The fourth step is to prepare to leave behind a legacy of good seeds for your children and for posterity.
Many readers of this newsletter, at the time of it being written, are so early in so many spaces, they have an opportunity to leave behind a legacy, good seeds, for entire domains or emerging industries. Remember: we come into the world with nothing, gather our material goods for a while and then leave the world with nothing. To be remembered (or become eternal) we must leave behind a legacy of balance and of a great internal and external power. This is the good fruit that leave the good seeds.
Here are the principles of creating a Gray Wolf legacy:
Life is a challenge for good and for bad. It is always your choice.
A candle is needed for the darkest place. The darkest place is not “somewhere out there” but “somewhere in here”, near and within you.
You must first illuminate yourself, and then illuminate the pathway for others. “Live to learn, give to earn”
Moving waters do not spoil, stagnant waters do spoil.
You can own material things. Material things should never own you.
Trust is born in the mind; trust can change. Faith is born in the heart; faith never changes.
Wisdom is making the correct decisions in the spirit of faith
Only through faith and wisdom can you achieve the master key and pass it on
When you move through along the Gray Wolf Pathway with wisdom, your presence is felt there forever.
When you throw a baseball into the sky it is either going up, or it is coming down. Life is similar, you are either growing or you are dying. A Gray Wolf knows that the only way to grow is continuing to confront darkness.
Light The Face of Darkness
Life is a challenge for good and for bad; the darkness and the light. Following the Earned path is planting good seeds for posterity by illuminating the darkest place(s). Following the Entitled path leaves rotten fruit, nothing of value for the next generation.
A human on the earned path comes to know themselves. In doing so, they come to realize the true purpose of life is to pass on good seeds and provide a role model for posterity. The highest form of human nature is what we call “Gray Wolf” - attracting and spreading light, illuminating the darkness so that good seeds can grow.
Commentary:
In the Korean text "In Gan" is the highest form of Human Nature. It would equate to a man or woman with discipline and wisdom. Reaching the state of In Gan is becoming a Gray Wolf. The opposite of “In Gan” or the "Gray Wolf" is the human in animalistic form; an undisciplined savage.
The Darkest Spot Of All…
To have the largest positive influence, seek to illuminate the darkest spot.
Most will never be able to find it, because they do not know themselves. The darkest spot is not something to seek "somewhere out there", it is instead found in the last place you want to look…
Under your own feet.
Before putting time, effort, and resources into removing the darkness from others, you must first remove your own ignorance. When you remove your own ignorance, you remove your own suffering. When you remove your own suffering, you stop causing suffering for others and provide an example for those around you.
Removing your own darkness is the most beneficial thing you can do for others.
A fire does not put effort into warming those around it.
Children and Posterity:
I’ve heard it said (only half-jokingly) that the fastest path to enlightenment is to get married and have children.
Children are often represent darkness. Not theirs, but our own. Our genetic weaknesses are put on display every minute of every day in miniature versions of us. It can be painful to have a mini-mirror walking around, especially one you cannot hide from. It’s easy to get upset at them for doing things wrong… but they do it wrong because of you. Their failures are your failures, and it’s right there in your face.
Perhaps part of your role as a parent is to teach them to be or to do better.
But if the darkness you see in your child is your darkness being reflected back at you, then it is also the child’s role to teach you.
Leaving behind good seeds as a Gray Wolf:
Michelangelo was asked by the pope about the secret of his genius, particularly in regards to the statue of David, largely considered to be the greatest sculpting masterpiece of all time. Michelangelo responded by saying, “It's simple. I just removed everything that is not David.”
A Gray Wolf, like a black belt, can see potential in others they can’t see in themselves. It can be tempting to try and help others reach their potential through additive measures - trying to make them more.
However, the responsibility of a Gray Wolf is not to add to others, but to remove everything that is not them. You do not give them their greatness, you simply take away everything that is not it. The role of the Gray Wolf teacher is not to give, it’s to remove everything that does not belong.
A Gray Wolf is not a builder, a manifestor, or architect. A Gray Wolf is a revealer, a sculptor, carefully sculpting away that which does not belong to reveal the greatness that was hidden.
Principle or Heart? Niceness or Kindness?
How should you look at those closest to you? Your children? Your family members? You can look at them two ways: with heart and with principle. When you look at them with principle you must look at them as if they were objects: a rock or a chair. No matter what they do or what they say, principle never changes for them, for principle is deaf to opinion and blind to objection.
When you look at your family members and community members with your heart, you look at them for what they are; beautiful, growing human beings.
There is a time for principle. There is a time for heart. Many never look with principle upon their children, thus depriving them of the light. Many never look upon their children with their heart, thus depriving them of faith. Learning to look at your children (and those close to you) with both principle and heart leaves behind a legacy of wisdom - the good seed of balance, power, peace and joy.
Suppose you give a child a pack of Pokemon cards. That is a gift of the heart. It gives them momentary joy and keeps them entertained for a couple of hours - counting, organizing, taking stock of, and admiring their new collection. Then the child asks for a couple more pack of Pokemon cards.
…so you go to the store and buy a few boxes of Pokemon cards, each with dozens of packs inside. That is neither an act of the heart or an act of principle. The act of principle is to teach the child to earn the cards, or earn the allowance to buy their own. The child may resist learning the work of earning the cards, but principle is unyielding to excuses and the child must do the work to earn the reward.
This is the heart and principle working together, leading to the Correct decision.
A Gray Wolf balances heart and principle.
Authority vs Leadership
Not all authorities display good leadership. The heart and principle working together is a display of good leadership. The Gray Wolf display leadership through valid, direct command, from a place of the “Correct”, or caring about what is best for everyone involved.
The entitled traveler will yield to excuses. The entitled traveler is often more concerned with being “liked” and maintaining authority than what is best for everyone involved over an expanded time horizon.
Guard Your Legacy.
Leave Behind Good Seeds
Master Key Chapter 4 with Mike Leone:
Listen: Spotify I iTunes
Join Master Key of Wisdom Live (Free)