Wolves were once the most widely distributed mammal in the world, inhabiting almost every type of environment.
Today, in North America the wolf has been exterminated from 95% of its habitats, and wiped out completely from Mexico. European and Asian wolves have fared little better, human persecution having pushed the wolf populations into the most remote and wild corners of the world.
Human societies through history have observed wolf behaviour with, some believe, a subconscious recognition.
It is believed by many that an important and unsettling message is portrayed through the wolf, the wildest of all wild animals; that a more healthy and sustainable way of living in today's world would be to live as the wolf does, within nature, and not attempting to control it.
Where the entire animal kingdom (with perhaps the exception of the dog) lives within and not over nature, the wolf's apparent likeness to man, its social boundaries, family orientation and, as we will see, intelligence, makes it stand out from other species.
In many native Indian traditions, the wolf is considered to be the highest spiritual teacher, surpassing even the hawk and eagle.
Seen as a powerful and mysterious animal, Indians feel a close spiritual bond with these wild creatures, whose souls, they believe, resemble the sinless purity long lost in humans after childhood. Many believe that the wolves' instincts are a gift from God.
Early American Indians existed in harmony with wolves, in a society of mutual respect and understanding. It wasn't until much later, when man became a farmer and a shepherd, that the wolf became a threat to him.
Often referring to wolves as 'brothers,' native Indian tribes not only respect the wolf, but try to learn from the wolves' unrivalled hunting skills and ability to live as one with its surroundings.
The most significant example of this can be seen in the most basic of survival needs; hunting. Like wolves, native people living close to nature need to hunt for the survival of their families, to defend their territories and generally survive in the wild.
A wolf will provide food for his entire pack, from the old to the young and the sick. In the eyes of the Indians, no animal had a better system of survival and this was something they tried to emulate and learn from.
Native Indians respect the wolf's patience and perseverance, his two most valuable hunting weapons. To be considered to 'hunt like a wolf' is the utmost of compliments.
Even in death, the Indian emulated and reflected what he believed was the 'way of the wolf.'
In the moment when a wolf meets the eyes of his prey, a 'conversation of death' passes between the two. It is this moment that determines whether the prey will live, or die with the dignity and nobility of being part of the great circle of life. In the same way, it was important to the Indian people to die consciously, with dignity. It was believed that this self-control in the face of death will earn the greatest glory.
Mongolian tribes' people see wolves as the chosen sons of Tengger (the sky), the supreme power in the cosmos, and legend has it that Chingis Khan and the Mongol people descended from wolves, both spiritually and materially.
But what, one may ask, is the difference between the wolf, so worshipped and revered by the Indians, and the domestic dog? Surely they are simply the non-domesticated form of our fluffy and faithful friends?
The most notable, and probably most fundamental difference, is wolves' need to roam, to explore vast areas, something a domestic dog is not inclined to do, preferring a more sedentary life.
And while the dog is man's oldest and most faithful domesticate, it is, according to experts, impossible to domesticate a wolf. Wolves may be trained, but they will never be a domesticated creature. Perhaps needless to say, the wolf is significantly more intelligent than the dog, their brains being 25% larger.
Tame wolves have, in fact, been consistently observed as being able to learn, simply by watching what a human does, something unheard of in the dog world.
They seem to understand and repeat actions that they have observed, only however, willing to perform the tasks for a clear purpose.
So, while the conflicting opinions about wolves will no doubt proceed into the future, it is the hope that organizations fighting to ensure their protection and future survival will succeed, and that wolves will once again flourish in the few truly wild places left on our Earth.
One such organization is the Wolf Mountain Sanctuary of Southern California, a "non-profit, educational organization dedicated to the preservation, protection and proper management of wolves in the wild and captivity" (http://www.wolfmountain.com/) who works tirelessly in their pledge to prevent the extinction of this great animal.
And who knows, perhaps we should once again listen to our Indian ancestors and allow ourselves to learn from the wolf as they did. And maybe, just maybe, the wolf's lesson will once again seep into our society as it did so many years before; by harmonizing with and accepting the principles of nature, we can, like them, become stronger than if we fight against and distance ourselves from nature.