There are days and then there are DAYS.
Days when the flickering light from
a small candle is powerful enough to
push back the deepest of darknesses.
Days when no matter how strong and
powerful the light, insidiously
the darkness tries to consume it.
Thinking about how we use the terms
light and darkness metaphorically as in:
light = good/positive/lifegiving and
darkness = bad/negative/injurious,
I suddenly had a new thought.
What if light and darkness could be interpreted
not as oppositional terms but as complementary?
Can there be light without darkness?
Do we need to know darkness to know light?
(The Shadow ID)
''The sole purpose of human existence is
to kindle a light of meaning in the darkness
of mere being. We cannot change anything
unless we accept it. How can we be substantial
unless we cast a shadow?
We must have a dark side also if we are to be whole.''
(Carl Jung)
Although it varies from person to person how
we may experience ''the darkness'', or our
''shadow selves'', in my view, often
emotions such as a sense of chaos, meaninglessness,
helplessness, confusion and a profound sense of
sadness somehow tend to accompany the darkness
and our shadow selves.
At times we may even experience ''the darkness''
as a collapse of all that makes life meaningful to us
and this, speaking from personal experience,
can be really scary.
But......
it also opens up the possibility for a transformation,
for a new way of seeing, interpreting and understanding
who we are and what makes life meaningful for us.
Change does not come easy for us humans,
and in my opinion, usually it tends to involve pain,
however........
pain, is often a very good teacher.
Have you ever done something in the heat of
the moment only to really regret it later?
Perhaps even asking yourself why you did something
so out of character?
-I'm not that sort of person! you may tell yourself.
The regret you feel suddenly makes you question
whether you may actually be that sort of person.
Looking at yourself in the mirror suddenly
the Shadow looks back at you and dark thoughts
slowly creeps into your mind and throws light
on something you've kept hidden.
It hurts, you don't like the pain, but you can't
unknow what you now know, so you have
to make a decision.
Avoid all mirrors in the future or throw
some light on the Shadow and deal with it.
Light is a great disinfectant.
Exposing wounds to light helps them to heal.
When the ''darkness'' makes its presence known
to us, perhaps it's trying to tell us that it
is time for us to throw some ''light''
on the state of our souls, hearts and minds.
about the images: ''The power of Light''
:ink, graphite on water colour paper
Bellow: The Shadow, acrylic on large canvas
No comments:
Post a Comment