On Shadow Work

[Mina]

Lately I've been intrigued at the connection between Witchcraft/Magick
and Jungian shadow work, which had always been separate interests for
me, but have discovered recently they are amazingly compatible! Though
Jung makes a lot of comparisons and analysis to Catholicism's rituals,
he often states that anything can be a ritual, as long as it aids in the
goal of integrating the shadow through the process of action.

I have found it to be popular in the witchcraft community, and it seems
that people have been utilising it as part of their practice for some
time now. People seem to not be aware or understand it origins with
Jung, which deeply saddens me, as much of his work on dream
interpretations and divination is still used by the community to this
day. The ideas behind cultural ethos and the collective unconscious
certainly ring true to me, even in this day and age.

Furthermore, people seem to confuse a lot of his work with Freud's, who
was adamantly against him, and often had radically differing opinions on
the same subjects. Jung is incredibly compatible with
Paganism/Witchcraft, I feel, unlike Freud. In the same way that Buddhism
is frequently very compatible with many main stream religions, and can
regularly be done in conjunction, I feel the same can be said for Jung
and witchcraft, magick, or Paganism.

His acknowledgment of archetypes is very in line with what those of us
who are Pagan would consider to be natural forces, gods/goddesses, or
spirits. Throw in concepts like Mindfulness and meditation, and I
honestly believe Paganism to be one of the healthiest
religions/spiritual practices, due primarily to the level of
introspection it promotes. It's freeing and non-restrictive, forces one
to confront their flaws and strengths in a healthy manner, get out in
nature, and connect with their community over good food etc. All things
recommended for a healthy way of life, both mentally and physically.

Obviously, at the heart of it all, any religion or spiritual practice
should provide these things. But more often then not, I hear many
stories from my more secular religious friends about the struggles they
have wrestling with their religion, and it's community (probably due to
the lack of an integrating of the shadow). I frequently feel unable to
relate, as I find Pagans and magickal folk, to be some of the most down
to earth and accepting people. I'm sure that Paganism, and Witchcraft to
some extent, must suffer from these issues in some regard, but probably
not very often due to its unorganised and casual nature. A feature that
typically seems to be to its benefit, rather than its hindrance.

All in all, I very much recommend shadow work, it can be highly
beneficial interpersonally, and magickly. Giving a place for the traits
often not accepted by society, allowing them a space and time to come
out without negative impact, can help to keep you more focused on the
things that matter free of that weight. I very much encourage research
into Jungian psychology, and further reading, as it is a very heavy topic.

My recommendation is to start with a specific concept such as shadow
work or dream interpretation, and to find a book written by a respected
Jungian psychoanalysis/psychologist. They typically give a good overview
of his rather large body of work. Reading raw Jung to learn about one
topic he has written on is often an expensive, and timely pursuit, as it
will be scattered across a multitude of texts. Thus, why I urge you to
buy one book that is essentially a compilation on one of the topics he
discussed and founded.

[David Dalton]

Post by Mina
Lately I've been intrigued at the connection between Witchcraft/Magick
and Jungian shadow work, which had always been separate interests for
me, but have discovered recently they are amazingly compatible! Though
Jung makes a lot of comparisons and analysis to Catholicism's rituals,
he often states that anything can be a ritual, as long as it aids in the
goal of integrating the shadow through the process of action.
I have found it to be popular in the witchcraft community, and it seems
that people have been utilising it as part of their practice for some
time now. People seem to not be aware or understand it origins with
Jung, which deeply saddens me, as much of his work on dream
interpretations and divination is still used by the community to this
day. The ideas behind cultural ethos and the collective unconscious
certainly ring true to me, even in this day and age.
Furthermore, people seem to confuse a lot of his work with Freud's, who
was adamantly against him, and often had radically differing opinions on
the same subjects. Jung is incredibly compatible with
Paganism/Witchcraft, I feel, unlike Freud. In the same way that Buddhism
is frequently very compatible with many main stream religions, and can
regularly be done in conjunction, I feel the same can be said for Jung
and witchcraft, magick, or Paganism.
His acknowledgment of archetypes is very in line with what those of us
who are Pagan would consider to be natural forces, gods/goddesses, or
spirits. Throw in concepts like Mindfulness and meditation, and I
honestly believe Paganism to be one of the healthiest
religions/spiritual practices, due primarily to the level of
introspection it promotes. It's freeing and non-restrictive, forces one
to confront their flaws and strengths in a healthy manner, get out in
nature, and connect with their community over good food etc. All things
recommended for a healthy way of life, both mentally and physically.
Obviously, at the heart of it all, any religion or spiritual practice
should provide these things. But more often then not, I hear many
stories from my more secular religious friends about the struggles they
have wrestling with their religion, and it's community (probably due to
the lack of an integrating of the shadow). I frequently feel unable to
relate, as I find Pagans and magickal folk, to be some of the most down
to earth and accepting people. I'm sure that Paganism, and Witchcraft to
some extent, must suffer from these issues in some regard, but probably
not very often due to its unorganised and casual nature. A feature that
typically seems to be to its benefit, rather than its hindrance.
All in all, I very much recommend shadow work, it can be highly
beneficial interpersonally, and magickly. Giving a place for the traits
often not accepted by society, allowing them a space and time to come
out without negative impact, can help to keep you more focused on the
things that matter free of that weight. I very much encourage research
into Jungian psychology, and further reading, as it is a very heavy topic.
My recommendation is to start with a specific concept such as shadow
work or dream interpretation, and to find a book written by a respected
Jungian psychoanalysis/psychologist. They typically give a good overview
of his rather large body of work. Reading raw Jung to learn about one
topic he has written on is often an expensive, and timely pursuit, as it
will be scattered across a multitude of texts. Thus, why I urge you to
buy one book that is essentially a compilation on one of the topics he
discussed and founded.

Thanks, that was interesting.

I have added alt.psychology.jung to the Newsgroups line.

A while ago I determined that Jung had dream interpretation
(for his own dreams and the dreams of others) special ability,
plus that Donald Trump also has that ability, though I have
no evidence of that yet.