(Benjamin Teixeira) – What can we know about the “shadow aspect” subject? I specifically allude to elaborating and dealing with the shadow. Among spiritual groups, the tendency is to repress the shadow, while in the field of psychotherapy is to treat it. How should we understand this conflict?
(Spirit Eugenia) – As a misperception. At a deep level, both views coincide, although, within current psychotherapeutic milieu, the moral aspects of patients are not really taken into account. However, if we notice that knowledge generates maturity, which in turn, leads to an elevation of sentiments, we will understand that, even this apparent flaw in psychological approaches of today, can actually be a misunderstanding of those who, at first glance, face various fields of study of the human mind, such as psychiatry, psychology and even sociology, as overly complacent and amoral. In fact, what happens is a work of deep understanding of the human being, referring here to schools of depth psychology, which allow the student to understand that where there is wisdom, there’s spiritual light.
Regarding the seekers of spiritual light, those who seek it lucidly, who already have a good knowledge of the human psyche and of their own souls, they will understand that they cannot simply repress aspects of themselves, but get to know their meanings and profound motivations, in order to, at this fundamental level, correct them, transmute them or even dissolve them (so the energy is reused in another area, something very similar to transmutation). That is: ultimately, they do exactly what the schools of depth psychology suggest to be done.
(BT) – Right. Fantastic, Eugênia. What else can you say to us about the subject?
(SE) – That the shadow is part of the human soul, the unknown parts of yourself, which, nevertheless, contains all the potential of divinity that was denied to you, or that is even impossible to unfold in a conscious level; hence, the shadow does not only have the undesirable traits of character and personality, but numinous elements, the transcendent forms of being, acting and feeling. Therefore, as very well said by Jung, creativity and motivation, life and joy, strength and purpose to live, reside in the shadow. This is why Jesus said we should love our enemy (and the greater enemy, the axial enemy is our own shadow, the dark side of ourselves), nor should we judge others, because we would be measured with the same measure that we measured others. Here is the big question: when we condemn the behaviour of others, we are projecting aspects of ourselves on to such people, which, in turn, will be increasingly relinquished within ourselves, from a conscious level of expression, progressively descending to the underworlds of our mind, creating tensions, ruptures and violent eruptions, from seemingly ingenuous self-sabotage to major organic, relational or spiritual crises.
(BT) – What do you suggest, Eugênia, as technique to work with the shadow, so that we assimilate its deep, important and substantial content to our growth, peace and happiness?
(SE) – Pay attention to the least worthy elements of yourself, or least noble. Every day, or at least once a week, make an inventory of undesirable emotions, vile sentiments, shameful emptiness, indifference and boredom. Make up a character for this set of abominable traits of yourself. Give a voice to this character. Give an image to this being, which in fact, is a part of yourself. And, finally, pay attention to what he/she has to say, ask, complain. This habit of interacting with the shadow, however delusional it may seem to some people, is essential to maintain psychological and spiritual health, in a world troubled and conflictive such as the Earth of today.
(BT) – But Eugênia, there are people who will frankly say they don’t have such dreadful traits within themselves.
(SE) – The denial of such character within oneself is extremely dangerous because it exposes an arrogant mind, besides the ignorance and little self-knowledge that such assertive (if sincere) reveals. Although luminous beings, profoundly wise, do not have, in theory, what we could call a shadow aspect, in the morbid and daunting sense that is presented in the human level of consciousness, but only seeds of more light that slowly germinates within and without oneself, toward higher levels of evolution, it is not reasonable or lucid that someone is categorised, while incarnated on Earth, as belonging to this class of luminous beings. Even if someone feels as not possessing any kind of unfortunate sentiment (what is extremely suspicious), the practice of working with the shadow will be, at least, of great value for interacting with those who do not tune in with their way of being, a way of processing unconscious conflicts with those who are not compatible with their nature. Normally, however, when someone begins to work with the shadow, they gradually start to find out elements in themselves that they never imagined to have. A strong and virile man may discover an infantile, fearful and vulnerable side within. A fragile and dependent woman may find in herself, disguised and treacherous, a stingy and sadistic tyrant. An open and modern personality can reveal, to herself, shameful aspects of prejudice and discrimination. Feelings, emotions and impulses, hardly admitted (at least publicly), soon begin to be seen clearly in the secret chamber of the heart: envy, greed, ambition, jealousy, perversity, exhibitionism, pride and vanity, among many others, perhaps even more difficult to be recognised within oneself, such as: the impulse to lie, to betray, to slander, to steal and, secret of secrets: to kill! In fact, by not consciously admitting to possessing such impulses, human beings end up by giving vent to them indiscriminately, through subtle means, i.e.: killing their spouse or their mother, a little every day, through endless tantrums.
Every human being has a share of light and shadow. Percentages vary and that is why we are different (we have very personal combinations of general human characteristics, which distinguish us as individuals) and this is also what typifies our level of evolution. But who could actually say that they do not bear more shadow aspects in oneself? Contrary to what is usually thought, the more truly enlightened someone is, the more they tend to see less flattering aspects in themselves, like the story of saints (true saints) reveals. Saint Peter, for example, very wisely, says in his epistle to humanity: “There is no evil that a brother of mine commit that I cannot commit myself”.
(BT) – Fabulous, Eugênia. Any alert to make in this work of descent to the underworld?
(SE) – That we descent to rise again. Therefore, the important objective is to assimilate important parts of ourselves, renegaded and depreciated to the obscurity of a pseudo-existence (dangerous, because it works as a psychic pressure pan, which explodes now and again, in outbursts of uncontrollable misbehaviour, like compulsions, addictions, Freudian slips, bursts of anger or dissolute sex, etc.). We must absorb these parts in a healthy, balanced and fair way. Those who do this will discover the hidden light in the darkness, and, as said by Jesus himself: “Know the truth and the truth will set you free”. We are usually willing to know pleasant and luminous truths, but only in darkness we’ll find the most precious gold, precisely because it is hard to go there. If the truth was always sweet and pleasant, everyone would easily enlighten themselves. But the road is rough and steep exactly because we need to know hard truths about ourselves, more than about others. A curious thing is that, for those who know themselves deeply, all spiritual and moral acts, apparently impossible for those who do not work on their shadow aspect, become natural and inevitable, like learning, forgiving and loving. We become more mature, when we admit ours and the complexity of others, by learning how to love, despite differences, conflicts, dislikes and “shames”. We learn how to tolerate contradictions, ambiguities and even small betrayals, without even being affected. Obviously, those who do the work with the shadow do not become stupid or submissive. It is exactly the opposite: they are much more capable to resist to evil, to react and defend themselves constructively and effectively, without getting intoxicated by the evil of others. But they can also see that a lot of the sense of injustice is based on the ignorance of who we are and, especially, who the other is. Therefore, victims can see they were or are more villains than those they condemn, and, even more, we may find out, in the “monsters” that we live with, needy children or unconscious little creatures, asking us for affection or education, rather than violence or contempt, which would make of us exactly what we fight against so much.
(Mediumistic dialogue held on February 29, 2004.)