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Humans punish themselves endlessly for not being what they believe they should be. They become very self-abusive, and they use other people to abuse themselves as well.
Miguel Angel Ruiz
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Interpretation

What this quote means

People often inflict pain on themselves for not meeting their own expectations.

This quote by Miguel Angel Ruiz highlights the detrimental effects of unrealistic self-expectations, which can lead to self-abuse and the projection of negative feelings onto others. It reflects on the human tendency to hold ourselves to high standards, causing unnecessary suffering and harming our relationships with others as we may inadvertently use them as a means of punishing ourselves.

Themes

Self-AbuseExpectationsSufferingRelationshipsSelf-Punishment

In practice

Example use cases

During a workshop on self-compassion, this quote can be shared to emphasize the importance of accepting oneself.

More from Miguel Angel Ruiz

We have a tendency to make assumptions about everything! The problem with making assumptions is that we believe they are truth. We could swear they are real. We make assumptions about what others are doing or thinking-we take it personally-then we blame them and react by sending emotional poison in our word. That is why whenever we make assumptions, we're asking for problems. We make assumptions, we misunderstand, we take it personally, and we end up creating a whole big drama for nothing.
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...What you are is a force--a force that makes it possible for your body to live, a force that makes it possible for your whole mind to dream...You are life
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What you will see is love coming out of the trees, love coming out of the sky, love coming out of the light. You will perceive love from everything around you. This is the state of bliss.
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When we try to describe the truth with words, we distort it and it's no longer truth--it's our story. The story may be true for us, but that doesn't mean it's true for anyone else.
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When we believe in lies, we cannot see the truth, so we make thousands of assumptions and we take them as truth. One of the biggest assumptions we make is that the lies we believe are the truth!
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When you are aware that you are the force that is Life, anything is possible. Miracles happen all the time, because those miracles are performed by the heart. The heart is in direct communion with the human soul, and when the heart speaks, even with the resistance of the head, something inside you changes; your heart opens another heart, and true love is possible.
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