Just what is an "old soul"? This is a phrase that precedes "new age" ideology and reaches back into our old English lexicon. It embraces the idea that a particularly, wise, world weary, or compassionate person "goes back" into a time that precedes the present. It is a tacit acknowledgement that certain people, just walking around with the rest of us, might have a "pre-incarnative" past, as it were, that makes them seem to have a wisdom or understanding that the rest of us don't have.  Check out Christofer's new website at: www.astrologygetalong.com.

These days, "old soul" fits into our current blended culture of eastern religions and "new age" concepts intermixed with our western culture. When used, it is a complimentary phrase. It is not used as an insult or in a perjorative way. It is intended to impart a feeling that there is something special about this person. It says:

1) This person can absorb the trouble they are going through.

2) This person is wise and can understand the trouble you are going through.

3) This person knows something the rest of us don't.

4) This person has been around every block there is, and still decided to come back here in the flesh to visit us all. They can not be perturbed, dismayed or desolated.

Aries, Capricorn, Scorpio, Leo, Pisces?

I have heard speculation that says old souls are "congregated" in certain sun signs. Aries, Capricorn, Scorpio, Leo and Pisces are mentioned but you can hear other speculations. The idea goes that really ancient souls would not bother to come back as certain signs, but would prefer to come back as other more complex or more fascinating signs.

The speculation goes like this:

Aries are so full of power that their horoscopes are engineered by self driven old souls who know what they are all about. Capricorn has such a grasp on their overall purpose that they must be old souls. Scorpios just know it all and feel it all, they must be old souls. Leo is so grand and looks like they have a whole bunch of past, and must be old souls. Pisces sum up the whole human experience, they must be ancient. Actually, with some imagination, you can make these kinds of statements about every sun sign.

"Ancient Shards of Light, Countless Aeons Old"

If you subscribe to reincarnative ideas, you will find, from the Kabbalah, that our ancient spiritual origin goes back to a "pre-Edenic" past, in which after our creation by the Divine, we looked all around and declared in our relative youth that we needed experience to be more worthy of God's grace in creating us with all of our initial glory. "The Bread of Shame", a phrase that many have not heard of, is the idea that we wanted to be able to be counted more worthy of our original grand state; and so we sought out physical manifestation. In doing so, we have "lost our way", and need to find the path back. That is a very short version of a coded breakdown of Genesis, but let us pause, and just ask the basic question, whether you have an Asian, New Age, Metaphysical or Gnostic point of view, isn't every one an "old soul"?

The Wheel of Fortune

When we think of the sun sign in its current manifestation, we can not conclude that any sign is shallow, or a "young soul", as it were. We are all manifesting current mind sets, attitudes and value systems that might appear to be more materialistic and less spiritual than others, but what you have to remember is that the soul's journey is to cover the journey on the Wheel. Truth be known, you can not know someone's past, you can only assess their current personality and character. Yes, you can have the opinion that a certain person is a "shallow, adventurous, covetous, indulgent jerk", but that does not mean that the person is not an old soul. Maybe this life time they are going through experiences that they have not gone through in the last 20 lifetimes. Maybe the person you are seeing is fresh at this kind of life. And maybe, just maybe, the "old soul" that you have seen and judged to be so, is finally "getting the point" of a few misspent lives that he has recently lived.

We are all "old souls". Some of us are unconscious. Some of us are more spiritually aware. Some of us are more judgmental, some of us are more merciful. We all display the myriad of energies that emanate from the vast realm of human experiences, that all eventually become a part of our divine character. It is good to know an "old soul", they are generally pleasing to be with because they emanate a peacefulness. But remember, the friend that you have out there, that is going through a tortured and volatile life is getting experience because they are also an old soul, who might be learning some deep, valuable and eternal lessons. While we are getting the butt end of a thudding punishment that is judgment, it is good to remember that Mercy is always around the corner, ready to give all of us "old souls" a chance to integrate our lessons.

Check out Christofer's new website at: www.astrologygetalong.com.