The age of Pisces began around the year 1 AD and will finish around the year 2150 AD. Many Christian icons for Christ include the astrological symbol for Pisces, the fishes, because the narrative of Christ’s birth falls on this date. Jesus is considered an archetype of the Piscean since he had many of the temperaments and personality qualities of a Piscean. Furthermore, the twelve apostles were known as “fishers of men,” early Christians were known as “little fishes,” and “Ikhthus,” the Greek word for fish, was used as a code term for Jesus. The beginning of the era, or the “Great Month of Pisces,” is considered the start of the Christian religion. Saint Peter is the apostle of the Piscean zodiac sign.
In This Article...
What did the Pisces Age imply?
Astronomy has nothing to do with the Age of Aquarius. It’s an astrological age that happens due to precession, a natural motion of the Earth. The identify of the Pole Star changes throughout time due to precession. The precession cycle lasts 25,800 years. There are also 12 zodiac constellations. As a result, around the time of the vernal equinox, the sun’s position in front of the background stars moves in front of a new zodiacal constellation every 2,150 years. At that point, a new epoch might be considered to have begun.
The vernal equinox point, also known as the March or spring equinox point, is the position of the sun in the sky at the vernal equinox. When the vernal equinox point moves from in front of the constellation Pisces to in front of the constellation Aquarius, the Age of Aquarius is said to begin.
When that happens, there should be a definitive answer. At the time of the equinox, when will the sun be in front of Aquarius? When will the Aquarius Age begin?
However, there are no easy answers. The answer to this frequently asked question can be found in a variety of ways.
Age of Aquarius in astronomy
Let’s have a look at the answer from the standpoint of astronomy. The International Astronomical Union (or IAU) took on the task of officially naming and defining all things astronomical in the twentieth century. In 1930, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) established “official” constellation borders. As a result, astronomers tend to use IAU constellation borders to date the start of the Age of Aquarius. Astrologers and New Age practitioners, on the other hand, may or may not employ the same limits.
Jean Meeus, a well-known Belgian astronomer and mathematician, is one of the IAU’s adherents. In 68 B.C., the sun went from being in front of the constellation Aries to being in front of the constellation Pisces, according to his calculations. Looking ahead, the March equinox will pass into the constellation Aquarius in 2597, according to Meeus.
These are the astronomical dates, which are based on the IAU constellation limits, which were established in 1930.
The size of the constellations as defined by the IAU varies. Astrologers, on the other hand, frequently divide the zodiac into 12 equal sectors. So that’s one major distinction between astronomers and astrologers when it comes to constellations.
You must also examine when the Age of Pisces began in order to determine when the Age of Aquarius begins. There appears to be no solid agreement among astrologers as to when the Age of Pisces began. As a result, no one knows when the Age of Aquarius begins. Nicholas Campion suggests that the estimated dates for entering the Age of Aquarius span from 1447 A.D. to 3597 A.D. in his book The Book of World Horoscopes. Campion also looked at astrological sources for published material on the issue. He asserts that most authors believe the Age of Aquarius began in the twentieth century (29 claims). The twenty-fourth century comes in second (12 claims). Campion, by the way, is the director of the Sophia Centre at the University of Wales, Lampeter, as well as the Course Director for the M.A. in Cultural Astronomy and Astrology. Here are Campion’s credentials.
Did it begin in 2012?
According to some astrologers, the Age of Aquarius began in 2012. This is because they believe the star Regulus in the constellation Leo the Lion marks the ancient boundary between Leo and Cancer constellations. In 2012, this star passed within 30 degrees of the September equinox, indicating that Regulus transitioned from the sign of Leo to the sign of Virgo. The border of the constellations Pisces and Aquarius is 150 degrees west of Regulus, or near the March equinox point, assuming equal-sized constellations in antiquity. According to this calendar, the Age of Aquarius began in 2012.
As you can see, many people have a clear grasp on how to compute the start of an age. However, there is no agreement among the numerous people who are performing the calculations. See what various authors have claimed in these Wikipedia lists.
To be clear, we at EarthSky approach the topic from an astronomical standpoint. Please show us more methods of calculating the Age of Aquarius if any qualified astrologers are willing to do so! We look forward to hearing from you.
By the way, Terry MacKinnell reacted to our request for comments by asserting that in ancient Babylon, a new zodiacal constellation appearing over the eastern horizon before sunrise on the morning of the Northern Hemisphere spring equinox signaled the beginning of a new era. More information can be found at An Age-Old Mistake That Still Haunts Astrologers.
>Definition of terms: Vernal equinox point
The vernal equinox, often known as the March or spring equinox, is a point on the imaginary celestial sphere that surrounds Earth. The celestial equator, or line around the sky just above Earth’s equator, intersects the ecliptic, or path of the sun across our sky. Because the sun used to be in front of the constellation Aries at the time of the vernal equinox, it’s also known as the First Point in Aries. The sun has been in front of the constellation Pisces at the time of the equinox for the past 2,000 years. The significance of the so-called Piscean Age is as follows. The sun will pass through Aquarius at some time during the equinox. The Age of Aquarius begins on that date.
How did the Age of Aquarius enter popular culture?
In the United States, the Age of Aquarius is connected with the hippies of the 1960s and 1970s, as well as the New Age movement. The arrival of the Aquarian age has been connected with… well, harmony and understanding, sympathy and trust aplenty in both situations. That brings us to the smash-hit musical from 1967 “The 5th Dimension’s Aquarius serves as the opening song for the film Hair. The first lines of the song were:
It’s difficult to put into words how I felt “Hair, which still appears daring now, had an impact on audiences when it premiered on Broadway in 1968. It went on to have 1,750 Broadway performances and 1,997 London performances, with parallel productions in locations around the United States and Europe, as well as supporting records (the original Broadway cast recording sold three million copies). This Broadway musical almost single-handedly launched the Aquarian Age notion into mainstream culture in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Although the video below isn’t the original, it gives you a good sense.
Bottom line: The Age of Aquarius begins when the March equinox point shifts from Pisces to Aquarius.
But there’s no way of knowing when it will happen.
