I remember humming the song 'whatever will be will be the future is not ours to see' in my school choir. I feel in these days and times this has a slight deviation, it should be 'the future is ours to see and for that we charge a fee'.

The 'we' that I refer to in the new and improvised version are the zillions of astrologist, numerologist, palmist, face readers, coffee mug readers, tarot card readers etc. In this clan of future predictors, there are few who are thorough with their knowledge and give rightly and just advice to the seeker.

Alas! They are outnumbered by the ones who are here to misguide the populace and it is for them I speak. They make you misspell, distort and disorient your name. Make your hands feel alien to your body by forcing you to sport precious gem rings on them. So, Anu becomes Annu and Karishma becomes Karizma. Neelam, Ruby, Panna are forced to be in constant touch with a man as demanded by his wife. Feeding stray animal becomes the order of the day. No wonder the street dog looks healthier than the pet, and the milkman dutifully lets his cows free with the assurance, that they will be fed by someone who needs 'Gaumata's' blessing to pacify his/her stars.

The profession of future predictors has seen an exponential increase. One finds coaching centers teaching these mystic skills spreading all over the city like algae. Hoarding and boards with taglines 'future ban jayega mast, lets hear your question first', or maybe something like 'know your future the idea is bright, just log in to our site', have become a usual site all over the place.

The consultation fee will be 1 followed by zeroes in accordance with the popularity and reliability of the pundit. So, a highly popular one charges 1000 per question while a not so famous one has to do with Rs 10 per question for a living. Thanks to conjunctions and other joining words that languages of the world provide the customer makes sure 10 questions are clubbed into one. Such exorbitant charges and no accountability in the income tax department, this surely is the most fruitful profession in today's times.

The role of a pundit also has to be played with conviction. Clothes that make you look of this era are a strict no-no. The attire should be straight from Ramayana age. Adorn the shades of orange, Footwear should be archaic in style, 'Khadau' will be the most suitable option. Accessories should be predominantly 'Rudraksh'. Bearing this in mind and keeping a calm exterior one can expect to have a huge line of followers.

Lord Krishna thousands of years ago stated in one of the most pious of all books, Bhagvad Gita, that one should not worry about the consequences (fruits), one should just perform one's duties with the utmost sincerity and dedication. Then why this sudden rise in people's interest for future. Of course it's a proven fact that there is always a curiosity of the unknown, but this is also true that the increase in dissatisfaction, lack of self-confidence, disillusionment with life, leads one to approach the astrologist. So do the remedies prescribed by them end bad times?

If you do a survey, 90% of the public will speak in affirmation with the sentence but logically speaking these help you preoccupy you mind in your low phase. If we can master the art of snapping our minds from worries and taking success and failure in the same spirit we would never feel the urge to find the future. Instead of the curiosity of what next one should have the contentment of what's now. With this I do not condemn the act of planning, one should plan the future, by living in the present, not by dreaming about the future. Theoretically every event has a probability and it you who can alter the probabilities of events thru your own capabilities and not by the effect of precious gems and name distortion. So instead of the pundits conspiring against you to confiscate your finances ponder on the thought by Paulo Cohelo wish something and the universe shall conspire to give it to you.