Shadow Work and Healing - When Is Enough Enough?
People on the spiritual path tend to have high standards for ourselves and be striving toward some nebulous angelic excellence and perfection.
We're just one shadow away! But the next "shadow" always comes.
There's a term in the spiritual world called navel gazing. It means to always be looking for problems in yourself that you can heal, transform and transcend. You'll find if you go to any spiritual circles of any sort that people are trying to solve problems in themselves and trying to solve problems in themselves and trying to solve problems in themselves.
Never good enough. Never good enough.
Never ending shadow work.
I was talking to my husband the other day about my healing. And he said, "You are healed. You have nothing else to heal." Hmm. Interesting.
Healing has a connotation that there's something wrong with you and you're not well. And the truth is, humanity is really not. But how long can we go on telling ourselves that? At what point do you say, "I'm well now?"
There's a point, my friends, when we just have to get over ourselves.
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We humans have a tendency to be quite self obsessed. Are squirrels and deer walking around thinking, "I must change this about myself, I must change this about myself?" The squirrel is a perfect squirrel. And you are a perfect you. You're doing you perfectly. What if you just step aside and let the perfection of you shine forth?
Self awareness is good. Being our best is great. But always looking for a problem within yourself that you can fix and transform and transcend is self loathing and keeps you from a fulfilling life.
This prospect of enlightenment - where you're flying high above it all, untouched by life - if it does exist you're not getting there through excessive self focus on parts of you that are "problems." Human life isn't about perfection. It's about experience.
Navel gazing takes a lot of energy. Make sure you're using your energy to express yourself in beautiful ways, too, and share with the world what you've learned and enrich the lives of others with what you've lived and the beauty and creative fire that's within you.
What about the beauty? Let's not forget about the beauty in ourselves that faaaaar outshines the shadows and traumas.
Friends, I propose that there is no end to shadows. They're alive as much as we give them life. If you follow my work you know that I'm a big advocate for going all the way into our pain so it can move. There is a balance. We don't want to ignore a pain that's very real that's crying out for our attention. But the obsessive self focus part has to go. We're here to live and create and be part of the world and serve our fellow humans. So let's get on with it then! 🙂
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I think it's important to go into anything that presents itself persistently, but not to linger in anything too long and always keep in mind our intention/direction, knowing that whatever has appeared is just there to propel us forward.
Ah yes, but deep wounds are tricky, tricky! They have sooooooo much charge and momentum, and they can drag you down fast! But it must be done. We must leave them in a better place than we left them.
There is nothing as perfect self. Those people are taking enlightment the same way as lets say university. Not overjudging yourself is part of enlightment. Thanks @brightstar for letting me know something I didn’t know.
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I have also been dealing a lot with negative energies, of course in the physical realm but most strongly on the Astrals. Partially own baggage, but also other entities. It is necessary however, to discern whether it is our own energy or somebody else's. Many times already I felt fear energy or negative energy but wasn't sure whether this is really negative energy emanating from another source or whether this energy is simply my fear energy and the source has nothing to do with it. "Is this entity really negative or is it just my fear which I feel?" Over time I got a much better handle on this and even if its truly negative energy from somebody or something else I now feel somewhat bored by it, for they draw their entire power from one's fear. I might feel fear for a minute or so but I also know that nothing can happen...
Great thoughts! I feel like I've been falling into this trap the last few years.
@brightstar, maybe sometimes it's a matter of being aware of where we put our focus.
Whether we are navel gazers or just one of those who occasionally introspect, where is our energy going? Are we eternally looking inside for things that are wrong, or do we celebrate those that are right? The funny thing about the Universe is that it has a tendency to guide us to precisely the evidence we are looking for: Evidence of our beauty and perfection, or evidence of our flaws and ugliness.
The present moment is almost always perfect. This moment has nothing wrong with it. Nor does this moment. Or this one. We start worrying and going into headspins when we look back to the past (which we can't change) or forward to the future (which is eternally fluid); it's in our nature to do so. But sometimes enough is enough.
Love the Osho Zen Tarot!
Bright Blessings!