Meeting & Healing the Shadow on the Spiritual Path: An Essential Practice for Awakening, Growth & Healing

Ep. 79 (Part 1 of 2) | Connie Zweig, award-winning author, depth psychologist, master shadow guide, and longtime contemplative practitioner asks some good questions—and answers them too, with unusual clarity and deep insight born of long experience and a cutting-edge mind. Why is it that we meet darkness on the spiritual path? What do we banish into the shadow? How do we reclaim what we project onto charismatic leaders? Learning to recognize and resolve the shadow is a powerful practice, and one that is all too often overlooked in a time when psychology is focused on objective approaches, neglecting the fact and force of the unconscious. Cultivating shadow awareness, we can begin to look beyond projections and stereotypes, recognize the risks of black and white thinking, and learn how to reclaim what Carl Jung called the “unlived life.” Connie discusses the psychodynamics between spiritual student and spiritual teacher, and other situations where people have disproportionate power over others, shining a bright light of illumination on the nuances and complexities of these relationships.This is an intimate look into the challenges of the spiritual path, where we need both psychological practice and spiritual practice to advance our awakening, and a very relevant, timely conversation with shadow currently erupting in our culture in epidemic proportions. Connie’s dedication to helping people find their way through the dark nights we inevitably experience on our spiritual journey comes through strong and clear. Her authenticity, caring, and wisdom is palpable, inspiring us as to how the lights really go on when we start to see the dynamics of our inner world and relationships with more nuance, deeper insight, and shadow awareness. Recorded April 5, 2023.“When you meet the shadow, it means something else is required of you.”(For Apple Podcast users, click here to view the complete show notes on the episode page.)Topics & Time Stamps – Part 1Introducing depth psychologist, illuminator of the shadow, and award-winning author Connie Zweig (01:17)What brought Connie to the subject of shadow: exploring the psychology of spiritual yearning (02:10)Why is it that we meet darkness on the spiritual path? (05:18)What Carl Jung meant when he used the term shadow (06:45)The negative traits (and our unlived gifts) that are in the shadow are always in relation to the ego (08:02)Why don’t we recognize the shadow? By definition, the shadow is hidden, unacceptable—locked in both body & mind (10:03)The shadow has erupted in our culture, but it’s not so apparent in the spiritual arena (12:43)Psychodynamics & psychological defense mechanisms: projection, repression & denial are not recognized in the wisdom traditions (16:44)Dreamwork is a way to begin exploring the unconscious (19:19)How does developmental psychology fit in? Self-observation is the beginning, turning inward (20:13)Connie’s book is a call for spiritual awakening, deepening practice, and also shadow awareness (22:45)Shadow awareness includes recognizing our projections—both negative and spiritually bright (24:37)What is it in us that wants to make the human divine? Projection and the psychodynamics of our relationship to spiritual leaders (26:08)Archetypal projection: attributing godlike power to leaders (28:36)How...

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