What do you see when you look in the mirror? The exercise that can change the way you look at life
The way you look at life can change the way you live it. In the shamanic teachings described by Dr. Alberto Villoldo there are four different ways of seeing reality – and each one offers a new perspective on the problems and experiences we go through.
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The way we look at the world profoundly influences the way we live our lives, as Dr. Alberto Villoldo writes in his book “The 4 Introspections”published in Romania by For You Publishing House. Moreover, we not only react to what happens to us, but also to the way we understand what happens to us.
In essence, the message of the ancient shamanic teachings of South America mentioned by Villoldo is simple: if you change your perspective on a problem, the way you experience it changes.
For example, he talks about the Laika – the shamans of the Andes, considered the keepers of an ancient wisdom. In their tradition, life is not just a simple sequence of causes and effects. Of course, there are predictable things: if you plant a seed, something grows; if you're wrong, there are consequences. But, says Villoldo, there is also something else: coincidences that are not quite random, meetings that seem trivial but end up having enormous significance, situations that reveal their meaning only later.
It says that not all problems can be solved by control or explanation. Sometimes real change comes when we change our perception.
The four levels through which we see the world
In his book, Alberto Villoldo talks about four levels of perception, associated with four animals: the snake, the jaguar, the hummingbird and the eagle. Each represents a different way of looking at life.
1. Serpent Level: The Concrete World
The first level is that of the snake. At this level we look at things very simply: we react to what happens to us. If it rains and we don't have an umbrella, we get wet. If something hurts, we look for a medicine. If a danger arises, we try to avoid it.
It is that way of thinking oriented towards survival and solving everyday problems. It helps us organize our lives, work, pay bills on time and deal with urgent matters. The problem arises when we think that all situations in life can be solved only in this way: quickly, practically and without asking what lies beyond them.
2. Jaguar Level: Mind and Emotions
The second level is that of the jaguar. Here we begin to understand that things are not just what they seem. We no longer see just the facts, but also the emotions, beliefs and thoughts behind them.
For example, a headache is no longer just a physical problem – it can also be related to stress, fatigue or accumulated anger. Likewise, an argument no longer seems like just a momentary reaction, but can hide fears, frustrations or unsaid things.
At this level, man begins to ask himself: “What is actually behind what I live?” It is the level where people begin to think more seriously about what is happening to them and what they could change in their lives.
3. The Hummingbird Level: The Deeper Meaning of Life
The third level is that of the Hummingbird. Here, life is no longer seen as just a series of problems to be solved, but as a collection of experiences from which we can learn something.
At this level another question arises. Not just “How do I get out of this problem?”but also “What can I learn from what's happening to me?” A breakup can become a moment of clarification. An illness can be a signal that something in our life needs to be changed. A loss can open an unexpected path.
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In this perspective, the Hummingbird is related to the idea of meaning and how people interpret their experiences. We no longer look at things only by what happens to us, but also by what we can understand from them.
4. Level of the Eagle: things as a whole
The last level is that of the eagle. Here we see things “from above”, as a whole. We are no longer just caught up in drama, conflict or fear. We begin to feel the connection between us, those close to us and the world around us.
Villoldo says that at this level we understand that everything is connected. We are no longer just dealing with the effects, but trying to understand the source. We no longer just react out of fear, but out of clarity.
It is the level at which man begins to see life more broadly, more quietly and more deeply.
You can't solve everything from the same level
According to him, you cannot solve a problem at the same level at which it arose. If a problem is treated only on the surface, it may return. If we only deal with the symptom and not the cause, the change will only be temporary. That's why he says that sometimes we have to climb to another level of understanding.
Physically, we treat pain.
Emotionally, we understand what sustains her.
In the psychic plane, we discover what we have to learn.
And on a spiritual level, we completely change our relationship to life.
In essence, Alberto Villoldo sends a clear message: life improves when we change our perspective on it. We can't always control everything that happens, but we can learn to see differently what we experience. And from that moment, our response also changes.
EXERCISE: Four ways to look at your own face
Villoldo proposes a simple observation exercise that shows us how our perception can change when we look more closely at ourselves.
“Sit in a quiet room in front of a mirror about a meter away. Place a candle next to you and breathe deeply for a few minutes. Look in the mirror without staring too hard, especially at the eye area.
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Notice what happens.
At the first level, that of the snake, you will see your face exactly as you know it. The features are clear and familiar – it's the usual way we look at each other.
After a few minutes, the perception may begin to change. On the jaguar, shadows and expressions can make the face appear different or moving. Sometimes unexpected images or associations may appear. The point is just to notice, without freaking out or trying to control what you see.
At the level of the Hummingbird, the picture stabilizes again. Villoldo says you can look at this as an invitation to reflect on what you're experiencing in your life at that moment.
Finally, at the level of the eagle, attention is no longer focused on facial features, but on stillness and breathing.
To finish the exercise, take a few deep breaths and step away from the mirror.”
Villoldo says she has used this exercise with people going through difficult times to help them imagine a healthier or more balanced version of themselves.
“The 4 Introspections” is a book about healing, transformation and meaning, which proposes another way of understanding man and the world. A more careful and perhaps wiser way.
