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March 2012 - Page 3 of 13 - Self-Help, Spirituality & Self-Esteem

Month: March 2012

Spiritual Retreats For Women, Healing Retreats, Detox, Yoga, Weight Loss

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Spiritual Retreats For Women

Why Go On A Spiritual Retreat?

Spiritual retreats for women are a chance to rediscover who you really are.  Women are often more prone to forgetting themselves and making other’s more important.  Then one day they realise that they have no idea who they are or what they actually want.

A retreat is a chance to turn your attention back on yourself for a few days.  It is a chance to nourish your soul and remember what it was you dreamed of as a little girl but since forgot.  They can be healing retreats or yoga holidays or even a weight loss retreat or detox retreat.

It could involve learning techniques such as yoga, mediation or breathing exercises.  It could be a combination of any type of activities such as drawing, writing, contemplating or dancing.  You will know before you go what will be involved.

Attention

You know how good it feels when you have attention from other people don’t you?  That is assuming you desire their attention of course.  Everything in nature loves attention and that includes your inner-self receiving YOUR attention.  Your inner self is likely starved of your own attention and kindness.  It is very healing and empowering to nourish your soul in this way and can open up blocked channels of creativity and insight.

Where Are They Held?

Somewhere still, silent and away from the modern world.  Natural, peaceful surroundings is the normal location.  Their will be minimal distractions so you can reconnect to nature and your spiritual self.  The days events will be mostly organised for you, including free time to sit, walk or talk.  Your meals will be prepared so you can turn your attention back on yourself.

Who Else Will Be There?

You are not the first person to go on a retreat, there are many others like you.  Some people will have been on a previous retreat, some people go on retreats often because spiritual growth and self-discovery is their hobby.

Everyone starts somewhere but the beauty is that everyone will be on a similar path and the connection and compassion for each other on a retreat makes it what it is.

What A Retreat Is Not!

It is absolutely not about…

  • being told what to believe
  • being made to wear anything
  • twelve hours a day chanting while staring at a candle (unless you know this in advance)
  • joining up to anything

If any of these things happen or are asked of you then you can be sure it is not the right thing for you.  A spiritual retreat is about self-empowerment and discovering your truth and your spiritual self.  For that to happen you need to be free from restriction and other people’s ideas.

If you are hosting spiritual retreats for women and would like to contact me to advertise or list on this page then please feel free to do so.

Spiritual Poems, Spiritual Inspiration Poems

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Spiritual Poems

Here are a selection of spiritual poems to help you cultivate inner peace, contentment and eventually, self-love. I hope you enjoy these spiritual poems. They each speak of a different aspect of living an authentic, honest and humble life.

 

Helen Steiner Rice

The better you know God, the better you feel,

For to learn more about Him and discover He’s real

Can wholly, completely,and miraculously change,

Reshape and remake and then rearrange

Your mixed-up, miserable, and unhappy life

Adrift on the sea of sin-sickened strife.

But when you once know this Man of good will,

He will calm your life and say, “Peace, be still” …

So open your heart’s door and let Christ come in

And He’ll give you new life and free you from sin.

And there is no joy that can ever compare

With the joy of knowing you’re in God’s care.

 

 

Start Where You Stand

Berton Braley

Start where you stand and never mind the past,

The past won’t help you in beginning new,

If you have left it all behind at last

Why, that’s enough, you’re done with it, you’re through;

This is another chapter in the book,

This is another race that you have planned,

Don’t give the vanished days a backward look,

Start where you stand.

The world won’t care about your old defeats

If you can start anew and win success;

The future is your time, and time is fleet

And there is much of work and strain and stress;

Forget the buried woes and dead despairs,

Here is a brand-new trial right at hand,

The future is for him who does and dares,

Start where you stand.

Old failures will not halt, old triumphs aid,

To-day’s the thing, to-morrow soon will be;

Get in the fight and face it unafraid,

And leave the past to ancient history,

What has been, has been; yesterday is dead

And by it you are neither blessed nor banned;

Take courage, man, be brave and drive ahead,

Start where you stand.

 

A Brand New Start

 

Jill Lemming

God sometimes brings us to a place

where answers can’t be found…

Where we cannot see tomorrow,

for confusion all around.

Yet deep inside we realize

that all things work for good…

Even times when we’ve been wounded

and we feel misunderstood.

Don’t dwell on the injustice

and stay focused on God’s heart…

Find forgiveness and go on,

you can make a brand new start.

 

A Little Prayer

 

S.E. Kiser

That I may not in blindness grope,

But that I may with vision clear

Know when to speak a word of hope

Or add a little wholesome cheer.

That tempered winds may softly blow

Where little children, thinly clad,

Sit dreaming, when the flame is low,

Of comforts they have never had.

That through the year which lies ahead

No heart shall ache, no cheek be wet,

For any word that I have said

Or profit I have tried to get.

 

He is Always There

 

Anonymous

We can’t foresee the turning of the tide

When problems beset us and tears are cried.

Sometimes life deals from the bottom of the deck

Filling us with worry and leaving us a wreck.

The enemy seeks to devour and destroy,

Using deceptions to eliminate our joy.

While walking through the valley, our heads hung low,

The mountain top seems so high, our footsteps slow.

How many times have we traveled this road

To battle the frustrations of troubles bestowed?

Yet when we come to our darkest hour

God demonstrates His infinite power.

It doesn’t matter how bad things might seem,

He always comes through, our faith to redeem.

God will not fail us in our times of pain.

He’ll never forsake us, by our side He’ll remain.

So when we find ourselves at a total loss

Or when the valley seems too wide to cross,

Just remember you’re in His love and care,

Look over your shoulder, He’s always there!

 

Kindness

Naomi Shihab Nye

Before you know what kindness really is

you must lose things,

feel the future dissolve in a moment

like salt in a weakened broth.

What you held in your hand,

what you counted and carefully saved,

all this must go so you know

how desolate the landscape can be

between the regions of kindness.

How you ride and ride

thinking the bus will never stop,

the passengers eating maize and chicken

will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,

you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho

lies dead by the side of the road.

You must see how this could be you,

how he too was someone

who journeyed through the night with plans

and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,

you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.

You must wake up with sorrow.

You must speak to it till your voice

catches the thread of all sorrows

and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,

only kindness that ties your shoes

and sends you out into the day to mail letters and

purchase bread,

only kindness that raises its head

from the crowd of the world to say

it is I you have been looking for,

and then goes with you every where

like a shadow or a friend.

If you would like to read more in depth spiritual poems I recommend Rumi, Hafiz or simply seek and you will find spiritual poems that resonate with you. Spiritual Poems are like any other poem, when they resonate with your experience it is like you are having your experience mirrored back to you.

When it doesn’t resonate, it can seem like the poet is speaking about something which you have no idea. As always be patient, gentle on yourself and know you have your own unique path.

Spiritual Growth, What Is Spirituality?

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What Is Spiritual Growth?

What is spiritual growth? There is a perfectly good reason that the word spirituality does not make immediate sense to everyone, and that reason is because apprehending spirituality is outside of intellectual grasping; it can only be known truly by direct awareness, or direct experience, of Self.

To attain enlightenment we need both direct experience and understanding.  But it is important that the experience comes first and the explanation or the knowledge comes afterward. – Deepak Chopra.

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Spiritual Surrender

What is spiritual surrender? Often we think we need to plan and think out each moment. Learn to give up trying to control and amazing things begin to happen. Bring awareness to how often you wish to control this moment… Read More

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What Is Consciousness?

What is consciousness? At each level of consciousness you know yourself and the world differently. As you move up the levels you become less identified with the content of your life.  Dr David Hawkins has written extensively on the levels of consciousness and the different experiences one has as a human being at each stage… Read More

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A Matter Of Trust

When you trust that there is some path you are on or some unforeseen unfolding to your life, you can live with more peace and purpose.  Ok so I am not so sure Billy Joel is talking about anything more
than the struggles of learning to trust in a romantic relationship, but I like the words in the context of aligning yourself with the way that brings more inner peace… Read More

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Practice Of Contemplation

A very powerful technique is the practice of contemplation. Some might call it navel gazing but these people probably don’t understand how or why this discipline can change your life… Read More

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The Enlightenment Process

Wake up to the enlightenment process, which is available to everyone who wants it.  Many people don’t have any knowing of who they are, they are living inauthentic lives and pretending.  Is finding instantaneous enlightenment something you desire?  Do you wish you could somehow take who you are – your history, story and particular circumstances – and change it? Read More

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The Importance Of Being Honest

The importance of being honest cannot be over-stated. Being grateful is a very powerful spiritual growth attitude but wise people also know being honest is extremely powerful.  It is extraordinary how much we lie. Being honest and displaying honesty is something that we somehow hold as scary.  We lie to others and to ourselves… Read More

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The Illusion Of Being Separate

One massive assumption we make while living this separate life is to assume we are over here and all that is over there.  Being separate, or at least living like you are, is lonely and difficult. The alternative is to notice some assumptions… Read More

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Spiritual Fitness Training

If you have ever reached a reasonable level of physical fitness you know that you can do more activity in your life without feeling overwhelmed and beyond your threshold.  Likewise with spiritual fitness, when you have trained your attitude and way of thinking and relating to the world, you are able to stay calm, relaxed and at inner peace no matter what may come… Read More

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What Is Truth?

What do we mean by Truth? Are we talking about they way you think you and the world are in each moment? Are we talking about judgments such as it was bad to fly a plane into a building? When we talk about Truth it is wise to begin by forgetting about everything you know and ask yourself what would be still here if I had a different life story… Read More
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Teach Me How To Pray

If you are searching for ‘teach me how to pray’ or ‘how to pray effectively’ the most important point I have found is that asking must be done from the heart.  Pick something you would like to
experience and ask that you experience it.  This is a great way to practice being integral, authentic and honest.  It is a perfect opportunity for you to notice how much of a challenge it is to put your truth into words… Read More

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Signs Of Spiritual Awakening

Awakening is funny. In fact those that experience early signs of spiritual awakening often find it hilarious, and so it was with me.  I was new to the world of self help and had no concept or experience of spiritual growth. In fact ironically I booked to go on a workshop that I thought was going to make me understand more about others and how to get them to align with me. In short, I wanted more power… Read More

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Spiritual Fitness Training, Developing Self-Esteem, Finding Inner Strength, Self-Confidence

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Spiritual Fitness Training Empowers You

What Is Spiritual Fitness Training?

If you have ever reached a reasonable level of physical fitness you know that you can do more activity in your life without feeling overwhelmed and beyond your threshold.

Likewise with spiritual fitness, when you have trained your attitude and way of thinking and relating to the world, you are able to stay calm, relaxed and at inner peace no matter what may come.

Is It About Doing Weird Practices?

No not at all.  This is about finding inner strength.  It is about realising that within you there is the ability to be calm and forgiving and loving and compassionate no matter what the circumstances.

It is within you already but it is obscured by the way you think of yourself and the world.

What Are The Benefits?

Apart from developing self-esteem and feeling that you are connected and meaningful it is about rediscovering the truth of who you really are.  The way you feel about yourself and life, and how effective you are at living a meaningful life is determined by they way you think about yourself and life.

How Do I Develop It?

  • Be honest.  Stop pretending.  When you speak let the breath that starts from your abdomen arise up through your centre and push the words out.  The breath carries the words like a surfer on a wave, except the words and the breath are one.  When you do this you are speaking from your truth, your gut, your experience.
  • Realise that you are not in control and trust that it is OK.  Have faith, let go of trying to understand because you never will.  Turn it all over to a higher power.
  • Pray, or at least ask for what you feel in your gut.  Discern between what you imagine you want and what you actually want.  The ego will tell you what to want based on greed and fear, your gut will tell you what you really want deeply to feel fulfilled.

When Should I Do This?

This is about being real and therefore being empowered to live a life without overwhelm.  It is to be done as much as you can.  It is about living your life this way.  The alternative is to stay stuck feeling alone and isolated and unworthy.  

Spiritual fitness training is really about living aligned with the truth of your true nature.  Integrity, truth and trust.

Signs of Spiritual Awakening, Peter Ralston, Enlightenment

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Signs Of Spiritual Awakening

Are Sometimes Funny

Awakening is funny. In fact those that experience early signs of spiritual awakening often find it hilarious, and so it was with me.

I was new to the world of self help and had no concept or experience of spiritual growth. In fact ironically I booked to go on a workshop that I thought was going to make me understand more about others and how to get them to align with me. In short, I wanted more power.

So there I was flying half way around the world to attend a workshop on something I didn’t know anything about and I hadn’t even heard the name of the workshop before!

Peter Ralston was running a month-long retreat, the first week of which was entitled an Ontology Workshop, or Experience the Nature of Being

Peter started introducing me and 15 others to the possibility that what we assume is real can be challenged and seen as simply an idea held firmly by the mind.

Throughout the eight days we confronted and challenged a lot. I hated it and was counting down the hours. I didn’t hate the workshop or the teacher or the environment or theother participants but something inside felt confronted and was screaming to go. About half way through the workshop Peter quoted somebody which had a profound impact on me.

Who Am I?

He said if you can hold the question Who am I? in your awareness for three days, the same way a feather would gently sink and sway to the bottom of a lake, you will be enlightened. The last one and a half days of the workshop were to contemplate such a question.

The workshop finished and I left Texas to head for San Francisco. I continued to contemplate Who am I?. On the ride to the airport, at the airport, in the plane, at the hotel, that afternoon, that evening, right up until dropping off to sleep. As soon as I woke there the question was again, and I held it in my awareness until later that morning when the three days were up. Nothing had changed and nothing happened. Oh well, I will just have to try again some other time. Maybe this is more difficult than I thought.

But I do remember reading about Peter’s experience. He held the question for three days and then let the question go and carried on with his life. That is when he got the direct experience of reality. So, remembering that, I happily let go and enjoyed my week in that great city San Francisco. At the end of the week I was heading to Napa Valley, California for another eight-day retreat. This was just as intense and challenging as Peter’s workshop but in a different way. If we weren’t crying we were laughing for eight days straight as we challenged our childhood patterns and beliefs.

The second-to-last morning we were doing a very intense exercise involving confronting everything that we were frustrated, angry and annoyed with about ourselves. This was a dark-side confrontation letting loose with mallets and cushions and a lot of yelling, swearing and intensity. Then suddenly without warning, maybe half way through this 40 minute exercise I changed from bashing to giggling and laughing.

I was awakening. This was one of the very definite signs of spiritual awakening. I was aware of who I am. The one that I thought I was split into two so to speak. The one I always thought I was was still there but now there was another me; the real me. It was hilarious.

How could I have been so blind? How could I have been fooled into thinking I was my inner voice? My story? So this is what awakening is! After a few minutes of laughing while everyone else was still swearing and bashing, I suddenly had the urge to take out the frustration at being tricked.

I gladly resumed bashing but this time I was empowered. I knew I could never suffer again. Nothing had quite the same importance, nothing meant so much about me, I had less to defend. I could simply be who I was and be OK.

Shadow Work, Dr John Demartini, How To Heal Your Shadow

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Shadow Work

Shadow work is counter intuitive because it asks you to love the parts of yourself that you would rather not be there, but as you will read below that is where the power is.

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Demartini Method

Dr John Demartini created The Demartini Method. It is one of the most powerful ways to improve self-esteem that I know of.  The crux of The Demartini Method and The Breakthrough Experience is shadow-work as coined by Carl Jung the great psychologist… Read More

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Discover Gold In The Shadow And Change Your Life

The gold in the shadow can be understood by seeing that just as we protect our sense of self by denying that we possess ‘bad’ qualities, we also do not fully acknowledge that we… Read More

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The Shadow Effect Movie

The Shadow Effect is a movie creation from Debbie Ford released in 2009. Along similar lines to the movie The Secret, the movie has known and lesser know individuals speaking about the shadow. As with any piece of work; a book, movie, essay or poem, it speaks to you… Read More

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Healing Your Shadow Improves Your Life

Healing the shadow is probably the quickest, easiest and most powerful way to increase self-esteem, self-acceptance and self-love. The shadow is a term coined by famous Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. Jung coined the term ‘shadow-self’ to make a distinction between… Read More

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Psychological Projection

What is psychological projection?  Who you think you are; your self-image, ego or id as Sigmund Freud called it is OK with being some things but not OK with being others.  The ego ‘breathes’ by virtue of believing you are an object that is separate from the rest of the world.  In actual fact you are not separate, you are not an object and you are not one particular way… Read More

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What Is The Human Shadow?

Every human being has an idea of what sort of person they are. The human shadow is everything that does not exist within your accepted self image. In reality a human being seems to be a potential to be anything at any time rather than one fixed way. Therefore your self image keeps you trapped… Read More

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Why Is Shadow Work Powerful?

Shadow work derived from the famous Swiss psychologist Carl Jung who coined the term shadow to refer to the parts of the psyche that we are unconscious of.  Anything that is unconscious seemingly has more influence in our lives than that we do consciously.

In this respect you can think of the patterns and agenda of the unconscious like a robot in that they run automatically.  This is good for essential bodily functions like breathing for example but not great for psychological functions such as… Read More

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Own Your Shadow-Self To Improve Your Life

The shadow-self is a very important aspect of your experience of yourself and life. I am going to explain to you in basic terms the crux of the shadow-self and hopefully you will see clearly why it is such a determining factor of your self-esteem. You will no doubt notice that you have a self-image. This is undeniable and this self-image is a construction within your mind of how you are. Because it is so obvious and so familiar and seemingly so real we live life as if… Read More

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Ego Defense: Shadow Projection

Shadow projection is the way in which you can easily spot what human traits are in your shadow.

Your shadow self is that which is unconscious. As we are complete in our potential experience, anything which we deny as being part of us becomes unconscious. What the ego (self-image) does is… Read More

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List Of Archetypes

What is an archetype?  It is very important for your self-acceptance and self-esteem to understand this. Carl Jung created the term Collective Unconscious.  This refers to the tendencies, predispositions, natural inclinations and way of thinking about your self and the world.  You could say these tendencies are natural and arise within you despite the cultural programming of what is good, acceptable and OK. For example… Read More

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Shadow Work, Shadow Projection, Human Shadow, Healing The Shadow, The Shadow Effect

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Why Shadow Work Is Powerful

Who Coined The Term Shadow?

Shadow work derived from the famous Swiss psychologist Carl Jung who
coined the term shadow to refer to the parts of the psyche that we are
unconscious
of.  Anything that is unconscious seemingly has more influence in
our lives than that we do consciously.
In this respect you can think of the patterns and agenda of the
unconscious like a robot in that they run automatically.  This is
good for essential bodily functions like breathing for example but not
great for psychological functions such as trying to accept old hurt or
trying to get your parent’s approval.  These will not stop no
matter how much time has passed.

Why Do Things Run Unconsciously?

For several reasons things run unconsciously, be it because you
experienced something that you were not able to process at the time or
be it just because in our society the external world is more
distracting and attractive than the internal world for most people.

If something is conscious to us we have out impartial awareness upon
it.  As we do this for longer periods of time such as in contemplation more and more
of what is taking place automatically becomes obvious to us.  Then
we can choose to change it.

Unfortunately we don’t seem to widely realise that what is within
affects what we experience without.

What Does This Have To Do With Shadow Work?

Shadow work is extremely powerful and changes things in your experience
of life quickly. 
What people notice when they do shadow work is inner peace and a
quietening of what some people call the inner critic or the
judge.  You experience less contraction away from other people,
less irritation and less wishing other people would change.

What this requires is self-reflection and higher consciousness of what
is taking place within your experience.  If there is something
about a person that irritates you or something that makes you feel they
are superior then what is
actually happening is you
are projecting onto this other
person something that you have not accepted about yourself.

What If The Other Person Really Is That Way?

There are a couple of ways of looking at this.  You could hold it
that these people are coming into your life and showing up as they do
because you have this unconscious, unaccepted trait.  Or you could
completely own that you create this person in your reality.  Or
you could accept that maybe this person is really like this but your
irritation is all your doing.

For example in an ideal world you would completely accept and love in a
compassionate way even the most despicable character.  Any trait
about
this despicable character that you have a body felt hatred or dislike
of is your shadow.

By this I mean that person does not automatically come pre-packaged
with these feelings that you experience.  They just are as they
are.  Whatever you feel or interpret this person to be is your
doing.  You won’t be doing this automatically as a thought out
process but it will be automatically occurring unconsciously. 
This
is your shadow self being projected
outwards and therefore holds huge clues to your self discovery,
personal and spiritual growth.

What is required is for you to look within your life and potential life
and completely accept that this trait is a reality or a possibility
within your life.  This is what we mean by healing the shadow.

To learn more about shadow work read about The Shadow Effect movie by Debbie
Ford.

Shadow Self, Shadow Work, Shadow Projection, Human Shadow, Healing The Shadow

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Own Your Shadow-Self

To Improve Your Life

The shadow-self is a very important aspect of your experience of yourself and life. I am going to explain to you in basic terms the crux of the shadow-self and hopefully you will see clearly why it is such a determining factor of your self-esteem.

You will no doubt notice that you have a self-image. This is undeniable and this self-image is a construction within your mind of how you are. Because it is so obvious and so familiar and seemingly so real we live life as if we really are that way.

Think back to childhood or even imagine yourself growing up and the pressure to conform to particular ways of being was persistent, sometimes explicit, sometimes subtle but always immense. You quickly learned what was acceptable and what was to be never heard or seen in your household and society.

The problem is that these traits which you learned were never to be seen or heard don’t actually go away. How can they? Where would they go? They have nowhere to go and I will talk more about that in depth in other pages. So as they can’t disappear, in order for you to have them appear to have disappeared you shove them out of conscious awareness.

Cue the self-image and its opposite the shadow-self.

So what you end up with is a whole lot of traits and characteristics that are acceptable to Mum, Dad, society, teachers and you in one mental construct called the self-image and everything that is not OK is said to be in your shadow.

Why Is This Important?

This is important for your self-esteem and experience of life because you can try really, really hard to feel better by swapping some of the self-image traits around, making some more prominent, working to improve some and working to have more people see certain traits or whatever.

However, at the end of the day the self-image is just a made up idea. It still has no basis in absolute reality as the conscious being you are. You can swap and change and tinker with the self-image all you like, and some people do for their whole miserable life.

You will never experience self-acceptance, self-love and self-esteem until you finally turn and face all those traits you shut away in the shadow-self, acknowledge them, embrace them, welcome them, make it OK that they are there, see the benefit of them being there, love them and accept them.

Shadow Projection, Shadow Work, Human Shadow, Healing The Shadow, The Shadow Effect

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Ego Defense: Shadow Projection

Shadow projection is the way in which you can easily spot what human
traits are in your shadow. Your shadow self is that which is unconscious.  As we are complete in our potential experience, anything which we deny as being part of us becomes unconscious.

What the ego (self-image) does is project these unconscious traits out onto the world including specific people you come across.

This is all the work of the brilliant psychologist Carl Jung who coined the term the shadow.  Why this is cool is that you can use this knowledge to be vigilant and responsible for ALL that you experience, including they way you experience other people.

Everything that irritates us about others
can lead us to an understanding of ourselves. Carl Jung

What the ego seems to do is take anything that we learned not to be, such as rude and mean, and project that out onto someone or the world as a whole.  Anything that is repressed within does not go away.  The trick is to see and accept exactly where it is coming from rather than where it appears to be coming from.

If you don’t accept that a part of your potential and experience is being rude then someone or a group of people will be burdened with your shadow projection of this rude trait.

It happens all ways.  It is tricky to see and even trickier to remember when we are faced with another individual who grates against us.

If someone is annoying to you or you think you are so much better than them or so much inferior then the challenge is for you to contemplate what is it that you are projecting onto them.

What word would you use to describe them that perfectly fits why you have this contraction away from them.  Ordinarily in a perfect world you would accept everyone as they are and experience peace in
their presence.   If you are not then there is something about YOU causing you to experience this absence of peace.  Once you have this word that describes what it is about them you dislike or like then you go within and recall situations where you have been that trait.

This is no time for further ego defense but rather brutal honesty.  The type of honesty that comes from impartial watching.  Just as if you were a scientist observing the data you observe yourself and accept that in the past there have been one or two times when you have done the same thing, or, accept that given a certain set of circumstances you would behave the same as the person who is the subject of your projection.

Rather than being a certain, fixed, object it might be better to think of yourself as potential.  Given your environment and your influences you have the potential to be anything from a thief and murderer to the holiest saint.  You are not one way.  You are not an object that is called Jane, Julie or Dave.  This is why you need to accept everything about yourself and everything that you could imagine ANY human being doing.

Each time you move a potential trait from the darkness (unconscious denial) to the light (conscious acceptance) it removes the need for the ego to project this trait onto anyone else and this is the process of healing the shadow.  This allows you to experience more peace inside and out.

Shadow projection seems to be a strategy by the ego to maintain the illusion of being a certain way.  It probably does this because you have no awareness of being connected to the whole being that you are.

The Separate Illusion

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The Illusion Of Being Separate

One massive assumption we make while living this separate life is to assume we are over here and all that is over there.

Being separate, or at least living like you are, is lonely and difficult. The alternative is to notice some assumptions and ways of seeing the world which perhaps are a bit more real.

What do I mean? Well, for starters have a look around and try and find something in the world that you perceive which is not in your awareness.

Pretty silly statement but if you look and notice that your world and the objects in it including other people are experienced within your perception, then it might change the way you think of yourself and your world.

We assume we are separate and exclusive and the world is happening completely outside of us.

The habit of pretending that there really is a tree over there and it is very green and tall will be automatic and beyond your conscious control in each moment.

A baby wouldn’t look at the tree and call it a tree and green and tall. A baby might not think anything. A baby probably just notices and doesn’t make the distinction of me here and tree over there separate.

However, learning these labels and sounds doesn’t change what is actually there. The labels don’t make it a tall, green tree. It just is as it is.

What use is this? What use is it to challenge the notion that you are
separate?

Well for starters it is the truth. The truth doesn’t need to be of any use, it doesn’t care, it just is.  Sort of like saying what use is it to be aware of gravity.

Secondly, seeing the world in this way brings a unity where you and the tree are together. 

Sure when you stand and look it still appears as if that tree is over there and it certainly seems to hold a location that is different to you, but you can let it be what it is before it is labeled tree.

Likewise, other human beings are just as they are in each moment.

Whenever you label someone, judge them or mentally hold them in some way other than as another conscious being, aren’t you the one adding all that extra stuff to them?

What if you looked at the body and the life that moves the body and saw fundamentally that is all that is there? You might find a together-ness that you have never felt before. You might find you feel part of something bigger and more awesome than you originally thought.

Sit alone and watch any life form. In the past I would wish seagulls would go away, now I sit and watch and just let them be seagulls. Flies are just being flies, cockroaches are just being cockroaches.
Although, that doesn’t mean you won’t protect your survival needs around them by defending your food, water, shelter or body but apart from that you can work to drop the extra stuff you place on top of just noticing them.

More importantly for us is to learn to do this with others. This is more difficult as the pull to be a me and you be a you is strong when we are interacting.

Practice seeing the Being and be curious about their experience as you listen. See if you can see how much you are assuming when you look out your eyes at the world.

With people you know well you will drop into an assumption about them based on how they have been for you in the past. With people you don’t know you will drop into an assumption about them based on your prejudices and projections.

Let go, surrender, notice that they exist within your experience and let them be them.

We have a strong tendency to hold ourselves as separate and exclusive. Seeing the world play out within and watching from the space you create will make you and others feel connected and part of the whole event of life.