It was a very warm summer afternoon when I made my first pact with God. Here are my exact words “If I get off this damn roller coaster alive, as God as my witness I’m never getting on another one again.” Believe me I would never break this pact. The pain and suffering from something that was supposed to be fun was horrible. I now happily wait at the exit for my companions to thrash their bodies about for an adrenaline fix.

The Wheel of Fortune is the roller coaster ride of life that we all know too well. This is the Buddhist wheel of life, the continuous karmic birth/death cycle. But, what if we don’t like it and want to get off? Well the answers are on the card.

In the corners are the fixed signs, Aquarius, Taurus, Leo, and Scorpio, sometimes seen as the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. They also symbolize the two equinoxes and solstices. These fixed signs tell us that the laws of our world are fixed and we know them as our Universal Laws laid out in the Kybalion: Mentalism, Correspondence, Vibration, Polarity, Rhythm, Caustation and Gender. Note there isn’t a Law of Attraction. There, instead, is the Law of Vibration and all of these laws must act in harmony.

The snake reminds you to shed your skin and grow with every turn of the wheel. Anubis, the jackal-headed god of the underworld, is there to guide us even in our darkest hour. The Sphinx has learned to navigate the maze of life and rise above the spinning wheel and become the observer, “in the world but not of it”. He holds the sword of decimation.

On the Wheel are four letters that can be arranged many ways as the wheel turns: Rota (wheel), Tora (ancient scripture), Orat (oracle), Tao (the Way), Tar (Thoth) and Ator (Hathor). We can interpret the Tarot as an oracle or messenger of the gods, communicating the divine laws.

Below each letter are the alchemical symbols for mercury, sulfur, water and salt, ordinary elements that can be turned into gold by the Magician. Just as our ordinary lives turn us into Gold if we will learn and grow from life’s experience, and if we rise above our immature reactions, emotions and attachments to become the Eternal Sphinx.

So how do we get off this ever-spinning wheel that throws us around? We can develop a new perspective or insight into a problem. If you get this card, it is a sign to come in at a different point, work with the same concept in a different way. Instead of having a tantrum or being a victim, step back from the situation and see the bigger picture. Always keep close to your heart the mantra “this too will pass”.

Ok, I will confess that I have been on a ride since the pact but this time there was no pain and suffering just silence and bliss. I happily rode the London Eye, a gentle giant Ferris wheel in the heart of London. Slowly and quietly I rose high above the London skyline to get a new perspective on this beautiful city. The lights of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben were shining brightly in the pink glow of the sunset. From this perspective the world was peaceful and beautiful and I felt a little closer to God.