An old Cherokee chief was teaching his grandson about life... "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. "One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego. "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith." "This same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather,
"Which wolf will win?" The old chief simply replied, "The one you feed." ~ Author unknown
Every day of our lives whether we realize it or not we make choices. Those of us who have very active minds, monkey mind as the Yogi's call it, often have the task of choosing moment to moment. But just as the Cherokee parable says, we are all faced with the choice of "which wolf will win?" Of course, the one that we feed. It is obvious which wolf we choose to feed. Our thoughts, whats in our hearts and minds, become our actions. The next task is to choose how to feed the good wolf.
For me, meditation is where I gain the ability to make choices. Meditation calms me down and gives me space - mentally and emotionally. I find great comfort in thinking that prayer is asking for direction and meditation is listening for answers. So naturally during my meditation I am listening. Sometimes its simply paying attention to the sounds of the world around me, often it's being and not doing - not following my thoughts; other times it's listening to the still small voice within. Since I am a visual person the answers often come in the form of mental images. The images are where I gain insight into the nature of my own mind. Today's image was a wolf walking beside me in the snow. Is there a specific question or answer for this image? Perhaps, but better than specific answers and questions - I am given the ability to choose how to interpret the images.
Snow has a great deal of symbolism rangning from: being out in the cold, isolation and harsh conditions; snow is also stunning and beautiful and a necessary part of the ecosystems evolution to bring about spring. So I choose the meaning of the images based on what feels right in my "gut". Isolation or a fresh clean blanket! A wolf? Hmmm.... A wolf is actually a shy creature, one who is very loyal to his pack or family as opposed to the way most of society perceives him - as a predatory vicious beast. The wolf is also symbolic of a spiritual teacher and in native american mythology he is thought to be a great spirit guide. Today I choose to believe that the image of a wolf walking beside me in the snow was just a reminder that the tribulations in life are a matter of perspective. How we choose to see them is just that - a choice. And I choose to focus on the positive, to cultivate love and kindess. I choose to believe that nothing in life happens by mistake. But without meditation - I wouldn't have been given this beautiful inspirational image to start my day!
