PSYCHOLOGICALASTROLOGY
Psychological astrology is an attempt to reformulate contemporary astrology in terms
of psychological concepts and practices. Although psychological astrology received its
initial impetus from Carl Jung’s analytical psychology and later from Dane Rudhyar’s
attempts to integrate astrology with humanistic psychology, contemporary astrologers
have gone beyond these early forays. More recent attempts include the assimilation of
ideas from psychodynamic theory, existential psychology, object relations theory, gen-
eral systems theory, gestalt therapy, cognitive behavioral psychology, and various other
psychological models and perspectives. In this regard, humanistic and Jungian
approaches must be regarded as subsets of psychological astrology as a whole.
Perhaps the defining attribute of a psychological approach to astrology is its
focus on integrating the birth chart and, thus, supporting the human potential for
growth and change. Outside of this one primary focus there is probably no uniform psy-
chological approach, although there are probably few psychological astrologers who are
not transpersonally oriented. Almost by definition, psychological astrology is transper-
sonal, which is that branch of psychology that incorporates spiritual notions into its
framework and as such is a more inclusive school of psychology—“a fourth wave,” as
Abraham Maslow (1968) called it in his 1968 book, Toward a Psychology of Being.(The
first three waves were psychoanalysis, behaviorism, and humanistic psychology.)
I consider Humanistic, Third Force Psychology, to be transitional, a
preparation for a still “higher” Fourth Psychology, transpersonal, tran-
shuman, centered in the cosmos rather than in human needs and inter-
est, going beyond humanness, identity, self-actualization, and the like.
Given Maslow’s assertion, one should not equate psychological astrology with
conventional notions of psychology and thereby strip it of its transpersonal dimen-
sion. As a transpersonal theory, astrology adds significant breadth and depth to psy-
chology, transforming it into a more spiritualized model that relates psyche to cosmos,
just as Maslow envisioned.
Psychological astrology can be differentiated from therapeutic astrology on the
basis of it not being limited to psychotherapy. Whereas therapeutic astrology seeks to
establish general guidelines, principles, and professional standards for the application of
astrology to the fields of counseling and psychotherapy, psychological astrology, per se,
is a broader discipline. Just as psychologists must be trained in a variety of different sub-
ject areas—psychotherapeutic techniques, personality theory, psychopathology, human
development, and research methodology—so the interests of psychological astrologers
extend beyond a focus on counseling. Articles and books by practitioners cover a broad
array of topics, including developmental stages, sexual dysfunction, learning disabili-
ties, psychopathology, eating disorders, dream analysis, and research methodologies.
Astrology as a Personality Theory
Although astrology clearly involves counseling, every approach to counseling
is founded upon certain presuppositions about the human psyche it hopes to treat.
These presuppositions, in sum, constitute the personality theory that supports the
THEASTROLOGYBOOK [549]
Psychological Astrology