Predicting and Blessing

This is very common practice among Buddhist monks.Both are totally against Buddhist doctrine.They may be aware of this.At the same time they know this is method of making people "happy" and may be carried out for financial gain.
In Buddhist doctrine there is no future.There is no time factor (akaalika).What is there to predict?Whom to bless? There is no being! (nissaththo)In Buddhist doctrine there is no "present" either.Only thing is voidness (suunno)
The famous Buddhist Thai Buddhist priest Ajan Cha was supposed to be an arahath (has attained highest degree of mundane wisdom).VIPs used to ask him to stroke their heads so that they will be blessed.Ajan Cha used to say there is no difference in my stroking a cabbage or stroking the head of a VIP !
VIPs used to come to him and request to predict future .He used to say Sir/Madam your future is uncertain!This is the reply any one reasonably literate in Buddhist doctrine will give if requested to predict future.
Buddhist literature is full of instances where Buddha predicted future.I am certain Buddha was never up to such nonsense.His doctrine has a quality called "swakkhatho" in Pali which means that there is no contradiction. One should not confuse Buddhist literature with the Buddhist doctrine