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..:: The Shadow ::..
By
Alan Schneider
The importance of the Shadow in Jungian
psychodynamics cannot be exaggerated. This primary archetypal symbol is
the Gatekeeper of the unconscious, and is inevitably encountered at some
stage of the psychic exploration of that region of the mind. This
sub-state of consciousness exhibits both personal and collective
expressions – with the realization (as Jung termed the
psychological assimilation process) of the personal Shadow representing
the key to working with this most challenging psychic
manifestation.
As the term implies, the Shadow is a personified region of
the unconscious that can best be described as the dumping ground of the
darkest and most negative elements of repression. All that we
find most onerous and unacceptable becomes incorporated in the
embodiment of the Shadow, which literally is a black, menacing figure
that has a tendency when first encountered to attack the ego,
lunging and screaming in the process! It is no wonder that the faint of
heart avoid any subsequent encounters by avoiding the darker places in
the unconscious. This is ultimately a mistake, however, because the
Shadow can be reconciled to our full consciousness, and become a
powerful psychic ally in the process – the collective Shadow can
only be accessed by the realized personal Shadow. And that collective
manifestation is the net expression of all human suffering and
repression, indeed of all suffering in the universe. Thus, the
realization of the personal Shadow assumes the highest priority in the
spiritual growth of initiates who would perform light work in the
dark realms.
The steps involved in the realization process of the
personal Shadow involve containment, appeasement, negotiation, and
reconciliation. I will briefly describe my personal realization
process.
After the initial attack (which was typical in character) a
violent struggle ensued in the context of something like a dungeon. I
was eventually able to wrestle the Shadow into a cell of that dungeon,
and lock it in. I became quite bloody in the process, as did my
adversary. I interpret this mutual bloodshed as a shared symbolic
sacrifice, and the first step towards realization. My Shadow remained
extremely and explosively violent in the cell, raging and snarling in
confinement, but was not able to escape. Thus, the step of containment
was accomplished. For many nights (in dream states) and days (in
structured fantasies), I kept a vigil by the cell, until the caged
figure eventually became more relatively calm (although remaining
menacingly hostile in its gestures and deportment). I also began to feed
it through the bars. The first attempts at this resulted in the offered
food – simple bread and water – being violently thrown back at me by the
prisoner (a symbolic rejection of the Communion), but it eventually
morosely dined on the Spartan fare I offered. So did the appeasement
process begin – through very basic behavior modification techniques.
At a certain point, the Shadow’s eyes differentiated from
its uniform black presence. These were initially glowing red slits
without anatomical differentiation, and were, of course, very angry,
piercing expressions. The Shadow continuously glared at me with those
red orbs that represented so much hatred, anger, and resentment – all
built up over the years (lifetimes?) of its psychic abandonment.
As the appeasement phase of realization progressed, the
Shadow continued to exhibit more anatomical differentiation. The black
appearance metamorphosed into a brown, furry integument, the pupils and
irises appeared in the eye sockets, and teeth and lips appeared in the
mouth region, although these former were still fangs, to be sure, and
the whole structure was frequently snarling at me through the bars.
Feeding cycle or none, the creature frequently lunged at me, crashing
into the cage in the process. What eventually resolved out of this
process was a primate figure with the head and facial features of a
baboon, and the upright posture and appendages of a human being. It
eventually became calm enough to cease attacking the cage, and sit on
the wooden bench which was the only furnishing therein, still regarding
me with obvious malice and hostility, however.
Attention is the magic elixir of consciousness. As I
continued to attend my Shadow, rather than attempt to reject it back
into the depths of my unconscious, a healing slowly took place in that
forlorn and desolate entity, and the malice that had typified its
bearing eroded away, first into mistrust, and then into suspicious
curiosity. This transition made possible the initiation of the
negotiation stage of realization. At a certain point, I opened the door
of the cell and entered to initiate emotional bonding transactions with
the occupant. The result was another wrestling match (one of many more),
but eventually an understanding was forged between us that it could not
successfully attack me, and I would not abandon it again. It is
noteworthy that we never have exchanged even one spoken word to this day
– rather, there is an emotional link between us that has always
transcended speech as a means of communication.
As the hostility subsided from our relationship, I was able
to show my Shadow the world of my perception and feelings through my
personal senses, which were, of course, its senses as well, advancing
the realization process to the reconciliation stage. We finally formed a
deep bond between us that has lasted to this day, and what was once a
desperately savage entity trapped in unconscious darkness became a tall,
upright white (although still fur covered) muscular figure, still with
the head and face of a baboon, but having a high forehead and
intelligent human eyes that no longer glared forth with red malignancy.
Rather, they regarded the world from the peaceful, grateful perspective
of the completed realization process in a reintegrated Psyche.
My shadow became my guide, assistant, and occasional
guardian in the dark realms of the personal (and later collective)
unconscious, as we carried the healing light into those nether regions
together. This is what it means to have the realized Shadow as a psychic
ally – a powerful friend in consciousness who will always stand by us.
And this has been well for me, because the Collective
Shadow is a menacing force of Primordial Darkness that has caused
untold harm throughout human existence, and that force is the root of
external Chaos in the world that also must be confronted by each
individual human being as we struggle through life. This entity
cannot be realized as the personal Shadow can. It has been given
many names in history, but I prefer the name Lucifer – literally
the light bearer. I prefer this title for many significant
reasons – let’s look at some of them.
In the mythology of Cabala, Lucifer was one of the original,
and primary, Angels (or Angelic archetypal symbols, if you prefer this
more scientific classification) – an Archangel – of God at the
time of Creation. He had a definitive hand in the fabrication (under the
direction of God) of the universe and this planet. Regarding our Earth,
he apparently did not find God’s theory of construction objectionable,
right up until He decided to create a replacement for Lucifer to
tend to things, thus maintaining order, in Eden, following the
completion of construction – Adam, the First Man. Why a supernatural,
archetypal being like Lucifer should have been offended by Adam is
anyone’s guess – but he argued with God about the need for, and wisdom
of, Adam’s creation. Perhaps he simply was accustomed to his role of
Right Hand Man to the Absolute, and didn’t appreciate retirement when
the task of Creation was complete. Lucifer’s obstinate attitude
eventually got him ejected from Paradise into Hell, and the
Fortress of Ultimate Darkness, the only realm in which the omnipotent,
but still merciful, Creator was willing to allow him to reside.
If we equate Hell with the Underworld, and then take the
analogy another step into the realm of psychological science, we find
that the personal and collective unconscious regions of the total Psyche
are very analogous to the Judeo-Christian Hell – dark, hot,
uncomfortable areas of unperceived conscious expression that tend to be
populated with all manner of rejected psycho-spiritual content. The
personal Shadow has already been noted as one of the Primary Archetypal
Symbols present, and there are many others as well, along with a
multitude of lesser expressions of consciousness. All of these are
valenced as well – they exhibit either benevolent or malevolent
dispositions from the point of view of the ego, which must determine to
what extent these are present, and act accordingly for the benefit of
the organism that it must protect and enhance for the sake of the
survival of both of them. So we can say that there is a tendency
for conditions to become quite dark in the unconscious regions, and that
more so in the collective than even in the personal, personal traumatic
reactions being an exception.
The physical organism is the temple of the spirit. And it is
also the prison of that same spirit for the duration of
incarnation. Do what we will, we remain anchored to the Material Plane
of expression by the physical body and senses. Because it is essentially
a condition of limitation for the Soul, the body is inherently
dark, as are the senses. These latter are an adjunct to existence, but
a distraction from noticing the essential truth of our imprisonment.
Following the spiritual analogy, God certainly created Adam – through
instructions subsequently carried out by Lucifer, who then built himself
into this last piece of Creation right down to the foundation! It is no
wonder that Adam was so willing to be duped by his senses – symbolized
by consuming the Apple – he was bound to fall into the trap eventually.
Yoga calls this Fallen condition the Mind Trap – equating it with
the personal ego, which we nonetheless must have at this point in
evolution to survive in the world. Yes, Lucifer did his work well, and
here we all are.
Since Lucifer was built into the human expression, that is
where God sent him for his confinement, specifically into the basement
of the temple, to be exact – the collective unconscious – where he still
presides, wreaking havoc on the world through disturbances of awareness
that he thrusts up into conscious recognition. He may very well yet
succeed in destroying the Creation he helped to build, which seems to be
his goal, in any event. For this reason, any travel into the deep
collective unconscious should be regarded as extremely dangerous, and
the assistance of the realized personal Shadow is invaluable for those
who feel called forth to make the attempt.
To be sure, there are also many positive aspects of many of
the archetypal symbols of the collective unconscious, and this is the
motivation for exploring there in the first place – there are exquisite
pearls to be found by the diver in that realm, just so long as watch is
kept for the sharks and moray eels that hunt in those depths. And
awareness must be constantly be maintained that our existence is
ultimately the result of God’s gift of Karma – however limited this gift
may be, and whoever built the temple sustaining it – an awareness
that must include a clear perception of the essentially temporary
nature of the human condition, pearls and personality notwithstanding.
We are here as an expression of the evolution of the Soul – this
is the meaning of life. The realm in which Lucifer and the rest of the
archetypal forms is contained exists beyond space and time as we know
it, and he will eventually destroy the personal sensory temples of us
all, freeing the Soul to continue on Its cosmic journey back to God, the
ultimate source of Creation, including all the of the Angels and
Archetypes as His subordinate expressions. Even Lucifer himself is still
subject to God’s will. The Physical (Material) Plane that we experience
in the senses is the workshop wherein the Soul is refined by the
limitation imposed by those two conditions, acquiring the subtle moral
perception that represents the Path back to The Divine Source of all
perception, within and beyond the flesh!
- With Love, Alan -
(CR2007, Alan Schneider)
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