Don Miguel Ruiz is a Toltec teacher. The Toltecs were artists and spiritual seekers who thrived in Mexico hundreds of years ago and hid their ancestral wisdom after European conquerors arrived. Now, don Miguel is taking us to a mystical place where he finds inspiration—the ancient city of pyramids in Teotihuacan, Mexico.

Don Miguel Ruiz says four things can bring you the freedom, happiness and love you're looking for. Read on as he answers common questions about applying each one of The Four Agreements to your daily life.

Agreement #1: Be Impeccable with Your Word

All the magic you possess is based on your word. Depending upon how it is used, the word can set you free, or it can enslave you even more than you know.

Question: Does “being impeccable with your word” mean that you always tell the truth, even when it hurts someone’s feelings? How can I be impeccable without damaging my relationships or hurting others?

don Miguel: Well, you are also impeccable when you don’t put your nose where nobody wants it. You don’t have the right to try to fix other people’s points of view. You don’t need to be right and make them wrong because of what you believe. They have the right to suffer if that’s what they want to do. Many times, people don’t want you to tell them the truth; they only want you to tell them what they want to hear. You have to be wise enough to understand that when they ask you something, they are expecting a certain answer. You can go along with the game or not; it’s up to you. But you don’t need to create a lot of enemies by telling them what you think is true. That is not what they want to hear.

You can avoid the question, or you can tell them that you don’t have any opinion about it. The problem is that they can take your words and change your words, and use them for gossiping. Many people only want your point of view to get evidence of what they believe about themselves or about someone else. They will come to you and ask, “What is your opinion? What do you think about this or that?” and you can give your sincere opinion, but they will change it. And then they will say that you said that about them, and involve you in gossip.

Sometimes you give information to your friends because you trust them and believe they are loyal to you. Maybe it’s your best friend, and you gossip about yourself and tell her what you feel about yourself, about other people, making the assumption that she will not share it with anybody. And perhaps this is true, until she is no longer your friend. If something happens and she gets hurt or angry and breaks the friendship with you, a way for her to get even with you is to gossip about all the information you gave her. Something you have to learn about gossiping is that it begins with yourself. Don’t gossip about yourself.

Question: When someone is gossiping, what is the most tactful way of stopping the gossip?

don Miguel: The best way to stop others from gossiping is by not reacting to their gossip. If you react, you encourage them to gossip even more. If you don’t react, and they see that it’s not affecting you, at a certain point they just let it go. If you don’t accept the poison they send, that poison doesn’t affect you.

Question: If I am talking to a friend of mine about another person we both know, does this mean I am gossiping even if I don’t say anything bad about that person?

don Miguel: Gossiping can have good intentions, bad intentions, or no intentions at all. But even when the originator of the gossip doesn’t have a bad intention, the receiver of the information can change it into a bad intention. Whoever hears the information digests the information, and then changes it according to his or her perception. That’s why it’s better not to gossip at all.

Question: If someone asks me what I think about someone else, and I tell the truth, I feel like I’m gossiping. If I don’t tell the truth, then I’m lying to that person. What should I do?

don Miguel: Just don’t give any information. It’s the same advice as my grandfather used to give me: “Don’t put your nose where nobody wants it.” Just say, “I have no opinion” or “It’s not my business.”

Question: Whenever I think about improving myself, I get confused because then I’m not accepting myself exactly as I am. How can I accept myself exactly as I am and still try to improve myself?

don Miguel: You can be aware that you want to improve yourself, but not because you believe you are not good enough. It is possible to improve yourself without rejecting yourself. By having this awareness and not judging yourself, you have already improved. If you accept yourself, you no longer judge yourself or find yourself guilty. If you don’t find yourself guilty, you will not punish yourself, and right away things start changing for the better.

Keep reading >>

Photo: Aaron Landman

In a special message to "Super Soul Sunday" viewers, don Miguel Ruiz opens up about the day that changed his life forever. Read on to see how the lessons he learned from that experience have impacted millions around the world. (Oprah's interview with don Miguel Ruiz airs this Sunday at 11 a.m. on OWN. You can also watch our worldwide simulcasts at 11 a.m. ET and 11 a.m. PT on Oprah.com, Facebook.com/supersoulsunday or Facebook.com/OWNTV.)

Often major blessings in life come disguised as startling curses. In 1978, this is exactly what happened to me. Following what should have been a fatal car accident, resulting in a profound out-of-body experience, my life was unavoidably changed, forever.

You see, from the day of my birth, I was surrounded by the love and ancient wisdom of my Toltec lineage. The Toltec were known throughout southern Mexico as "women and men of knowledge." Anthropologists have spoken of the Toltec as a nation or a race, but in fact, the Toltec were scientists and artists who formed a society to explore and conserve the spiritual knowledge and practices of the ancient ones. They came together as masters (Naguals) and students at Teotihuacan, the ancient city of pyramids outside Mexico City known as the place where "Man becomes God."

My grandfather, Leonardo, was a nagual (shaman), and my beloved mother, Sarita, a curandera (healer). At the feet of these incredible masters, I grew into manhood enveloped in the special mystery and knowledge of the "old ways" of my ancestors. Although I knew that I was expected by my elders to carry on the family tradition, in my heart, I felt deeply drawn to the healing arts of the medical profession. I entered medical school with the dream of becoming a surgeon.  In the years to follow, I worked as a surgeon with my brother, who is a neurosurgeon.

In spite of my success as a medical doctor, it was impossible for me to escape the vivid reality of the way I saw myself after the accident. I experienced myself as pure consciousness, I saw the universe and myself as one. I realized I was a part of everything, and everything was a part of me...including God! By allowing the infusion of this truth into every cell of my being, it began to loom larger than anything else I believed in. Subsequently, my perception of life began to transform.

Then, inexplicably, all of the ancient wisdom I remembered learning from my mother and my grandfather came flooding over me; especially the recollection of my grandfather telling me we were all living in a dream, that permanently hooked my attention. He'd also said “when we awaken from the dream, we have the power to change it —not just for ourselves, but for everyone we know.”

With this epiphany, I placed my feet upon the shamanic path, in quest of the truth. For at this point, I could no longer attempt to escape the fact my soul had made a divine agreement to fulfill a mission designed to understand and share my knowledge of the Toltec wisdom with the entire world.

Newly transformed, my mission complemented by my medical training, compelled me to write The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom. This book (published by Amber Allen in 1997) quickly gained international and critical acclaim, with millions of copies sold globally. The content of my book is based on fundamental Toltec concepts. Believe me, they are very simple to understand, perhaps challenging to implement, yet powerful enough to change the way you live your life.

The Four Agreements are:
1. Be Impeccable with Your Word
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

It is very important to understand this agreement, because we use the word to create a complete reality. This reality is only true for us, and not necessarily true for anybody else. Based on this agreement, our personal story could become a heaven or a hell.