A common new age practice seems to be going on a retreat, journeying into an aspect of your ‘shadow’ and then in ceremony, ‘releasing what no longer serves’. This approach has never resonated with me, and I would like to share a different way of looking at and dealing with this issue.
My first thought when someone releases what no longer serves, is that they are casting out a part of themselves when they do this. They are denying this facet of their personality a voice. If this piece of their soul is thrown away, then at some point they will probably have to go through a soul retrieval ceremony to get it back. There is also the distinct possibility that this aspect of their soul/personality was deliberately chosen before incarnation to create opportunities for growth and understanding.
I also wonder what lies behind the decision to discard this bit away in the first place. Does it come from societal pressure to be a good person? Does it involve guilt or frustration with the way life is going? I’ve seen people go through this process and there often seems to be a sense of relief and lightness in the immediate aftermath. This sounds good and I often wonder just how much change has remained a week later? I know energy healers who can shift stuck energy in someone – only for the blockage to be re-created soon afterwards. The implication being that there is a deeper underlying cause for the problem that has not been addressed.
The heart of the issue is that someone would like to change how they live their life
Rather than releasing the bits that don’t fit I would like to suggest that they are fully accepted instead.
Rather than releasing the bits that don’t fit I would like to suggest that they are fully accepted instead. Here are my reasons why.
If we were fully enlightened beings, then we probably wouldn’t be incarnating on Earth in the first place. We seem to be on a journey of exploration so that we fully understand what it means to be human. This seems to take many lifetimes to achieve. We all have ‘flaws’ partly because we have more learning to do and partly because we deliberately choose circumstances (aspects of personality and life environment) to give us opportunities for growth. We might therefore need to be cautious before prematurely discarding facets of who we are.
If we have gained the understanding we require and wish to live life differently, then it may be time for change. Rather than releasing the old I propose embracing it to the point where we fully accept this aspect of who we are. It could have a prized place in the trophy cabinet of life rather than being cast into the bin.
Fully accepting a part of your ‘shadow’ allows it to come into the light. I don’t know many shadows that survive being lit up – so becoming more enlightened seems to automatically dissolve any darker aspect of our personality. In practice these aspects have their power drained away to the point that they no longer create an emotional charge. Change is therefore created automatically through acceptance, with no need to release or cast aside.
The best example I can think of for this process is the acceptance achieved by those who overcome alcohol addiction. A key stage in the process is accepting that they are an alcoholic and for this acknowledgement to cause no more shame.
It can be tough work to accept these darker unwanted aspects of your Self. However, the reward is likely to be a more permanent change and an opportunity to remain whole.
Image by Josep Monter Martinez from Pixabay