Stop Shying Away from Your Shadow

For many people, the word “shadow” brings up all sorts of negative or dark associations, and therefore, it is often assumed that shadow work is an adverse spiritual practice that involves obscure and sinister aspects of our personality. Shadow work, rather, is one of the the highest forms of light work that you will do.

The shadow appears dark because we embody the dichotomy that exists between both the light and the dark aspects; nonetheless, it is part of who we are and we cannot live our lives fearing ourselves.

The shadow was first brought to the Western world by psychologist Carl Jung, and he described it as “the unconscious and disowned parts of our personalities that the ego fails to see, acknowledge and accept.” It is ANY aspect of ourselves that is not exposed to the light of our OWN consciousness. When bits and pieces of what makes us who we are become lost in the shadow, it can leave us with feelings of emptiness.

As children, we are born whole and complete, however, this wholeness is very short-lived as we then begin to shift based off our various life experiences. The shadow is born in our childhood as a BYPRODUCT of certain interactions we have with the people closest to us. Our parents, guardians and caretakers lead us to believe that particular aspects of ourselves are good, while others are not. The aspects that are viewed as inferior, unacceptable or of poor quality are rejected, and, as a consequence, shape our shadow.

When we learn to depend on our caregivers for survival, we suppress the aspects that are disapproved of, and, in turn, exaggerate the aspects that result in approval. The shadow grows EVERY TIME that you repress it, and, as a result, leads to struggles in relationships, handling emotions and loving yourself.

The shadow can be synonymous with the SUBCONSCIOUS mind because we are unable to see it clearly, and, therefore, are unaware of it. In contrast, the CONSCIOUS mind is akin to the light because we CAN see it clearly and have a sense of awareness to it.

What resides in the subconscious mind is everything that we REJECT about ourselves; the unacceptable and undesirable bits. The second that you say or categorize something about yourself to be “negative,” you give yourself a reason to suppress, ignore and deny it. Even though the shadow is UNSEEN, it affects EVERYTHING that you do. The shadow is the REASON we do specific things in life WITHOUT understanding WHY we do them.

When we deny an aspect of ourselves, it doesn’t simply disappear — it just FADES AWAY from our conscious mind. The shadow, accepting a life of its own, can affect our actions and life experiences HEAVILY… if and only IF we choose to NOT to pay attention to it.

As we age and become adults, we typically feel as if we should be able to handle life better, yet we fall into the same unhealthy patterns. This is because the shadow operates OUTSIDE of our conscious awareness, in the form of UNCONSCIOUS and LIMITING beliefs.

The shadow isn’t just negative and dark; it contains so much potential and hidden gifts and talent that are just waiting to be UNEARTHED. The reason that positive aspects are part of the shadow is that we are afraid of what people will think or how they will react WHEN we tap into them.

Although it is difficult to spot your shadow, especially if you’ve suppressed a part of yourself into the unconscious, you CAN find it through increased awareness and a little bit of shadow work. In order to spot your shadow, you have to be on the lookout for the act of PROJECTING, TRIGGERS of past traumas, or repeating PATTERNS.

Shadow work is a tool that we can use to bring LIGHT to the darkness, uncover the unconscious and understand our desires and behaviors. Many people resist shadow work because they believe that it is not beneficial or are under the impression that if you go looking for dark things that you will only discover more dark things. In reality, though, shadow work can greatly improve a person’s life.

While focusing on the light is sometimes a useful tactic, it DOES NOT make the dark go away. The dark still exists and is always waiting for a time to show its face or reveal itself to you, and when it does, you likely will not be excepting it. This is why it is better to SEEK IT OUT and make peace with the shadow that resides inside of you. If you are worried or scared of what you might find, there is probably something important that you don’t want to revisit. Instead of continuing to avoid it, you can look to it as another reason to do the shadow work and face your fear. This work is NECESSARY if you want to learn and improve your life, and the truth is, no one can do it for you; it MUST be done by YOU.

Shadow work doesn’t have to be overwhelming or require loads of planning. It is simply becoming AWARE of what is HIDDEN and gradually healing those aspects of yourself. When you begin shadow work, you may feel the way you felt as a child when you were forced to and learned to suppress those emotions, however, once you overcome it, it will open your eyes to an entirely new side of you that you had NO IDEA existed.

WAYS TO INCORPORATE SHADOW WORK INTO YOUR LIFE:

+ QUESTION YOURSELF - challenge your thoughts, behaviors and patterns, as recognition and healthy criticism are necessary for growth and healing

+ GET FRESH AIR - getting your thoughts out and giving your monsters some air is a good way to tame them

+ CULTIVATE SELF-AWARENESS - in order to understand the light, the dark must be explored and journeyed through

+ PRACTICE GRATITUDE - giving thanks will protect you when facing trauma and difficult emotions or patterns

QUESTIONS YOU CAN ASK YOURSELF:

+ How do you see yourself?

+ What don’t you like about yourself?

+ How do you see the world?

+ What bothers you about others?

+ How do you see your shadow?

+ What do you need to work on?

+ What unhealthy habit can you dissect?

+ What in your life brings you dissatisfaction?

+ What are your core beliefs?

+ How can you learn to love, accept and embrace your shadow?

Shadow work is nothing but making the unconscious conscious, and the unacceptable acceptable. The goal of it is INTEGRATION and the integration of the unconscious LEADS to complete and total awareness. To do shadow work is to bring your shadow CLOSER to you, after all, it is a part of WHO YOU ARE. The MORE you shine a light on your shadow, the SMALLER it gets and the LESS power it has over you.

Once we are able to master ourself and the present, then we can manifest the infinite.

Xx, Leah Kutsch P.S. Keeping IIN Touch