There is a famous story in the history of mathematics.

Ptolemy was once advised to study geometry under Euclid. When he realized that understanding the propositions of geometry was difficult for him, he asked Euclid to choose an easier method for teaching them. Euclid promptly replied that there is no royal road to geometry.

Unfortunately, this lack of a “royal road”—the absence of easy paths to reach our goals—is a widespread reality.

What is the easy way to live a successful life?

What is the royal, effortless path to understanding people?

How can one know, with just a glance or a short conversation, what kind of person someone really is?

Is there an easy way to bypass study and university and still succeed in business?

Or even to become good parents?

This list could go on: easy and royal roads to personal growth, to the development of a society and a nation, to world peace, or to a less violent world.

Recognizing and accepting a basic truth is important:

first, that human beings, societies, and the world are complex systems whose mechanisms are not easy to understand.

And second, that growth and change pass through trial and error.

Every failure is only a temporary stage, and every success is also something somewhat accidental—pleasant, certainly, but temporary and something to move beyond.

No, understanding and repairing this troubled society of contemporary Iran is not easy.

Nor is understanding and improving ourselves and the world.

And truly, there is no royal road.

For change and growth, there is only acceptance, reflection, problem‑solving—

and enjoying the journey.