Why is there so much misunderstanding among people? So much confusion and miscommunication?

Two people may walk away from the same situation with completely different ideas about what just happened. And each one is absolutely certain that his or her view is the correct one, and the other one has it all wrong. They may even fight over it. In fact, they do in courtrooms and battlefields around the world.

How do we explain these differences in perception?

If this is something you also wonder about, you are not the first. People have been asking these very questions for millennia. As a case in point, the ancient philosopher Heraclitus was aware of these disparities, and he passed along some valuable insight into their cause. This is what he had to say:

To those who are awake, there is one world in common, but to those who are asleep, each is withdrawn to a private world of his own. — Heraclitus (circa 535 – 475 B.C.E.)

There is much wisdom in these words to help us understand why there is so much disagreement among people. They also hint at the method we can follow today if we want to see more truly the actuality of any situation.

What Heraclitus Understood More Than 2500 Years Ago

Heraclitus is telling us that when we are not aware of ourselves in the moment, when we are spiritually asleep, we live in imagination, in the world of dreams.

In that world of dreams we’re constantly reliving the past, or projecting the future, and we’re doing all of it while lost within our own little inner space. That space is different for each of us, with its own rules and beliefs based on our personal experiences from the past, our memories, and our conditioned reactions to events.

No wonder we don’t agree with each other. We’re living in different worlds of imagination, and that imagination shapes how we see life.

But when we are aware of ourselves and awake in the moment, we are living in reality, and that reality is — by definition — the same for everyone. What is real is real and is not subject to individual interpretation. The truth of the moment is the truth, and it is seen and understood in the same way by all who are awake to it.

Two people living in reality (a very rare occurrence), would not argue because they would share a world in common. They would see things the same way.

Two people who are asleep (most of us) would each see the world differently, and there would be much argument — as evidenced by what we see going on in the world around us.

If we are ever to understand why we see the world differently we have to understand the following truth expressed by OneJourney founder, Guy Finley:

We believe that what we see is the cause of our experience, when the truth is discernibly otherwise: it is how we experience each moment, i.e., our reaction to it, that determines not just how we see it, but what we see as its cause, accordingly. — Guy Finley (1949 – )

It is what we bring to the moment in our imagination that makes the moment what it is to us. To see this is to understand why we think everyone else is wrong in their perception of the moment, and even more, it is to admit that we, too, are wrong for the same reason.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but the result of taking it is so sweet. It opens the possibility of living in reality, which changes our relationship with life, and with everyone else.

So, What Do We Do?

What we have to do is obvious, isn’t it? Its to wake up! And this is what the whole work of self-discovery is about. It’s about snapping out of the inner dream state, coming back to the present moment, and seeing ourselves and what’s happening around us truthfully.

If enough people went through this process of inner exploration and came to no longer see through a glass darkly, but to see the truth of the moment and what we have brought to it, there would be more understanding between people, more compassion, and less fighting over competing, but mistaken, views of life.

For helpful wisdom on what being inwardly asleep means, and what waking up is about, here is a brief, but fascinating article by Guy. Just click this link to read it >>

Talks in the Pines Will Be Magnificent. The Replay Package is Available For Purchase Now.

Last month I told you about Life of Learning’s annual Talks in the Pines, featuring a special series of talks by Guy Finley. The event will take place June 20-22, 2025, and Guy will reveal secrets to strengthen your connection to higher, universal forces while integrating divine principles into your daily life. Each talk will explore one of these key elements to fulfilling our purpose for being on earth:

One Love — The greatest force in the universe, and the essential nature of each of us.
One Life — The laws that shape our experiences and our role in them.
One Journey — The path of self-discovery that deepens our connection with the Divine.

These talks will be truly life-changing, and if you are unable to either attend in person or watch via livestreaming, I urge you to get the video replay package. In fact, even if you are able to watch the livestreams, you would gain so much from watching them again, and the replay package will be perfect for you, too.

The package is only $24.95, and is available through the Life of Learning Foundation’s online store. If you would like to order it or find out more about it, just click here: Talks in the Pines Replay Package >>

Best Wishes,

Dr. Ellen Dickstein
The OneJourney Project

PS: You are invited to join Guy Finley’s FREE talks on these life-transforming ideas. All his talks are livestreamed and archived! For details visit www.guyfinley.org/peace