mattyb, about Hawking/Galileo, that's seriously interesting. Needless to say its a little enigmatic. When I get time I'm definitely going to look into them books.


Mark L, I haven't thought about this enough to explain explain fully and correctly my feeling on the matter but;
As far as pre-destiny goes, as in - all things are already done as such, we don't have a choice - my personal take on that is as follows.

To use an analogy; imagine one big glass container or beaker filled with all sorts of chemicals.
Every chemical has its own properties and therefore reacts a certain way with the rest of the chemicals until it finds its own balance - its own place in the mix.
Whenever a new chemical is introduced, the same happens. It must react until the mixture comes to a balance i.e. that chemical finds its own place.

As humans, were all naturally endowed with certain characteristics.
Some of us are strong in some areas, not so much in others. The bible tells us though that whatever our strengths and weaknesses, assuming one compensates for the other, were all made equal.

When we come of a certain age I think our strengths and weaknesses become more defined i.e. we become more defined as people.
Ever notice small kids. They're all friends. They all get on with one another, for the most part at least.
However, as they get older they tend to find they're own group. And older still, as they're becoming more defined, they may drift off and do their own thing altogether.

So given our natural characteristics, our strengths and weaknesses, there is a certain place in the world for us. A place that suits us best.
Some people might find that it is where they are and always were, growing up.
I notice some of the guys I went to school with, the guys who seemed to fit into their particular area or neighborhood best, they're the guys that, when I go back in ten years, they that will have remained there.
Other guys that passed through school, got on fine but it wasn't their particular area, they may go farther afield to find their niche, to find the place where they fit best given their strengths etc.
Some guys might go away to develop in certain areas and come back, I dunno. But for the most part I think the above is true.

So when it comes to pre-destiny, the mapping out of our fate; given where we started (our place of birth) and the time we started (our time of birth) and the person we are, with every situation we come across, there are certain paths out of that situation that will suit us best, undoubtedly the ones we will choose, the ones we will be happiest in.

So as oppose to a route being mapped for us, perhaps were just reacting with every situation and fitting in as best we can.
If you could calculate all the variables, put numbers on certain characteristics and other variables in the situation, maybe we could determine where we will end up or what we will end up doing.
Maybe someone or something has mapped out our potential path already.
Maybe its "written in the stars" so to speak.

But we still have to work at it ourselves and determine the best paths for us so we can progress and ensure our happiness, cause I certainly don't think it's a sure thing, and there's lots of room for error, accidents, mistakes, shortcomings etc.
That's just my take on it though.

It makes sense to me also that there is input from astrological forces on the direction we take, I'm just not sure how that ties in.


Final thing I'd like to comment on.
Ever notice a couple, married couple say, they get on very well. I suppose they'd want to, given the fact that they're going to spend the rest of their lives together.

Oftentimes, at least what I notice, they tend to be the same type of people. They share the same characteristics. Alot of the time also they tend to compliment each other in certain ways; I lived with this couple one time and as I commented on, they shared alot of the same characteristics. But the woman in the couple was very I suppose, aggressive, for want of a better word.
Now I couldn't put up with her, and I don't know many people who could. But for the man, it's like he was built for being able to deal with that. He knew just how to react, just what to say to calm her down. Indeed, sometimes I got the feeling he even found that aspect of her nature a little endearing.

That's going off the point a little.
The point is this.
For people to get on, to live together, or even be friends, what I find is that they must share aspects of they're lifestyle.
Obviously, if two people don't share a lifestyle, they're not gonna share a life.
Again, with the couple I was talking about above, they both enjoyed the same things, being around the same people; they shared each others lifestyle.

My point is, given peoples characteristics, they will find through life experience - not so much destiny IMO - they're own niche in life. The lifestyle that suits them best.
They're characteristics are what lead them to this lifestyle.
Were they destined to find each other, one the love of the others life?
Or was it they're lifestyles, maybe what they were doing at that particular time, and the fact that they could share in one anothers lifestyle, that brought them together?
And their naturally occurring and mutual characteristics the reason why they get on so well?

I simply think this reinforces my opinion that it is someone's characteristics, as well their time and place of birth, that determines the path their life will take.
Perhaps not so much the fact that its all mapped out already.

Again, it makes sense to me that the push pull motion of stars plays a role somewhere... I'll have to get stuck into them books asap.