Tarot and its relationship to Carl Jung’s path of Individuation. I have great respect for the Tarot, and certain psychics, like Edgar Cayce, I trust as legitimate. I do not think we all need to follow the same path when it comes to gaining wisdom or finding tools that work. I choose to get as much education as possible, but that is not the path for everyone. And I have had dear friends whom I greatly respect who have found comfort in mediums. I think the ideal is not to bash a profession, since that is what we dislike about astrology bashing, but rather to look for integrity and excellence wherever it is found.
In peace,
Lilan