First published 27/4/2020 – Last updated 03/6/25
“Does Perfection Really Exist?”
If you’ve been feeling uneasy about the state of the world, you’re not alone.
What if that discomfort is not a problem, but an invitation? An invitation to look inward and awaken the transformative power that lies dormant within.
The change we want and need. It’s already here for those that choose it. All that remains is to act consciously with inherent perfection.
Awakening in a World of Discomfort
Know that this state of disarray is meant to be, it cannot be otherwise. No amount of worrying, denying, or avoiding will change what must be healed from within.
Only conscious action aligned with inner truth can create meaningful, sustainable change outside of ourselves.
Respecting that each is on their own path, their own timeline, can also help when times get rough.
As babies we arrive as pure energy, whole loving souls into this material matrix that we navigate with our physical bodies over the years. Although some get through without too much of a scratch, most are broken down into a “reality” ripe for manipulation either covertly or overtly.
Regardless of what has happened to a soul during this experience, we must each break the loops and heal our hearts from the carnage of these traumas and internal conflicts.
To Change the World, Start by Changing Yourself
There are a multitude of things we can change and another ginormous load that we can’t.
“Accept the things you cannot change,
Reinhold Niebuhr
have the courage to change the things you can,
and have the wisdom to know the difference”
If litter in nature frustrates you then create less of it yourself, avoid single-use, pick some up, educate those willing to listen.
If injustice angers you then embody fairness, inside and out, boycott, raise awareness, support those in need.
These are just some examples. Whatever you might dream up, you always have choice.
Does Perfection Exist: We Always Have Choice
Despite arguments to the contrary: we have a choice where we spend our money, what we watch, what we do, think and say, what we put on and in our bodies, with who or what we spend our time on, where we live and work and how we go about our daily lives. Every day, we choose.
Some choices may not be easy or even pleasant to make, but they are generally available to us in the “western world”.
The energy we cultivate and where we direct it is our choice and it means everything.
Yet so many of us deny that, decreeing “I had no choice” whenever complaining about said choices. Many are still completely unaware of their inner workings, let alone the power they hold within them to create.
Perception, Power, and Perfection
Put simply, once we become conscious, we can create much as we choose to.
We always have choice. At least when it comes to our perceptions and responses. To deny that aspect of our free will is to give away our personal power. When we say we do not have a choice, we rob ourselves of an opportunity to act, to create, to claim the unfolding of events and make it our own.
We can get back the power we have dispersed by becoming aware of what we do, owning it and experimenting with changes where necessary.
Simple in theory, right? Admittedly, in practice, it can prove somewhat more complicated.
Nevertheless, those embarking on this often perilous voyage are far from alone and even though it may feel that way, or be extremely trying at times. The only way out is in, and right through it all anyway.
Shadows, Cycles, and Conscious Creation
More and more people are questioning their realities. They’re diving into their shadows, facing contradictions, and shedding illusions. In doing so, they’re co-creating a world that reflects that consciousness shift.
What seems broken outside is often a reflection of our inner distortions. Choosing awareness allows us to step outside the loop of manipulation. By doing the inner work, we contribute to the outer transformation.
More and more are working on freeing themselves from the twisted back and forth of denied ownership and in turn, they help others do the same, until our shared world is indistinguishable from when the perception first began.
Does Perfection Exist: Another Lens on “Perfection”
Initially, this piece ended with: “Perfection doesn’t exist… but we can still explore new ways of thinking, being, doing…”
But then a conversation with my mum changed everything. She referenced The Fifth Agreement by Don Miguel Ruiz. I resisted. “Nobody is perfect,” I said, like we’ve all said many a time. But with reflection, I came to a different understanding.
Perfection just is. You are it. So am I. We all are. Even in perceived imperfection, we are exactly as we’re meant to be.
As Ruiz said, perfection is not something to attain. It simply exists. We cheat ourselves by rejecting it, reinforcing smallness and self-doubt. But if we own our actions and stand in our truth, we can reclaim our innate perfection.
Does perfection exist?
Here is what Don Miguel Ruiz had to say about our inherent perfection during an interview:
With Don Miguel Ruiz, Guide, Shaman, Master of the Toltec Tradition, and Author of The Four Agreements
Does Perfection Exist: Redefining Perfect
The more I thought about it, the idea that “perfection doesn’t exist”, or that it’s hard to grasp, or that it cannot be attained whatsoever is a major cop-out.
We are cheating ourselves every time we say these kinds of things internally or aloud.
Often unconsciously, we are programming ourselves to play small.
Who decides what perfection is anyway? Do we trust and respect them? Even more than ourselves? Why would we want to hold ourselves back in such a way?
What if we all decided to own our actions? To truly be the perfection that we are, as we are, right now?
Sure, we can evolve, change our habits, grow our awareness. But we’re still perfect along the way. This isn’t an excuse for passivity; rather, it’s an invitation to accept ourselves and act from wholeness.
Does perfection exist? Perfection isn’t a destination. It’s a state of existence in just being.
Our society trains us to chase illusions; success, status, stuff, all while shunning the “negative” or “ugly” parts of life. But darkness and light are both necessary for growth. Duality is fertile ground for harmony.
Of course, we can all work on aspects of ourselves if we want, it’s even advised as far as I’m concerned. As we progress we create different actions, experience another way of being, we modify reality.
We can become another expression of perfect but we will always be perfect either way, even with all our perceived “imperfections” because we are, as we are and that in itself is perfection, n’est-ce pas?
Does Perfection Exist: Appreciating the Human Journey
Even if I can hear the inner ruminating that this and that isn’t perfect, “but how can one say everything is perfect when it isn’t?!” In reality, it is all a question of perspective.
We’ve forgotten how to sit with discomfort, to learn from failure, to embrace the full spectrum of life. Yet this is the true human experience: learning, grieving, laughing, loving, and evolving together.
In truth, the idea that “perfection doesn’t exist” is a limitation we place on ourselves. A distraction. But what if we saw everything, even the so-called mistakes, as part of the perfect unfolding?
To remain in this perpetual search for some elusive form of perfection that is often dictated by others’ ideals, or the whims of commercial markets, religious leaders and political agendas or assimilated false beliefs about life and ourselves is a waste of precious energy.
It is time and effort that could be invested in things like actually living the experiences we came here for, the good, the bad and the ugly, and living them fully, wholeheartedly and bravely in their entirety.
Participating in the Evolving Perfection
For many, there will come a time in the future where the past is reflected upon in a different light.
A changed perception becomes available on things that were considered imperfect at the time. Things that we thought to be the total opposite of perfect; catastrophes, crises, dramas and the like.
The final realisation, for those who choose not to play victim and have embraced the journey of discovery into the inner workings of the soul at least, will be that these very “imperfect” things ended up being exactly what was needed at the time and so could actually be considered perfect indeed!
Now that doesn’t mean we rest there; perfection has been attained, stop the press, final curtain, we can all go home, no. This is the problem of a society conditioned to compete, obsessed with the achievement of trivial, often manipulated goals and desires of winning all the things, above all and everyone else. Amassing stuff to appear valuable and claiming ownership over everything we can, just because we can.
We live in a society that has mostly forgotten to appreciate what truly is, what makes us human, the process of pondering questions, the art of learning from mistakes, the trough of deception after a peak of jubilation, death and illness, the highs and the lows, to share, to witness the journey and all of its participants for all their perfection and the lessons contained therein.
Perfection Does Exist
I guess what I mean to say, in complete contrast to what was said before, is that perfection does exist. I am it and so are you, even if we don’t fully grasp how or why in the moment.
Does perfection exist? Yes it does. Even if we don’t believe it.
Perfection is life, it just is, much like we just are. We can and should definitely still explore new avenues of thinking, being and doing independently of this state of perfection.
Maybe even reconsider flippantly saying such things as, “perfection doesn’t exist” or “nobody’s perfect” in the future.
“The power of the word is completely misused […]
from The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
We use the word to curse, to blame, to find guilt, to destroy. Of course, we also use it in the right way, but not too often. Mostly we use the word to spread our personal poison – to express anger, jealousy, envy, and hate. The word is pure magic – the most powerful gift we have as humans – and we use it against ourselves. We plan revenge. We create chaos with the word. We use the word to create hate between different races, between different people, between families, between nations. We misuse the word so often, and this misuse is how we create and perpetuate the dream of hell. Misuse of the word is how we pull each other down and keep each other in a state of fear and doubt. Because the word is the magic that humans possess and misuse of the word is [destructive] magic, we are using [destructive] magic all the time without knowing that our word is magic at all.”
Grounding in Perfection
How do we participate in this evolving perfection? By becoming who we are beneath the masks. By stripping away inherited lies and healing mechanisms born of pain. By making conscious, compassionate choices. By being willing to see ourselves clearly as we are.
Shedding the layers of lies we inherited and the playbook of hurt we may have embodied before, whatever it is that keeps us looping in misery when we could be contributing to paradise.
That means taking a conscious position in willingly stripping ourselves bare, facing it all, being truly honest and open with ourselves. With love and compassion, looking within and cultivating a deep comprehension for the way we are, personally and collectively. Perfectly.
Not Everyone is Ready to Recognise Perfection, and That’s Okay
Understandably, not everyone is capable or willing right now. Some may even see it of no use whatsoever, and I suppose that is perfect too.
A journey of such colossal importance for the development of a soul, and ultimately the larger human experience, certainly isn’t for the faint-hearted and unprepared.
If you are ready, welcome to the journey. Look at your perfection within.
What does perfection mean to you? Share your reflections in the comments.
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