Seven Simple Truths from the Cherokee
Adapted from The Cherokee Full Circle, by J.T. Garrett and Michael
Tlanusta Garrett (Inner Traditions, 2002).
"We may not always have control over what happens to us, but we always
have a choice over what happens inside us."
~J.T. Garrett and Michael Tlanusta Garrett
These clear and simple truths are based on traditional American
Indian beliefs. They illuminate the values underlying the Cherokee vision of
the Full Circle, and they can help us begin living our lives in more
connected, healed, and whole ways.
1. We are our own best experts. No one knows us better than us. Nobody but us has seen with our eyes the things we’ve seen, and most importantly, no one but us has experienced our lives in quite the same way that we have. What others do know of us, they know only through what they see and what we tell them. It is our
choice whether or not to invite others to see with our eyes or walk in
our shoes; it is their choice whether or not to do so.
2. We are our own worst enemies. No one does a better job of deceiving us or
treating ourselves badly than we do. No one can do a better job of finding
ways to ignore our innermost thoughts and fears than we can. Certainly,
other people may try to make us feel badly, or want us to be
different than we are; however, their success depends on our
willingness to let them succeed in doing so. Our success in doing ourselves
wrong depends solely on intention.
3. The worst thing about having so
many choices is having to choose. No one can say for sure who is truly
worse off: the one who is forced to do something and wishes she or he
could do something entirely different, or the one who freely chooses to
do something and later regrets it.
4. Imagination is the one true
measure of freedom. It’s not a matter of what you can or cannot do, but
what you think you can or cannot do that matters. Inevitably, the rest
will follow in time. Being open to experience or the possibilities of
every situation reflects the inner strength of one who has established
harmony within oneself.
5. Wisdom is having more questions than
answers. The one who has found all the answers to his or her questions has
run out of questions. The one who has run out of questions has
run out of learning. A person who ceases to learn has also ceased to
experience. And a person who has run out of experience cannot be wise.
6. Search long and hard enough for something and you’ll surely find it.
Sometimes we look for something when there is nothing. However, if we
keep looking for it to be there, almost miraculously it will be--this is
especially true of limitations. Moreover, the harder we look for a
certain quality of limitation, the more likely it is to appear before our
very eyes. At the same time, if you look too hard for something you
might miss it altogether.
7. Sometimes we try so hard to be what we’re
not that we may forget who we are. Our nature provides us with
opportunities for becoming something much greater than ourselves. However, if a
circle tries to bend by ignoring its center, it’s no longer a circle.
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