Astrology’s Current Popularity: An Analysis
In recent years, fortune-telling and astrology have surged in popularity across the country. Fortune-telling shops now line the streets, offering bone reading, Zi Wei Dou Shu (Purple Star Astrology), the Four Pillars of Destiny, and more. In busy shopping districts, you can find a booth every few steps. This age-old trade hasn’t faded with rising education levels and scientific progress; if anything, it has flourished alongside modern life. Does this contrast suggest that as industries advance, people feel increasingly adrift and turn to fortune-tellers for spiritual comfort? To attract customers, many shops advertise services such as "attracting good fortune and avoiding misfortune" and "opening luck and resolving calamities." Some people are lucky enough to meet a genuinely skilled practitioner who can assess their fate and offer meaningful guidance. Others, however, fall prey to unqualified operators, suffering financial loss or even personal harm—and in severe cases, family breakdowns. In today’s world, where deception is common, I’d like to offer a few suggestions for anyone considering a reading.
(1) Don’t offer any information before the fortune-teller speaks. In Four Pillars of Destiny readings, a person’s fortune is closely tied to the interplay of the Five Elements. The moment of birth is said to create a Five Elements "magnetic field" in relation to the universe. A reasonably skilled fortune-teller can infer traits such as personality, health, spouse, ancestral influences, and even how recent years have gone from your birth date and time. More advanced practitioners may even assess your home environment through the lens of the Five Elements. Before they share these insights, avoid volunteering personal details that could lead or influence them. At the same time, be mindful not to approach a reading with the mindset of "seeking blessings but not misfortunes." People naturally resist hearing bad news, even during unlucky periods. That mix of hope and fear can prompt fortune-tellers to paint an overly rosy picture—and in the glow of that optimism, clients may inadvertently give away information and fall into a trap without realizing it.
(2) After you receive predictions, offer appropriate feedback. If a practitioner with a solid grasp of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements says things that resonate, remaining stone-faced deprives them of a point of focus. They may see you as confrontational, and a headstrong fortune-teller might cut the session short—wasting your time and money and potentially costing you useful guidance. No matter how knowledgeable a reader is, without feedback to anchor and verify their insights, they can only offer a broad overview based on Five Elements interactions; there is no one-size-fits-all secret in fortune-telling. A good practitioner can broaden their awareness and apply it to the Five Elements to reveal the true nature of your risks and opportunities, so you no longer feel confused about your path. The key is to provide measured, relevant feedback to what they say.
(3) If you’re asked to spend money to change your fortune, think twice. As the saying goes, "The poor consult fortune-tellers; the rich burn incense." People often seek readings when they’re frustrated or can’t make a decision. In that sense, fortune-tellers function like social psychologists, helping clients vent negative emotions while offering constructive advice (note). Unfortunately, some practitioners resort to scare tactics, implying that only paid interventions can turn things around. Take love and marriage: anxious parents may worry about their children’s prospects, and unscrupulous fortune-tellers exploit this by selling remedies to "boost" marital luck—draining savings on fixes that may be unnecessary if the right timing simply hasn’t arrived. Married couples may experience strain due to perceived conflicts in a spouse’s star and palace, or from financial and career pressures—not from the absence of some ritual cure. Many relationships improve through time apart, cultivating shared interests, developing independence, or seeking spiritual support—all of which foster tolerance and reduce conflict over differing views. Yet some fortune-tellers quickly recommend rituals and offerings to change one’s fate, and the flood of such ads in newspapers only fuels the trend.
The three points above are simply modest suggestions to help you adopt a healthy mindset. While fate may be fixed in some respects, you can still improve your circumstances through your outlook and choices. If a fortune-teller’s words leave you despondent, anxious, or hopeless—and push you toward buying a "change of fate"—it’s best to walk away.
Note: By constructive advice, I mean suggestions grounded in practical, logical reasoning—for example, using tangible applications of the Five Elements to offset intangibles, aiming for balance through support, restraint, healing, and adjustment. This is merely my humble view.
Note: When seeking a fortune-teller, it’s important to build rapport first. Fortune-tellers are simply people who understand Yin-Yang and the Five Elements; treat them as consultants, not omnipotent "gods." This perspective helps you avoid unnecessary trouble and loss.