Facing your shadow: The dark side of spirituality

Many people are selling quick fixes and specific, one-way only methods to assist others in finding their inner peace. There is a tendency to discuss a spiritual awakening and the road to enlightenment as if all of it is a glorifying experience of rainbows and unicorns. This is very misleading. A true awakening of the core of our being requires the detoxification of the mind, body, and spirit to include all conditioned thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is tearing down the very walls that we have built from beliefs manifested out of fear and separation. It is identifying those things we have been afraid to let go and letting them go. It is identifying the things we wish to control and letting go of the need to control them. It is facing that side of us that we were once unwilling to face; the pain within us that we chose to mask behind a false identity of who we have believed ourselves to be.

A spiritual awakening directly confronts our false sense of who we have believed ourselves to be and what this false self has attempted to hide from us: Our inner darkness. In a world of duality where opposites depend on each other, there is a villain and a savior within each and every one of us that cannot exist without each other. The villain is created from our past experiences we choose to repress or deny because they appear too painful to face. As a temporary fix we create the mask of a false savior to escape our realities. This is what could be called ‘false love’ or ‘false good.’ This ‘good’ is simply an aspect of duality created to oppose the ‘bad.’ It depends on evil in the world to exist and therefore is not true unconditional love. It attacks anything in the external environment that reflects this internal darkness.

When we identify with our thoughts and beliefs as the totality of who we are, the inner savior and villain are at odds with each other. We possess this inner darkness we have held within our subconscious minds from traumatic past experiences and this inner savior attempts to avoid this pain by redirecting our conscious attention to something in our external environments. This focus on surface issues in order to avoid the underlying subconscious darkness keeps the root issues hidden and allows this inner savior to grow into who we believe we are. This savior needs opposing pain to exist. The savior needs the belief of a separate identity to exist. The savior clings to the drama of duality and separatism. The savior points out flaws within others to show how superior it is in relation to it’s counterparts. The savior also plays the victim role in order to project our own inner darkness onto others without admitting that it all comes from within us. It will do whatever it takes to convince us it is who we are. The savior lives based on our belief, yet it convinces us that we are it. Who we are is not the savior.

So how is it we can bypass this savior to get to the core of our being? We must face our inner darkness directly. We must see the pain we have held onto because we were once unwilling to face it. We must observe the savior within as it fights to keep us from seeing this darkness. There is not one exact way, religion, or method, of doing this, but it must be done. Once the savior is seen, it disappears and the repressed darkness is allowed to rise and be faced. This darkness must be faced. It is the savior which will become frightened. It will throw everything at us to keep us stuck in fear. It is up to us to see past this; to see through it. In order to evolve, we must shed this false identity. We must open ourselves up completely. By losing our created self, we discover that which we truly are.

Who is it that can observe this inner darkness from a place of non-judgment? Who is left when all belief is removed? When all of the past is let go? When all thought is naturally able to come and go? When all feeling is naturally able to rise and fall? Who is left when the savior and villain are aligned from a place of unconditional love? It is truth. The one who feels without identifying with feelings. The one who controls by letting go. The one who receives by giving. It is the inner child which is the core being of who we are. It is that which remains when the physical body is shed. It is that which truly does not have a name, a label, a belief. It is that which we truly are. As one of us awakens to this truth, others will awaken naturally by seeing it within us, for what they see within the awakened soul is also the true essence of who they are. As one awakens, one understands we are all connected. As all of us awaken, we begin to live our highest truth together as one.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Are you advertising your blog or making a point?

Don't get me wrong, it's a very good point.....very alternative, but..........I don't think you can post a link like that.

originally posted by: Subconsciously Correct
Many people are selling quick fixes and specific, one-way only methods to assist others in finding their inner peace. There is a tendency to discuss a spiritual awakening and the road to enlightenment as if all of it is a glorifying experience of rainbows and unicorns. This is very misleading. A true awakening of the core of our being requires the detoxification of the mind, body, and spirit to include all conditioned thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is tearing down the very walls that we have built from beliefs manifested out of fear and separation. It is identifying those things we have been afraid to let go and letting them go. It is identifying the things we wish to control and letting go of the need to control them. It is facing that side of us that we were once unwilling to face; the pain within us that we chose to mask behind a false identity of who we have believed ourselves to be.

So true! *__-

Enlightenment = unconditional Love!

“Your task is not to seek for Love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” - Rumi

True, unconditional Love is ALWAYS recognized by It's unconditional Virtues; Compassion, Empathy, Sympathy, Gratitude, Humility, Charity (charity is never taking more than your share of anything, ever!), Honesty, Happiness, Faith...
ALWAYS!

When we identify with our thoughts and beliefs as the totality of who we are,

Thoughts/imagination = ego!
All 'identity' exists in the 'imagination'!
The 'problem' is not the ego, We are God's Ego!
The 'problem' is that we BELIEVE 'our' thoughts and feelings ('feelings' are 'thoughts')!
The insanity lies not in the perception of thoughts, it lies in the belief that they are Reality 'beyond' the imagination/ego!
If we never 'believe' thoughts (they can never 'define' the 'totality', but they do define 'features') we do not suffer the limitations therein!
And ALL 'limitations' exist in 'thought/imagination/ego. Vanity.
The 'belief' = Pride!
So called the 'sin (sinsanity) because it blinds you to unconditional Love!
We have no 'control' of the thoughts that we perceive, but we need not 'believe' them!

the inner savior and villain are at odds with each other.

All 'thought' is schizophrenically dualistic!
It is just 'appearances', passing.
Unworthy of 'belief'.
If you don't believe the dramatic appearances, one is not pulled and pummeled and manipulated by them.
You don't HAVE to 'act' on them!
You don't HAVE to hurt the 'other guy'.
No one harms another unless infected by some damn 'belief' or other! *__-

Who we are is not the savior.

Nope, such dualistic judgment is 'imaginary'!
Do not believe it!
There is not anything who and what We are not!!!

So how is it we can bypass this savior to get to the core of our being? We must face our inner darkness directly.

It is called integration!
We learn to Love and accept, even the inner Hitler, the inner Manson, the 'inner' everything!
Thus UNCONDITIONAL Love!
Such integration is usually a lifelong process, if at all.
That which bothers us about 'others', is that which we 'deny', and have not learned to Love 'within'!

Who is it that can observe this inner darkness from a place of non-judgment?
The Loving eye never 'judges', never sees 'good' or 'evil'...
The eye of unconditional Love only sees the Beloved! The 'Self!'!
Lover and Beloved are One Self!
Love the Universe unconditionally, and we become Universal! We become Universal Love/Enlightened!

... subconscious...

There exists One Universal Consciousness!
Every point in the Universe is Consciousness!
"Consciousness is the ground of all being!" - Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics
One Universal Consciousness!

All that 'subconscious' means is that from your Perspective, you cannot see something!
That does not mean that it is not Known!
All there IS is Consciousness!

Existence = the complete Universe = Nature = Reality = Consciousness = Truth = Love = 'Self!' = God = Brahman = Tao = ... etc....
ALL INCLUSIVE!!
'One'!

All unique Perspectives have natural limitations.
We know that which we perceive, Now and Now and Now!
Everything that we do not perceive = ignorance, but not 'unconsciousness'!
There is no 'opposite' to Consciousness other than in the imagination/ego, where all 'apparent' opposites exist.
But I wouldn't 'believe' it, though! *__-

with Love
n

originally posted by: InTheShadows
a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Are you advertising your blog or making a point?

Don't get me wrong, it's a very good point.....very alternative, but..........I don't think you can post a link like that.

I'm not advertising it. I used to carry an old blog link in my sig. I'll delete it. That's not my intention. I wrote it and decided to share it here because there is a lot of good feedback on this page. Thanks for your reply.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

It's more simply called ShadowWork......

Without going "too" off the rails this post is timely because the last lunar eclipse in Aries made this the perfect time to look within and deal with our own personal trash.

Saw the Rumi quote coming like a train in a tunnel. Unfortunately it's apparently impossible to discuss working on ones self without tossing some Rumi around like flower petals.....sigh....

Lots of people are struggling with this currently and being one of them here's my feedback. Techniques are few & far between. The concept and reasons for working on ones shadowself have been talked to death. It's not a new concept,
nor a impossible one.

What's lacking are concrete techniques outside of Buddhism or yoga. Not everyone wants to chuck it all over to another belief system to do their own work, nor should they have too.

So ....it's a niche that needs some filling.

Quote:
There is not one exact way, religion, or method, of doing this, but it must be done.

WOW....one sentence out of the entire post. Not slamming you, but this does make my point.


Currently I'm looking at things about friends & colleagues that "irk" me and doing mirroring. If it irks me, what about it am I seeing in myself I don't like & need to address? What is it I'm seeing that I myself repress? It's nothing special and
baby-steps....but with a lack of other suggestions? What's a person to do??

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Agree, since we live in a realm of duality, where one cannot exist without the other. I think enlightenment is best served in the middle ground. Being neutral.

If we just observe things as it is, life becomes meaningless, so we choose to give meaning to life by attaching ourselves to the external material world we live in.

At the core of it, you can decided what you want as long as you understand the infinite possibilities of outcomes you can decide. What matters is if you benefit from any of this experience we all are going through in this life.

Peace

originally posted by: Caver78
a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

It's more simply called ShadowWork......

Without going "too" off the rails this post is timely because the last lunar eclipse in Aries made this the perfect time to look within and deal with our own personal trash.

Saw the Rumi quote coming like a train in a tunnel. Unfortunately it's apparently impossible to discuss working on ones self without tossing some Rumi around like flower petals.....sigh....

Lots of people are struggling with this currently and being one of them here's my feedback. Techniques are few & far between. The concept and reasons for working on ones shadowself have been talked to death. It's not a new concept,
nor a impossible one.

What's lacking are concrete techniques outside of Buddhism or yoga. Not everyone wants to chuck it all over to another belief system to do their own work, nor should they have too.

So ....it's a niche that needs some filling.

Quote:
There is not one exact way, religion, or method, of doing this, but it must be done.

WOW....one sentence out of the entire post. Not slamming you, but this does make my point.


Currently I'm looking at things about friends & colleagues that "irk" me and doing mirroring. If it irks me, what about it am I seeing in myself I don't like & need to address? What is it I'm seeing that I myself repress? It's nothing special and
baby-steps....but with a lack of other suggestions? What's a person to do??

You appear disappointed. I can only speak for my personal journey when I say there is not one exact way or method. Some say it has to be the Bible or it has to be Islam or it has to be meditation. I say none of the sort. The heart knows. The heart lies beyond the conflict of the mind. Some do meditation, automatic writing, automatic art, introspective writing...there's too many to name really. I did touch upon mirroring in the post.

The method I provided is simple:face the shadow from a place of unconditional love. Observe the pain without identification. Allow it to rise and be there in its entirety. The less we resist, the more authentic we become. Our true self is never at conflict so if we find ourselves struggling with a concept all we have to do is observe it and see it is not us. Nothing I say (or Rumi) is going to help. You will find whatever method works for you.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Great thread, its certainly not a popular subject amongst the love and lighters to which I associated myself with temporally whilst I learnt what was on offer during that experience. I later came to the conclusion that they were concentrating on one face of duality, suppressing the other side which becomes very unhealthy after a while.

I used to build websites for some love and lighters and most of them were nice people but from the stories they told me, a lot of their so called enlightened masters ended up being people users, sexual deviants or thieves. I later asked them, how are you going to disappoint yourself as everyone you looked up to did not have the courage of their own convictions. They didn't/couldn't live their own BS... why because they were left lacking eating only half a pie.

I recognise my dark side and if I catch it in time I can laugh at it rather than act on it because I choose not to act on it. The same thing goes for the light side although I am far more willing to act upon my good nature then I am my bad nature and hurt other versions of me in the process.

Anyway life would be boring if we were all nice to each other and what can you learn from a world of lovers other than to fall in line?

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct
( I'm plain spoken, please don't mistake this for anything else)

Actually what I'm saying is, just pointing out an issue without providing a solution is just doing 1/2 a job. Going a little further, giving people the tools to dig in and help themselves is the FULL PACKAGE.

Think of it this way....most articles people write also draw from a list of resources....in the case of a topic like this it would be appropriate to cite some psych papers or modalities that can assist your reader in exploring this further on their own.

I'm not disappointed, actually I didn't expect your post to be much different from the other hundreds of articles regarding this. The Elephant Blog has whole categories & versions of what you've just written. As does Psych Central and more. You asked for feedback, and I'm pointing out to differentiate yourself from the herd this is what's missing and would make your article stellar!!


An aside....you should ask yourself....you are pointing out stuffed feelings, ect should be examined. Let me mention people who repress & stuff don't know HOW to process, so it's pretty unrealistic to say...this is the way to being healthy and then just leave them stuck right where they were to begin with. Either you can walk them thru the entire process or you can't, but don't just leave it hanging like that. It's irresponsible.

I'm not Christian, but this applies....it's like teaching a guy to fish.
Except your target audience is "what's a fish?"
See?

originally posted by: Caver78
a reply to: Subconsciously Correct
( I'm plain spoken, please don't mistake this for anything else)

Actually what I'm saying is, just pointing out an issue without providing a solution is just doing 1/2 a job. Going a little further, giving people the tools to dig in and help themselves is the FULL PACKAGE.

Think of it this way....most articles people write also draw from a list of resources....in the case of a topic like this it would be appropriate to cite some psych papers or modalities that can assist your reader in exploring this further on their own.

I'm not disappointed, actually I didn't expect your post to be much different from the other hundreds of articles regarding this. The Elephant Blog has whole categories & versions of what you've just written. As does Psych Central and more. You asked for feedback, and I'm pointing out to differentiate yourself from the herd this is what's missing and would make your article stellar!!

An aside....you should ask yourself....you are pointing out stuffed feelings, ect should be examined. Let me mention people who repress & stuff don't know HOW to process, so it's pretty unrealistic to say...this is the way to being healthy and then just leave them stuck right where they were to begin with. Either you can walk them thru the entire process or you can't, but don't just leave it hanging like that. It's irresponsible.

I'm not Christian, but this applies....it's like teaching a guy to fish.
Except your target audience is "what's a fish?"
See?

I see what you are saying, but the solution I have is there. The solution is to fully accept all aspects of yourself which can only be done from a constant place that does not depend on conditions. I don't like peer revised research because that is a condition in and of itself. I base mine off personal experience which for me far outweighs the peer reviewed research. Honestly research is lacking in this area. I appreciate your feedback and hope you find the right method for you.

originally posted by: Caver78
a reply to: Subconsciously Correct
( I'm plain spoken, please don't mistake this for anything else)

Actually what I'm saying is, just pointing out an issue without providing a solution is just doing 1/2 a job. Going a little further, giving people the tools to dig in and help themselves is the FULL PACKAGE.

Think of it this way....most articles people write also draw from a list of resources....in the case of a topic like this it would be appropriate to cite some psych papers or modalities that can assist your reader in exploring this further on their own.

I'm not disappointed, actually I didn't expect your post to be much different from the other hundreds of articles regarding this. The Elephant Blog has whole categories & versions of what you've just written. As does Psych Central and more. You asked for feedback, and I'm pointing out to differentiate yourself from the herd this is what's missing and would make your article stellar!!

An aside....you should ask yourself....you are pointing out stuffed feelings, ect should be examined. Let me mention people who repress & stuff don't know HOW to process, so it's pretty unrealistic to say...this is the way to being healthy and then just leave them stuck right where they were to begin with. Either you can walk them thru the entire process or you can't, but don't just leave it hanging like that. It's irresponsible.

I'm not Christian, but this applies....it's like teaching a guy to fish.
Except your target audience is "what's a fish?"
See?

I see what you are saying, but the solution I have is there. The solution is to fully accept all aspects of yourself which can only be done from a constant place that does not depend on conditions. I don't like peer revised research because that is a condition in and of itself. I base mine off personal experience which for me far outweighs the peer reviewed research. Honestly research is lacking in this area. I also have written much more. In fact I am writing a book about this exact stuff and I'm over 100 pages in. I couldn't begin to cover it all in one blog post. The blog post is a general idea of it. I appreciate your feedback and hope you find the right method for you.

Subconsciously Correct
"but the solution I have is there. The solution is to fully accept all aspects of yourself which can only be done from a constant place that does not depend on conditions."

Ok and this is the crux of it.....
Someone who is just starting out already "thinks" they are doing this.....ROFL!! So it's virtually meaningless to them.
What you said in your OP about digging out one's darker parts while very true, but if the person doesn't see them it's
a stalling point.

Again....people who have learned to repress feelings, events ect (we all do to a degree) will not have a CLUE what your sentence means. Yes it's english, no none of the words are techno-speak yet what you are trying to convey absolutely goes over the head of your target audience.

This is the secondary problem, after you get past all the love & light stuff.....what's written that is intended to help
can't since that person has yet to traverse those circumstances where they have LEARNED to find their own pieces of shadow stuff in themselves. Hindsight is 20-20, you're asking almost the impossible of someone, when it would be quite simple to just walk them thru it. If you don't like peer review documentation some examples of your own would suffice.

Dunno if there is any right or wrong method, however thank you for your good wishes. I sincerely hope you have been looking at this as constructive, it's how it's meant.

some nice little gems in your exposition, i hope the resident theologists are taking notes.

on the other hand, it almost feels as though you start off by criticizing dime store philosophy and finish by pitching your brand for a nickel.

originally posted by: Caver78
Subconsciously Correct
"but the solution I have is there. The solution is to fully accept all aspects of yourself which can only be done from a constant place that does not depend on conditions."

Ok and this is the crux of it.....
Someone who is just starting out already "thinks" they are doing this.....ROFL!! So it's virtually meaningless to them.
What you said in your OP about digging out one's darker parts while very true, but if the person doesn't see them it's
a stalling point.

Again....people who have learned to repress feelings, events ect (we all do to a degree) will not have a CLUE what your sentence means. Yes it's english, no none of the words are techno-speak yet what you are trying to convey absolutely goes over the head of your target audience.

This is the secondary problem, after you get past all the love & light stuff.....what's written that is intended to help
can't since that person has yet to traverse those circumstances where they have LEARNED to find their own pieces of shadow stuff in themselves. Hindsight is 20-20, you're asking almost the impossible of someone, when it would be quite simple to just walk them thru it. If you don't like peer review documentation some examples of your own would suffice.

Dunno if there is any right or wrong method, however thank you for your good wishes. I sincerely hope you have been looking at this as constructive, it's how it's meant.

Thanks Caver. I do appreciate your feedback and I'm open to the discussion of constructive criticism. Hopefully the book I'm writing paints a more specific picture for those who seek what you are talking about. I don't feel like I could get that specific in a small blog entry as much as introduce the concept itself. Thanks again.

originally posted by: TzarChasm
some nice little gems in your exposition, i hope the resident theologists are taking notes.

on the other hand, it almost feels as though you start off by criticizing dime store philosophy and finish by pitching your brand for a nickel.

Nothing costs anything I'm discussing. I find your comment interesting because you appear to have done almost a 180 by editing it after your initial comment. I state there is not one specific way of doing this but that no method can be done without facing the inner shadow. I appreciate the comment though. If you figure out a method that doesn't involve facing your shadow (which is all I am saying) then let me know.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

All that has been stated here whether this is somehow genuinely written or copy and pasted. This all rings true. Many of you may or may not believe me, but that is okay. It's definitely not uncommon for this to be an area for people to have issues of trusting me in. The reason being because, i had to go through hard times, conquering them such as stated.

I was fourteen when i found my genuine self. This self described by the poster. I had to learn all these things and figure it out by myself, and to be honest being the age i was about two years back, i didn't know how to explain all of this and the steps i was taking. I could not have described it better,

Im not here to brag about my previous self findings two years ago, I'm here just for a little tip. Once you gain a "possession" and knowledge of who you are and determine how to do so and how to achieve it, there's and even bigger darkness that comes along with it. It doesn't reveal itself for a very long time. If At all.

If you lose the person you finally found and you go back to your old ways by accidently getting dragged back down or not dealing with things properly---that here is the even worse thing. It is the darkest realm to find yourself again. It is tough and during this if not handled right, you can get extremely confused and not process things correctly thus it is possible to pull yourself down even further than before and harm yourself in many different ways.

It's a warning to tread carefully, i experienced it a year ago. I unwillingly lost myself and the second time around I'm struggling and slowly building back up. Watch carefully what you do to yourself. It's important to continue to be who you want spiritually. Keep pushing the dark.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Thanks for listening and Gottcha! Didn't realize this was a smaller portion of a larger work.

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

It appears that the more LOVE & LIGHT* that is experienced and attempted to be shared the duality and non duality concepts are challenged.

With 1 personally I began to realize that the more I attempted to force LIGHT upon darkness or dark consciousness the darker I may have been being perceived by darkness...
A balance had to be made the more 1 allows the conscious spirit to ASCEND. Then it was accepted that if 1 is really of Love and tries to spread Love unconditionally UNIVERSALLY - INTERDIMENSIONALLY and accepts the ALL* IS 1 concept theory then how can the not Love those of the dark IF THEY ARE ME being part of the WHOLE* And so the duality and non duality concepts challenged... Seems non but still processing... Thus far ATS on thy spiritual journey 1 has found it best to remain fearlessly non judgmental but acknowledge the ignorances observed in order to recognize the areas where a somewhat BALANCE of duality can be obtained. With the YIN YAN for example 1 walks on both the dividing line of the dual energies and upon the circling line that contains them to find balance.

1 does not think it is a simple fully benevolent process experience when seeking spiritual Ascension. But if you lose the Fear and manage the ego to avoid ego traps as you Ascend and maybe gain abilities, you may find ways to maneuver the non duality with your own intuitions.

GOOD LUCK ALL WHO MAKE UP THE WHOLE
interesting thread op
NAMASTE*******

a reply to: Subconsciously Correct

Why is that thoughts are seen to be spewed out by an angry old self. Why does it argue when no resistance is offered.

a reply to: Sacri
It takes two to argue. Who is thought speaking to?

The trouble with learning to speak is that when there is no one to talk to speaking continues - as thoughts.