"Millionaires don't use astrology. Billionaires do."

--- J.P. Morgan

One of the most practical -- and, indeed, one of the most widespread -- uses of astrology is in business and financial matters. Astrology has been used to predict market cycles for millenia. As far back as the 5th century B.C., the Babylonians correlated celestial cycles with the fluctuating price of wheat. Many modern investors and traders rely on astrology for at least part of their timing decisions.

On a more personal level, astrology is also often used to help determine the best business or career for an individual -- which is an important financial decision, of course -- as well as to determine the precise time for the opening of a new business venture. Astrology is even used by gamblers to select winning horses, boxers, or sports teams, and to determine the best times (and locations!) for gambling.

The use of astrology by numerous stock and commodity traders is fairly common knowledge on Wall Street. Traders tend to be a practical bunch -- they use whatever works, even if others might think it "mystical" or "New Age-y." Many traders and analysts who use astrology combine it with traditional market technical analysis for a more complete and reliable picture of current and future trends.

Bill Meridian has a brief history of astrological stock market analysis at his website, which includes references to some of the more-important research works and practitioners in the field. You can find links to a number of financial astrology sites on our links pages. (Although we have a separate section for links to financial and business astrological sites, note that many of the general-interest sites also have sections devoted to financial astrology.)

Apart from the financial markets, astrology is often used for other money-making ventures. Rusty Withers, for example, has spent decades studying the application of astrology to predicting the winners of sporting events. Her book, Be A Winner ... Against All Odds, describes detailed astrological methodologies for handicapping sports contests through astrology. Withers' book focuses primarily on the NFL, but she has also done extensive research into other sports, as well as into the application of astrology to casino gambling.