The subconscious contains within it our unused potentials, as well as the personal blockages that keep us stuck in the various problem areas of our life. I sometimes refer to these as our light and dark shadows. The word shadow is a Jungian term and refers to those parts of us that are unconscious. Being unconscious, we do not see them, but we often see their effects in our life, that is we don’t see what causes the shadow, but we see the effect.
Each of us has both a light and dark shadow, and each needs to be examined so that energy captured there can be released.
Dark Shadow: That which is holding us back. Repressed emotions, grief, hurts, inner wounds; all these are part of our dark shadow. So are dysfunctional beliefs. For example, a belief such as, “If there is a flu around I’ll catch it!”, which, as you now understand, would attract the flu to you, could be called part of our dark shadow, especially if we are unaware of how this belief operates in our life. Any part of us that makes us unbalanced and that we are unaware of can be called part of our dark shadow. The dark shadow is that part of us which is self-defeating, holding us back, often absorbing vast amounts of energy, leaving us feeling depleted, anxious, frustrated, and at the mercy of forces that we ourselves have set in motion. The Mind Power student is keenly interested in both his/her light and dark shadows. They understand better than anyone what it means to ignore these shadow parts of their being. What is in our dark shadow is limiting us, so we do the inner work necessary to reveal these parts to us. Once revealed, we can design strategies to change those aspects of ourselves which are holding us back.
Now there is also the collective unconscious, which does not develop but is inherited. It consists of pre-existent forms: the archetypes. The collective unconscious contains both dark and light shadows, and as such they are common to all of us. They reside as archetypal messages resonating in the human unconscious matrix and so find their way into all of us. One such dark shadow archetypal message is the belief, “I’m not good enough». This can be held as a general belief, “I’m not a good enough person” or something more specific, “I’m not a good parent/spouse/artist/mediator/entrepreneur/teacher», etc. When you find yourself thinking this, which you sometimes will, you can counteract the thought by first suspecting that it does not belong to you but rather to the collective. This works to make it non-personal, giving you the opportunity of nullifying it. It is our duty to overcome and heal the wound of “I’m not good enough” upon every occasion that it arises. By doing so we help not just ourselves but also the collective. We are helping our species when we refuse to accept shame. Paradoxically, the act of eliminating shame is easier when we do it for the sake of others than when we do it just for ourselves. Doing this is not a selfish act; it is heroic. Shame is the original sin. What is not claimed and owned by the inner will manifest in the outer. The dark shadow must be faced and addressed or it will cause all kinds of problems in your life.
Light Shadow: Our potentials and those parts of us that have not been explored and brought to fruition in our lives. Special gifts and talents that lie underdeveloped, our art, our hidden desires, our unused and unexplored abilities, all these form part of our light shadow. Because we are a fragment, a holographic piece of the overall design of the universe, everything that is possible and good and excellent is potentially part of our light shadow. While theoretically true, practically speaking, some things are more available to us than others. Not all the talents and gifts within the universe are ours to use, at least not in this particular lifetime. Some are more difficult to access, while others are waiting just below the surface, like a seed in a dried out river bed awaiting the rains to sprout and grow. Our light shadow can be discovered by following our bliss, our natural talents, our joys, our creativity. Trust what turns you on the most and follow it wherever it leads you.
The emergence of both light and dark shadow is always a positive event in our lives. It shows we are connected and in touch with the hidden parts of ourselves. When we awaken to these possibilities of transformation within ourselves, almost anything becomes possible.
How to come into relationship with your subconscious:
You come into relationship with your subconscious by desiring contact. You educate the conscious mind to the existence of the subconscious’s functions and potential through daily meditations. Until you are aware of its existence, and not just in an intellectual way, you cannot work with the subconscious effectively. Contemplate daily the existence of this second mind. Think about the fact that the subconscious is part of the etheric web of all reality. Think about the potentials of imprinting into it, how it works, etc. Affirm to yourself daily, “My subconscious mind is my partner in success». This is a very powerful affirmation and has a threefold effect. First, by affirming “my subconscious mind», you are educating the conscious mind to the existence of this second mind. Secondly, by affirming “my partner», you are reminding the conscious mind of the possibilities and advantages of working with the subconscious. And thirdly, it is your partner “in success». By affirming this you are building up a success vibration; you are weaving success into your etheric matrix. Make this a regular affirmation.
Finally, dialogue with your subconscious: Praise it and let it know how appreciative you are of its power and ability to create and interact with the etheric web. Tell it what you want to create and what imprints you are presently working with. Let it know that you are working diligently to have a functioning relationship established. Get to know this part of yourself as a separate and neglected component that is being welcomed back into the human matrix. By doing all of the above you will find that you will enter into “relationship” with your subconscious, and when you do, a whole new level of working with it reveals itself to you.
