True literary phenomenon of 2022, The Prophecies of Michel de Nostredame, better known under the pseudonym of Nostradamus, seems to predict history. But between facts and fantasies, what are these predictions written in the 16th century really worth?e century? The Guardian highlights the mysterious concordances that still exist in our time.
Last September, a book interpreting these so-called prophecies topped the Sunday Times bestsellers following a very little publicized event… The death of Queen Elizabeth II. The reason? The famous astrologer guessed it: “Because they disapproved of his divorce; a man will be considered unworthy; the people will chase the king of the islands; a man who should not be king will take his place.” Mario Reading, author of Nostradamus: The Complete Prophecies for the Future, explains in 2017: “The Queen of England will die around 2022 aged around 96. Quatrain 10/22 predicts that King Charles will abdicate in view of the persistent attacks on his wife. Let the Brits be well seated: He also believes that Prince Harry will become king despite his older brother, William.
Bad news, if you found 2022 to be a disappointing or even rotten year (let it be said): don’t think that 2023 will raise the bar. The writings of Nostradamus even predict a European catastrophe: “Seven months of the Great War, people dead of evildoing.” Howevervssome remain convinced that he is referring here to the Ukrainian conflict, just like this quote, “the wheat will become so high”, referring to the disastrous consequences of the interruption of Ukrainian grain exports.
Finally, Laurie Reading, son of Mario and supporter of the astrologer, is convinced that the latter would have prophesied the rise of Elon Musk, American entrepreneur, through the quatrain 5/23: “The two suitors will unite; when most others will unite with Mars; the African leader is fearful and trembling; the dual alliance is separated by the fleet.” For him, this extract leaves no doubt: it relates to Elon Musk, born in South Africa and envious of colonizing Mars. Nevertheless, “the light of Mars will go out” let it be known that the billionaire will have to put his plans on hold and keep his feet on the ground. Bad luck for him, the great Nostradamus has spoken.
Controversial beliefs?
Like any self-respecting belief, these prophecies are debated. And the least we can say is that it does not date from yesterday. During his lifetime, Nostradamus was ridiculed mercilessly: “A scatterbrained and moody idiot who shouts nonsense in the streets”, could we read in 1558 in the First Invective of Lord Hercule the Francis against Monstradamus.
Also, Nostradamus predicted the end of the world on July 4, 1999. The good news is that, as you might have noticed, it didn’t happen. The bad news: this work of 1,000 quatrains is far from being an exact science. What some consider quackery is seen by others as a flash of genius: “He invoked obscure Latin words creating possibilities for double meaning; he omitted prepositions, articles, and favored the infinitive. It is in times of great upheaval or social anxiety that the public is ready to hear nonsense. We all want the past and the future to have meaning narrative»says Everett F Blieler, author of Prophecies and riddles of Nostradamus.
That said, the astrologer certainly predicted his death in 1566. Note: by announcing it the day before, almost bedridden, the diviner left no room for doubt. As for the predictions of 2023, as the other would say… time will tell.