And one of the elders of the city said, ‘Speak to us of good and evil.’ And he answered: ‘You are good in countless ways, and you are not evil when you are not good.’ ” – Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
And one of the elders of the city said, ‘Speak to us of good and evil.’ And he answered: ‘You are good in countless ways, and you are not evil when you are not good.’ ” – Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
One evening, an elderly Cherokee brave told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
“My dear one, the battle between two ‘wolves’ is inside us all. One is evil. It is anger, 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 moment and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee replied, “The one you feed.”
The tale of the two wolves portrays the good and evil that lives within, represented by the conscious and the unconscious desire of man.
If we are unconscious of our thoughts, we are at the mercy of feeding the evil wolf.
Our unconscious thoughts are the unresolved or repressed parts of our psyche. The evil wolf asserts its power when we least expect it, because it is hidden from view.
I’m aware of this darkness when a driver abruptly cuts me off in traffic and my ego is threatened. I react in a fit of simmering confrontation, believing I have been wronged. It is upon reflection, I recognise this as unconscious anger seeking to protect itself.
The ego strives to assert its will to protect and strengthen itself and thus we fall prey to its needs.
David Richo, Ph.D., psychotherapist and teacher states, “Our ego was never meant to die, only to be tamed so that its wild energies could be put to better use.”
To mitigate acting out our unconscious desires, we become mindful of our thoughts instead of numb to them. We witness them with openness and tenderness instead of with binding judgement.
Similarly, the shadow self comprises the unknown dark side of our personality. To disown the dark side means going to war with ourselves. Yet, to accept ourselves as whole is to embody our strengths and limitations – our shadow self.
This can be seen in the Yin Yang symbol represented by the two halves that together complete wholeness.
Therefore, what we feed gives rise to goodness or the collapse of character.
It was Frank Outlaw who said, “Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character. Character is everything.”
“Goodness is something chosen. When a man cannot choose he ceases to be a man.” – Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange
“Goodness is something chosen. When a man cannot choose he ceases to be a man.” – Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange
Amazing article😀😀.
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