User:MirelaSab/sandbox

In Astrology, the Royal Stars of Persia were regarded as the guardians of the sky in approximately 3000 BCE during the time of the Ancient Persians in the area of modern day Iran. The Persians believed that the sky was divided into four districts with each district being guarded by one of the four Royal Stars. The stars were believed to hold both good and evil power and the Persians looked upon them for guidance in scientific calculations of the sky, such as the calendar and lunar/solar cycles.

Although there is mention of the Royal Stars influencing the Ancient Egyptians in roughly 5,000 BCE, they were noted when the Ancient Persian Prophet Zarathustra, also known as  Zoroaster  in Greek, mentioned them in the  Bundahishn , the collection of  Zoroastrian   Cosmogony  and  Cosmology , in approximately 1,500 BCE. Zoroastrianism was a religion formed by  Zarathustra, based upon the God  Mazda  and was native to Persia.

There are four dominant stars, with an apparent magnitude of 1.5 or less. The four stars, Aldebaran,  Regulus ,  Antares ,  Fomalhaut , are the brightest stars in their constellations, as well as being part of the twenty five brightest stars in the sky, and were considered the four guardians of the heavens. They marked the seasonal changes of the year and marked the equinoxes  and  solstices. Aldebaran watched the Eastern sky and was the dominant star in the  Taurus constellation,  Regulus  watched the North and was the dominant star in the  Leo constellation ,  Antares  watched the West and was the alpha star in  Scorpio , and  Fomalhaut  watched the Southern sky and was the brightest star in  Piscis Austrinus  (sharing the same longitude with the star  Sadalmelik  which is the predominant star in  Aquarius ). Aldebaran marked the  vernal equinox  and  Antares  marked the  autumnal equinox, while  Regulus  was the  Summer Solstice  and  Fomalhaut  the  Winter Solstice. While watching the sky, the dominant star would appear in its season, each having a time of the year when most noticeable.

The Royal Stars are said to be fixed in their constellations because their positions are in the four fixed points of the sun's path among the stars. They were named the Royal Stars because in the beginning of each season the position of the sun would be in the position of one of the four stars. By 700 BCE the Nineveh  and  Assyrians  had essentially mapped the  ecliptic  cycle because of the four stars and after had mapped the constellations and distinguished the planets from the  fixed stars. In 747 BCE the Babylonian King Nabu-nasir  adopted the calendar, one following an eight-year cycle and one a nineteen-year cycle.

The Royal Stars were used primarily for navigation.They were also believed to govern events in the world. Major disasters, breakthroughs, and historical phenomenons were seen as caused by the stars and their alignment in time during which the event occurred. When the stars were aligned accordingly, favourable conditions followed, and when they were negatively aligned, disaster was predicted. Regulus was seen as the main star because it was in the  constellation  of  Leo, giving it the power of the lion, signifying the strength of kings.