Innovation

James Francis

Divination is an old habit. The drive to understand our future is a deep part of our history. For example, Chinese writing may have developed over 3 000 years ago through oracle bones, on which sages wrote pictograms attempting to foretell the future. Placidus de Titi, a 17th-century Italian monk, democratised divination when he modified ancient zodiacs into 12 houses. Centuries later, newspapers ran daily astrology columns, and while newsprint has largely gone out of fashion, zodiacs have not.

Astrology is a $3bn business in the US, where 30% of people regularly indulge in astrology, fortune-tellers, or tarot card readings. India is even bigger, with an estimated $7bn market, and globally we spend around $12bn on divination activities.