Being with what is, is understanding. From the perspective of understanding—of being—we don’t project our conclusions or judgments onto whatever is happening.

When we project our conclusions onto reality, it may seem that we know something; but this kind of knowing is defensive. Its nature is endless unfulfillment. It offers a kind of illusory security, but ultimately closes us down, isolates and separates us from things and from others. True understanding is open, spacious and vibrantly connected.

To truly understand our priorities, we must be able to distinguish between projection and intuition. Projection is when we think we know what is happening—we have an opinion, and there’s an identity called “I” or “me” which believes the opinion. Intuition, on the other hand, is free of any identity. No judgments or conclusions are present. Rather, there is a clear and unfiltered perception of reality, a kind of dancing with the ever-moving energy of life’s unfolding.