by Robert Wilkinson
After 54 years in the craft, I continue to be amazed at how many people believe astrologers should not have political opinions, and that an astrologer with a political opinion cannot be objective in analyzing charts. Both of these beliefs are grounded in a lack of understanding of both Astrology and human nature.
I cannot recall any other profession where this happens. I have never heard it said a doctor or attorney should not have political opinions, or that those who have opinions cannot be objective in the practice of medicine or law. A psychological counselor may be left, right, or center, but if they are trained in counseling psychology those political beliefs do not enter into their evaluation of a client.
While a psychologist’s belief systems may hinder them in some ways, that would be true for all of us. That’s why as adults we are tasked with learning the difference between opinion and fact, between beliefs and established understanding beyond beliefs. I have found that regardless of personal beliefs, a professional is capable of expressing their expertise in their field if they can detach from those beliefs within the umbra of the practice of their craft.
That is the blessing of objectivity. True objectivity allows for the consideration of contrasting views to come to a more holistic understanding of the object being considered. One can still prefer this or that (fill in the blank) while objectively approaching the information being considered.
Of course, many who practice astrology are not objective, just as many who practice law are not objective. They are selective in what they choose to see and what they choose to express. An attorney interprets the law in their own way, even if it’s contrary to established understanding of that law. An astrologer interprets the chart in their own way, even if it’s contrary to what 99% of other astrologers would say.
This throws the discussion back to human nature and why people have the prejudices they do. Some are based purely in belief even if that belief is misguided or a total fiction. Some learn a set of facts and then choose to ignore all other facts which may modify or contradict the facts they know. We all struggle with finding the truth in a world of a thousand fictions.
If an astrologer is not objective in their analysis, it inevitably leads to one of two results: 1) it becomes cheerleading for the client, leaving out whatever might disturb the message they want to hear, or 2) it becomes a persuasion for the client to accept the message the astrologer wants them to hear, usually for consciously or unconsciously selfish reasons. If the second, when the persuasion (seduction) is aligned with the subconscious mind of the client, then the client accepts the premise; if it’s not aligned with the subconscious mind of the client, then the client rejects the premise.
This is true in any interaction. Either we’re being objective or we’re not. Either the other is being objective or they’re not. Emotional triggers and defense mechanisms usually kick in when subjectivity comes face to face with objectivity. Objectivity has no problem “comparing and contrasting.” Subjectivity either doesn’t want to do that, or cannot do that.
I believe we’re all capable of being objective if we aren’t subjectively “invested” in a thing. The problem to me is not that people are invested; the problem is that they are capable of being objective but choose not to be for whatever reasons motivate them. Those moments when the need for objectivity confronts attachment to subjectivity triggers many kinds of defense mechanisms. The task is to remain objective in the face of defenses which ultimately don’t matter.
It is human nature to have opinions about everything in our perceptual field. There is no astrologer on Earth who should be bound not to have opinions about real world events and people. That is an absurd standard to hold anyone to.
An astrologer’s political opinion, factual or delusional, left, right, or center, doesn’t negate their skill at analyzing charts, which is proved in the doing. If you’re good at something, you don’t lose that skill just because you have an opinion about your society, how it’s run, and what you believe needs to be done.
In that respect, there are two types of astrologers: those who are professionals and those who study and do research. Some astrologers are immersed in the craft and don’t participate in the dialogs in the public square, while others have a limited astrological focus on one or more of the 9 branches of Astrology. This is the difference between practicing professional astrologers and political astrologers who do research but do not do chart analysis as a profession.
As a result of over 54 years' experience reading charts AND being politically active, at one point as a professional analyst in a DC think tank, I know I can be objective in both realms and still know the score. I remember taking heat for analyzing Dick Cheney’s chart long ago and referring to him as a war criminal. When taken to task for using that term, I reminded the person that Dick Cheney was in fact a war criminal as determined by the courts. They said I was being subjective when all I was doing was pointing out a fact.
An astrologer who doesn't have an opinion about the positives and negatives in governance or society doesn’t exist. While those opinions are inappropriate in personal counseling sessions, I don’t see that those opinions necessarily mean that person doesn’t know astrology. Having opinions does not negate expertise in chart reading.
The beauty of Astrology is that it is timeless and large enough field of study that it allows for both subjective and objective approaches while still offering ever-greater understanding of our world and the One Life we all are together. And because we are ever-expanding units of higher Consciousness here to become aware of all we need to examine while we’re here, we’ll have many opinions about what we see and encounter.
All of us will have opinions regardless of what we’re studying. Most of us will learn to adapt those opinions in the face of subsequent facts, revelations, and evolved understanding. Political astrologers will always be on the lookout for the next revelation related to the charts of why things are the way they are when they are. And all who study Astrology are free to step off the next Uranian cliff, revealing yet another facet in the unfolding mystery of human evolution.
Copyright © 2025 Robert Wilkinson
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