For everyone finding their way to askchristine.wordpress.com for the first time - whether it’s via Lynn Hayes’ and Julie Demboski’s blogs, your own searches, Astrology News, or Astrology Blogger - welcome! Read, comment, browse, explore, enjoy!
I was fascinated to see the conversation that erupted after Lynn Hayes picked up the discussion about the ethics of predicting death from an astrological chart. It’s over here if you’d like to see - especially visit the comments section on that blog post.
The only time I’ve ever been asked directly about death was more than 10 years ago, when I was a modern astrologer. I was doing speed readings at a small, private party; the hostess gave me the birth data for all six of her guests ahead of time, and I met with each one privately for 15 minutes to talk about their charts and provide quick transit-based forecasts for the coming year. I remember one woman asking me point-blank, “I would like to know when and how I am going to die.” I was floored. I believe I gave her a non-fatalistic reply about how it’s not necessarily shown or set in stone, etc., but the truth is that I did NOT want to touch that question. Nowadays I don’t think modern astrology could even have provided her with an answer.
Here’s where I stand on it now, having forsaken modern astrology for the traditional perspective. I believe it is possible to predict death, possibly not to the date and time but certainly to a given season of a given year. I suspect it is possible to anticipate the likely cause of death, too. I don’t know how to do it - yet. I would like to know how it’s done.
Would I ever actually do it? Living in the litigation-happy United States, I probably would not. In an ideal world, I would like to believe that anyone who comes to me with a question they expect me to answer with astrology ought to be prepared to hear the answer. However, I have no idea what to do about self-fulfilling prophecies, or about those who let their own thoughts about the prediction cause them stress or grief. And I really don’t know what to do about clients who, given what they asked for (if not what they wanted to hear), sue anyway.
That said - I would definitely not volunteer information about a person’s death if they aren’t bringing up the topic themselves. I can’t imagine what’s going through the mind of the 21st century astrologer who would actually bring it up without the client’s requesting it. Warnings of danger, sure. But unsolicited information about the end of life? I don’t think we live in a time or a culture that supports having that knowledge.
What do you think? Have you ever been asked to talk about death - astrologically or otherwise?
May 21, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Once a client asked me about her elderly mother who was very ill. I made the prediction but was wrong. That was a lesson there.
Another client wanted a reading and I saw his wife’s death, but I didn’t tell him about it. I just told him that his wife could become ill suddenly and if that happened he needed to keep on the doctors to get a good diagnosis. Well, a blood vessel burst in her head and she died. The doctors didn’t have a clue what was wrong until she passed.
Now I don’t tell anyone about their deaths. There should be a least one surprise, don’t you think?
May 22, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Thanks, Beth, for stopping by and sharing these stories. It is humbling stuff, isn’t it… whether we get it wrong or right. I think someone would have to ask me point-blank - twice - before I’d approach the topic with them. Maybe not even then…
May 27, 2008 at 3:49 pm
Years ago, on the X-Files, there was a wonderful episode about an insurance salesman who was able to predict how people would die. In one scene, a man who was a heavy smoker asked if he would die from lung cancer, and the insurance salesman told him, no–you will definitely not die from lung cancer. So, the smoker happily lights up and begins puffing madly away. Then, in the very next scene, he gets shot to death. Hilarious! And of course the wonderful irony pointedly demonstrated how worrying about our mortality can lead us to ask the wrong questions–so we miss things that are right in front of us.
This debate reminds me of a similar issue that came up in an astrology class I took many years ago. The teacher had a client who was pregnant, and the woman wanted him to choose a time for the baby’s birth–the mother had decided to have a C-section in order to give her baby a “good” chart. I was completely appalled. The teacher said he did actually do the electional chart for the client, and as far he knows the birth went smoothly. He couldn’t understand what I thought was so horrible about it. I can see reasons for predicting death in certain limited circumstances–but I can’t imagine doing an electional birth chart–something about it completely rubs me the wrong way.
May 27, 2008 at 4:16 pm
I love it! “Nope, definitely not lung cancer.” Gotta ask the right question.
I’m with you on electing birth times - that crosses a line, to me. Feels like interfering, or lacking faith/trust.
I once knew someone with a late Aquarius Sun whose mother, an amateur astrologer, did NOT want a Pisces child for whatever reason. The mother induced labor so her daughter would be an Aquarius. Control issues, much?
June 4, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Christine — I was just catching up with your post on the UK rule requiring a disclaimer that astrology is just for entertainment purposes and I noticed that the comments are closed after just 8 comments. Is this a limitation of your blog? Or did you not feel like receiving any more comments on the issue? Just curious because if you look at a blog such as Nancy’s Blog, the number of comments on her posts often run into the hundreds. — Monica
June 4, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Hi, Monica, thanks for asking. I opted to delete some comments and close comments on that entry after the conversation veered away from astrology’s merits and into personal attacks.
June 4, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Oh, that makes me feel so sad. Why would people want to attack you and your incredible site? FYI, I used to write a financial astrology column for a wire service back in the 90s and I routinely put “for entertainment purposesonly ” on my column. I have it on my blog Astrology Mundo in the “About” section. My feeling back when I first got started was that I didn’t want some trader to sue me because he was a gullible Pisces and I told him today was the day to go long (buy) wheat and the price moved against him. I guess in our litigious society, I view such disclaimers as the “price” of doing business. My Saturn/Merc in Capricorn can be incredibly down to earth about such things. So there’s my comment on disclaimers. Please delete if you really wanted to end the conversation. Keep up the good work and don’t let the jerks get you down!
June 4, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Thanks for the insight about “for entertainment purposes only.” I tend to agree with you; if coffee cups are required to say “careful, coffee is hot”, then it’s hard to take a disclaimer personally.
Thanks for your words of support, too! Delighted you’re enjoying the blog.