@Deidre I've thought about this frequently since you made this thread, and I originally said a lot of the time it's coincidence.. and I think it often is. Sometimes though, like recently with me, there was an aspect of myself causing difficulty but I didn't think I could change it about myself. Then repeatedly, in films and books mostly, I came across the concept that I could, and that I should. I did feel like it was more than coincidence.
That's cool. Not that signs are any more or less comforting than if they didn't appear, but sometimes, if I'm torn about a decision, I get a sense of confidence that everything's going to be alright. Because of the sign. Did you feel that way too?
In this case I suppose I wasn't so much torn by a decision, as believe there wasn't a decision to make.. It felt more like the Universe saying "look, you're wrong! this is a better way".. In the face of something I thought I was making the right choices on. And when I followed the direction those "signs" seemed to point, I felt a sense of rightness even though I hadn't felt wrong before.
the sadrat ul muntaha (the signpost at the end of the road) is the reason "god gave us" four wheel drive.
Bump, I still believe in signs. But, it's frustrating because sometimes, you think that a sign is telling you one thing, but maybe it's just a coincidence, and not a sign at all.
signs aren't the problem. what people try to tell each other they mean, is the problem. lots of things can be observed that indicate all sorts of other things. they still owe nothing to what people try to tell each other. to say "signs", is a bit ambiguous. is reality that ambiguous? well, yes, sometimes. anyone can observe the existence of a universal wonder of strangeness. it still owes nothing to any one or more brand name flavours of belief. it is the point of the question that is somewhat elusive, if you see what i mean.
I believe 42 is as good an explanation as anyone is ever going to get, which is why instant karma's gonna getcha baby! When you stub your toe kicking something in frustration, that's a sign not to do that. What you ignore more often becomes more crucial than what you pay attention to, because it can distract you from seeing the pies-in-the-face coming. There are also magical signs, related to the collective unconscious, which always express archetypal metaphors. A white buffalo was born in the west, for example, which is a good sign. Without contentment, even joy is merely instant gratification, and we interpret signs differently.
I was making t-shirts in honor of a young man that died a few days ago, and I started thinking about him, and I started talking to him. The first words out of my mouth were "Sorry Kyle" and just as I said it, there was a loud, indeterminate noise that rang through the building. I took it as a sign. Sometimes it just seems like one.
I believe there are 'signs' that this country has been under the watch of some entity since its inception. Call it God, call it ET's, call it synchronicity, call it whatever you want to. Here are some of the examples of why I think this... Curse of Tippecanoe - Wikipedia for one. Then there is the coincidences I have uncovered, the Mount Rushmore Coincidences: When you count the number of letters in our four famous Presidents appearing on Mt. Rushmore in the following order, you find this astounding coincidence: Abraham Lincoln has 14 LETTERS in it... Thomas Jefferson has 15 LETTERS in it... George Washington has 16 LETTERS in it... Theodore Roosevelt has 17 LETTERS in it... THIS SEEMS TO ALMOST "BUILD" ON THE NUMBER 13--THE NUMBER OF OUR ORIGINAL COLONIES. Also interesting, "Mount Rushmore" and "Gutzon Borglum" (the sculptor of Mt. Rushmore) have 13 LETTERS EACH. Furthermore, during the American Revolution, when Washington famously crossed the Delaware, and attacked the British as they reveled in their Christmas celebrations, something rather odd happened. At first the weather seemed like it wouldn't agree. Then suddenly the wind changed direction, and Washington was able to mount his pivotal attack. You know, advanced ET's probably have a method of controlling the weather on their home planet. In the fictional Star Trek universe this is known as a weather modification net. I'm not saying it is advanced ET's. But you have to admit that is interesting. Now by all means, continue with the discussion, as you critique my and other posts.
I don't think you can look for signs to direct your actions. You'll start looking for signs everywhere and just go crazy. I just think that actual meaningful synchronicities are a really pleasant thing and that's all. I just let them occur when they occur, and I just love them, so it's nice. But I don't try to obey them or anything.