By: Jean Maynard Hayes
Thomas Jefferson said, "those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God" because he believed that men who were in relationship with the soil held higher morals/ideals and would be more independent as citizens of a republic.[i] When the United States was young, some of the founding fathers made a strong push toward an agrarian society; meaning a nation of landowning farmers who functioned under very few government regulations. However, as the population grew quickly and many more immigrants arrived in the United States, technology overtook everything, driving society toward massive manufacturing and urbanization. By the earliest twentieth century, urbanization and manufacturing took over the majority of jobs in the United States. The burst of population growth pigeon-holed agriculture into producing single major crops which could be used for multiple purposes. However, the rush to grow crops quickly not only reduced variety but also lost a lot of nutritional value. In losing the needed nutrients, society lost a natural cycle of wholesome energy as well as the harmonious cycle of the entire growing, consuming, composting process. This guided the general population away from natural, earth-based traditions such as agricultural astrology (a form of natural astrology). However, astrology religious leaders began to view astrology as occult practices primarily because of its use of predictions. At the same time, education began expending massive amounts of energy to conquer astrology resulting in natural astrology being divided into science and astronomy. Nevertheless, the earth's moon remains constant. Does Agricultural Astrology still exist in America? While the primary social tools of education and religion have conspired to abolish or redefine it, there does remain in America a somewhat magical "will-o-the-wisp" of agricultural astrology through some science and/or astronomy; perhaps only by the light of the moon.[ii]
During the process of urbanization, religion and education (science) also continued to evolve. Events including both the first and second Great Awakenings caused all of society to question everything including education, science and every day common practices such as astrology. This evolution began replacing ancient traditions by redirecting the natural astrology magic/folklore of common society toward a more theological, religion-based belief system. Religious leaders viewed astrology in any form as satanic practices in opposition to the high moral standards that the church wanted to encourage. So, they spent a lot of energy working toward its annihilation. When astrology began to fall from grace with religious sects, it also fell out of favor with society's elite. Natural astrology began to be dissected, eventually becoming partly science and partly astronomy.
The natural resources of the Americas sustained Native societies and enticed countries around the world to colonize and claim seemingly unlimited raw materials. Evidence suggests parts of the Americas had been resourced of their raw materials long before Columbus sailed in 1492; Minnesota's 'Kensington Stone' which dates back to the fourteenth century, is just one example. But, the purpose of North American colonization was to provide raw materials for Portugal, Spain, Great Britain and France. Which often resulted in a physical location being stripped of its natural resources, simply abandoned and then another area would be claimed. North American immigrants migrating westward could purchase overly used and abandoned farms. The work involved returning the land into productivity took intentional conscientiousness. Furthermore, many immigrants had long used traditional methods of natural astrology for navigation, gardening and daily living. So, when Europeans settled in North America during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, natural astrology was 'natural.' Reduce, reuse, recycle are not new ideas. Concepts such as composting are a very earth-conscious method of replenishing soil. Harvesting seed from one year's planting to the next is a form of reuse. Alternating fields is an example of all three ideas. But conservation is only a portion of the earthly part of this reclamation. For a natural balance to occur, consideration of the earth's role among the universe cannot be overlooked.
The moon and the earth's place in the universe once taught and energized society as a method to provide everything they needed in the natural world. Natural astrology was part of this method of teaching was considered to be a way of life with indigenous American Indians and then a part of the traditions which came to America with the early settlers. Phases of the moon, zodiac of the stars and location of the planets affect the earth and all growing things. When a holistic view of the earth within the universe is considered, this is natural astrology.
"I see the moon and the moon sees me. God bless the moon and God bless me."[iii] Childhood nursery rhymes, such as this verse, begin an attraction to and spirituality with the moon. Then, as children mature, the rhythmic science of it's consistent cycles romance them and the mystery of the moon's effects enchant them. The consistent rhythm of the moon is truly remarkable and has been used to create calendars defining events since before the Babylonian era. A basic twenty-eight day cycle begins with 'the new moon', followed by 'the first quarter moon', 'the full moon', and 'the fourth quarter moon' each approximately seven days apart.
Starting in the seventeenth century almanacs began to play an important role in daily life. A specific portion of any annual almanac documents this moon dance with correlation to the rhythm of the zodiac of stars and planets in our universe. The natural history of particular alignments has developed the science of agricultural astrology leading to the creation of a chart of the best planting dates for above ground crops and below ground crops. Other celestial alignments have shown to improve flowering plants and best times for care of trees/shrubs, as well as when to pull weeds, set fences, perform animal husbandry and properly cultivate.[iv]
Harvard University printed the first almanac in 1639. Only the most outstanding students performed the task of calculating the astrological/astronomical tables and compiling literary, scientific and educational essays for the annual almanac. "For all but a few American colonists, the almanac was the only secular source of useful information and literary entertainment. It was a clock, calendar, weatherman, reporter, textbook, preacher, guidebook, atlas, navigational aid, Doctor, bulletin board, agricultural advisor, and entertainer. From its outset, the colonial almanac was more than practical. American almanackers were writing popular scientific explanations of comets and the solar system in clear and precise prose by the mid-seventeenth century. ...the early American almanac gave the common man, decades before the advent of colonial newspapers, his only exposure to secular writings. And, long after the introduction of newspapers, it remained the most popular of secular literary media throughout the American colonies."[v] The almanac still is a popular resource for farmers providing annual astrological/astronomical tables that include weather predictions and estimated "best days" for gardening and animal husbandry tasks. Print and digital versions are available; moreover, the Old Farmer's Almanac Facebook page has surpassed a million '-likes-.'
The 1965 World Book Encyclopedia defined astrology as "the study of the sun, moon, planets, and stars in an attempt to foretell future events on earth."[vi] However, prior to the High Enlightenment of the eighteenth century, religion included astrology and society viewed the studies of astrology with a great deal of importance. Preindustrial age apprenticeship choices were defined as "art, science, craft, or mystery."[vii] Many physicians were astrologists who believed that the moon, stars and planets ruled certain parts of the human body. They would define illnesses and administer medicine based on these criteria. But, astrology began to be rebuked by religion and education (sciences) and associated more with the occult primarily because of the use of predictions. In the early eighteenth century, Astronomy and Science became studies separated from the taboo, magic and antiquity of astrology.
Robert Brault said: "Each day learn something new, and just as important relearn something old."[viii] Publication of the Old Farmer's Almanac remaining such a popular resource into the twenty-first century, is just one shimmer of evidence that agricultural astrology does still exist in America. And while the primary social tools of education and religion have conspired to abolish or redefine it, there remains a somewhat magical "will-o-the-wisp" of agricultural astrology in America; perhaps only by the light of the moon.
Notes
[i] The World Book Encyclopedia. J-K, Volume 11. Chicago: USA Field Enterprises Educational Corporation. 1964.
[ii] "will-o-the-wisp" is defined primarily as ig·nis fat·u·us [ig-nis fach-oo-uhs] NOUN [PLURAL IG·NES FAT·U·I] 1. a flitting phosphorescent light seen at night, chiefly over marshy ground, and believed to be due to spontaneous combustion of gas from decomposed organic matter. 2. something deluding or misleading.
http://www.ask.com/web?q=define+will-o-the-wisp&qsrc=0&o=2545&l=dir&qo=homepageSearchBox
http://www.ask.com/web?q=dictionary%3A+ignis+fatuus
[iii] The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes. London: Oxford University Press. p. 356. accessed April 28, 2016. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Oxford_Dictionary_of_Nursery_Rhymes&action=edit&redlink=1
[iv] The Old Farmer's Almanac 2016. Dublin, NH, Yankee Publishing Inc. 2015; Llewellyn's Moon Sign Book 2016. Woodbury, MN, Llewellyn Publications. 2015.
[v] Marion Barber Stowell. Early American Almanacs: The Colonial Weekday Bible. New York: Burt Franklin, 1977.
[vi] World Book Encyclopedia. Volume 1 .A. Chicago: USA Field Enterprises Educational Corporation. 1964.
[vii] Anthony Brundage. Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing. Maldon, MA: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2013. 136.
[viii] Robert Brault. Mary Engelbreit's Enjoy the Joy 2016 Daily Calendar. Andrews McMeel Publishing. 2015. January 19, 2016.
Additional Sources
Beard, Charles and Mary R. Beard. The Rise of American Civilization. New York: Macmillan, 1930.
Butler, Jon. Magic, Astrology, and the Early American Religious Heritage, 1600-1760. Accessed on January 26, 2016. http://ahr.oxfordjournals.org/.
Eisenstadt, Peter. "Almanacs and the Disenchantment of Early America." Pennsylvania History, 65, no.2, 143-169. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27774098.
Handlin, Oscar. The Uprooted; the Epic Story of the Great Migrations That Made the American People. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1951.
Longacre, Celeste. "Astrology vs Astronomy." The Old Farmer's Almanac 2016. Dublin, OH: Yankee Publishing Incorporated, 2015.
Mac, P "Farming by the Moon Phases...Made Simple." Farm Hand's Companion/Country Ways. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://farmhandscompanion.com/country_ways_files.
Steiner, Rudolf. What is Biodynamics?: A Way to Heal & Revitalize the Earth. Great Barrington, MA: Steiner Books. 2005.
Tomlin, T.J. "Astrology's From Heaven not from Hell": The Religious Significance of Early American Almanacs. Accessed on March 4, 2016. http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/delivery?sid=293947c6-a45c-4fd5-a328-f4218922778f%40...
Webster, Charles From Paracelsus to Newton: Magic and the Making of Modern Science. The Eddington Memorial Lectures Delivered at Cambridge University November 1980. Mineola, New York: Charles Webster All Souls College Oxford; Dover Publications, Inc. 1982.
White, Martha. "Farming by the Moon: When to Plant, Wean, Castrate, Build Fences, Harvest" The Old Farmer's Almanac. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://almanac.com/content/farming-moon.
Thomas Jefferson said, "those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God" because he believed that men who were in relationship with the soil held higher morals/ideals and would be more independent as citizens of a republic.[i] When the United States was young, some of the founding fathers made a strong push toward an agrarian society; meaning a nation of landowning farmers who functioned under very few government regulations. However, as the population grew quickly and many more immigrants arrived in the United States, technology overtook everything, driving society toward massive manufacturing and urbanization. By the earliest twentieth century, urbanization and manufacturing took over the majority of jobs in the United States. The burst of population growth pigeon-holed agriculture into producing single major crops which could be used for multiple purposes. However, the rush to grow crops quickly not only reduced variety but also lost a lot of nutritional value. In losing the needed nutrients, society lost a natural cycle of wholesome energy as well as the harmonious cycle of the entire growing, consuming, composting process. This guided the general population away from natural, earth-based traditions such as agricultural astrology (a form of natural astrology). However, astrology religious leaders began to view astrology as occult practices primarily because of its use of predictions. At the same time, education began expending massive amounts of energy to conquer astrology resulting in natural astrology being divided into science and astronomy. Nevertheless, the earth's moon remains constant. Does Agricultural Astrology still exist in America? While the primary social tools of education and religion have conspired to abolish or redefine it, there does remain in America a somewhat magical "will-o-the-wisp" of agricultural astrology through some science and/or astronomy; perhaps only by the light of the moon.[ii]
During the process of urbanization, religion and education (science) also continued to evolve. Events including both the first and second Great Awakenings caused all of society to question everything including education, science and every day common practices such as astrology. This evolution began replacing ancient traditions by redirecting the natural astrology magic/folklore of common society toward a more theological, religion-based belief system. Religious leaders viewed astrology in any form as satanic practices in opposition to the high moral standards that the church wanted to encourage. So, they spent a lot of energy working toward its annihilation. When astrology began to fall from grace with religious sects, it also fell out of favor with society's elite. Natural astrology began to be dissected, eventually becoming partly science and partly astronomy.
The natural resources of the Americas sustained Native societies and enticed countries around the world to colonize and claim seemingly unlimited raw materials. Evidence suggests parts of the Americas had been resourced of their raw materials long before Columbus sailed in 1492; Minnesota's 'Kensington Stone' which dates back to the fourteenth century, is just one example. But, the purpose of North American colonization was to provide raw materials for Portugal, Spain, Great Britain and France. Which often resulted in a physical location being stripped of its natural resources, simply abandoned and then another area would be claimed. North American immigrants migrating westward could purchase overly used and abandoned farms. The work involved returning the land into productivity took intentional conscientiousness. Furthermore, many immigrants had long used traditional methods of natural astrology for navigation, gardening and daily living. So, when Europeans settled in North America during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, natural astrology was 'natural.' Reduce, reuse, recycle are not new ideas. Concepts such as composting are a very earth-conscious method of replenishing soil. Harvesting seed from one year's planting to the next is a form of reuse. Alternating fields is an example of all three ideas. But conservation is only a portion of the earthly part of this reclamation. For a natural balance to occur, consideration of the earth's role among the universe cannot be overlooked.
The moon and the earth's place in the universe once taught and energized society as a method to provide everything they needed in the natural world. Natural astrology was part of this method of teaching was considered to be a way of life with indigenous American Indians and then a part of the traditions which came to America with the early settlers. Phases of the moon, zodiac of the stars and location of the planets affect the earth and all growing things. When a holistic view of the earth within the universe is considered, this is natural astrology.
"I see the moon and the moon sees me. God bless the moon and God bless me."[iii] Childhood nursery rhymes, such as this verse, begin an attraction to and spirituality with the moon. Then, as children mature, the rhythmic science of it's consistent cycles romance them and the mystery of the moon's effects enchant them. The consistent rhythm of the moon is truly remarkable and has been used to create calendars defining events since before the Babylonian era. A basic twenty-eight day cycle begins with 'the new moon', followed by 'the first quarter moon', 'the full moon', and 'the fourth quarter moon' each approximately seven days apart.
Starting in the seventeenth century almanacs began to play an important role in daily life. A specific portion of any annual almanac documents this moon dance with correlation to the rhythm of the zodiac of stars and planets in our universe. The natural history of particular alignments has developed the science of agricultural astrology leading to the creation of a chart of the best planting dates for above ground crops and below ground crops. Other celestial alignments have shown to improve flowering plants and best times for care of trees/shrubs, as well as when to pull weeds, set fences, perform animal husbandry and properly cultivate.[iv]
Harvard University printed the first almanac in 1639. Only the most outstanding students performed the task of calculating the astrological/astronomical tables and compiling literary, scientific and educational essays for the annual almanac. "For all but a few American colonists, the almanac was the only secular source of useful information and literary entertainment. It was a clock, calendar, weatherman, reporter, textbook, preacher, guidebook, atlas, navigational aid, Doctor, bulletin board, agricultural advisor, and entertainer. From its outset, the colonial almanac was more than practical. American almanackers were writing popular scientific explanations of comets and the solar system in clear and precise prose by the mid-seventeenth century. ...the early American almanac gave the common man, decades before the advent of colonial newspapers, his only exposure to secular writings. And, long after the introduction of newspapers, it remained the most popular of secular literary media throughout the American colonies."[v] The almanac still is a popular resource for farmers providing annual astrological/astronomical tables that include weather predictions and estimated "best days" for gardening and animal husbandry tasks. Print and digital versions are available; moreover, the Old Farmer's Almanac Facebook page has surpassed a million '-likes-.'
The 1965 World Book Encyclopedia defined astrology as "the study of the sun, moon, planets, and stars in an attempt to foretell future events on earth."[vi] However, prior to the High Enlightenment of the eighteenth century, religion included astrology and society viewed the studies of astrology with a great deal of importance. Preindustrial age apprenticeship choices were defined as "art, science, craft, or mystery."[vii] Many physicians were astrologists who believed that the moon, stars and planets ruled certain parts of the human body. They would define illnesses and administer medicine based on these criteria. But, astrology began to be rebuked by religion and education (sciences) and associated more with the occult primarily because of the use of predictions. In the early eighteenth century, Astronomy and Science became studies separated from the taboo, magic and antiquity of astrology.
Robert Brault said: "Each day learn something new, and just as important relearn something old."[viii] Publication of the Old Farmer's Almanac remaining such a popular resource into the twenty-first century, is just one shimmer of evidence that agricultural astrology does still exist in America. And while the primary social tools of education and religion have conspired to abolish or redefine it, there remains a somewhat magical "will-o-the-wisp" of agricultural astrology in America; perhaps only by the light of the moon.
Notes
[i] The World Book Encyclopedia. J-K, Volume 11. Chicago: USA Field Enterprises Educational Corporation. 1964.
[ii] "will-o-the-wisp" is defined primarily as ig·nis fat·u·us [ig-nis fach-oo-uhs] NOUN [PLURAL IG·NES FAT·U·I] 1. a flitting phosphorescent light seen at night, chiefly over marshy ground, and believed to be due to spontaneous combustion of gas from decomposed organic matter. 2. something deluding or misleading.
http://www.ask.com/web?q=define+will-o-the-wisp&qsrc=0&o=2545&l=dir&qo=homepageSearchBox
http://www.ask.com/web?q=dictionary%3A+ignis+fatuus
[iii] The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes. London: Oxford University Press. p. 356. accessed April 28, 2016. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Oxford_Dictionary_of_Nursery_Rhymes&action=edit&redlink=1
[iv] The Old Farmer's Almanac 2016. Dublin, NH, Yankee Publishing Inc. 2015; Llewellyn's Moon Sign Book 2016. Woodbury, MN, Llewellyn Publications. 2015.
[v] Marion Barber Stowell. Early American Almanacs: The Colonial Weekday Bible. New York: Burt Franklin, 1977.
[vi] World Book Encyclopedia. Volume 1 .A. Chicago: USA Field Enterprises Educational Corporation. 1964.
[vii] Anthony Brundage. Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing. Maldon, MA: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2013. 136.
[viii] Robert Brault. Mary Engelbreit's Enjoy the Joy 2016 Daily Calendar. Andrews McMeel Publishing. 2015. January 19, 2016.
Additional Sources
Beard, Charles and Mary R. Beard. The Rise of American Civilization. New York: Macmillan, 1930.
Butler, Jon. Magic, Astrology, and the Early American Religious Heritage, 1600-1760. Accessed on January 26, 2016. http://ahr.oxfordjournals.org/.
Eisenstadt, Peter. "Almanacs and the Disenchantment of Early America." Pennsylvania History, 65, no.2, 143-169. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27774098.
Handlin, Oscar. The Uprooted; the Epic Story of the Great Migrations That Made the American People. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1951.
Longacre, Celeste. "Astrology vs Astronomy." The Old Farmer's Almanac 2016. Dublin, OH: Yankee Publishing Incorporated, 2015.
Mac, P "Farming by the Moon Phases...Made Simple." Farm Hand's Companion/Country Ways. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://farmhandscompanion.com/country_ways_files.
Steiner, Rudolf. What is Biodynamics?: A Way to Heal & Revitalize the Earth. Great Barrington, MA: Steiner Books. 2005.
Tomlin, T.J. "Astrology's From Heaven not from Hell": The Religious Significance of Early American Almanacs. Accessed on March 4, 2016. http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/delivery?sid=293947c6-a45c-4fd5-a328-f4218922778f%40...
Webster, Charles From Paracelsus to Newton: Magic and the Making of Modern Science. The Eddington Memorial Lectures Delivered at Cambridge University November 1980. Mineola, New York: Charles Webster All Souls College Oxford; Dover Publications, Inc. 1982.
White, Martha. "Farming by the Moon: When to Plant, Wean, Castrate, Build Fences, Harvest" The Old Farmer's Almanac. Accessed January 26, 2016. http://almanac.com/content/farming-moon.