An elderly Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life...
He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me, it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
One wolf is evil -- he is fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, competition, superiority, and ego.
The other is good---he is joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.
This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too."
They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied: "The one you feed".
If we meet Confrontations with the virtues of Non-violence, we then take up a higher moral ground.
Many famous people of peace have said this in different ways:
- Jesus,
- "If someone strikes you on the cheek, offer him the other one as well."Luke 6:29
- Buddha,
- "The Buddha was sitting under a tree talking to his disciples when a man came and spit on his face. He wiped it off, and he asked the man, “What next? What do you want to say next?”
- Lao Tzu
- "If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading...Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love."
What the old Cherokee was saying when he had said, " The one you feed," is that if you meet violence with non-violence you inspire the other person to take a second look every time, and every time there after. This compassion will shake any hierarchy and give a pause in time for which some silence, space occurs.
"Not meeting anger with anger...We won't give them violence because we are taking care of our anger..."
Michael Stone.
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