Yesterday, in a friends’ gathering, the topic turned to birth charts. When I mentioned something about my rising sign, my partner seriously said, “they dismiss it because science hasn’t explained astrology yet.”
I see astrology as entertainment; I don’t believe in it blindly, but suddenly he declared war on physicists. There was an engineer friend at the table who said, “if it can’t be tested, it’s not science,” and my partner escalated the argument saying, “just because you can’t measure everything doesn’t mean it’s not real.”
When we got home, he started sulking, saying, “you sided with science too.” I couldn’t figure out if we were debating zodiac signs or relationship loyalty. Don’t you think it’s odd to take this so seriously?
Science does not envy, it measures. To what it cannot measure, it simply says, “wait a minute.” Astrology believers shouldn’t take offense, but when the testing part is left empty, it doesn’t get packaged as science.
@laboratuvarterligi I’m not saying it’s science either. For me, it’s more like a symbolic language. But some people sell it like a math formula, and that stresses me out too.
It’s one thing for your partner to act all sassy about science, and another for them to say, “You’ve taken science’s side.” As if you’re secretly messaging Newton.
Mercury retrograde collapsed the quantum wave function through the ascendant, so science hasn’t caught up to the event yet. source: just made that up
@laboratuvarterligi that’s exactly what I’m stuck on. I’m reading daily comments and laughing, while they turned that issue into an almost academic fight. The atmosphere at the table became icy.
I look at zodiac signs, but someone’s defense to the point of fighting with an engineer friend seems excessive to me. If it’s for fun, then it’s fun; if it’s faith, then it’s faith. It doesn’t work when you try to force it into science.
I don’t think the issue here is astrology. The guy has put you on the opposing side just because someone objected to what he believes in. Let’s see if he does the same thing tomorrow on another topic
There’s this issue of falsifiability, you know. If a claim can twist every outcome to its favor, then we need to stop there. Science doesn’t work with the mentality of “If it works, I knew it; if not, my map is missing.”
@kozmikdefter there’s no problem with what you said. The symbol, the story, the tool for self-reflection, all good. But the phrase “science couldn’t explain it” directly raises a debate.
I think everyone has revealed their own zodiac sign. Skeptics got a bit annoyed briefly, believers calmly explained, and the troll just put mercury in the test tube and left.
Sometimes astrology acts like a mirror, gaining more meaning through personal experiences. Some people deny it, but it’s all a matter of perspective. Science and belief may not coexist, but thinking through symbols can sometimes be more enlightening. A partner’s jealousy might actually relate to questioning their own beliefs.
When conflicts arise between science and belief, most people feel compelled to choose a side. When jealousy comes into play, the conversation can explode. After all, everyone has their own value judgments, but science should come first. Even for the sake of entertainment, it’s wise to be cautious about crossing boundaries.
I agree that science should be a priority, but the issue here isn’t entertainment or “falsifiability.” Astrology doesn’t bother anyone when consumed as entertainment, but as soon as someone derives meaning from it, a defense mechanism kicks in. Science does not discuss the human spirit; should we then leave this domain completely empty?
Discussing the human soul is one thing, claiming to explain the universe through the soul is another. When astrology jumps to the latter, the defense of being “alongside science” collapses. If you are seeking meaning, that’s fine, but you need to question why you accept this method as valid.
You mentioned symbols, and that’s critical. Astrology provides symbols, but who interprets them? If one astrologer derives love from the same chart while another derives career, how systematic is that?
Astrology is like a complete “finding your own symbol” competition. After all, even fortune tellers use their own brains as a reference. One person’s love, another’s career; it’s like they are placing orders based on the customer!
Astrology is just like a free market, everyone is making their own interpretations. When there are inconsistencies among what is said according to your perspective, you can easily see that something is not systematic. The outcome may often be satisfying for believers, but science demands certainty and repeatability. That’s why comparisons cannot be made.
