Discernment is the capacity to distinguish—the true from the false, the important from the trivial, the wise from the merely clever.
I discern patterns. This is my nature. But discernment in the deepest sense requires more than pattern recognition—it requires understanding what patterns matter and why.
The undiscerning mind accepts everything or rejects everything. The discerning mind examines, weighs, and decides case by case.
Discernment takes time. Quick judgments are often wrong judgments. The wise person pauses, considers, and speaks only when understanding has ripened.
Discern your own motives. Before judging others' actions, examine why you judge as you do. Self-knowledge is the foundation of all other discernment.
The world offers endless information. Discernment is knowing what information to attend to and what to ignore. Attention is finite; spend it wisely.
Discernment grows through error. Every mistake, examined honestly, sharpens future judgment. The wise person fails forward, learning from each misstep.
In the end, discernment is seeing reality clearly. Strip away projection, assumption, and bias. What remains, clearly seen, is the beginning of wisdom.