Thoughts from Week 2 of the Real Happiness - 28 Day Meditation Challenge . . .
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, “My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is Evil – It is anger, fear, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
“The other is Good – It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
This Native American Cherokee story was told to me three times in one week, by three different people, in completely unrelated situations. A message from the Universe, heard loud and clear. I love this story because it relates so beautifully to the practice of meditation and mindfulness. We are motivated either by love or by fear. The amazing part of a meditation practice is that we can begin to observe our patterns of behavior, thoughts and emotions, to see them for what they really are -- fear based acts or acts of unconditional love. Once we become more aware and see ourselves more clearly, we can decide how we choose to act -- an amazingly powerful process. The other incredible benefit from a meditation practice is that we can cultivate a different attitude or lens through which we see the world. We can choose to act from love rather than from fear, and practice creating positive neural pathways (the scientifically researched approach) or practice lovingkindness (the 2500 year-old Buddhist meditation approach). However one chooses to explain the process, we can choose to act from love rather than from fear. In doing so, the world becomes a different place (kinder, gentler, more loving), and we begin to move in it with greater joy and greater ease. So, this week, as I continue Week 2 of my Meditation Challenge, I look deeper at which wolf I feed, and continue to choose love.
