astroscopy

English

Etymology

astro- +‎ -scopy

Noun

astroscopy (uncountable)

1. (obsolete) observation of the stars
   • 1856 October, “Blakey's History of Logic”, in The Methodist Quarterly Review, volume 38, page 517:

     That astroscopy, or the inspection of the stars, furnished practical aids to navigation and other pursuits from very early times, is not questioned; but astroscopy is no more astronomy than it is the science of electricity to watch the play of the lightning in the clouds.

2. Any of various systems of prognostication by means of the planets and stars other than astrology involving the zodiac.
   • 1870, The Chronicle - Volume 5, page 435:

     If the signs of the times are read aright by those most skilled in such astroscopy, the Board will not long languish for the want of such medication.

   • 1952, Reginald Cuthbert Greatrex Hancock, Memoirs of a Veterinary Surgeon, page 201:

     Moreover his astroscopy convinced him that the cause of all this was the fact that, many centuries before, the hill summit had been the site of Druidic ceremonies —black magic practices with a ghastly and evil ritual.

   • 2012, Joseph E. Pizzorno, Jr. ND, Michael T. Murray, ND, Textbook of Natural Medicine, page 46:

     The volume also contained Louis Kuhne's "Neo-naturopathy (the new science of healing)" in the first publication of the translation by Lust, and articles on electrotherapy, neuropathy, dietology, chiropractic, mechanotherapy, osteopathy, phytotherapy, apyrtropher, physical culture, optometry, hydrotherapy, orthopedics, pathology, natural healing and living, astroscopy, phrenology, and physiology—all of which were specially commissioned for the directory from practitioners and authors considered expert in these subjects.

   • 2018, Joseph Campbell, David Kudler, Oriental Mythology:

     Hence in Mesopotamia the priestly art of knowing the will and order of creation required a much more constant watch given to immediate phenomena than its counterpart in Egypt, and a development of numerous, very seriously studied techniques of divination was a consequence of this necessity; as, for example: hepatoscopy (examining the livers of sacrifiece beasts), oleography (judging the configurations of oil poured into water), astroscopy (an observation of the visible appearances of the stars, planets, moon, and sun, not yet, as in astrology proper, a judgment of their relative placements in the zodiac); also a judgment of meteorological conditions (cloud formations, varieties of thunder and lightning, rains, winds, earthquakes, etc.); further, an observation of the behavior of animals, the flights of birds, births of prodigies, etc.

Related terms

• astroscope