Indians are not just cooking, Instagramming or taking online lessons while at home. They are also visiting astrology websites and connecting with online astrologers to know their post-corona future. Although our obsession with talking parrots and crystal balls goes back a long time, the pandemic and the prolonged lockdown has furthered our belief in the pseudoscience.
According to a report, a popular astrology website claims its revenues have gone up by 42 per cent during the lockdown. Whether it is students seeking career advice or stock market investors, people are turning to such online portals for all their answers amid this global uncertainty. Google Trends shows that the search for the word ‘astrology’ has surged after mid-March, right when the Covid situation in India started getting worse.
Online corona cure
Not just astrologers, tarot card readers too are in high demand. Live astrology or tarot card reading sessions on Facebook and Instagram have become commonplace, emerging as source for some of the most wacky theories and predictions about the worst flu the world has seen in the last 100 years. And while the scientific community across the globe is busy finding a vaccine, astrologers too are doing their bit–asking clients to chant Gayatri Mantra and urging them to worship the sun every day.
Some astro blogs even claim that coronavirus was predicted in Narada Samhita some 10,000 years ago. One has even accused Saturn and Rahu for the crisis.
People’s predictions are not limited to the pandemic. They even have insensitive theories explaining the deaths of actors Irrfan Khan and Rishi Kapoor. A viral tweet from a news report claimed that there was a numerological connection between their death year and age.
According to a numerologist, Covid has an ‘occult number’ 21. So, the 21-day lockdown is ‘numerologically’ significant. Wonder how he would have defended his theory considering the lockdown was extended to 40 days. Likewise, Covid-19 has an occult number 4 and the year 2020 adds up to 4, which also shows that there exists ‘perfect harmony’, which is good for India, according to the numerologist.
Like many of you reading this, even I don’t understand the maths of occult numbers.
But my rational self forces me to ask this: why do we remember only now that the crisis was predicted? If the Narada Samhita knew that coronavirus is going to attack the world, why didn’t the Narendra Modi government start screening the airports or ban international travel well in advance, considering that it believes in traditional knowledge and advice?
People have postponed their wedding dates, an auspicious day, usually arrived after numerous consultations with astrologers, who ‘deeply study’ the kundalis. How did they not know if an inauspicious crisis like Covid was looming?
Also read: Covid gave an edge to underdog apps Zoom and Houseparty. Google, Facebook playing catch up
Death of science
Sorry, believers. It seems the coronavirus has also infected astrology, making its predictions inaccurate and delayed. Or was it always the case? But instead of listening to rational and scientific advice, people still betting on this pseudoscience. A virus won’t care if Jupiter is aligned with Mars or if Saturn is the ruling planet of the year. The arrival of a pandemic cannot be predicted, neither its exit.
The World Health Organization and scientists have predicted that the coronavirus is here to stay. It might return in many parts of the world. Theories about the effect of rising temperatures on the virus are still to be established.
Everyone is clueless, and anticipating what will happen next. But it’s easy to convince people to believe in some astrological phenomenon rather than give them genuine life-saving advice. Remember how people flocked the ration shops to hoard the day the lockdown was announced, thereby defying social distancing?
Covid-19 is an uncertainty and that is what astrology cannot predict. It cannot fathom uncertainty. No amount of number prediction or tarot card reading is going to tell you when the virus will leave, or when the economy will pick up.
It is only going to fill the pockets of these online astrologers who are charging from Rs 12 to 400 per minute for telephonic advice. It is time we turned to what we can truly rely on: science and logic.
Views are personal.
You are absolutely right about the current scenario of the Astrology in current world but slowly and gradually Online Astrology is taking over Vedic Astrology but some ethical Astrology websites like Sri Astro VAstu are doing a commendable job in reinstating peoples belief on Astrology and hats off to the editor of the blog as well
Such a nice article learned a lot of things about numerology by your article and indianastropredicts.com
why astrology is considered exact opposite to science…..although i do agree o some of ur observations but YOU ARE CERTAINLY NOT CORRECT HERE…..Without reading understanding Vedas and ancient literature you only a naive person like u will say that astrology is opposite of science………
Somehow she managed to bring Narendra Modi and BJP Govt into this too. Did Narendra Modi say anytime that the Indian Govt does things based on Astrology?
She seems English or Convent educated modern woman. Therefore by default she must ridicule everything about Hinduism. Its her duty and obligation to her white masters to do so.
Looks like wrier of this post doesn’t know the relation between science and astrology. Astrology is nothing but the scientific calculation based on the data. If you are saying astrology is not exist means indirectly you are blaming on science. You cant predict even sales forecast or revenue on perfect data, then how come you expect astrology to give 100% forecast.
Astrology is just soothsaying nothing truth about it. It is sometimes logical thinking coupled with probability.
Big joke. The thing science proves is astrology is based on flawed premise. The premise that earth is the centre of universe.
Before denying Jyotish please understand your current calendar is an inaccurate version of a Jyotish concept called “Panchang”. “Panchang” needs knowledge of trigonometry, that the earth is round and accurate distance calculations. Concepts that are already a millennia-old in Vedic sciences. Like the calendar, it has been a trend in the world(esp. west) to deny these old concepts for 100-200 years, then do a shoddy copy of them, then someone comes around, gives you some tech jargon, and voila he is the inventor. There are only few like Schrödinger who accept the roots of their ideas.
Please notice I have not translated Jyotish into astrology because that translation doesn’t do it justice.
Another example is the current revolution in neuroscience due to Vedic concepts of mind sciences.
Regarding the article above, it’s like they never heard what prominent Jyotishacharya’s of today like PVR Narasimha Rao has to say.
Sorry Print, you failed.
There is one thong called report, another is called POV, then there is something called चाटुकारिता।
My pov on your bull shit is same. It feels like, someone has looted you in middle of nowhere, and you had to lick other’s feet in order to reach home and eat. Now you got one chance to say about that guy, and you shouted out loud.
Morons. 🙂
P.S :- if you dont agree, its your choice. But you got no rights to say anything about believers.
Correct you can’t save people who have decided to make a joke of themselves….
Wrong guys. Astrology has enough readers everywhere, including the West. So no point blaming Indians only. Rather, Western astrologers get much more media and revenue. Relocation astrology is eagerly sought after and most rich people follow that. As J P Morgan supposedly said “Millionaires don’t believe in Astrology, Billionaires do”.
Yes, very few predicted Covid. Either the astrologers know nothing better rather than bluffing … or they may not be looking for that. God knows. Same happened with too many economists about the recessions. Most of them failed in predicting 2008 recession or even the Great depression of 1929. But people are supposed to take them very seriously. How many of the ‘scientifically inclined’ people have the guts to question the economists ? None. On the other hand, the great Raghuram Rajan went on predicting recession in India for some 5 years and all of them failed. Did anyone ask same set of questions to Great RRR ?
Whether astrology works or not is left to individual choice. If someone believes in them, good. If someone does not believe, then also it is good. But scientific mindset should ask similar questions to all who are in the process of making predictions. That includes psephologists, those who were showing too many computer models including that Ramanan Lakshminarayan, an ex-adviser to Obama who had predicted 300 million infection in India… and yes, most economists. As John Kenneth Galbraith Quotes -“The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.” But I never see any criticism of economists.
The failures and success of astrology is only a game of probability.
Astrology is not correct even after matching horoscope there r divorce many a time predictions go wrong if astrology had so much power nobody would have a problem prediction could save us from trouble we would not even need the blessing of god
Astrology is also science. if you do not believe, nobody forced you to believe. If you read world history many a times kings have won battle through astrological calculations. You know why these days divorce rates are high. Its because the relationship was not calculated. People meet and get married as they fall in love. Fir example, you cant keep lion and goat together in a cage, while you can keep a goat and cow together. In the same way you need to make combination. I too necer believed astrology, but when i went in depth i understood. Before writing any article first learn it snd then write an article.
If u don’t agree with the astrology,things will not change…but pseudo science will go through