From psychological manipulation to market consensus: Why are crypto traders obsessed with metaphysics

The wave of metaphysical superstition in the crypto circle is not a recent phenomenon but a symptom of a collective psychological crisis.

The “Life K-line” app launched on December 13 is just the latest trigger of this trend. By entering your birth date, AI generates a personal K-line chart from age 1 to 100 based on the Eight Characters (Ba Zi), using red and green candlesticks to display life fortunes. The initial tweet has over 3.3 million views, and within three days, the website’s traffic exceeded 300,000 visits.

But this is not just a story of an entertainment tool going viral. More worth noting is that less than 24 hours after its launch, a token with the same name appeared—reflecting that the commercialization of metaphysical content in the crypto world has already taken shape. A large number of users are seriously or jokingly discussing their “life trends” within communities, as if using a newly assigned meaning, collectively expressing anxiety about market uncertainty.

Wall Street’s Secrets Enter Twitter

Guidance from metaphysics in trading is not a new thing.

Legendary Wall Street analyst W.D. Gann used astrology to predict markets, and Soros admitted in “Financial Alchemy” that he judged market risk shifts based on back pain severity. But these stories have long remained in the realm of legend—Wall Street elites privately arrange Feng Shui, wear lucky charms, consult masters for market readings, but never publicly admit it, lest they be seen as unprofessional.

The crypto circle has broken this professional taboo.

On Twitter, many crypto influencers with a metaphysical twist have emerged. The crypto astrologer @AstroCryptoGuru, with 51,000 followers, claims to use the planetary cycles based on the Bitcoin Genesis Block date (January 3, 2009) combined with planetary cycles to make predictions, successfully forecasting the 2017 bull market peak, the 2022 bear market, and the 2024 BTC stage high.

In an industry inherently shrouded in mystery, metaphysics seems naturally compatible. Some predict BTC’s future prospects based on birth charts, others decide whether to open contracts based on today’s Tarot card fortunes. Rather than superstition, this is more like a new way of information processing—when traditional analysis fails, people seek simple, clear “signs.”

False Certainty Created by Uncertainty

Why are crypto traders especially prone to believe in metaphysics?

The answer lies in the anxiety environment created by the crypto market itself. 24/7 trading year-round, no circuit breakers, a single tweet from a big influencer can wipe out billions in market cap, founders potentially disappearing overnight—traders are constantly facing “unknown risks.”

Economist Frank Knight in 1921 distinguished two concepts: risk, which is quantifiable probability (like rolling dice), and uncertainty, which is unquantifiable unknown (like whether a war will break out tomorrow). Human fear of “uncertainty” far exceeds fear of “risk.”

When risks cannot be quantified, people instinctively create “false certainty” to ease anxiety. Metaphysics is the perfect vessel for this false certainty—when direction is unclear, opening the “Today’s Trading Calendar” at least provides a clear indication.

“Water retrograde not to open positions, full moon will cause a crash, birth chart shows BTC bull market next year”—these judgments do not require complex technical analysis, nor reading obscure whitepapers, just believing in “destiny.” A 2006 study from the University of Michigan found that stock markets in 48 countries had 6.6% lower returns during full moon periods compared to new moon periods. This is not because the moon truly influences the market, but because collective superstition influences traders’ behavior—enough people believe “full moon will cause a crash,” so they sell early, and the crash indeed occurs.

This is especially true in bear markets. When all “fundamental analysis” and “value investing” become jokes, metaphysical analysis appears more “reliable.” Traders need metaphysics, not because it is accurate, but because it offers an explanation—even if false—that is easier to accept than “uncertainty with no end in sight.”

Self-Reinforcing Loop of Cognitive Bias

Why does metaphysics always seem “effective”?

This involves the psychological mechanism of confirmation bias. When you believe “full moon will cause a crash,” you remember all cases of crashes after full moons, ignoring days of rallies or sideways movement after full moons. When the “Life K-line” shows this year as a bull market, you attribute every small rise to “chart validation,” and interpret dips as “short-term corrections that do not affect the overall trend.”

But the key amplifier is the social media environment.

Tweets like “I followed Tarot guidance to go long ETH contracts, made 20% in three days!” are likely to be widely shared, liked, and screenshot. But those who lost money trading based on Tarot will not post, and their stories are invisible. The entire information flow is filled with cases of metaphysical validation, while failures are filtered out.

For example, in March this year, @ChartingGuy’s blood moon prediction—regardless of market movement—had explanations: “top in advance,” “delayed validation,” “needs other planetary angles.” When BTC retraced, this tweet was repeatedly cited as a “divine prediction.”

More critically, the ambiguity of metaphysics ensures it can never be falsified. When a master says “don’t trade during water retrograde”—losing money is because you didn’t listen, making profits due to a special birth chart. Tarot cards indicating large volatility—regardless of rise or fall—are considered validation. This “any explanation fits” characteristic makes metaphysics unbeatable in the crypto world.

Traders are not superstitious; rather, their brains are using the most energy-efficient way to process information: remember what’s useful, ignore what’s not, and replace complex analysis with simple explanations. Metaphysics is popular not because it is accurate, but because it always appears accurate.

A Collective Psychological Massage Ritual

The third dimension of metaphysics’ popularity in the crypto circle is its social attribute.

Discussing technical analysis can lead to disagreements, but discussing metaphysics has no right or wrong, only resonance. The reason “your life K-line is accurate” is widely discussed is not because everyone truly believes, but because it’s a topic anyone can participate in, with no professional threshold. Some platforms have even added a “Today’s Fortune” feature due to user demand—not necessarily to base decisions on it, but to have a common topic, a daily psychological massage ritual.

When you say in a group, “Water retrograde today, I won’t open new positions,” no one questions the science; instead, someone responds, “Me too, let’s avoid this wave together.” The essence of this interaction is to confirm that each other’s anxiety is reasonable.

A Pew Research survey in 2025 shows that 28% of American adults consult astrology, Tarot, or fortune-telling at least once a year. Metaphysics is no longer fringe culture but a widespread psychological need. The crypto circle simply turns this need from “private use” into “public display.”

It’s worth noting that taboos around learning Tarot have also become a hot topic in communities—not for risk management, but because the taboo itself has become part of social interaction. People enjoy discussing “when not to look at Tarot” just like “when not to open positions,” forming a collective ritual within the industry.

The Psychological Value of False Certainty

The explosive popularity of “Life K-line” ultimately reflects a truth: on the 24/7, all-year-round, uncertainty-filled poker table of the crypto market, traders are not really trying to predict life trends but seeking a psychological support that allows them to stay in the game.

When your K-line shows a bear market this year, you won’t really exit the market completely. But you will blame fewer when losing, and comfort yourself more when missing out—“It’s not my fault, it’s my birth chart cycle wrong.”

In this market without authoritative answers, metaphysics offers not answers but companionship. In the face of uncontrollable markets, our sense of control over our destiny and the price movements is equally fragile. And this fragility requires some form of explanation—even if it comes from the stars.