SHADOW QUESTIONS: As a fully human being, when I am my healthiest I am a living paradox. Because I am a living paradox, I have a ‘Shadow.’ My Shadow is composed of all those aspects of myself that have a tendency to make me uncomfortable with myself. My ‘personal shadow’ is composed of both Light [good] and Dark [evil] – for some, ‘Virtues’ and ‘Vices’ are more resonant. My shadow is shy and is therefore difficult to access; however I can obtain a glimpse of my shadow by becoming aware of the Light/good/Virtue and Dark/evil/Vice aspects that I see so clearly in others for these might well be projections of my shadow onto others. I have listed out some questions below that I also find helpful in accessing my shadow.
- Where are my fears found?
- Where am I most ‘ugly’ to myself?
- What part of my life am I avoiding?
- What do I consider to be my values? Can I also imagine that I also hold the opposite of these? What are the opposites, can I name them?
- What do I consider to be my virtues? Can I imagine that I also hold the opposite of these? What are the opposites, can I name them?
- What annoys me the most about the significant people in my life?
- Where do I repeatedly undermine myself?
- Where am I stuck in my life? What familiar issues and fears block my growth?
- What am I addicted to? How do my addictions serve me? What do my addictions enable me to avoid?
- What are the natural gifts and talents that I have that I have avoided developing and/or using more fully?
- What part of my life am I hiding from others? Why do I choose to hide this part of my life from others?
- Where do I resist or refuse to grow?
- What is the sustaining spirit that I so admire in others?
- What are the gifts and talents that I so admire in others?
Goethe cautions us: . . .so long as you haven’t experienced this: to die and so to grow, you are only a troubled guest on the dark earth.
SUSTENANCE QUESTIONS: I have learned these many years that it is crucial for me to emerge and hold and pay attention to a series of questions that enable me to remember the life I have been entrusted with. Here is my current list of questions that help remind me.
- What nurtures me?
- What depletes me?
- In what ways do I care for myself Physically, Intellectually, Emotionally, and Spiritually (my P.I.E.S.)?
- In what ways do I not care for myself Physically, Intellectually, Emotionally, and Spiritually?
- To what extent do I live out of an abundance mentality and to what extent do I live out of a scarcity mentality?
- What is wealth?
- What is ‘enough’ (money, status, power, etc)?
- What is the support I need for my life’s journey, at this time? Where do I get this support?
- What are my highest priority needs? In what ways do I address them?
- When do I act out of self-interest – for good or for ill?
Searcher-Seeker 
Leave a Reply