Jon begins successfully following Chiang's teachings. When Jon begs to learn Chiang's skills, Chiang explains that the secret to true flight is to recognize that one's nature exists across all time and space. Suddenly, Chiang disappears, then reappears a moment later, displaying his attainment of perfect speed. The Elder Gull of the community, Chiang, admits that this reality is not heaven, but that heaven is the achieving of perfection itself: an ability beyond any particular time or place. His instructor, Sullivan, explains that a few gulls progress to this higher existence, but most others live through the same world over and over again. Jonathan transcends into a reality, which he assumes is heaven, where all the gulls enjoy practicing incredible maneuvers and speeds, like him. In his old age, he is met by two radiantly-bright seagulls who share his abilities, explaining to him that he has learned much, but that they have come to take him 'home' where he will go 'higher'.

He lives a long happy life and is sad not due to his loneliness but only due to the fact that the rest of the Flock will never know the full glories of flying, like him. Undeterred, Jonathan continues his efforts to reach ever-greater flight goals, finding he is often successful.

Eventually, his lack of conformity within the Flock causes them to officially banish him with the label 'Outcast'. Unlike his peers, he is seized with a passion for flight of all kinds, and his soul soars as he aerially experiments and learns more about the nature of his own body and the environment in achieving faster and faster flight. Jonathan Livingston Seagull is an independent thinker frustrated with the daily squabbles over meager food and sheer survival within his flock of seagulls who have no deeper sense of purpose. In 2014 the book was reissued as Jonathan Livingston Seagull: The Complete Edition, which added a 17-page fourth part to the story.

It was first published in book form in 1970 with little advertising or expectations by the end of 1972, over a million copies were in print, the book having reached the number one spot on bestseller lists mostly through word of mouth recommendations. Jonathan Livingston Seagull, written by American author Richard Bach and illustrated with black-and-white photographs shot by Russell Munson, is an allegorical fable in novella form about a seagull who is trying to learn about flying, personal reflection, freedom, and self-realization.

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