Traditionally, I had been exposed to and taught the belief system that one makes a contract with God before being reincarnated into a new life. This contract is suppose to contain all of the lessons you will deal with and learn from in your new incarnation. It includes what type of family you will have, who you will be in the family (mother, father, child), if you will have a happy or difficult childhood, a positive or negative marriage (if indeed you are to marry at all in your new life), and if you will be able to have a good education or not. It also covers if you will have a very successful and wealthy life in which you could be generous to others or not; or if you could be stuck in a poor existence where you may have to rely on others for help just to get by. These various scenarios afford you the opportunity to grow from the experiences. Many of the common experiences we learn from are: generosity, honesty, love, happiness, compassion, mercy, and being non-judgmental. The opposite of course would be: anger, dominance, envy, ego, dishonesty, being judgmental and perhaps someone who always thinks they are right all of the time.

I have talked with colleagues and friends about this topic in great length throughout the years as I think that if I had the gift of working for a lawyer for twenty years in another lifetime, as I did in this one, I don't think I would have ever agreed to such a contract for this lifetime. I have been on a journey of learning since I can remember, but there must be a time during a one's lifetime when you can say with certainty that you learned your lessons and want to experience some of the benefits of that knowledge. Apparently I have not come to that point in my life yet as I am still being put to the test almost every day.

So the question is, "Would we choose a difficult life?" Most respond, "We are spiritual beings and would know which lessons we need to learn during a particular lifetime. We would put ourselves in those situations where we would learn the most from those types of experiences." That is a neatly rehearsed and packaged answer, however, would we really agree to all of the hardships that we endure lifetime after lifetime? Would you agree to lose a child? Would you agree to go through the anguish of divorce? Losing very important relationships in your lifetime that really causes you heartache and pain? Would you agree to never marry in a lifetime and handle all of life's problems alone? Would you really choose to be poor or go without a job for years until your pride, dignity and self esteem were nearly gone. Would you agree to go through bankruptcy or lose your home and move to a very small apartment where your family could hardly even move without bumping into someone or something? Would you really agree to being disabled or crippled so that you could learn some sort of important lesson? In my opinion, I don't believe that this is a realistic outlook to learning lessons and; therefore, throughout the years my viewpoint about Contracts with God have drastically changed.

As luck would have it, I was guided to attend a lecture given by Tony Frishichella, sponsored by The Metaphysical Center of New Jersey. I was relieved and intrigued to learn that someone else thought as I did. He affirmed that he did not believe in contracts and thought that reincarnation into third dimensional realm was random. That is something I could understand and believe. Why wouldn't people choose to be beautiful, rich, famous, and successful as opposed to being plain, disabled, poor, unknown and unsuccessful? Why would you choose a life of struggle and discontentment rather than a very fulfilling life where everything you have ever wanted came easily to you? His sentiments exactly mirrored mine.

I have learned that whatever you feel you should be doing in this lifetime is what you are supposed to be doing, even though this changes throughout various stages of life. People come and go in your lifetime and when you no longer learn lessons from a partner or friend, you must move on to new relationships. Sometimes you must be the strong one and just let go of the familiar or safe relationship. There are plenty of other experiences awaiting you after each stage of life.

Of course, there is also a time to be alone, to meditate, to learn, to experience life on your own and to concentrate on one's future. You may go through a period when you no longer want to be part of a group or have many people around you at all and take comfort in sharing your life with a pet or getting engrossed in a hobby. Perhaps you only want to be surrounded with trusted family members where you feel safe and secure. Sometimes you outgrow organizations and jobs and must look for new experiences in all areas of life. The cycle continues and changes throughout the years you have upon this Earth until the day you are left with the option - sign the contract or not for your next lifetime.

Did you sign a contract to come back to Earth in this incarnation? We'll never know until we are standing in front of God with a contract in one hand and a pen in the other; then it will be up to us to sign the contract or lead a random life in which all the lessons presented to us will still be valuable experiences even though they were not planned or agreed to ahead of time.

Ancient Paths, Modern Choices
by Vikki Anderson

I have been teaching and conducting workshops for many years in both astrology and tarot. I am always asked the same questions. What's better, tarot or astrology? Is there a difference? Is one better than the other? Is one more accurate? The answer is that it all depends on what type of guidance they are seeking.

Let's start with astrology since I have been reading charts for over three decades. The natal chart is almost like a doctor's file on a patient. Everything that is positive or negative is in it. It contains many different aspects of one's personality, how well or poorly you react to emotional situations or crisis, your intellectual abilities, why relationships succeed or fail and generally if you are the kind of person that others want to know or have as a friend. The houses of the chart tell different areas of life that are affected, for instance, the first house represents the personality you show to the world or the one you want to show to the world and not necessarily the true one; the second represents your money or material values while the third represents communication, short trips, siblings, etc. Twelve distinct areas of life are covered. Depending upon which planets are in that house, what sign(s) are in the house and what aspects hit that house, the personality is formed. Throughout the years with the planets moving forward (or progressing) from your birth chart (which was a map of the sky at the time of your birth), one's personality, likes, dislikes, intelligence, relationships and reactions to situations change. Adding in solstice points and solar eclipses which usually occur twice a year (lunar eclipses are best used for Cancerians or Cancerian Ascendant natives), the next six months can be forecasted. Many different possibilities are touched upon as the planets and aspects represent a vast variety of probabilities. One must remember, however, that we choose our own future. We make a million decisions throughout our lifetimes that change our future day by day. Planets and aspects can stand for many different alternatives. When the sun and moon on an "eclipse" day falls into a particular house, that house is activated and an astrologer knows what would be in store for the native throughout the next six months. I usually tell my students that whatever happens on an "eclipse" day will represent the next six months of your life. For example, I recommend spending money on the eclipse so you will have money to spend for six months; be with friends and family you wish to see throughout the next six months; go to work as students who thought they would take it easy the next six months, did exactly that. They lost their jobs since they weren't working on the eclipse! Think. Complete lists of projects, affirmations or goals. Plan for the next six months. I usually find it helpful to get things in order before an eclipse and then read the list in a positive manner on the eclipse so that the universe will set the stage for your next six months in a very logical and organized manner.

In order to make a competent prediction, an astrologer would know the meanings of the houses, planets and aspects affecting the "eclipse" planets and how they aspect the natal and progressed planets. Simplified, if one has more positive aspects such as sextiles or trines, life within the next six months will be more calm, relaxed, focused, organized and fulfilling without many obstacles. The more squares and oppositions the updated chart has, the more challenges and obstacles might be before the person you are reading. But whether the outcome is a positive or negative one, truly depends on the overall outlook. Obstacles or challenges may be for the native to learn some particular lesson or start handling responsibility, etc.

So in essence, astrology gives you a road map to your life year by year. Once given a road map, one can decide to get to any destination in many ways, by plane, train, bus, car, motorcycle or boat. There are also different roads to a destination, the super highways of life, the interstates, the local roads or back country dirt roads. All lead to a certain destination, however, the path is altered by the mode of transportation and the route one chooses. Remember as in any modality, you have complete control over your life and destiny.

Tarot is basically a different method or concept of predicting the future. First of all, the cards explain what will happen if you do nothing to change the situation. If there was something perceived to be negative by the Querent (person for whom you are doing the reading), it will stay negative unless that person takes a positive action to change the event or circumstances. You are always given options and choices.

One can do various spreads to predict what will happen in a day, week, month, year or particular time period in the future. Most of the spreads can pin point an exact month by month prediction in addition to an overall view of the current situation and how one will handle those situations. Tarot can let you know particular occurrences, obstacles or love with a glance of the cards; it can give you definitive yes or no answers to exact questions as well. The remaining cards in the yes/no spread will also shed more insight into your current situation. Remember that we can change anything we don't like in the cards if we know what message the card is giving us. Whether we take that information to use to our benefit is our choice.

By using the tarot, one can get an immediate answer to a question and insight into a situation or circumstance and know what to do to change that situation to their benefit. Tarot shows you when to balance your love life, money, career or. It foretells what you must do to correct these areas of life. It often gives us not only the mundane solutions to life, but tells us of the spiritual path we must also follow to be happy in this lifetime.

Tarot suggests blessings from God after going through changes; it tells when one must rest so that the Querent could be protected from an illness or concern with the proper rest and care of himself or herself. Tarot helps build character because it gives the Querent something to fight with. It paves the way for an adaptive attitude towards conflicts, obstacles and concerns. Tarot uses a variety of scenery, backgrounds, figures, and colors to portray each card's meaning. Sometimes adding one’s knowledge about numerology helps give added meanings to the cards although one can get a feel for the cards just by looking at it. This cannot be done in astrology. If the person has no practical knowledge of the planets, houses and aspects, an astrological interpretation cannot be properly done. It would look like Egyptian to the person -- without meaning.

Tarot can also prepare one for issues that need balance in order to be happy or fulfilled - it could represent balance in a relationship (is one partner too dominant and the other too submissive?), money (spending too much and not saving enough?), career (is it really necessary to work 12 hour days? What about time with the family?), and conflicts (can I ride these conflicts out? Should I settle them peacefully? Can I handle what is ahead of me? Is there an end in sight?). Just by adding some common sense and a time frame, one can look into the future and know what must be done to correct any negative situation.

Astrology charts, although very automated now and can be called up on a computer and printed in a few minutes, are extremely difficult to interpret properly. Massive reports can be generated with all types of probabilities for the next year. The reports are so long (usually 50+ pages) because there are so many variables. If you make a decision today or now, you change the future from a few moments ago.

Tarot usually takes anywhere from one hour to an hour and a half to read properly. Astrology can take long hours to decipher and then read to the native. Reference for planet configurations (some use asteroids as well) must be used and placed in the chart and then one must go through each planet of the natal chart, progressed chart and how it affects the natal chart. Many combinations can actually make other configurations of planets better or worse by being in aspect with several planets at the same time. You can guide through astrology and then you have to wait to see if the future comes true. With tarot, you are taking an active role in your future by knowing what will come up and how to alter the outcome for the most positive result for the good of all involved.

I feel tarot is more like psychology. It highlights the problem or concern indicated by the number of cards in a particular suit, and gives you many alternatives to deal with it. Each card also has an answer in it.

Although I love both astrology and tarot, I would imagine it depends on the type of information you are looking for. If you want a very philosophical view of yourself, your character, moods, emotional status, likes, dislikes and the general road map to your life with the next year, then astrological charts are for you. Remember that one does not need to have a chart done more than twice a year. I usually place both eclipses in a chart for a year's reading, so that my clients need only return once a year for the upcoming year's events.

Tarot is a useful guidance tool since it can give you the areas of your life causing concern, gives answers to deal with anything from the four suits indicating the problem or challenge.

Remember that we have total and complete control over our lives and the decisions we make. No one can make those choices for us. Tarot is an easier and gives more practical answers to the year ahead; astrology gives us an overview of what is to come and makes us think of all the possibilities and consequences ourselves.

Both are fun, both are guidance tools and both can be very dangerous if used for negative purposes. Never go to a reader who says there is a curse on you; there are no curses, only fear that overtakes us and makes us vulnerable. You do not need to go for readings more than twice a year although once a year is also very accurate and lighting candles and prayers by a reader will not help rid you or your family of the curse usually for a large sum of money. Get references of a tarot reader or astrologer from a reputable new age shop or ask friends or family who they consider to be a reputable reader. Is the price fair? Are they trying to use scare tactics? Are they reading with insight, helpful suggestions and giving positive guidance. No one can or should light a candle for you. Some readers charge ridiculous amounts to burn a candle for you, if they are doing it at all. Spend $1 and light one for yourself in a church! Also, never give any readers large sums of money in cash! I had a client who gave $20,000 to one of these readers in a very vulnerable and depressed state, and then she asked for her deceased husband's jewelry to also take the curse off of that too. However, the woman was wearing my clients jewelry when she went for another reading. For the $20,000, she got 7 readings and a future with no money and a lost sense of pride and a desperate feeling of hopelessness and helplessness. It seems to be my crusade to steer people in the right direction when it comes to reputable readers. It is not acceptable to have a few greedy and unscrupulous charlatans ruin the path for the rest of us.

Whether you read tarot or astrology, keep your message clear, optimistic and focused. Anyone can change the future. We have the right to mold and shape our own destiny as God intended. Take your future and mold it into something you would be proud of.

Some think astrology is all right to have done while attending a tarot reading is the work of the devil. People -- these are useful guidance tools that God gave his people here on earth so we could guide others who have temporarily lost their way or needed some insight into the future. There is no witchcraft involved in these predictive modalities. They are subjects, which are studied and practiced like anything else to become good at it.

Give them a chance, and I believe they will surprise you with their accuracy, their insight and the level of philosophical awareness that is given you.

Also, it is much easier to predict time periods with tarot than it would be in astrology. In tarot, the suits represent different months, signs or time periods. In astrology, one must rely on their intuition (and some help from the progressed moon) to predict when something will happen.

Making Wishes
by Vikki Anderson

All of us make wishes.

Wishes give us hope for the future that everything will be okay and that we will be happy, prosperous, gainfully employed in whichever career we wish, and that we will find our soul mate.

The difference is the size of the wish, the intent and the long-term celebration or consequences of the wish. It is also in the ways in which we try to manifest our wishes. One bit of interesting information an esteemed colleague gave me at a recent psychic fair was that all wishes should be done on birthday candles!

“Why?” you might ask? Because the whole purpose of the birthday candle is to be used for wishes on your birthday or in a CELEBRATION event. They are made with the intent of celebrating a birthday, anniversary, retirement, birth of a child, baptism, graduation, etc.

So if you need to make a wish come true, or at least give it more intensity, use birthday candles for your wishes. Not only will the candle burn quickly but also it is a celebration candle which will push your intent into the universe quicker manifesting your desires in a shorter timeframe than burning day, 7-day or longer candles to burn.

Hope this little tidbit of information was useful. I know I will be buying tons of birthday candles from the dollar store to get my wishes off the ground in a quicker fashion.

______________________________

THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS:
AN ALLEGORY OF JUDEO-CHRISTIAN BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS

November 2003

Roxana Muise, C.A.P.

In 350 A.D., The Christian Church proclaimed December 25 to be the official commemoration date of the birth of Jesus. January 6 was designated as The Epiphany, celebrating the arrival of the three Magi. This was the formal presentation of the Christ-Child to humanity. The valuable gifts symbolized acceptance of the Child's elevated status from divers sources. In 567 A.D., The Council of Tours proclaimed the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany to be a festive period, and December 5th was subsequently known as Twelfth Night (counting December 25th as day one). That festive period became known as The Twelve Days of Christmas.

The story that developed into the popular song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" dates back to the 16th century religious wars in England prompted by Henry VIII's desire for a divorce. It was said to be a mnemonic device to teach young Christians their catechism. "True Love" throughout the song refers to God, and "Me" refers to the catechist. There is neither substantive evidence for nor against this theory. Therefore, all conjecture gives way to symbolic meaning, which supports the spirit of the Christian holy days. Before the Christian era, there were many pagan and other world religious symbols that coincide with this section of the year, which will be dealt with in a subsequent article.

The Twelve Days of Christmas

On the 1st day of Christmas my true love gave to me: A Partridge in a Pear Tree:
The Pear Tree is symbolic of the Cross, upon which Jesus died in defense of his followers. A Partridge is a small bird that is willing to fight to the death to defend her young.

On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Two Turtle Doves:
Jewish families used turtledoves as offerings to God. Doves mate for life. This refers to the love of Mary and Joseph and their sacrifice of a pair of doves when presenting Jesus to the temple when he was forty days old, as required by Jewish Law. Also, here is a reference to the two testaments of the Bible.

On the 3rd day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Three French Hens:
French hens were valuable poultry during the sixteenth century. They symbolize the three gifts offered by the wise men: gold (the metal of kings - because of its beauty and rarity. Of all the metals, it is inert - doesn't easily mix with other elements, and doesn't break down, but maintains its elemental form), frankincense (the extremely valuable hardened resin of the Boswellia Carterii Thurifera shrub found in Arabia and Somalia, used as an incense in religious rituals), and myrrh (known in nutrition as guggul, made from a resin from the Commiphora myrrha tree found in Arabia and Somalia, used in incense, as a holy oil for anointing the dead, as a mouthwash, as a vermifuge, and as a pain-killer). Also, the Three Theological Virtues: "Faith, Hope, and Love" (1 Corinthians 13:13). Also, the three persons of the holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

On the 4th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Four Calling Birds:
The distinctive voices of the authors of the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, who spread the message of Jesus the Christ and his life and mission.

On the 5th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Five Gold Rings:
Representing the Five Gold Rings are the first five books of the Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Known in the Jewish religion as the Torah (or the Pentateuch), these are the meeting place or overlap of the Judeo-Christian set of guiding principles and their common history.

On the 6th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Six Geese A-Laying:
The laying of eggs is symbolic of the creation of new life. These refer to the six days of Creation.

On the 7th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Seven Swans A-swimming:
The swan is an early symbol for transformation. Christian transformation occurs through the agency of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: prophecy, ministry, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading, and compassion.

On the 8th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Eight Maids A-milking:
Milk nurtures us and strengthens our bones, which refer to the structure of Jesus basic teachings at the Sermon on the Mount, called the Beatitudes, or blessings: poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, and those who are persecuted because of righteousness. Also the eight people saved in Noahs ark, who survived as a result of faith.

On the 9th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Nine Ladies Dancing:
Symbolizes the celebrating and rejoicing generated by the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Also, the nine ranks or levels of angelic hierarchy.

On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me Ten Lords A-leaping:
Lords were men with the authority to command obedience. They symbolize God's basic laws, The Ten Commandments: No other gods, not to make or bow to idols, not to take God's name in vain, do remember the Sabbath, honor your father and mother, do no murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, not to lie, not to covet the property of another.

On the 11th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Eleven Pipers Piping:
Pipers are leaders. The eleven faithful Apostles were Jesus' chosen advocates to spread his messages of peace and hope to the world.

On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Twelve Drummers Drumming:
The drummers beat out the rhythm of the twelve beliefs of Christianity: The Apostle's Creed: The belief in God as creator; Jesus Christ -the Son; Jesus' immaculate conception; His betrayal and death; His resurrection; the coming judgment; the Holy Spirit, the holy church; the spiritual union of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and eternal life. Also, the twelve tribes of Israel, and the twelve gates of heaven.

The Christ-Child is referred to as the "Light of the World," Simeon referred to Him as "A light for a revelation to the Gentiles" (Luke 2.32), inferring that the world needed Light. Epiphany means, "to show," "to reveal," or "to make known." This season, in all religions, we communicate our feelings of love for others and our hope for a healing of our differences. May we all experience the healing of our world that we hope for, and by respecting our differences, and by uniting with others in the areas where we agree. May each of you experience the joy of this blessed season, and a successful and prosperous year ahead.

____________________

References
The Real 12 Days of Christmas, by Helen Haidle, 1997, Multinomah Publishers, Sisters, OR

Scripture quotations from The Holy Bible, From the Ancient Eastern Text, George M. Lamsa's Translation, 1933, 1957 by A. J. Holman Co., Nashville, KY

The Twelve Days of Christmas, by Dennis Bratcher, 2003, The Christian Resource Institute - The Voice, http://www.cresourcei.orig/cy12days.html

"Readings are for entertainment purposes only" as required by law.

www.vikkianderson.net
NJ
United States
ph: 973-492-3110
Starscape50@optonline.net