Stand your ground. Find your firmness within and without, and with patience stand in your knowing of what is right for all. The time has come when there is no return to what once was, for it was not conducive to peace and harmony. There is only time to take things to a new level, to dream a new dream of equality, sharing, respect and mutual responsibility for that new dream. Not just a dream but a dream reality is needed, that which is right, doable, and sustainable, a dream based on loving kindness and compassion as its basic tenets and foundation. Time to really change things up for the good of all. Begin within, square with the truth of what’s truly right there, and then work without, for each person must make the change within themselves in order for a new dream of real change to take place. As within, so without.
Time for Shadow Reckoning… – Photo by Chuck Ketchel
Ego is at the center of the conscious personality. Ego exercises the light of consciousness, which enables choice. Ego is part of the divine consciousness but experiences itself as an orphan, charged with the task of navigating life.
Ego wears a mask, as it embraces a persona, to become acceptable to the world. Often, that which is unacceptable in the self is moved by the ego into the subconscious, where it develops into a hidden character, called the shadow.
The shadow holds views with a passionate vigor that often threaten to overwhelm the ego’s executive ability to suppress. The collective shadow of a nation houses views that may seem anachronistic to modern times. The Black Lives Matter movement, for instance, shines a bright light upon underlying racist beliefs and policies that control modern behavior.
Thus, at a subconscious level, the Civil War was never completed. Much the same can be said of WWII, as we see a major demonstration of Naziism in current day Germany. The burgeoning energy of the collective world shadow, generally held in check by leaders who model morality and responsible behavior, is instead being invited to exact its toll on the very fabric that holds modern civilization together.
From the Hindu perspective, we are currently in the final stage of Kali Yuga, the time of passionate breakdown of civilization. Thus our world is currently in its autumn season, with its inevitable capitulation to death and resurrection.
The unsettling impact of shadow eruptions, acted upon the world stage, reflect the necessary encounter with all that truthfully is, including the known, the suppressed, and the deeply unknown of the repressed. For new life to form, all the hidden pockets of self must be known and reckoned with. These are exposed in the many dreams of excrement and broken toilets that many spiritual seekers must encounter on their journey to truth.
Fortunately, though ego is greatly impacted by its shadow passions, it retains the potential to face the full truths of all that it encounters, within the self. Ego can also withstand becoming identified with, and controlled by, its shadow personality, as it nonetheless listens to and attempts to resolve the challenges posed in an honest reckoning with its shadow.
Ego is tasked now with facing its shadow. The divine cannot be accessed through the veiled distortion of identity created by a personality that does not know its shadow. This is the value of the time we live in. The shadow is being completely outed and experienced. What remains is full reconciliation with shadow, so as to depotentiate its fury and fully integrate its value.
When ego has squarely faced and reconciled with its shadow it is fully poised to receive truth, the hallmark of the divine. From this place, the High Soul can be openly channeled by the ego, as it capitulates itself to manifesting what is truly needed in the world.
Capitulation is not surrender, it’s maturity. When one encounters the real truth, what higher purpose could there be than to serve its intent? Beyond the cauldron of now is the transformation of human life into a new personality construction, where ego capitulates to the guiding truth of the High Soul, who awaits its arrival at the heart center.
As within, so without. Be empowered. Reckon with the hologram of the self. Facing the personal shadow is also reckoning with the collective shadow that we are all a part of. Capitulate to the greatest task of all: owning and transforming the shadow, that the light might truly enter the soul.
Let not your old habits control you as you enter a new phase of life. Leave them behind like an old coat that no longer fits the new you. For when there is a time of change it is wise to change completely, to let go of that which no longer serves and take up that which will enhance the new journey and the new self. Let go of the old so that there is room for the new. Fully embrace your changing self, inside and outside, by looking only forward now, with love in your heart, with kindness on your tongue, and with compassion in every touch, for self and other. And remember, change is good.
Through the power of your own intent turn toward your heart center and awaken it. Breathe light into your heart and let yourself become a more caring being. Allow your breath to awaken in you more fully the kindness you expect from others, the respect you wish for all, the empathy you crave for all beings. Awaken in yourself more deeply that which you wish to see and experience in others. By your own example show others what a perfect world looks like. As within, so without.
Leave your troubles at the door as you shut your mind, open your heart, and enter into a loving place within yourself, where the only words are words of gentle encouragement, where the only thoughts are thoughts of positive enhancement, where the only sounds are sounds of your own breath reminding you of your connection to nature, the Great Mother within and without. Remind yourself often of this connection as you remain heart centered and loving, as you follow your bliss and seek enlightenment, equanimity, and all that you can be. For you are one with the Great Mother, who loves and guides you in all you do, though you may not yet know her. Stay in her loving kindness. As within, so without.
