You know the one - sparks instantly fly, it's love (or lust) at first sight, and even though there's lots of drama, trauma, betrayal, addictions and obsessions of all stripes and colors, you know you are in LOVE, and the power of your kiss can transform that frog into a Prince Charming.

Is that person you are so magnetically and hopelessly drawn to a soul mate, or an unfinished bit of karmic debt?

It doesn't even need to be a love interest; what about your brand new best friend, the one who immediately stepped forward at your new job, your new apartment, at church, where ever. They confide the most intimate details of their lives immediately, and you are drawn (or feel obliged) to do the same. Yet there is often a vague feeling something's not quite right with this friend or love interest, you find yourself mired in someone else's problematic life, start to feel annoyed or angry, and either feel guilty you feel this way about your "best friend", and bite the bullet, bear the cross, and go the extra mile out of loyalty, or there's a huge explosion and a bitter break up.

Although the instant feeling of psychic recognition and magical attraction feels like "soul mate", it's not. It's karmic debt. These people are here literally to test the boundaries of your spiritual development, to challenge you to know who you are, and to be true to yourself.

So what is a "Soul Mate"? First and foremost, it should be a person with good "personal boundaries", and it will be a person who's energy compliments, not conflicts, with your own. But "compliment" does not mean "merge". And consider this - you probably won't be able to recognize what compliments rather than conflicts with your energy til you learn to recognize your own spiritual boundaries, and are able to rest comfortably in your own "psychic skin". That's when you'll be able to view things from your "Higher Self", which is your self separated from outside influences, your self resting comfortably within yourself, high above the maddening crowd.