“And the young warrior asked his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?” His grandfather smiled and simply said, “The one you feed.”
— Cherokee Story
Have you ever felt an internal battle raging in your mind? That constant, exhausting tension between what you should and shouldn’t do; between right and wrong, good and evil? We’ve all been there. It is this universal experience that leads us directly to the profound wisdom of an ancient Cherokee story.
At the heart of the parable is a conversation between a grandfather and a young warrior. The grandfather explains that throughout life, two wolves are constantly at war inside us. One is Good—it represents joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, and kindness. The other is Evil—it represents anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, and ego. When the warrior naturally asks which one wins this timeless battle, the grandfather’s reply is simple: “The one you feed.”
The Necessary Tension
If we take this metaphor to heart, we realize this internal battle is happening every single day. We have a constant choice about which thoughts and actions we empower.
Here’s the funny thing: we actually need both. How can we truly appreciate what good is without knowing what bad is? It’s the concept of Yin and Yang—the two opposites play off of each other, giving definition and meaning to the whole. The trick is not to eliminate one, which is impossible, but to keep them in the right proportion. We must focus on minimizing the bad by maximizing the good.
How to Feed the Good Wolf
When you spend your day focused on negative thoughts, dwelling on grudges, or acting without integrity, you are feeding the bad wolf. That wolf grows stronger and begins to lead you down a path of destruction, making it harder and harder to find your way back.
To feed the good wolf, you must be intentional. This means cultivating positive thoughts, good intentions, and looking for the lesson in every challenge. When something goes wrong, don’t ignore the bad, but actively try to see the good that can come from it. We can’t have one without the other, but we can definitely choose which one we nourish.
To help you consciously feed the right wolf each morning, here are three powerful daily affirmations you can use:
- My energy is a finite resource, and I choose to invest it only in what expands my life.
- I am not defined by the outcomes of my efforts, but by the courage I bring to the effort itself.
- I greet every challenge with curiosity, knowing it holds a lesson essential for my personal growth.
I hope this message has made a difference in your day. Now it’s your turn to make a difference: go out there and light up a mind!
Ready to win the Internal War?
Use these three powerful affirmations to retrain your subconscious mind and start feeding your Good Wolf today