Shadow of Intolerance

Intolerance, n. – unwillingness to accept views, beliefs, or behavior that differ from one’s own. (Oxford Language/Google)

The 4th Gene Key’s Shadow is Intolerance. It feels rather fitting that this shadow comes up during Pride month on the heels hundreds of bills and laws being signed across the country against the LGBTQIA+ community, especially Trans and non-binary folks. We can also see the Shadow of Intolerance in racism and prejudice.

Religion is a big one, but this can also apply to spirituality. Much of the religion that we see today is based on the Shadow of Intolerance. Religion builds “othering” into its ceremonies and ritual. In May, I listened to the book The Book of Joy by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu with Douglas Abrams. I especially loved the below quote by Douglas Abrams:

“As a non-Christian, I did not actually receive communion, so it was a surprise to see the Archbishop and the Dalai Lama break convention in both of their traditions. Many Christian Denominations forbid those who are not Christians or even those that are Christians, but not of their specific denomination, those with whom they are not in full communion, from sharing in the Eucharist. In other words, like so many religious traditions, it defines who is part of the group and who is not. This is one of the greatest challenges that humanity faces. Removing the barriers between who we see as ‘us’ and who we see as ‘other.’

“The latest brain scan research suggests that we have a rather binary understanding of self and other and that our empathy circuits do not activate unless we see the other person as a part of our own group. So many wars have been fought and so much injustice has been perpetrated because we have banished others from our group and, therefore, our circle of concern.

“I remember the archbishop starkly pointing out this fact during the Iraq War when the tallies of American and Iraqi causalities were reported and valued differently by the media in the United States. In the Archbishop’s tally, these were all of God’s children: indivisible and valued equally. The Archbishop and the Dalai Lama are truly two of the most inclusive religious figures in the world and throughout the week, the theme underlying their teachings was about transcending our narrow definitions and finding love and compassion for all of humanity. The sharing of traditions that we were engaged in that morning was a reminder to put aside our own narrow beliefs of self and other, ours and theirs, Christian and Buddhist, Hindu and Jew, believer and Atheist.

“In the land of Gandhi that we were in, I thought of his totemic words when asked if he was a Hindu. ‘Yes, I am. I am also a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist, and a Jew.’ We were looking for human truth and we would drink from the cup of wisdom from whatever source it came.”

Even in more generalized spirituality this happens. We see so much of the othering happen within the Christian Church, for example, then demonize all Christians for their beliefs. It’s two sides of the same coin. The othering that Christians and other religions perpetuate miss the point of “love your neighbor,” but so, too, does general spirituality miss the point when they condemn all of Christendom. That, too, is stuck in the binary of right or wrong, good or bad, in which people’s identities are wrapped up in will take with them to their grave even at the expense of others.

At its root, the Shadow of Intolerance begins at our emotions and how deeply we identify with them, much of which is all subconscious.

“In reacting to our own and others’ emotions, we decide that what we feel must be the truth, and our mind agrees with us.”

Richard Rudd goes on to say:

 “… opinions, judgements, and resentments are transmuted into convictions and certainties.”

There is an aspect of confirmation bias that applies to this shadow. Confirmation bias is defined as “people's tendency to process information by looking for, or interpreting, information that is consistent with their existing beliefs.” (Encyclopedia Britannica Online) There are other Gene Keys that break down further ways that confirmation bias shows up (Gene Keys 11 and 12), but this confirmation bias is driven by our emotions. Under the trance of this Shadow, “in the hands of fear, objectivity dies and logic becomes subjective, even at a collective level.”

Over a year ago, I wrote something on Sameness:

“Not everyone’s faith will look the same nor should it look the same. Each individual has their own journey and their own purpose. Creating situations in which sameness is promoted goes against the flow of humanity.” -Channeled Message

Taking this further, not all beliefs, faith, understanding of gender, sex, and sexuality, etc, will look the same now should it. Societal conditioning promotes sameness as a means of belonging yet oneness will only occur once we embrace one anothers’ otherness. It is our differences that create unity. It is in our differences where the flow of life naturally occurs. Otherness is not a bad word except by those who seek to use sameness as a weapon. There is no shame in being an other. That’s where the treasure is.

Now, that’s not to say we should be singing Kumbaya with the racists, transphobes, homophobes, ableists, xenophobes, fatphobes, pro-lifers, misogynists, etc, and let bygones be bygones. We need boundaries. At this point, convincing people to believe what we believe feels like a massive uphill battle. Some people may be able to be convinced, but that will be an exception to the rule. Convincing people to believe me also falls under this Shadow. “I have THE truth and all must listen to me and I will hear none of what may convince me otherwise.” Shadowy AF, indeed.

The Repressive Nature of the Shadow of Intolerance is “Apathetic.” Choosing not having an opinion, playing dumb, or “being Switzerland” is just as much a part of this shadow as the more Reactive side. This choosing to not be involved or not having an opinion does not absolve you of your role in humanity. Choosing to ignore the humanity of another, especially of an oppressed group of people makes you an enabler and just as involved in this shadow as others who are more actively engaged in this shadow. (This also goes for the Christians who go to churches that spout hate even if they “don’t agree with that part,” then pay their tithes to the hate-filled church.)

The Reactive Nature of this Shadow is “Nit-picking,” though I would also call this pedantic. The people picking other people apart for even the smallest of errors. Splitting hairs. Constantly criticizing for the greater good. Insisting that their way of labeling something is THE way to label something regardless of what anyone else says. That their interpretation of something is THE way to interpret it. (**insert eye roll**)

I did a podcast episode where I mentioned righteousness as a shadow. This is the type of righteousness that I was referring to: The Shadow of Intolerance. From my perspective, intolerance and the righteousness I spoke about is very different from righteous anger as a result of systemic oppression and not tolerating people who are perpetuating these oppressive systems. Righteous anger is valid. Not tolerating that oppressive systems is valid.

How to work with this shadow:

-       Develop understanding. Understanding for yourself and understanding for others. What type of background did a person have to have to have this type of intolerance? What were they taught? Who taught them? What is their relationship to shame and guilt?

-       Shame begets more shame. The more you shame yourself, the worse it gets. So stop shaming yourself. Stop shaming others. Do your inner critic work.

-       Develop self-awareness around your thoughts and emotions. Do my Honor Your No course and my Owning My Sh*t Course if you’re not sure where to begin.

-       Careful with your use of logic. In some ways it’s a trap. From Rudd: “When you look logically at all angles of any concept, you begin to realize that nothing can ultimately be proved through logic, because logic can always be used to prove the opposite.” It feels solidly illogical that people would be so hateful be logical. Yet how many times have you seen people try to explain something to the likes of a Marjorie Taylor Green? It doesn’t work because to her the hate she spews is logical. Try understanding, then set all of the boundaries. All. Of. The. Boundaries.

-       Vote.

-       Travel and experience other cultures.

-       Learn to check yourself (in non-shamey self-compassionate ways).

-       Allow people to change their mind and grow.

Not sure how to work with this? Check out this Blog Post here to see how to work with the Shadows. Also, feel free to check out my courses Honoring Your No and Owning My Sh*t here to help work on that self-awareness piece.

Disclaimer: What I find unhelpful with the Gene Keys text is that it is more spiritual than realistic, especially when these states are resulting in mental illness. Maybe all mental illness has a root in shadow, but that isn’t for me to say and it is super invalidating for people who experience these states. So as you read through this, or any of these shadows, know that your own experience is valid regardless of impersonal spiritual texts. This goes for Gene Keys, Human Design, and any other spiritual text even from world religions. If these texts invalidate a person’s humanity, then it’s the text that is the problem and not the person. Always use personal discernment. More of my two-cents on spiritual and religious dogma, modalities, and texts here.