Valkoinen susi ja musta susi

Luin jokunen aika sitten hienon tarinan kahdesta sudesta - valkoisesta ja mustasta sudesta. Tarina liitetään cherokee-intiaaneihin (joskus myös irokeeseihin) ja siitä saa paljon ajateltavaa.

Usein löytyy vain tämä lyhyt tarina:

An old Cherokee is 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, and ego." He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The 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 Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

Minä tykkään vielä enemmän tästä pidemmästä versiosta, jossa isoisä vastaa toisella tavalla:

Which one of the wolves wins grandfather?

They both do son. When I feed only the kind wolf, the angry wolf will be waiting round every corner to see when I’m off balance, and attack the white wolf, causing problems for me and my tribe. He will always be angry and fighting for attention that it craves.

But if I feed the angry, greedy wolf a little, and understand its nature….if I acknowledge him for the strong force that he is and let him know that I respect him for his character and will use him to help me if we as a tribe are ever in big trouble, if I do this, then he will be happy, the white wolf will be happy, and both will win.

I don’t understand, how can both win?

You see son, the angry wolf has many important qualities that I might need, and a deepening of understanding of what comes my way; he is fierce, strong willed, and will not back down for a moment. He is smart and clever to think of devious strategies in war. In the midst of an attack he could be our greatest ally.

If I feed them both they no longer need fight for my attention, and I can use both of them as needed. And since there is no war going on between them, I can hear the voice of deeper knowing, and choose which wolf to deal with in each circumstance.

If you grandmother asks me to cook a special meal that I have not done well, I can ask my kind wolf to console her angry wolf, the white wolf always knows what to say and be sensitive to someone’s needs.

You see son, if you understand that there are two main forces inside of you and you give them both equal respect, they will both win, and be in peace.

And peace my son, in our tradition, is our ultimate purpose in life.
  
A man who is pulled apart by the war is nothing. A man who has peace inside has everything. You can choose how you will interact with these forces inside of you. What you decide will determine the quality of your life. If one of the wolves needs special attention, you don’t need to be ashamed, just admit it to your elders, and when out us out in the open, those who have battled a similar struggle can offer you their wisdom of experience with you.

Eli kummatkin voimat ovat tärkeitä, sillä ne ovat aina läsnä. Ne pitää hyväksyä ja niitä pitää käyttää rakentavasti.  Voisi myös ajatella, että kyseessä on terveen egoismin ja terveen altruismin tasapainoisesta suhteesta. Huomioi omat tarpeensa ja muiden tarpeet.

Löytyy esim. täältä First people - the legends tai tästä blogista.

-O-