A Conversation with don Miguel Ruiz: Understanding Truth in All That Exists

I am honored and humbled to present this video conversation with the great don Miguel Ruiz. First and foremost, don Miguel is a teacher of the heart. I was not prepared (and was beautifully surprised) to immediately drop into my heart when I spoke with don Miguel. I truly felt his love for humanity and the world—and I wanted to share our conversation now, even though it took place over six years ago. That’s because I believe his wisdom is absolutely instrumental for the time in which we find ourselves: a time in which it’s so important to remember that cultivating a peaceful and steady mind dedicated to the truth is the only way forward—not just for ourselves but for the entire world.

“There is a big conflict in the world, and it’s not between good and bad; it’s between truth and lies,” don Miguel shared with me.

don Miguel Ruiz is the international bestselling author of a popular series of books that includes The Four Agreements, which has been on the New York Times bestseller list for well over a decade. And it’s little wonder. He has dedicated his life to sharing the wisdom of the ancient Toltec civilization through his books, lectures, and journeys to sacred sites around the world. don Miguel’s other books include The Mastery of Love, The Voice of Knowledge, Prayers, Beyond Fear, and The Fifth Agreement, a collaboration with his son, don Jose Ruiz.

don Miguel is well known for shedding light on how simple experiments in psychology, such as merely changing the way we think about things, can help us find deeper peace and understanding of the way the world works. We only understand what we learn, says don Miguel, and what we learn shapes how we see our world. By rethinking what we’ve learned, we can become more joyous, more peaceful, and more compassionate toward others. We can also reclaim our rightful identity as the love of our own life.

For more information about this incredible teacher, visit: www.miguelruiz.com

Time Stamps:

2:08 How don Miguel defines truth: It can’t be explained with words, it exists even when we distort it to create our own story, and it’s ultimately unknowable

4:50 “I have no idea what I am, but I am”

7:12 “The mind is what we know, but the unknown is what we can learn”

9:22 Whether we understand it or not, we already live in the truth (and Kelly’s aha moment)

10:00 How don Miguel’s four agreements are guide to who you really are—tools anyone can use to heal themselves and become free of the lies they learn to see as truth

11:12 How the threat of punishment and the fear of not being rewarded end up ruling our lives

13:00 Why you’re the main character of your story—and why that character is not who you really are

14:10 The biggest addiction of humans: suffering

18:35 How things are changing for women on our planet

20:00 How everything is art and we are the artists—and why seeing the best in everything shifts the world around us

21:20 don Miguel’s explanation of his fifth agreement: “Be skeptical but learn to listen”

25:36 You can only give what you have—you can’t give love if you don’t love yourself

28:57 You rise in love when you find out you are the love of your life

29:40 don Miguel’s message to women: You were born with the right to be happy and to enjoy your life—don’t let anyone take away your freedom to be who you are