Welcome to an episode of Top Trader’s Unplugged unlike any other. We take a break from interviews with hedge fund managers and invite you into the fascinating world of financial astrology. Mahendra Sharma dedicates his astrology and predictions work exclusively on the financial markets, and has had an astonishing accuracy of predicting market events. Learn about his story, including his upbringing without electricity in his home, on this episode.

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In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why Mahendra is completely different than any of the other guests that have been on the podcast.
• How he got into predicting the financial markets.
• The story of his astrologer grandfather who lost his eyesight.
• How he came out with his first predictions at the age of 20.
• How he made a fortune in technology stocks based on his own predictions.
• The way he wrote his first book that came out in South Africa.
• How he grew up in a home without electricity.
• Why he looks at planetary movement, and human behavior patterns.
• Why he predicts that the DOW will go to 32,000.
• Why he believe in a 30 year cycle.
• What he predicts for interest rates in the next few years.

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Send your questions to info@toptradersunplugged.com

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Niels

Welcome to Top Traders Unplugged, where my goal is to give you the clarity, confidence and courage you need to invest like or invest with some of the top traders in the world. As mentioned, this episode is different in a number of ways. I ask you to bear with me and to be open-minded and to be ready for an additional element to the show that I have never done before. I'm not going to spoil the surprise just yet. If this is the first episode you've heard, you might want to go back and listen to many of the earlier conversations. Before we go any further, let's find out who's on today's show.

Mahendra

Hi, this is Mahendra Sharma, and you're listening to Top Traders Unplugged.

Niels

Thank you for doing that Mahendra. Now let's get started with part one of my conversation. I hope you will enjoy it.

Mahendra, thank you so much for being with us today. I really appreciate your time.

Mahendra

Thank you.

Niels

Now, Mahendra, you are completely different to the guests that I usually have on my podcast in a number of ways. Let me try and explain this. In the past 25 years, I've been working with an investment strategy that is predicated on the notion that no one can predict the future, and especially the future moves of financial markets. In the past seven months, I've had the pleasure of having some of the smartest and most successful traders in the world on my podcast. They all, except for one, have one thing in common, namely that they spend their time not making predictions about where the markets are going, but rather researching and defining rules and building software that simply react to the price moves of the markets. They openly admit that they have no clue where the markets are heading.

I will confess that I strongly believe in this perspective and this strategy. But at the same time, a number of years ago I came across the theory of markets moving in cycles. In fact, everything in our lives and perhaps even in the universe as a whole is based on cycles. Time is the only constant out there. I took this research further and I started to study some of the best minds in this field. I have to admit that the notion that it is possible to predict the time periods when markets are going up and when markets are going down. It is possible to do this if you really study hard.

Before we jump into the details I want to ask you a very simple question. Here is a question that I try to ask all my guests and it goes something like this: If you meet someone for the first time, someone you don't know and they don't know you at all and they ask you what you do, how do you explain that? How do you explain what you do Mahendra?

Mahendra

Yes, very interesting, I tell them that I just try to read human behavior patterns, and I try reading those human behavior patterns that are important, especially for the financial markets. I try to read them regarding what most of the fund managers or the bankers, or the institutions will be doing. Then I follow my work with staying connected with them.

Niels

Sure, OK, well anyway, let's stay with you for a lot longer because before we get into all the specific stuff, which I'm sure people will be very interested in getting to, I want to understand your story. I want to get to know you much better. So please go back as far as you can really, and tell me about you as a kid. How did you get into all of this financial astrology?

Mahendra

As a kid I started my career in school in India. When I was nine years old, my grandfather lost his eyesight. He was an astrologer, and I was just helping him to read charts because he lost his eyesight, and I was helping him. When I turned thirteen somebody came from South Africa - a guy that my grandfather didn't know well, and I read his chart and he said, "Mahendra, have you heard about Nostradamus?"

I said, "No, who is this guy?"

I was living in a village in India in the interior part. I never learned anything about the English. So he said, "Mahendra, he used to predict the future. He predicted so many events on this planet."

That was the life changing moment for me, and I said, "Oh WOW! I want to see the future. I want to learn how to see the future."

That was a moment of change for me. I wanted to see into the future. I started learning. I started creating my own chart, own theory that I worked for many, many years on. Finally, when I was twenty, I came out with one prediction because I saw all the geo-cosmic and the astro cycles (astronomically) they all are going to a "not best" place. With this "not the best" indication, I said, "Yeah, this is the USSR, and this is a negative combination. So I predicted that this current problem and this whole continent or the country will break down into its different parts. So I came out with the predictions that the USSR would collapse, and Mikhail Gorbachev would lose his job.

Everybody started searching around who was this guy who predicted about this? Then the media started writing about me. Very honestly, I'm telling you that people don't have a great respect for astrology. Though I had a great respect and great love from the people, but still, in who I was, I was not really happy. People said, "Oh Mahendra predicted this! Oh, Mahendra predicted this!" But I was not able to change the world. I was not able to change anything. I was just simply predicting. There was no effect and no ability to divert any of the negative impact. So my predictions were useless. These predictions didn't really matter even though I predicted something that really happened.

I used to get too busy in life, but then I said, "No, I want to change it to impact how people can benefit from my work, rather than my just predicting an event happening and that's it." So that's when I said, If I am able to predict the financial market trend, then if people follow me, my close people and myself, we can start making money. Then I created the Wave Nature Cycle Theory. All the financial markets are connected with the cycles. I did some research covering 70, 80 years, and I was able to find a main master key in that star cycle and that master key, I said, "Unh Hunh! This is going to work!"

That book was the first book, and it was purely inspired by Nostradamus. He wanted to see the future, or he saw it. He was trying to read the future, whereas I was just purely focusing on the financial market future and what was going to happen. That's how my first book came out. I launched it in South Africa, Johannesburg. The first book had predictions of "buy gold", "buy silver", "buy commodities", oil, "sell US dollars." So I think because South Africa and the gold community that book became suddenly very popular in that country.

I said, "Yes, Jack, the Dow will go to 32,000." That was the most drastic thing about that interview because the DOW was at 6,700, and it was collapsing and there was a very gloomy outlook. Lehman Brothers was already closed down. AIG was having big issues. These were very gloomy days. He says, "WOW!, OK so we're going to watch you very closely."

If my computer is here and my electric plug is there, until I make the connection they both are useless. As soon as you connect them the lights pop up on my computer and everything is working fantastic. The computer was there, but I can't use it until I plug it in. In the same way people can see, people can read the future, or they can see what exactly is going to happen, but you have to plug in. I was just one of the fortunate of the fortunate that I was able to plug in with the future. It's very simple. It's not like it's something that is a mystery.

Niels

Sure, I agree with that, and I think that you gave a very good recap of some of the things that you have been involved in predicting in the past. Before we leave your childhood, I just have one or two questions, because I think it's so important to understand the background before you understand the output. I wanted to ask you two things. One is what do you think was the most important thing that your grandfather taught you in order to really become an expert? I don't think that there are that many out there who have the same track record as you do, so that's one question. The other question is, you shared with me, before we started today, that you come from a household where you didn't have electricity until the age of 13 or 14, and, therefore, no television or anything like that. So for me it's a big leap to go from a childhood like that and suddenly you're dabbling in financial markets and so on and so forth, so how did the financial markets come into your life in the first place? That's clearly become a very important part of your life today.

Mahendra

I had a vision. I was always looking into the future because my grandfather made my chart when I was two days old, and he said that this boy is going to become a future leader. My grandfather never traveled internationally. He was just between Bombay and my village, and he said that I would travel internationally, and I would achieve a good name. I asked myself, ow did he predict this? Predictions motivate me. How I became world famous, and he predicted that... sometimes the predictions also play a key role in motivation. I tell you today this is a very smart subject we are discussing in life and on this podcast that each and everyone on this planet - six million people - each and everyone, they have something unique in their life. They have a unique quality in their life. Until they find what they have unique in it until you go down that road... the day that you find it... OK this is your calling, you want to become an actor and you have this quality and then you will suddenly see the guy coming from the street and he becomes his own actor or the singer, or the market trader, or the great Entrepreneur. Each and everyone has something... Or somebody becomes a writer... Like you started this podcast. So each and everyone has something very special. Each and everyone gives something very special. If they are able to unlock that door, then I think they go, and their energy is supported, and they keep walking.

The same thing happened with me. When I came to Mumbai at the age of 14 to study with my grandfather, it just opened my whole world and I wanted to predict like Nostradamus did. Then, as I mentioned, I didn't want to become just a predictor. I wanted people to be able to take advantage of what I see and that's when I said, if people are happy, if people make money, then... If you're making money, if you are doing really well, then definitely you will support other people or the community, or the neediest people. Life will be good, and it will be a happy environment. If somebody is suffering, then that means there is so much pain, and the pain can disturb a person's personal life and all those things. I think, normally, generally, if you ask me, my concept is for people to make money and remain happy and then make other people or the needy happy.

Niels

I'm sure it will. I'm glad you made that point because that was one of my questions. With regards to financial astrology or how you read these charts, it's kind of like a technical analyst. You can give them the same chart and they have different conclusions. So I think that's very important to make that point that obviously the way you read the same information might give a different prediction or different outcome than other people.

But first, and I'm serious here, about this a word from our sponsor. Before we get into the sponsor, should say that my goal with this whole podcast is to be as transparent as possible including these ads. So let me just lay out first how I ended up with a sponsor, or perhaps I should say a potential sponsor. So this is how it's going to work. This is my ad music. When you hear this music, this is the part that may result in the podcast generating some income. Let me just turn the music down while I share this part. When I put the ad right here in the middle of the conversation the chances of you hearing, it is much greater. OK, let's put the music back up again.

Ralph

I think it's like a weather service. Most of us in the morning you look at the weather and so you know how to dress in the winter if it's going to be snowy or if in summer, if you're expecting a thunderstorm I think this is pretty much the same way of looking at these kinds of services, if you are open minded enough. It helps you be guided. At the end of the day, you still have to make your own decisions, but it gives you maybe an overall picture of what one can expect from the days ahead.

Niels

There will be occasions where he's wrong, how does he inform you as a client that this is not working out if I can ask it that way? How do you avoid losing too much money on the things that don't work out.

Ralph

Actually this is what I like about Mahendra's work. He puts it down; he writes, "Sorry, now this has happened. I made a mistake, or I have made a wrong assessment. The situation is different, and I was wrong, FULL STOP." That's the way he communicates, which has... it's a bold move, but at the end of the day somebody admits that he has been wrong on something, it's much better than to try to hide it and say, "Oh yeah, it will come," or this or that. At the end of the day, like I said, there is no 100% guarantee.

What is much more important is sometimes the way to understand Mahendra's work. What I have learned over the last few years is that he has a great understanding of our world and what's happening in the market. Now what I noticed a little bit is that sometimes it's hard to see how much, and how fast something can happen. For example the best example over the last few months being the drop in the oil price at over $100, $110. Mahendra was right in that oil would come down to $30 to $40 and this will happen over the next 1 to 2 years, and now it has happened that oil came down to $43 basically within six or eight months from the point of his predictions. This is something where the timing has an aspect to it which sometimes even he is surprised that some of the predictions come into truth much faster than what he has anticipated. Overall the important thing is that nobody was buying oil at $110 when he says this is going to turn.

Niels

Are there any other things that you buy from him or subscribed from him that you use that you found particularly useful?

Ralph

I'm a subscriber to his weekly newsletter as well as to the daily and actually one of the first things that I do in the morning as a part of drinking a cup of coffee is reading what he is saying. Sometimes, of course, not much is happening overnight. That means, for example, currently he says that the interest rates in the states eventually will turn up, and the bond market might look different in six months from now. This is not something that happens overnight. But if you read the same thing over and over again, then you say this is really, this is going the same with the oil, the same with currencies, which over the last few weeks, especially in Switzerland has been very, very important.

Niels

I want to ask you, obviously we are going to go into the specifics, but I want to ask you a couple of questions beforehand. You use astro-indicators to understand investor’s behavioral patterns and their actions. You call this Wave of Nature. You also talk about cycles. The time cycles themselves, are they really related to the planetary part that you mentioned, or are they kind of separate, because a lot of people study cycles, but they don't necessarily study the astrological aspect of it, if I understand it correctly. So is it the combination of the two that makes you unique? You talk about different time cycles for financial markets and one would think that OK, if the cycles are the cycles in time, it doesn't really matter about where Mercury is, or where Saturn is, but it does for you. Can you explain the relationship between the time cycles themselves and the astrological part if I can call it that? I have to admit I'm not expert here, so I might be using terminology that is completely wrong, so please do correct me when I do that.

Mahendra

Here are the key factors... So many key factors combine when I make my final predictions, or when I come out with my final predictions, in the long term especially. In my theory, I give the most importance to the human behavior factor. We all know, and we are all aware that the sun gives heat and light, so definitely the heat comes back from the sun. Because of the moon, high tide and low tide comes. We humans, we have over 70% water in our body, so definitely this impacts our thinking a behavior pattern every day. We are all the same: you are the same, I am the same through our lives except for aging. The behavior pattern in the 24 hours keeps changing. Sometimes we are happy, sometimes we are relaxed, sometimes we are just sad or depressed. We just keep changing. We are not the same, so we are a human being. We are not made like computer robots that just follow instructions. No, we are human beings, and we are connected to nature. We are alive because of the air, water, light, (earth, fire)... the five elements.

So we are human beings so definitely our actions produce results. If we try to judge our actions... it supports tomorrow... let's say the market is doing very well - It supports tomorrow. In my theory the human behavior pattern, gravity, and the planetary movement... Planetary movement is going to give you the overall picture. So yeah, it just impacts the human behavior pattern. Any statement we may just go to a holding the stock. They may start selling If some exciting news comes out; they may start buying. The behavioral factor is for the shorter term cycle. Just what is under the shorter term cycle, not for the longer term. Human behavior cannot give a clear prediction for the longer term. Definitely human behavior patterns can go for the shorter term, and that's how the media can play in. Normally the media plays a most important role, like CNBC or any other media. They give the outlook, and their view can impact the market trend. Any analyst coming out with an upgrade or a downgrade, or any central bank making decisions - very important decisions - these things can push the market maybe 48 hours or 72 hours in a direction and then everyone starts analyzing what comes next.

So that's how the human behavior pattern works. It keeps changing without remaining stable. It keeps changing with the market news or any important statement. So I try to read that, and that you can very accurately read by the moon cycle because the moon is the one planet that changes every 59 hours. The second important thing I see when I read Moon changes or when I try to predict is that there are only twelve zodiac signs. So let's say we are 500 million people on this planet connected to this financial market. 500 million people you divide by the 12 because there are the 12 zodiac signs. So normally each zodiac sign represents a common behavior pattern. People with the same zodiac sign have a few things very common, so their actions will also be common.

So you divide the 500 million people into the 12. So I think that remains then around 42 million or somewhere in there. The 42 million people will have close to similar action. Then in my cycle theory I divide the 42 million into 109 parts. Because I created my theory and each moon cycle, I divide into nine more cycles. So it goes now to 3 million people. Then the 3 million people's actions will be almost the same. So the 3 million people will be shorting the Euro. The 3 million people will be constantly shorting the Euro, and their action will be quite similar. Then maybe the others with that sign will also be the same, but there will be many people going short. They will be, "Now Euro can bounce back here." Some will say, now the Euro has bottomed out here. Some will say that now the European markets have started looking better, and the European countries have started doing better and they will start. So it's the same Euro but everyone has a different view.

When Facebook started... Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook, and it was one simple page to cover all his people to communicate.

Niels

Mahendra

Yes, yes.

Niels

Mahendra

You know, before I give such a big statement I think we have to go through why I predicted that event.

Niels

OK, ok.

Mahendra

When Facebook announced their public offering. That public offering, the astral cycle was so negative that I commented to all my clients, all my members, all my followers not to buy Facebook on the listing. I advised staying away from this stock. Then the stock started correcting, and it started falling, falling, falling, and I think it ran down to $16 from $42. In one of the letters (because I write a daily and weekly letter) I mentioned that this stock was ripe because the negative astral cycle had started. So when that one cycle has ended then one can buy the stock, and you can make some money.

Niels

No, of course not.

Mahendra

Niels

Mahendra

As I said, there are 5 times, 7 times, 12 times... so I think that the low of 6,700 was happening at the time of the interview. So of course I targeted 5 times because that was the cycle. I just gave them 32,000 because the interview was on the 26th of February and on that interview I predicted that the 7th of March market would bottom out. So there was still eight or nine days, or seven days spending. But that was a very volatile cycle. Nobody knew what would happen tomorrow. It was a disaster. I was looking at each and every stock on my computer: commodities and currencies, and indexes on my computer. I did physically took 6,400 or around that... the DOW can go down to 6,400 and multiply that (times the five year cycle) and it comes to the 32,000. So I did the 32,000 number. The next cycle when it really starts, after the disaster, the next one will be in the 9 mode, and then finally 12 mode and then again it will restart . This cycle started because 20 years, purely based on the "second". The second remains in the one house for the 2 1/2 years. To complete a whole one zodiac cycle, it's 12 zodiac cycles times 2 1/2 years it comes to 30 years. So that's what makes the amount. The cycle can stay for any market, any indices, or in technology where there are revolutions coming or indices with revolutions coming or agriculture with revolutions coming, or... They all can grow in that one pattern and then change it.

Niels

Yeah, sure.

Mahendra

In the medical field, in the driving industry, in everything will be automatic systems. That is coming soon. Now we have a computer, and we are doing it manually and slowly, slowly work is going away now ... So next we'll be set on the robotic era. Like automatic everything. Like a human in government, we will get less because that will be the new revolution that will come. I think the 30-year cycle when anybody thinks... Any revolutions or anything that is locked for the 30 years, then the new changes have to come.

Niels

Sure. So I'm going to have to wait another ten years or so before they invent the robot that can iron my shirts in the morning I guess. At least it's coming. Now we really want to get into this, but this is fascinating. Before I jump into the first area, when you say that the 30-year cycle really is the longest that you see. Is that also why,.. If I'm right now with my limited knowledge, this is why interest rates have to make a low now because it has been 30 years, and they cannot keep moving lower.

Mahendra

Niels

Mahendra

Niels

Wow, yeah, that is very significant for sure. So anyway, that was a great place to start. Let me go back to where I originally wanted to start because I think a lot of people really are focused significantly on what's going on in the stock markets. So I think stock markets is a nice... since we are leaving the interest rates let me just job back and ask you one thing. The prediction here about interest rates going up to these kinds of levels, are you just talking about the US, or this is Europe as well?

Mahendra

Niels

Then here's just a question. How come we're going to see that pattern occurring now when what we've seen so far in a place like Japan is that they've had low-interest rates for, I don't know, a decade, 15 years, I can't remember now? Is there something different between the way you look at things in terms of country by country because the US and Europe haven't really had low-interest rate environments as long as Japan, but now suddenly everything is changing. How come they've suddenly become in sync if I can put it that way?

Mahendra

Niels

Yeah, and since we are on the interest rate theme right now I just had one question that I think is related to this that I think people will also be very interested in your view on, and that's really inflation or deflation. Where do you lean? Do you see deflation really taking hold here or do you see inflation coming back due to the money printing?

Mahendra

Ending

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Ralph

I think it's like a weather service. Most of us in the morning, you look at the weather, and so you know how to dress in the winter if it's going to be snowy. It helps you be guided. At the end of the day, you still have to make your own decisions, but it gives you maybe an overall picture of what one can expect from the days ahead.

Niels