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As You Gain Perspective, You Gain Wisdom

Imagine you are looking out at the beautiful scenery of an open field. You see gorgeous trees, a valley, and a sunset on the horizon.  Now imagine that in order to see this breathtaking view, you have to peer over a high brick wall. Your friend is also with you; however, unlike yourself, she is much shorter and is unable to catch a glimpse. The experience differs for the both of you.

Likewise, imagine walking up a flight of steps; while walking up the third step, someone else is following on the first, and even still, others are walking down that same flight of stairs. Throughout this activity, you see where you stand and also where others stand to understand that each person on that flight of stairs has a different perspective on how to get where they are going.

Each person with whom you come into contact with is moving, just as you are. Moreover, every person believes that they are going somewhere. What a person may not realize is that while they may be moving forward, they might also be walking around the block, in circles.  Perhaps this is something you have been experiencing as well?

Furthermore, you might also be moving in reverse. In this scenario, you are still moving, however, you are moving backward.  When you are unable to see a clear road, you may be aware of your hard work, but not realize that you are moving in the wrong direction.

Finding the Right Perspective to Move Forward

To gain perspective, it is essential to purify and find balance within yourself. When you make a conscious and consistent effort to look inward, you check yourself.  A powerful way of achieving this is through sitting and walking meditation.  You purify, balance, and gain perspective by always being aware and regularly asking yourself the following questions:

  • Who am I?
  • Where am I going?
  • Are the actions, emotions, and interactions in my life consistent with a good life?
  • Have I been here before? Was the result good or bad?

By consistently and deliberately asking yourself these questions as you go about your daily life, your ability to see yourself and where you stand concerning where you are trying to go, increases.  As you see yourself more clearly, you also begin to see others more clearly. You can see if they can see what you see.  You will also to gain a sense of peace in the understanding that no one can change themselves unless they truly want to change. Unless that person is willing to change, you can’t keep working hard at improving them because, in the end, you may also end up moving in reverse.  Wisdom is the ability to see beyond the surface, seeing where you are standing and even where others are standing.

Forming a Sense of Awareness

Before trying to convince others to see the way that you do, be sure that you are aware of yourself. Then, you will come to see others and the view from where they stand. If you want your friend to see the magnificent view beyond the brick wall, trying to convince her of how beautiful the view is may be futile.  You can provide her with the tools to see it for herself– like mentioning that she could stand on a chair.  However, your friend may not have a chair or a car to transport a chair back. Still, your friend may not have the will or desire to change their view, regardless of how much better it might be from your perspective. The more you try to convince or provide solutions, which may work well for you, but not for the other person, the more you work against yourself.  If you know yourself, you will be able to find peace in knowing that others may not have the ability or the will to see things the way that you do and you will find resolve in avoiding a detour that can thwart you off of the correct course.

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