The Story of the Two Wolves....

Native American stories -

This is a wonderful story that teaches inner morality. Great for telling around a campfire, especially from parent to child, in a one-on-one situation, but also good for group tellings. This story is not only for children, however - indeed, it is for us all. I hope you all enjoy it.

A grandfather and grandson were out hunting one early morning, and they came upon a ridge on the mountain they were walking on.... over the ridge was a large clearing below, where at a distance, they could see two wolves - a black one, and a white one - fighting furiously.

They watched as the wolves attacked eachother in battle. The grandfather narrowed his eyes, and said slowly, "Ah, yes.... this is the way with all of us Human Beings, within our hearts, each and every day."

The grandson asked, "What do you mean, grandfather?", to which the old one replied;

"Always in our hearts, every day, is a struggling battle, like those two wolves down there.... one is the wolf in us who wishes to do bad things, and the other is the wolf who wishes to do good and honourable things."

The grandson listened more intently now, with a look of slight recognition, and deep concern. The grandfather continued....

"Sometimes, the bad one seems to win.... and other times, the good one seems to take a stronger lead. When we see honourable people who do great deeds, and make great sacrifices for the good of others, we know that the good wolf's spirit is strong within his heart, and is the winning spirit in that Human Being. Each good and honourable deed he does gives this spirit more power within him. This in turn, empowers the Human Being to be more honourable."

The boy smiled, as the grandfather continued to speak....

"But when we see those people who turn to badness, and hatred, doing terrible and dishonourable things, we can know that the bad wolf within him is strong - and each bad and wrongful deed he does, gives the bad wolf more power over him, until it has won, and has utterly consumed him."

The young one's face fell with a look of slight, shuddering inner fear.

So the boy thought long and hard on these things, as he continued to watch the wolves battling below. They both battled fiercely, giving no quarter - neither one backing down. Seeing this, he looked within himself, and saw the truth of his wise grandfather's words, and it made him very concerned for himself with a great, deep fear.

"But grandfather," said the boy, "How will I know which wolf will win within me??"

The grandfather smiled, looked at him with an understanding eye, and after a moment, told him,

" ....the one you FEED."

Now.... do we all know what the grandfather is talking about here? I hope you all enjoyed this story. until next time, have a nice night! ^_^

- Native American stories –