How is Jonathan different after his journey in "Jonathan Livingston Seagull"?

At the end of the story Jonathan returns to his old flock, but he has changed greatly from the young gull he was when he left. He now is much freer and wiser than he ever was before. He enjoys the freedom that flying gives him and is not ashamed of it. He has become unlimited in his thoughts and feelings as a result of the teaching of Old Chiang. The last words of his old master were to keep working on love. He shows this to his old flock through his attitude and actions once he returns. Jonathan is pleased to teach the eager young gulls of the Breakfast Flock what he knows. He has now become a teacher of all the wisdom that he had learned during his time in exile. He is less self-absorbed than he was as a younger gull. Most importantly, he has learned to forgive the members of the flock for banishing him. He has learned to love all gulls, even the ones who treated him so poorly. In short, Jonathan is more enlightened than he was before.

How does Jonathan Livingston Seagull perceive the world differently?

While other seagulls are focused only on eating, Jonathan Livingston Seagull is focused on flying for its own sake and on pushing the limits of his body. He is characterized by his incredible ambition, refusal to recognize limits, and inquisitive nature. He questions, for example, what makes him different from falcons and pelicans and albatross, and he studies the way these birds' bodies are composed and how this effects their flight.

His parents and community all try to redirect his interest toward food and toward established paths, but he is relentless in his desire to push further and further. This eventually leads to him being banished to the far cliffs. There, he is visited by two seagulls that seem heavenly; they then take him to a higher realm where he receives a certain kind of enlightenment.