Shadow States
Shadow States. We all have them, however, that doesn’t mean that we need to let them rule our lives. Shadow was first coined by Swiss Psychologist Carl Jung. He referred to shadow as “the unconscious part of our character or personality that does not align with the ideal version of what we're aiming for.” Throughout our lives we have been told how to behave and how to act. Even if we were not conscious of the story we were told, these stories were stored in our subconscious as being bad or wrong.
Shadow expresses itself in many different ways. It shows up when people piss us off or when we judge others. It’s the way we have internalized oppressive systems. Think of our shadow as the volcanic system on earth. Each vent containing lava represents an aspect of our shadow. When something or someone bumps up against our nervous system (or, tectonic plates in the example), we react. Our shadow needs to be worked with; not fought against or resisted. But before you can even do that, you need to be aware of what your shadows are.
I’ve been doing a lot of reading for my own shadow work and the one book I keep going back to while researching for my own awareness is Gene Keys by Richard Rudd. It’s one of those metaphysical type tools that some people think are bullshit, but I have found helpful. Any type of tool or modality has its limits in all cases. Sometimes western medicine doesn’t cut it and eastern medicine fixes it. Sometimes you can’t think your way out of problem and you need to feel your way out of a problem. That’s where I find the metaphysical tools helpful. They give language to a feeling or knowing that my brain cannot always work out.
Gene Keys is based on the Chinese i Ching system that has 64 hexagrams. The creator of Gene Keys has assigned a Shadow, Gift, and Siddhi to each Gene Key. In the coming weeks (months), I’m going to go through each of the 64 Shadows, provide my own brief take on them, and give some tips for working through that shadow state.
This is meant for educational purposes and is not meant to be therapeutic. I am not a therapist, therefore, I cannot provide that type of advice. Think of this as a way to identify different shadow states that you merge with. One of the best ways to work with our Shadow is to create awareness around it when it’s activated. Please note that awareness isn’t judgement. Awareness is observation. It’s witnessing. This world provides enough judgement, so why not try something new and notice when you’re acting out.
For each Shadow State, ask yourself (or better yet, start a shadow journal):
What situations cause this shadow state to show up in my life?
Is it repressive? Reactive? Both?
Which of tips sound like something I can try? Did I try it? What was the result?
If it didn’t work, did I judge myself or spiral? That’s ok. It happens. Sometimes things don’t work the first time or maybe there’s something else that might be a better fit. Are you willing to try again?
