SHADOW WORK COMMUNITY
"To show a person his shadow is to show a person their own light." Carl Jung
What is the Shadow?
The Shadow is the unconscious, unknown or hidden part of the psyche, where we often unknowingly store repressed memories of hurtful events, emotions, feelings, upsetting experiences and our traumas. The Shadow also contains rejected and repressed parts of our personality, that over time, either we, society, family or friends may have deemed unacceptable. If we feel that parts of ourselves are unacceptable to ourselves or to others, we may suppress these parts of our true selves within the Shadow, and modify our conscious behaviour in order to feel we are acceptable to ourselves and to others. We cut ourselves small to fit into a role that we feel is socially acceptable, which often means rejecting authentic and unique aspects of our true selves to the Shadow.
However the Shadow also contains gifts and is not only made up of these seemingly inferior aspects of ourselves and suppressed traumas. The Shadow also contains our hidden talents and undeveloped or often unknown potentialities. Finding out what lies within our unconscious Shadow means knowing the truth of who we really are and what motivates our actions, thoughts, perceptions and our life experiences.
What is Shadow Work?
Shadow work is the process of discovering what lies within our unconscious Shadow to find out what suppressed content is really guiding our thoughts perception action behaviour and our life experiences.
Through Shadow work we discover the effects of our social and cultural conditioning, the parenting we experienced and the effects of suppressing authentic parts of our personality. It is about unlearning, relearning and 're-membering’ putting ourselves back together. We get a chance to tell our story and refine the details, which, over time may change. With Shadow Work comes Self-Gnosis and with knowledge comes power. With a better understanding of ourselves we have an opportunity to react to triggers differently. We have an opportunity to discover our potential, integrate or release previously unconscious aspects of our personality and to become all we have potential to be.
“The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.” Carl Jung, Aion
Radical Honesty
Facing the Shadow requires 'radical honesty' and that we be open to the fact that we might be wrong about things we were previously sure we were certain about. Shadow Work is a deconstructive process where we might find that our unconscious motivations and intentions may be less than virtuous, or be born of fear. Shadow work requires the surrender of the Ego (central point of consciousness) and the Persona (the mask we wear in public) to the truth of who we really are, and this includes the 'less than noble' hidden and often unconscious parts of our personality. To accept that we have a Shadow means to accept that, under the right circumstances, we all have the capacity to be less than good, but the key is in knowing why, and what created that within us.... Shadow work requires the acceptance of our true Self, our hidden talents, gifts and potentialities which might oppose the expectations of friends, family or society, or our own previous thoughts about we thought we were.
"In order to heal yourself you have to do it yourself and not look for a guru to do it for you." Michael Tsarion
You are your own Saviour
I am a firm believer that you should stay away from anyone who says they can heal you. A true healer is someone who holds space for you, allowing you to speak your way into understanding, or by presenting new perspectives, using energy healing or using divination tools that will unlock your own ability to heal yourself. Only you can heal yourself, so feel empowered. You are here to grow in consciousness.
The aim of Shadow Work is to grow in consciousness of who we are and what has shaped and guided our personality, actions, thoughts and perceptions. Shadow Work done consistently offers us an opportunity for healing as we step into our authentic self expression and find the courage to fulfil our potential. Shadow work brings us home to ourselves. To Know thyself' is one of the highest forms of wisdom we can experience in this lifetime according to religious, ancient Hermetic and Alchemical teachings. Carl Jung coined the term 'Individuation' which means to become conscious, enlightened, and to know what guides us, (the Self), becoming who we truly are and all we have potential to be. Only then can we integrate the authentic personality, let go of the behaviours, habits, perceptions etc that are based on traumas, or the lies we believed or told ourselves about ourselves before we became conscious of our ever guiding unconscious Shadow.
To Know thyself' is one of the highest forms of wisdom we can experience in this lifetime according to ancient Hermetic and Alchemical teachings. Carl Jung coined the term 'Individuation' which means to become conscious, enlightened, integrating the whole personality (the Self), becoming who we truly are and all we have potential to be, which is the ultimate goal of Shadow work.
"Everyone carries a Shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is." Carl Jung
Standing in the Light
Getting to know your own darkness is an absolute must for anyone who is serious about authentic healing. But staying in the darkness (depression, anxiety, guilt, negative self talk, opinions, living unconsciously etc) will not allow you to grow into all that you have the potential to be. Therefore it is important that when the time comes you use your Self knowledge to take steps towards creating a life that you love, and this requires change, and change requires courage, radical courage.
Join the Shadow Work Community Page and Group on Facebook to engage and share
Shadow Work Community have a Page and Group on Facebook which was set up in 2019 to support and advise people who are interested in Shadow Work. The group is an excellent platform for people to explore psychological and philosophical ideas, to share their journey's and to share and learn new methods of Shadow Work. https://www.facebook.com/groups/456816751782852
After experiencing the long lasting, life changing and healing effects of Shadow work in my own life I felt compelled to help other people.
I combine my many years researching psychology, my formal studies in Early Childhood Psychology, Playwork and Jungian Psychology with Art Therapy with my love of the Tarot, Archetypal and Mythological symbolism, the Esoteric, Dream interpretation, the Creative process in healing, Active imagination, Journaling, Somatic and Energy work and the importance of Ritual as a bridge to connect us to what lies within the unconscious Shadow.
I have an online Shadow Work Community on Facebook. I have created courses in Shadow work, Dreamwork and journals to help beginners to Shadow work, with the aim of guiding people through their Shadow work journey. I continue to research, new ways of understanding the human condition and share this on social media.
"Everyone carries a Shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is." Carl Jung
