The shadow can be thought of as the unconscious realm of the psyche that contains all the material that we find difficult to confront within ourselves.
Now this can include personality traits or behaviours that may present themselves in the world in a demonic form.
However,
It can also include beliefs,
Desires,
Archetypes and most certainly emotions or feeling.
This uncomfortable,
Unrecognised material often plays out in real-world situations,
Which,
Through the conflict that's created,
Compels us to look at this material and gives us clues as to what may still need to be resolved in ourselves as we develop self-knowledge.
In this exercise,
We will be using active imagination to proactively approach some of the shadow material,
Understand how it may have been affecting our life,
Bring it into conscious awareness and reconcile with it to remove inner conflict.
So as we begin,
Just bring to mind an area of your life where you're aware there's some kind of conflict,
Where things aren't working as smoothly as they could be.
So this could relate to relationships,
Career,
Health,
Your financial situation.
And once you've got that,
Just making sure you're comfortable,
Whether seated or lying down.
Close your eyes.
I'm just taking a couple of deep breaths,
Just allowing the mind and the body to relax naturally.
I'm going to start this exercise just with some basic meditation.
So we're just allowing any of that content that's close to the surface to rise up,
Be seen,
And let go of.
Content that's close to the surface to rise up,
Be seen,
And let go of.
So just direct your attention to the breath,
Whether it's the sensation of the air moving through the nostrils or the rise and fall of the chest or abdomen.
Just hold your attention there for now.
If at any point the mind wanders,
Simply see that,
Make it conscious,
Let it go,
And bring your attention back to whatever it is you're doing as part of the exercise.
And now,
Imagine that you're in a room and this room represents that air of your life that you brought to mind earlier.
Take a look around.
What are your first impressions?
This room represents all the things in this area that you're currently conscious of,
How you currently see yourself.
Notice the size of the room,
Any furnishings,
Any other objects.
Notice the colors,
The textures.
Are there any people in this room?
And notice how you appear in this room.
Is there some particular image of yourself that you want to portray?
Just allow yourself to notice how it feels to be in this room.
Take some more time now just to be in this room and to be aware of what you're consciously creating here.
And now,
If you're going to change content of this room,
You're going to need some extra information to do that.
Since this room contains what you already know,
We're now going to look at what it is you don't know.
We're now going to look at what it is you don't know that is influencing your life.
So we need to find out what may be behind the scenes influencing your choices in that area of your life that you brought to mind.
So in this room,
You notice a doorway begins to appear.
This doorway leads to another room.
This is the room of your shadow.
As you open the door,
It's all dark inside.
You can't see anything inside this room.
Perhaps you don't want to see what's in this room.
Now,
Imagine bringing a light into this room.
Whether it's a lantern or a torch,
Any other kind of handheld light,
And start to explore this room.
What do you find here in the darkness?
Do you find an object,
A symbol,
An image,
Another person,
A mirror,
A mirror,
A mirror,
A mirror,
Or creature?
Could it be another you that's hiding in the shadows?
Just allow whatever needs to appear to appear.
Just gently approach this room.
No need to react to whatever's here.
Rest assured that your mind won't produce anything that with right intentions you're not able to handle.
So take some more time now just to explore and be in this room.
And now,
It may not be clear what you need to do with what you find here.
But you're now going to allow the content of the shadow room to come back with you into the first room.
So take what you find here,
And bring it with you through the door and integrate it into the first room.
Now just give your imagination complete free reign to create something new in this room.
Complete free reign to create something new in this room.
See the room transform.
Maybe some things will disappear,
Others may reappear.
Perhaps the size of the room will change,
Or become brighter.
Just allow the shadow elements to become conscious and make its impact in this room.
So take some more time now just to allow your imagination to change this room.
To change this room and take notes of what's changed.
So don't worry if it doesn't make complete sense right now.
Trust that your psyche understands the symbolic language.
And that simply by having this experience,
Progress has been made towards reconciliation with this shadow part of you.
So just allowing the scene to fade now.
You may wish to journal this experience after the exercise.
And continuing to reflect on it over the coming days and weeks.
So just bringing your attention back to the space around you now.
Noticing whatever you happen to notice.
Perhaps physical sensations,
Or sounds.
Taking a deep breath.
And in your own time,
Opening your eyes.
Opening your eyes.
