posted June 19, 2015 03:59 PM            

If not, here’s an observation.

For people who are unfamiliar with the blogging platform Tumblr, it can seem like a really strange place when you encounter its community. Describing it accurately with just a few sentences is nearly impossible but a vague yet mostly accurate description would be – a place for very liberal teenagers. The majority are Sagittarius Pluto generation and they keep getting younger while the Scorpio gen (people over 20) become more and more scarce.

They have always had a penchant for discussing social issues and being very vocal with their opinions (sometimes going too far and being heavily criticized for it by the rest of the Internet) but lately they have developed an interest in something else – astrology

It has become a running gag and a meme but there are also people who show genuine interest in the field.

“The signs as X”
“Most to least likely signs to X”
“X squad”

These are very popular comedy posts around Tumblr lately. There is also currently a joke going on where everyone is hating on Gemini for some reason.

I have visited blogs that are dedicated to astrology and they seem to have a basic grasp of it but their knowledge runs shallow. Their posts are mostly trivial and they heavily focus on signs and planet positions disregarding aspects or analyzing charts. The same goes for synastry. But considering that most of their content is light entertainment you could understand why they focus of the basics.

What could be counted as a weakness however, is that some fall short when it comes to basic rules (how far Mercury and Venus travel, dignities, the nature of astrology itself). Let’s not forget that they are young and they still have much to learn but they are forwarding this information.

And it’s becoming more and more popular, attracting people who have never before been involved in astrology.

What do you think about this? Do you think it’s a good thing?

Do you think astrology will become more mainstream and accepted by younger people? Will it lead more people to study it and for society to embrace it in the future?

Or do you think it’s a bad thing – that it’s spreading misinformation and making the study of astrology seem like a joke and a fad leading to more negative and dismissive perceptions of it?

Or do you think it won’t affect astrology and the astrological community in any way and it will pass just like every other internet trend?

I would also like to add a parallel to explain why I want to talk about this. In the early 2010’s up to a few years ago different forms of activism were limited to people passionate about causes and to their own small communities. Lately however you must have noticed a rise in the talk about gender equality, racial issues and the like. Tumblr was created in 2007 and with it came the rise of these topics into the mainstream for better or for worse. It is definitely a gateway where ideas limited to a small number of people start spreading to the general public. I want to know if something similar will happen to our astrological community. Astrology is considered esoteric, if it follows the same path social activism did, this might change.

posted June 19, 2015 04:34 PM            

Millenials tend to have a more rationalist, educated view of things than previous generations. The tumblr blogrolls I've surveyed show me its for/from a more socially smart, linguistically witty, computer/graphic savvy crowd that knows how to get attention, but won't really add much if anything to astrology.

There won't be anything that will boost astrology in popularity or acceptance until far more sophisticated 3D (even interactive) astrology-dedicated software comes along that can at least use something like Starry Night as its basis. That is a lot of work and it is not likely to happen unless a lot of manpower and oodels of money go into it. It may be that this breakthrough depends on an operating system/interface breakthrough.

Meanwhile, we have the same level of astrological literacy perpetuated throughout most of the internet. The only change has been in an elevation of awareness related to declinations that came after the publication of Steven Forrest's book on the Moon. And that is only among serious astrologers and students.

posted June 19, 2015 04:36 PM            

I've seen the posts you're referring to and astrology has always been somewhat of a trend, but its risen because of twitter, not tumblr. People needed things to put in their twitter bios (besides their height) and started writing things like "team aries" etc and putting their sign symbols as their names.

Not to mention all the astrology twitter accounts writing random characteristics and applying it to a sign. Tumblr eventually caught on with stuff like "Wear all black squad: leo, aqua etc". I'm not surprised because both social media platforms are used for self expression. Astrology is being used as a way to validate whatever characteristics a person likes in their sign and relates to.

I think it's pretty dumb but only because I've studied astrology for years. I started with my mother reading astrology columns and showing them to me. It made me hate astrology at first because it was too general. Then, I did a birth chart and found it worth digging into.

Not many people are going to have a vested interest in astrology and will just go with the fad, which I presume will die in a few years. If they ask me my sun sign only, I'm going to tell them how stupid it is to make sweeping generalizations about things people have no control over. If they are curious and seek knowledge, I'll teach them how to actually use astrology and let them decide.

I don't so much care for the greater good of astrology, since even "astrologers" are very good at confusing people and distorting facts. Misinformation on astrology is everywhere, even in astrological communities. I won't pretend to be an expert on astrology but I will make the most sense of it that I can and be responsible with it.

To get personal now, I have a tumblr but don't use it. I don't like the cult mentalities that form in groups and that's everywhere on tumblr. Certain fandoms also disturb me. I know it seems like a whole tide of people are moving towards specfic topics, but that is not true. Considering millions of people have tumblr but posts rarely get a million reblogs or likes, that is saying something. It's usually the same people reblogging the same stuff.

Sorry for the long post~

posted June 19, 2015 04:44 PM            

I have no idea where those people who created the posts, got their information but most of it is completely false.

There are a few funny ones with some truth to the unformation, but most of it is garbage.

posted June 19, 2015 04:45 PM            

I would agree there definitely are some somewhat irrelevant posts in regards to astrology, but there are a FEW (not a megaton) blogs that do get much more specific.

I think SOME of it is misleading, but speaking from experience, and the people I communicate with on tumblr, quite a few of them have gained more of an interest because of these posts. I've had a few come to me curious about their natal charts and such. Most the people I see post those astrology related posts actually seem quite interested when I mention aspects and the other more in depth parts of astrology.

Astrolocherry is probably one of my favorite pages. She isn't one of the most extremely technical posters, but she does have some pages on certain aspects, certain house placements and so on. Her articles are pretty relevant, however I would consider them kind of "hip".. But, that's the thing right there! For people just beginning learning about astrology, especially those in their teens.. They will probably find her way of writing invigorating and interesting. Her writing keeps things interesting for those who are just starting to learn. Keep in mind, some teenagers aren't going to find as much interest in monotone, list-like writing. An interesting, hip approach will help people stay interested, rather than just dropping it because it is monotonous.

Am I saying that all of the astrology posts are going to get people interested in the further dynamics of astrology? No.

In fact, I would agree that SOME of the posts.. Actually, a lot of information singling ONE aspect out as the one and only defining aspect is dangerous.. (Even if it is something as influential as the sun sign..) charts are complex. It's hard to REALLY explain someone with just their sun sign.. Or just their "big 3" the chart is much more diverse than that, and every little detail counts.

However, that doesn't change the fact that those posts MAY spark an interest in getting to understand the deeper aspects of astrology. Of course, as I've mentioned, it can also be somewhat misleading, making people think that they can be explained by only 1-3 points/aspects/planets in their charts.

posted June 19, 2015 06:11 PM            

ReadingTheStars95 mentioned that they like/can tolerate Astrolocherry, and me as well. She may not be the greatest either, but she at least does not provide uselessness or inaccuracy in her posts, which is great.

posted June 19, 2015 06:21 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by yellowelevator:

In a way I think it's cool that Astrology is becoming a little more noticed on the internet/Tumblr, but at the same time I don't much enjoy it or partake in it simply because as a strong believer and studier of the subject, I don't want to let people continue to believe things about Astrology that is not beneficial to it at all or is not an accurate depiction of what it is really about. I want to teach those who are genuinely interested about it, instead of joining the online bandwagon that is simply Meme-like.

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posted June 19, 2015 06:47 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by ReadingTheStars95:
Exactly.. It's kind of like when you see people using all kinds of symbols because its the "cool" thing, when they have absolutely no knowledge of what they actually represent. It's kind of insulting in a sense, really.

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