einhverfr said:
In this way the stars neither impel nor compel but rather manifest. Depending on our choices we *may* have the ability to determine to some extent *how* they manifest.
Many of the 'prominant' astrologers on this forum would deny that the stars have anything to do with astrology (except one star - the sun). Looking for a mechanism then will tend NOT to get you a straight answer.
However I disagree with them, seeing astrology relating directly to the influence of the stars.
In my mechanistic view the constellations (and other areas of space - the Australian Aboriginals also use the dark spaces between the stars and their shapes - ie. the dust clouds that obscure the light of the stars) have certain energies and beings attributed to / residing in them. These are the emination 'points'.
The objects within the solar system act as lenses and reflect and focus and modify these energies as they pass through and around them. Different angular relationships modify the forces.
In tropical astrology (which does not use stars) the objects within the solar system are grouped in devisions (astrological signs or segments of 30 deg.) which relate to the movement of the earth around the sun - hence seasonal. We could postulate a 'mechanism' for this; if you are in the South hemisphere and a 'Cancer', you were born in winter. I would suggest a baby born in winter is going to have a different first 3 months (prob the most crucial) than one born in summer ( Thats a very materialistic mechanism for you).
One could go further and look at the influence of the Moon and its effects on gravity and the resutant response in the human psyche Bartoloms (? I think it's called) gland in the brain can be sensative to minute fluctuations in the earths geomagnetic field due to its interior of tiny floating magnetised crystals ( many indigenous people still have this sense but most of us have lost it due to EM pollution).
Just some ideas. I thought I'd throw it open instead of just putting you off, as I think it is a good question and need not be just swept under the carpet.
However I am coming from a VERY broad definition of Astrology and not the specific ones that seem to sometimes apply here and perhaps with yourself? if you are interested in a broader field, you might need to go to other traditions to get a more satisfactory answer.
R.