Japanese men seek spiritual advice online

Akiko Mori

TOKYO: The request for advice came straight to the point: "Please tell

me if I should divorce my wife."

The hapless husband is one of an increasing number of Japanese businessmen,

often too shy to consult others, who are turning to online fortunetellers for

guidance in life and work. And with the future of Japan's once sure-footed

economy in doubt, the time has never been more ripe for nervous business folk to

do a little crystal ball gazing - albeit on a screen.

"When faced with tough times, these lone wolves need someone to lighten

them up and push them forward with a clear answer," said Stella Kaoruko,

who runs a fortune-telling Web site, "Stella's House of Tarot".

A fortune consultant for 20 years, Kaoruko said that owners of large

businesses have increasingly been pressing her to give readings on such matters

as which executives to lay off and when to announce restructuring. "All

they need is a little push in the back," she said.

Strokes of luck



The anonymity of the Internet is what makes the sites so popular in Japan and
other parts of Asia, where fortune telling has helped shape business decisions

for centuries.

The naming of a company is a particularly serious matter. The number of

strokes or combination of kanji characters in a Japanese name is often

considered a make or break factor for a business. And in the current economic

climate, new and established businesses alike need all the luck they can get.

"We are getting an increasing number of requests seeking advice on

company names," said Seresa Kanno, content producer for the name divination

Web site "Togen Kiko", on which the businessman asked for marital

advice.

"Many of those who ask the Master for advice on changing company names

are small shop owners who are worried about shutting down," she said. In

one example posted on the site, the owner of a small construction company asked

for a way out of family problems and help with his stagnant business.

Master Shinichiro Kanetaka changed the four characters of the firm's name to

match 32 strokes instead of the current 28, which pointed to a power struggle

and family feuding. It is usually fear of bad luck, which motivates people to

consult a fortuneteller, said one venture capitalist, who declined to be

identified.

"I don't fully depend on name divination for decision making," he

said, "but I consult it to be on the safe side."

Readings on the move



Fortune-telling sites are blossoming in this gadget-loving nation, along with
the soaring number of people using cellphones - which offer privacy and

convenience - to surf the Web.

The most popular Net service, "i-mode", operated by mobile giant

NTT DoCoMo Inc, offers 37 such sites on its menu of contents and thousands of

unofficial sites to quench the psychic thirst of its 25.5 million users.

On an astrology site operated through wireless content provider Cybird Co

Ltd., 30 per cent of subscribers are men seeking daily readings on prospects for

business, relationships or simply money. A recent survey showed that of those

male subscribers, most were in their forties, Cybird said.

On the mobile version of Togen Kiko, or "Journey to the world of the

unknown", over 100,000 subscribers pay a monthly fee of 300 yen ($2.49) to

receive divination just by punching in their name and gender. On the

matchbox-size screen, the fortune seeker gets a daily glimpse into the day

ahead. If things look gloomy, a little character shows up smothered in rain.

Some users go further and ask for specific advice. The Master's reading is

made public on the site without disclosing names. The Master took one look at

the family name of the disillusioned spouse and told him: "You must realize

you are at fault, too."

(C) Reuters Limited 2001.