Meeting the Shadow

Book excerpt: One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious. –C.G. Jung Cheating... lying ... jealousy ... blaming ... greed ... shame… These forbidden feelings and behaviors erupt from the dark, denied part of ourselves-the personal shadow. But they erupt with a purpose: They are trying to tell us their secrets. Meeting the Shadow is a landmark collection of 65 wide-ranging essays by thought leaders – including Carl Jung, Joseph Campbell, Ken Wilber, James Hillman, Susan Griffin, Harville Hendrix—on the dark side of human nature as it appears in families, intimate relationships, sexuality, work, spirituality, politics, therapy, and creativity. It presents tools for shadow work that enable us to make a conscious relationship with the shadow, defuse negative emotions, release guilt and shame, achieve a genuine self-acceptance, and heal our relationships. Although we think of the shadow as containing only darkness, as Jung stated, its essence is "pure gold.”