Article by Lisa J. Gordon, U.K

As an Astrologer I was constantly on the horns of a dilemma: my clients wanted definitive black and white answers about their futures and yet what I had learned in Astrology, was that we have freewill and that the planets are only a guide.

Astrology should, in my eyes be used a tool for good and timely decision making and for greater self awareness; however many of my clients wanted to use Astrology as the ultimate financial, emotional and vocational ‘sat nav’ – Take a left at the next turning and you will find Mr Right; keep in this lane for the next two miles and you will find the job of your dreams! It’s fair to say that some clients seemed quite happy to leave the driving of their lives up to Fate entirely. It made me think deeply about exactly how much control we do have over our lives by virtue of freewill and to what extent we are at the mercy of Fate. The amount of people in the UK and US who frequent Psychics, Astrologers, Palmists, Tarot readers and the like each year appears to indicate that a great many of us do indeed believe that fate has a significant hand in our life path. Has our life story indeed already been written by a cosmic author and can the psychic give us a sneak preview of forthcoming events. So, do we have a destiny? Is this destiny set in stone or can we change it by conscious effort and freewill.

I am sure that we all list amongst our friends those who defend the power of their own freewill vehemently and who brand psychics etc as charlatans; just as many will swear by their accuracy. The rest are perhaps too scared to find out; or as I have discovered, those who are happy and satisfied with their lives rarely trouble themselves with the question of fate versus freewill. The burning question of what destiny is and how to find one’s own destiny is the domain of those who are dissatisfied, unhappy or in turmoil.

Prolific writers on this subject like Uri Geller and Jo Vitale, as well as books like ‘The Secret’ contend that one’s life course is totally within our sphere of influence: we, not Fate are in control. They advocate the use of a combination of positive thinking, affirmations and visualisation to achieve one’s dreams. Their bottom line is that virtually ANYTHING is possible and the limit is simply one’s own imagination or belief system. Is it really as simple as it sounds: how fabulous?

Madonna once said, “When you want something badly enough, it is as if the entire universe conspires to help you achieve it.” This theory is at the heart of positive thinking.

I conducted my own extensive research into this subject and found that there was more to positive thinking than thinking positive. In order for visualisation, affirmations and the like to be effective, you need to root out both conscious and subconscious beliefs which can scupper your best efforts at positive thinking. I was amazed at how powerful subconscious beliefs could be! What I mean by subconscious beliefs, is the ideas which are set into or programmed into our thinking which we do not often think about, but which influence all our decisions. Often these sub conscious beliefs are planted by our parents, teachers or religions; here are some examples: dreams don’t come true; stick to the day job; you aren’t good at maths; actors are always out of work; everyone in our family is fat; money is hard to come by; being very rich is sinful; you’re not university material; you’re working class; get a proper job; if you don’t get married you will be on the shelf; money is the root of all evil; all the best girls/guys are taken. In order for positive thinking to be effective we have to eradicate all the negative seeds which others or perhaps past experience has planted within our psyche. It is not always easy as often these negative, limiting notions are deep seated and, it is said that a negative thought is four times more powerful than a positive one. This is one of the reasons why positive thinking often does not work; all our best efforts at visualisation and affirmations are undermined by that little voice inside saying: this will never work; you don’t deserve it; it can’t be this easy. All it takes is a small amount of doubt to negate everything.

I return to Madonna’s theory and note that single minded, focused attention on a goal allowing no doubt to creep up on you should have exactly the results she has experienced according to the theory.

How often have you heard someone say: I’ll believe it when I see it or when I see results. However it rarely works that way, as Linda Goodman says, “For all those who believe, expect a miracle!” The belief or the mindset is the lynchpin.

Another more recent slant on positive thinking is Cosmic Ordering, a system supported by Noel Edmonds who purportedly found it highly effective. Cosmic Ordering appears to be a rather novel and updated version of ‘saying one’s prayers’! One asks the universe for something and (hopefully) it is granted to you. Again, on a deeper level, I think one can only gain from this method to the extent to which you honestly believe you deserve or can achieve what you are asking for. Noel Edmunds attributes cosmic ordering to the reigniting of his career.

Deepak Chopra who writes extensively on spiritual matters; discusses the concept of synchronicity with respect to destiny and the finding of one’s destiny. Synchronicity: something we often refer to in daily life as ‘being meant’ or ‘coincidence’, is almost like a little nudge in the right direction from Fate. Synchronicity can also take the form of a serendipitous event or meeting which changes the course of our life. I believe that synchronicity underlines the notion that we do indeed have a destiny – which we may be totally unaware of – and Fate will via circumstances attempt to push us towards that destiny. The effects of synchronicity can often be appreciated when we look back at our lives and how things ‘mapped’ out. I came across a concrete example of one of these little life changing coincidences: Penny and Mike returned to the UK after working abroad for many years with not much money, but a dream of running a guest house. Totally disconsolate after another fruitless day of searching for a B&B to buy in the South East; Penny hurled the property magazine into the back of the car with dismay. Later on tidying the car, Penny noticed that that same magazine had flopped open on a certain page: a page advertising a guest house for sale in the Cotswolds. By “coincidence” this guest house was in a little town where she and her husband had once dreamed of living. Filled with a sense of ‘this must be meant’ they went for it and despite many odds, were the proud owners months later. After starting with nothing more than a full guest book and £200, they now run an award winning guest house.

Positive thinking tends to be far more successful when the goals we envision are unselfish or are in tune with our higher purpose or, put another way: our destiny. But, how do we know what our destiny is: maybe synchronicity can provide us with a guide. Perhaps only age and the self awareness which comes with maturity can answer that question. Radio talk show host James Whale, in his recent biography “Almost a Celebrity” contends that he never planned anything in his life: one event seemed to lead to another as if a cosmic director was at work. He says that looking back he can see the vital link that every event in his life, both good and bad played in the unfolding of his life story. Perhaps James’ life exhibits synchronicity at work or perhaps he is more in tune with his destiny and able to capitalise on the coincidences and serendipitous events that may pass others by.

The Chinese word for Crisis is ‘Change with Opportunity’: many times as an Astrologer, I would see in a chart that there were great opportunities for my client. However that client would convey to me that they were suffering great tribulations. What I came to see was that the ‘comfort zone’ was the biggest block to potential: when we have nothing to lose our lives are dynamic and we go for things; however when we reach a certain level of achievement we become semi satisfied; we stop taking chances as we are scared to lose what we now have; as a result we stagnate. Fate often creates crises in our lives to destroy those comfort zones and to free up our potential again. This is an example of Fate stepping in to give us one of those nudges. One of my clients said the following about astrology: “The revelations from my chart were the start of a new chapter for me. They had set me free. Relieved from this immense guilt that had weighed upon my shoulders, I began to understand and see the purpose behind everything that everything that had happened over the past six years. With a new perspective on the past, I was at last able to move forward.”

Another popular writer on these matters is Louise L. Hay, the author of ‘Heal Your Life’. While Louise also champions positive thinking and affirmations in achieving goals, she stresses that the key to happiness and success with affirmations is the ‘releasing’ of all resentment, bitterness and fear. Somewhat like Christianity, Linda emphasises the value of ‘forgiveness’ as an essential element in moving forward and negating the influence of the past on your psyche. Forgiveness does not only involve forgiving others, but also forgiving yourself: no one is unscarred by a mistake. Guilt and self recrimination is another major reason why positive thinking often does not work. Guilt, resentment and fear are some of the most destructive and harmful emotions. Vanessa, 34 and a stressed out yet successful lawyer remarked that reading Louise L Hay’s book had made her far more aware of how invasive negative thinking was in her life. Although Vanessa is not ready to believe that anything she affirms or visualises will materialise; she had found that the use of affirmations and her awareness of how important being positive is, has already had an impact on her daily life and in reducing her stress level.

Where does Karma fit into this picture? As the cliché goes: what goes around comes around; but, does everything balance out in one lifetime or over many lifetimes. It is said that the Astrological Chart is a snap shot of the vibrations we have set up around this lifetime, by virtue of our forgotten actions in a past lifetime. The notion of Karma has become more and more important as many more people look to past life regression therapy for answers. Perhaps then, we need clear our Karmic slate before we are really able to grab hold of the reins of our life and use positive thinking to any useful degree. Lara, 42 who recently began to read in depth about Karma remarked that it was the only theory which had ever made the vast suffering of her life somehow understandable. This new understanding had given her new strength and the ability to forgive and move forward for the first time.

So which is it then: choice or chance; Fate or freewill? Are our fates sealed at the moment of birth?

As an Astrologer, my answer is that Astrology is about choice, not chance. Astrology can guide us and we can use it to help us forecast and navigate life events, but the ultimate control lies with us and how we choose to deal with what life dishes up. There is indeed a high road and a low road and the choice is ours. Maria, 27 who visited an Astrologer found the following: “The astrologer’s words diminished the pressure I was putting on myself; I began to take the view that my life was not just a tick-box exercise; fate was wiser, things would happen they way they were meant to, when the time was right; there was indeed little point in agonising about something I was powerless to change.”

And, what about that concept of destiny? I see life as an old tree: when we are young we are travelling up the trunk of the tree, as we have very little say in the direction of our lives; as we reach adolescence we start making choices which will affect our life course, this is where the tree begins to branch out. The choices we make will determine where on the tree we end up, but the tree itself can never change; a poplar cannot become an oak. The tree, like our destiny, is the framework for our life, but we do have a wealth of choice within that framework.

My experience has taught me that while some people relish the notion that they can be in total control of their lives via positive thinking; others prefer to lay their life in the Lap of the Gods; in a way abdicating responsibility for the their futures.

Debra from the North East of England, who started her working life as a waitress but who now lives in Argentina where she is a teacher fluent in Spanish, said, “I pinch myself ever day and marvel at how I ended up on the other side of the world speaking a different language and living in such an amazing country. Thinking back, this journey started by my own free choice when I decided to spend a year out in South America, but somewhere along that way fate seem to have taken over and kept steering me.” Debra’s experience gives evidence of the combination influence of fate and freewill.

I believe that the relative influence of Fate and Freewill in a life course is as individual as the person involved. There is no standard; your own unique beliefs both conscious and subconscious will determine how much say Fate gets in your life. Thus if you want to take more control over the direction of your life; you can do so from today: all it begins with is waking your self up from your sleep walk through life and acknowledging the possibilities you never previously believed were there.

Lisa J. Gordon is the author of a Spiritual Thriller, A Sealed Fate; in which she discusses these very same issues within the context of an account.

About Author: Lisa J. Gordon is a qualified Astrologer who has been a regular guest on BBC local radio as an Astro agony aunt and doing Horoscopes since 2001. Although holding a degree in Economics, and being a part qualified accountant, Lisa is a prolific writer and her novel ‘A Sealed Fate’ (which examines this very same issue) will be published this autumn 2009. Lisa is a researcher of alternative and new age avenues of thought. Her book has been published by Janus Publishing Ltd & is available on all book selling websites across the world.