The Terrible Fight Inside Us

A grandfather was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, “A fight is going on inside me. It is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf expresses fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, hatefulness and lies. The other wolf expresses joy, peace, love, hope, humbleness, kindness, friendship, generosity, faith and truth. These wolves are always fighting with each other. My grandchildren, this same fight is going on inside of you. And not just you, but inside every other person too.” The children thought about it for a minute. Then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win the fight?” The grandfather replied, “The one you feed will win.”

This story really struck me when I first read it. Where do we direct our energy and attention? We all have thinking and feelings. If we put our energy and focus into fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, hatefulness, and lies, it will fill our lives with misery and anguish. This will also affect everyone around us. If we put our energy and attention into joy, peace, love, hope, humbleness, kindness, friendship, generosity, faith, and truth, it will fill our lives with love and compassion.

This is not about which way is good and which way is bad. It’s about perceiving the truth of cause and effect. Everything we do and say has a natural result. Everything we do and say affects everyone around us. It is like throwing a pebble in the pond; the ripples go out very far and wide. Our actions and speech also go out very far and wide, farther than we can even see. So, where do we put our energy? Which “wolf” will you feed?