Astromancy is Celestial Divination     Astromancy is an ancient word that refers to divination by the stars. The Greek prefix "astro" means "star" while the word "mancy" is from the Greek "manteia" which means "prophesying". Astromancy is a form of fortune telling done by making predictions according to the positions and angles of the stars, sun, moon and planets. Telling fortunes by interpreting the celestial bodies is nowadays commonly known as astrology, but astrology is also known as the science that interprets the influence of the celestial bodies on human affairs. So on one hand astrologers are practicing serious science and on the other they are doing divination. So what will it be? The sooner that astrologers leave celestial divination to astromancers, the sooner that astrology will be recognized as a science. It’s time for astrologers to go beyond fortune telling and to acknowledge astrology as a science, not a form of divination. Will people ever regard astrology as serious if astrologers practice a form of celestial divination called astromancy?    Some astronomers and scientists spend a lot of energy debunking astrology. One of the reasons why some people don’t take astrology seriously is because they see the daily horoscopes and columns with trivial and often ridiculous advice. In fact, this kind of divination isn’t actually astrology, it’s astromancy. The problem arises because long ago the word astrology took over the meanings and duties of the word astromancy. What would happen if astrologers stopped practicing astromancy? First off, they might gain more respect and credibility. The fact that astrologers do celestial fortune telling is probably not in the best interest of those astrologers who want astrology to be known as a science. It might benefit both astrologers and astromancers if they could separate their practices. Then people would know if an interpretation was based on a scientific system or if it was celestial divination. Should astrologers inform their clients when they are practicing astromancy?    Astronomy, astrology and astromancy were regarded as sciences in ancient times. Astronomy has become a science in its own right, dealing with the material universe beyond earth’s atmosphere. Not enough convincing research has been presented to the scientific community for it to recognize astrology as a science yet, but astrologers don’t need to also prove that celestial divination (astromancy) is a science. Is divination a science or an art?    Astromancy is the money making secret of astrologers. Some astrologers practice astromancy to make money fast because an astromancer can start reading the celestial omens without having to spend a lot of time in consideration of the natal horoscope. Astromancers may use horoscopes, transits and other astrological tools for making their predictions. Much of the astrological literature dealing with celestial divination can be used as textbooks for astromancy because astrologers have organized astromantic techniques and perfected them. The study of the influence of the stars and planets on human affairs is astrology, but the interpretation of a horoscope may still be a form of astromancy. Reading astrological transits, horary charts and planetary hours may be astromancy. Just interpreting astrological influences may be astromancy if interpretation is indeed a form of divination.    At this point in time, astromancy and astrology are too intertwined to distinguish between them, but maybe it’s time to brush off an ancient word and put it back in circulation.  © Lance Carlyle Carter 6-2-2001 All rights reserved. www.astromancy.com