The Fifth Agreement: A Practical Guide to Self-Mastery (A Toltec Wisdom Book)

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As you practice changing the way you see your world, keep in mind that judgment and self-criticism are deeply ingrained habits. Changing your thinking is difficult, and it won’t happen overnight—so just do what you can each day. Take pride in incremental progress; improvement is success. Your capacity isn’t static: If you couldn’t succeed today, don’t take that to mean you never will! Step 5: Doubt Every Message This is a wonderful book. Although there is some repeat of information from Ruiz's book "The Four Agreements," there is also a lot of new and very insightful content. As such, I highly recommend The Fifth Agreement as a spiritual growth resource. Here's one of my favorite passages: To have faith is to believe without a doubt, and to doubt is to be skeptical. Don’t believe all the stories that we artists create with our knowledge. You know that most of our knowledge isn’t true, so don’t believe me, don’t believe yourself, and don’t believe anybody else. The truth doesn’t need you to believe it; the truth simply is, and it survives whether you believe it or not. Lies need you to believe them. If you don’t believe lies, they don’t survive your skepticism, and they simply disappear. However, this doesn't mean that reality doesn't exist. There's no doubting reality. Certain things are real, and certain symbols are real. Nonetheless, how we perceive these things is what truly matters, and this is where self-mastery comes into play. The Power of Self-Mastery and Doubt Furthermore, “reality,” the authors explain, isn’t perceived the same way by everyone who experiences it. Some of us are more sensitive to smells, see fewer colors, or can hear at higher frequencies. Plus, other creatures on our planet interpret the same world in very different ways—bats, for example, “see” reality in a way that’s so foreign to us that we can’t accurately imagine it. In short, we can’t assume that we all perceive the same world. Shortform Commentary: Magenta Doesn’t Exist

This review is about both books: "The four agreements" and "The fifth agreement", since I considered them as a sequel about five agreements one must follow as a spiritual guide. Usually, I am not a fan of this type of books that promise some high spiritual-improvement. But I gave myself the chance to be informed about "Don Miguel Ruiz" philosophy, and to be honest it wasn't easy to put down each of the books and stop reading. Here are the five agreements "Don Miguel" recommend practicing: Before we move on to the five agreements, we’ll explore the naguals’ description of three subjective “realities” we can inhabit. Even if your partner asks for your help, you have the choice to say no. Saying no doesn't mean you don't love or accept your partner; it means you are not able or you don't want to play that game. People will come to you and tell you their personal story, their point of view, what they believe is truth. But you won’t judge if it’s truth or if it’s not truth. You don’t have any judgment, but you do have respect. You listen to the way other people express themselves, knowing that whatever they say is nothing but a story distorted by their beliefs. You know that because you can feel it. You just know. But you also know when their words come from truth, and you know without words, and that’s the main point.Even though the book is simply written it challenges important beliefs regarding gods, religion & society. It also promotes rewriting the stories we tend to tell to ourselves and the opinion we have about others. In the guide, we’ll often refer to the authors, don Miguel Ruiz and don Jose Ruiz, as “the naguals.” Naguals, sometimes referred to as dreamers, masters, or scholars, act as a conduit between the spirit and the world, and pass on the teachings of the Toltec—whom the Ruizes say were the intellectual and cultural predecessors of the Aztec. To them, a Toltec is an artist of the spirit: a master storyteller who paints his own reality. We ended up being taught both at school and home – how to behave like adults. In reality, they or in some case “we” are the ones who misbehave. This new book "The fifth agreement..." is a crowning achievement of the Ruiz family to bring this level of clear communication of these Toltec teachings for everyone to reach. It speaks the teachings in such concise, direct, plain language using a wonderfully contemporary style.

For example, what makes something right or wrong? How do you know unequivocally, that something is wrong? But, even this is a choice, no one can take advantage of you if you don’t establish such a hostile relationship with yourself. In this guide, we’ll begin by exploring the idea that each person’s reality is separate, relative, and unreal; we don’t see the “real” world, and we don’t see the same world. Then, we’ll learn how to escape that false reality through the five “agreements,” or five steps on the path to enlightenment. Part 1.1: Doubt Your PerceptionThe Voice of Knowledge (2004) [ edit ] Once I interpret, qualify, or judge what I perceive, it is no longer real; it is a virtual world. This is what the Toltec call dreaming. The tools shared by don Miguel are based on common sense and shared with such simplicity, that the universal message underlying his teaching is recognized by many. don Miguel's message is simple, practical and when implemented, even incrementally, changes lives. I enjoyed reading the book, and I resonate with his way of seeing the world in many aspects. I recommend reading it with an open mind. As the Ruizes say, the world we experience using our senses isn’t an accurate portrayal of what’s really out there. We often take our brains for granted, failing to realize how untrustworthy they are—and that sometimes, they just make things up. You may have heard, for example, that the color magenta doesn’t exist. In the image below, you can see the frequencies and wavelengths of each of the visible colors (colors generally correspond to a particular wavelength of radiation). Magenta isn’t there. I like the idea of each of us as artists creating our world, and recognize that we all have unique perspectives that differ more than we might think from those of others. Heaven turns out to be a dream of lies that we create. The argument appears to be that if we are cognizant that our self-created reality is a lie, then we are still a master of truth because we don't believe our lie or anyone else's.

Shortform note: In his book Talking to Strangers, Malcolm Gladwell explains that while we think we’re good at reading people, we’re actually terrible at it. We assume people are telling the truth and that the way they present themselves outwardly is an accurate and reliable representation of their inner feelings and intentions. But don’t we all occasionally hide our true feelings, tell half-truths, or mask our intent—and haven’t we gotten away with it? Why should others be any different?) Step 4: Be the Best You Can, Without Comparing I have awakenings and then go spiritually dormant and the cycle continues, well this was one of those books that sparked it again. I have felt my heart opening, wanting to be a better person, and consciously choosing the agreements I am making in life. I'm on the path to being my truest most authentic self again. This will be a re-read for me anytime I need a reminder on any of the 5 Agreements to live by. This is now one of my favorite books along with THE ALCHEMIST.One has to be skeptical, since the virtual reality controls our life since the day we are born. But, in the other hand, one has to learn to listen, since this world has a lot to give and to teach us. What we think is the truth is nothing but the image of our perspective and the way we understand Life. All artists live in their own dream, in their own world. In that world, whatever they perceive is truth for them, and it could be that it’s absolutely true for the artists who are expressing their story, but it’s not truth for you. The only truth for you is what you perceive in your world. With this awareness, there’s nothing to prove to anyone. It’s not about being right or wrong. You respect whatever somebody says because respect is so important. When you learn to listen, you show respect for other artists, you show respect for their art, for their creation. Ultimately, these assumptions can’t possibly reflect the truth of who you are because nobody has a clue what’s going on inside your head. When we don’t succeed, we often punish ourselves—sometimes we spend years beating ourselves up for one mistake. But mistakes happen even when we try our best, the naguals say; they’re a sign that we’re growing. Don’t dwell on them—focus on getting better each day. One of the most important agreements we can make with ourselves is to seek the truth. This means that we need to listen. While we may not always agree with the views and beliefs of others, we have to commit to listening. Once we have listened, we can interpret what symbols we're being sold, what views of the world we're being led to believe. This will help us get a step closer to reality and the absolute truth.