4 principles that the Toltecs taught us about relationships

This ancient civilization left several interesting reflections on human relationships.

The Toltecs were an ancient civilization that managed to dominate a large part of Mexico..

Much has been said about their contributions to the history of human development, and although this people have disappeared, we can still find in their past and their way of seeing life elements that can inspire us to manage our relationships more successfully. For something they were considered "women and men of knowledge".

Based on the doctrine of this ancient culture, the Mexican Miguel Ruiz wrote the book Los 4 acuerdos de la sabiduría tolteca (The 4 agreements of Toltec wisdom).

These principles refer to ideas that are relatively simple but not so easy to put into practice.However, once we master them, our lives will be more free of communication problems with the people around us.

4 Toltec principles for better relationships

If you are willing to know what these four Toltec principles are to improve our interpersonal relationships, here is a quick summary.here is a quick summary. If you want to investigate more about this civilization, you may be surprised by the wisdom that emanated from their culture.

1. "Be impeccable with your words".

This principle consists of to keep in mind at all times that once we have spoken, what has come out of our mouth can never be erased again, and it has already had an effect on us.and has already had an effect on our listeners.

This is the aspect of language that some philosophers call the perlocutionary act of speech. This does not mean that we should speak less, but that we should reflect on the good or bad impact of what we say, and not only on whether what we say is true or not. It is about not speaking impulsively.

2. "Don't take anything personally".

It is very common that due to the actions of other people, we get into a bad mood; This is partly due to the fact that we depend too much on the opinion of others and we rarely stop to think that maybe the other person is projecting his or her problems and insecurities on us.

Thus, it is worthwhile that when someone is making us feel bad, we stop for a moment to think about the saying: "what John says about Peter says more about John than about Peter".

3. "Don't make assumptions".

Answer yourself this question: the times you have imagined or fantasized that the things others talk about have to do with you, are they negative or positive things? If you answered that they are positive, bravo, you are one of the few people who think so; but if you answered that they are negative, do not panic, there is an explanation.

There is a theory according to which the human being tends to give more importance and credibility to bad news due to the survival instinct. due to the survival instinct. Now, if we assume that others have a negative idea about us, how much harm can we not do to another person? How much negativity will go through our head while we are thinking such a thing? Gossip is something that damages our social relationships and can be prevented in a relatively simple way: by asking questions and getting out of doubt.

4. "Always give your best".

This idea can be summarized as follows: the day when you give your best effort, in the best way you can and as you think you can, is the day when you will accept the consequences of your actions, is when you will accept the consequences of your actions in the best way you can..

It is important to note that it is good to seek a balance in what we do. Give what we can give, do what we can do, but without committing ourselves to offer more than we are able to give, because that will only serve to produce stress and frustration. This Toltec principle is about the importance of accepting and knowing our limits, because knowing them will also make it easier to know if we are doing less or more than what we could do.

For reflection

We must remember that these are 4 principles or "agreements" inspired by an ancient civilization whose living conditions are very different from ours.

It is therefore our task to know how to interpret them well if we want to make them useful. However, and in spite of the practice and effort required to know how to apply them, it is easy to find in them a profound lesson, it is easy to find in them a profound lesson about social relations. and how to find a balance between oneself and the social environment.