The dictionary says perception is the ability to become aware of something through the senses, and the way something is understood or interpreted.
I want to talk about the second half.
Your perception of the world has been shaped by everything in your life up to this moment. Every feeling, every thought, every experience has helped build the lens you see through.
There is an old story about the tall ships arriving on new coastlines. The story goes that the local people, at first, could not see the ships at all. A ship that size was so far outside anything they had ever known that their minds had nothing to match it to.
There are a few versions of that story, and whether it is history or legend, the point it makes is real. I have watched it play out in people all my life.
We do not see the world as it is.
We see the world as our rules allow.
Think about how a perception actually gets built.
The world floods your senses every day, far more than you can take in, so your mind selects what to notice. Then it sorts what it noticed into the boxes it already owns. Then it interprets and judges, using rules you formed years ago. Then it stores the whole package in memory.
And when you recall it later, you are not replaying the event, you are replaying your version of it.
Five steps, and your rules are steering every single one.
Ever been daydreaming in a conversation, and your attention only snaps back when your name is said? That is the selection step, caught in the act. You were only ever hearing what your filters let through.
Now the important question.
Where did your rules come from?
Most of them were formed when you were young, from moments you did not choose, and many of them have flawed beginnings that you have simply carried forward ever since.
One of the most valuable things you can do for your growth is to take your rules out one at a time and ask, why do I believe this? You will be surprised how many collapse under one honest look.
You have the power to change anything in your life.
Be open to seeing the world with new eyes, especially through your higher self and what that connection shows you.
What is one rule about life you once held as fact, that turned out to be just a lens?
Come and share your stories or ask any questions in the Perth Spiritual Learning group on Facebook.