Millennials are embracing astrology.
A recent article in MarketWatch stated that millennials are “ditching religion for witchcraft and astrology”. Wait a minute! Did I read that right?? Our sophisticated hipsters are turning to age old beliefs? What’s going on?
A lot of people in this age group are feeling disillusioned today. One reason, political upheaval – didn’t the president of the United States just get impeached? Congress and the senate are ready to go to battle with each other based on our political parties’ polar opposite views and beliefs. I have seen so many articles recently about how to survive the holidays when family gatherings turn into family arguments – if someone dares to bring up politics. I don’t remember a time when families were so divided.
Another big concern millennials have is over their fates and destinies. They fear that they are powerless to stop the damage that is being wrought on the environment, so when they inherit the earth, it may not be habitable. Climate change is a huge issue that they feel has already tipped over to being unstoppable.
A major stress factor for this age group is economic. The burden of huge student loans on top of a job market squeeze in recent years has been a real hardship on this age group. Yes, the economy is doing better but we all know getting off to a good start in a good job paves the way for a successful career and financial independence later in life. Who knows if they will ever make up for the false start many have dealt with.
What about religion?
According to the Pew Research Center, “the percentage of people between the ages of 18 and 29 who “never doubt existence of God” fell from 81% in 2007 to 67% in 2012.” They believe they can be good, moral citizens without believing in God. More significantly, over half of millennials truly believe that astrology is a science. The industry analysis firm IBIS World values the psychic services industry, which includes astrology, at $2 billion annually. Most millennials identify themselves as atheist or agnostic but claim to have a sense of spiritualism that is not religious. The religious institutions of their parents’ generation are just not meeting their needs. The sense of community their parents’ received is missing for these younger ages so they are exploring other options, like astrology.
Modern astrology tool: Co–Star.
To meet this growing demand, a new app called Co-Star was launched by some very savvy millennials. It currently has over five million users who have register for an account! It features a daily horoscope, birth charts, and tracks how your horoscope changed from day to day. According to businessinsider.com, “The best part of Co-Star is comparing your signs with your friends’. You can find your friends list on the main page, where you can see the three signs Co-Star considers the most important for each friend: the main zodiac sign (the sun sign), the rising sign (or ascendant), and the moon sign. The button to add friends is in the top-left corner of the app, and you can add people from both your contact list and Facebook.”
Here are some excerpts from the app’s description:
“Co–Star is a hyper-personalized, social experience bringing astrology into the 21st century.”
“Most horoscopes ask what month you were born. Co-Star asks what minute.”
It has been featured in the New York Times, Cosmo, Buzzfeed, Vanity Fair, Vogue, Refinery29, the Guardian, MarketWatch and Business Insider”.
Do Millennials REALLY believe in astrology?
While a good number of millennials are embracing astrology, most are not fanatics about it. According to the Los Angeles Times, “Most millennials claim to not take any of it too seriously themselves. They dabble, they find what they like, they take what works for them and leave the rest.”
The Co-Star app is just one of the tools or services available and tuned in to the needs of millennials. In this age of Social Media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. have a plethora of sites and groups that can follow or join to tap into the spiritual side. You may see more stores both online and around your community that feature astrology, crystals, tarot readings, and other “psychic services”. Companies are developing lotions, cosmetics and soothing bath products. One such subscription service, Mystic Lipstick, has increased its sales 75% in the past year.
The interest in astrology continues to grow for millennials. It’s comforting, fun, and insightful in this time of uncertainty and in a world full of stress.
There’s still time for an East meets West astrology gift!
East meets West offers books and beautiful unique artwork featuring the combination of eastern and western astrological beliefs that we feel tells the true personality of anyone, based on their birth information. Our books explore You and your child may be born on February 1st but based on the eastern sign’s year you were born in, you will have different personality traits. Your combined eastern and western signs tell you about who you really are, and can be used to find the combined signs of your loved ones, life partner, colleagues, etc. Based on the birth year, month and day, you will find the results specific to combined signs. A great gift, EAST meets WEST Astrological Personality Portrait E-books can still be purchased in time for the holidays. Our amazing artwork for all the combined signs is an ageless and one-of-a-kind gift to be appreciated by the art lover as well as the astrology believer.