Shadow
“How can
I be substantial if I do not cast a shadow? I must have a dark side
also if I am to be whole.”
Carl Jung
Lately, I find myself
writing a lot about darkness, and learning to cope with it.
I think it's because of the darkness circling the earth right now,
especially in our politics, which has become an obsession for just
about everybody. Historically, we move through these dark/light bands
from time to time; humanity has decades during which our lives are
more difficult, and decades when our lives are easier. There is
balance, but there also are times when we a shift toward one end or
the other of the pole—sometimes in the direction of darkness,
sometimes in the direction of light. There are pros and cons to
either end. The downside to times of light—we are lulled to
sleep by it, it becomes our field of poppies. The upside to our times
of darkness—we wake up, and we become active and involved. When we
are stressed, we renew our commitments to our democratic ideals in
ways we cannot do when we are placid.
In our personal lives as
well, there are dark days and light ones, and many more days in the
gray zone. Sometimes we hit road blocks and obstacles, and some days
we just set the auto-pilot and sail away. During difficult times, we
learn to make adjustments in our thinking and change our
behavior—lots of life-long assumptions get overturned and we have
to change direction. Humans are pretty good at doing that. From our
hardships we learn life lessons that we would not have learned
otherwise—especially not while lying in that field of poppies. We
don't like it much, but we do it anyway. It's how our species has
survived.
Within each of us there
also exists darkness and light. We are sometimes vaguely aware of our
dark side, and sometimes completely oblivious to it. We can often see
its reflection in other people—especially people who rub us the
wrong way—but we may have a hard time seeing it within ourselves.
This Carl Jung called “Shadow.” Those characteristics we have
either repressed, or that we deny having, but see in other people.
Sometimes, our dreams will show us an image of our shadow—typically
someone we truly don't like, or even an alien life-form. The goal is
not to get rid of one's shadow. The goal is to recognize it, and
integrate it in order to become a whole human being. What is
unrecognized cannot be incorporated. We should not be afraid to name
our darkness. In fact, it's important to acknowledge its presence and
claim its strengths—because there are strengths. When we open up to
all that resides within us, we can depend upon our insights, we feel
secure—our vision expands as though we have new pair of glasses.
Final thought for today
is from Rainer Maria Rilke (Letters to a Young Poet): “...and
remember that life has not forgotten you; it holds you in its hand
and will not let you fall.” I hope you smack into some joy today.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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