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This article was written in response to work being done on the ComparativeTarot on line e-list with the Shadow side of self. It was in the incubation stages when I experienced an unfortunate visit to my personal Shadow* self - one that was very difficult for me to face and one that hurt someone very close to me. In working through my Shadow side, I saw how far I have come and how far I still have to go.
The first thing that we have to realize is that we create our own realities, and through this, our own destinies. Our realities are made up of what we are consciously able to see and the unconscious energies that exist but are not seen - instincts and emotions that we are not aware of until they sneak up on us and wreck havoc with our lives.
This instinctual side of our lives can become a great source of creative power for us. If we are able to access this Shadow side, rather than attempt to hide it, we can integrate this potentially explosive energy into our personalities and become *whole* beings.
Our Shadow side explores our forbidden feelings, inner conflicts and unexpressed emotions. The Shadow Self is a powerful archetype that embraces the darker aspects of our character - ones that have remained undeveloped because they have not been allowed to be experienced.
One way to work with our Shadow sides is through the use of the Tarot - specifically the Major Arcana archetypes. We can use these archetypes to identify our Shadow sides, to get to know them and to embrace them as part of our *whole* selves. Understanding our Shadow Selves gives us the wisdom to make informed choices, it empowers us, gives us freedom and hope.
Taking the Tarot archetypes into meditation is one way to work with them. A very general way to do this is to pick a card for the Bright Shadow and a card for the Dark Shadow. A good example of the Bright Shadow would be Strength - giving us control of the our physical realities through the spiritual connection.
The Dark Shadow is exemplified by the Moon - an archetype that embraces and becomes part of the dark forces through its illusive nature. We need to experience our Shadow Side in all of its depths before we can understand it and integrate it into our personality.
The third card that I would take into meditation is Temperance. Temperance acts as a bridge - enabling us to love those parts of ourselves that bring out our greatest fears.
Together these three cards can help us acknowledge all parts of our selves and integrate them in a positive manner so that we can access the energy of the Shadow Side and use it to fuel our creative lives.
Another way to delve into our Shadow Selves is to work with a spread that will identify specific energies that are in our lives, and show us the tools that we had at our disposal to work to understand and embrace all parts of ourselves.
I would like to present the following spread as an example of what can be done with Shadow work* and Tarot. It was shared with one of my on-line Tarot groups (ComparativeTarot@YahooGroups.com) by Geraldine Amaral - author of "Tarot Celebrations", editor/author of "The Tarot Journal", Tarot reader and lecturer. (Geraldine may be reached at TarotCelebrations@erols.com, or at her site, Tarot Celebrations.) For those of you who are ComparativeTarot members, the message number is 4385.
Geraldine calls this spread the "Two Shadows" spread. She recommends that this spread be done with a deck that the reader is *not* familiar with.
1. Separate the Major Arcana from the Minor Arcana.
2. Flip through the Major Arcana only, separating the cards into two piles. One pile will contain those cards that you have a strong negative reaction to, the other pile the cards that you have a strong positive reaction to.
3. From the cards that you had a strong negative reaction to, choose the card that is most strongly negative. This card represents some aspect of your Dark Shadow.
4. From the cards that you had a strong positive reaction to, choose the card that is the most strongly positive. This represents some aspect of your Bright Shadow.
5. Place the Dark and Bright Shadow cards side by side - they will be the basis of your card spread.
6. Take all of the remaining cards and shuffle them together. Place two cards under the Dark Shadow and two cards under the Bright Shadow.
7. Card number one shows the way that you are projecting the Dark Shadow. Card number two shows the ways to heal the Dark Shadow.
8. Card number three is the potential that you have within you that you have not yet developed or expressed.
9. Card number four shows the ways that you can integrate and express your Bright Shadow.
Draw three more cards from the entire remaining pack. They will help you determine specific actions that you can take within the next 24-48 hours to implement the insight from this reading. You can draw the cards at random, or you can choose them on purpose, according to what you decide to do to implement the Shadow insight.
Choosing to work with our Shadow selves and integrate them into our psyche gives us personal power. We can use the immense energy of these archetypical forces to fuel our creative selves in a positive manner.
We create our own realities - we create our own destinies. Let us do so in a knowledgeable manner.
*Before doing any Shadow work, I recommend setting aside the time to do the work properly. Prepare the area that you will be working in in a sacred manner. You are creating space to look at your demons - make the space safe and comforting, conducive to doing the work. Set aside a certain amount of time specifically for this work - where you will be undisturbed. The insight that you will receive will be ultimately very personal - you will need the time to embrace them and begin to integrate them into your life. You may want to burn a candle, perhaps incense, perhaps place flowers, crystals or other meaningful items nearby. You will need a way of recording your information for future reference and study - in a notebook, on tape or perhaps directly into your computer. Finally - be willing to embrace the Shadows and show them love - this integrates them into your psychic self and makes them a positive force in your life.
* Although the definitions in this article re the Shadow self are not taken directly from her work, author Christine Jette has done groundbreaking work in this venue, and should be credited.
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