Most of us go through our everyday lives walking the line between our mental subjective states, and the physical things around us. We have no problem with this, but when one has to take sides as to which has the greater reality, then the debate begins.
For the scientist, mind is a tool used to explain how the physical world works. When the scientist attempts to understand the mind itself, they tinker with the brain. Little has come from this approach, hence psychology entered the realm of inquiry. Unfortunately, psychology has been reduced to the study of behavior in everything from rats in mazes to human social interaction. It's ironic that all debate, inquiry, theorizing, and scientific methodology is centered in mind, but mind is still the biggest mystery of all.
As with Plato, if we equate thought with soul, then we open a whole new concept of mind that embraces the vast Spiritual planes as dimensions of reality in and of themselves. Here the mental-spiritual universe exists as our true home; the source of our origin, and the meaning and purpose of life itself as it unfolds throughout the cosmos.
Astrology remains now in the unenviable position of being caught in the void between the subjective and objective worlds, where in fact, there is only one universe that entails both. In this void, astrology is relegated to the level of superstition in ignorance of the truth: it's a sad state of affairs, but I believe change is on the way. The stars in heaven and sentient life on many planets share a common bond, that bond is Soul; it is what gives rise to knowledge and truth. Astrology is the key to this relationship. The sun, moon, and planets are not mutually exclusive of us mere mortals; they are as much a part of us, as we are of them; not in physical appearance, but in what defines our thoughts and feelings as human beings on planet Earth.
Early philosophers understood this soul substance as etheric matter; it became accepted as the fifth element. If soul survives its temporary physical housing, then the etheric planes have to be a reality. Our highly touted physical sciences are still at too primitive a stage to discern the mind-body relationship, but it can be understood intuitively, and philosophically. I have spent many years of study in the attempt to articulate my own inner visions and experiences. It started as a way to justify my own astrological beliefs, and then of astrology itself. What I have presented is based on reason, logic, and what is self-evident.