10 Shadow Work Quotes to Inspire Self-Acceptance
Deep self-acceptance is key to better mental health
One of the things I love most about writing is the ability to hone in on single subject or theme. Being able to hyper-focus on meaningful ideas has always been exciting for me, and as I’ve grown older the ability to create space for being in the flow of it all is both powerful and rewarding.
When I was writing The Shadow Work Workbook, I got to live in this state a bit and delve deeper into the world of analytical psychology. My research gave me the opportunity to browse books and scour the internet for all the writers, analysts, and philosophers who also attempt to explain the depths of the human experience.
Below you’ll find some of the quotes that helped inspire, and continue to shape, how I approach this work.
What is the Shadow?
Coined by analyst Carl Jung, the shadow is a metaphorical part of the human psyche that often houses the psychological material we have difficulty accepting consciously. The shadow is thought of as the home to not only pain, trauma, and unsavory thoughts, but also gifts and traits that have become repressed often through social learning.
Jung, and his predecessors’ work in exploring the unconscious inspired me to write The Shadow Work Workbook, a practical guide to promote personal insight and learning to integrate the shadow parts with deep personal compassion, cause we need a lot more of that, don’t we?!
Here’s a quote from the introduction section of The Shadow Work Workbook in which I describe the mental health benefit of shadow work:
“While this (shadow) work can be difficult, it is incredibly transformative and healing. When you find yourself stuck in negative patterns or feeling worn out with your old ways of being, shadow work illuminates a healthier path forward.” - Jor-El Caraballo
If you’d like to read a bit more about the origins of the shadow, you can read an earlier newsletter post, from the archive, at the link below.
What is Shadow Work?
If you’ve spent some time in the psychology or self-help sections of a bookstore then maybe you’ve come across the concept of shadow work and been thoroughly confused. “Is it therapy? Is it not?”
You can also find more background information on my website jorelcaraballo.com.
10 Quotes About Shadow Work
With that, here are ten quotes to help inspire you on the journey of unlocking the secrets of the hidden self:
“Unfortunately there can be no doubt that man is, on the whole, less good than he imagines himself or wants to be. Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is. If an inferiority is conscious, one always has a chance to correct it. Furthermore, it is constantly in contact with other interests, so that it is continually subjected to modifications. But if it is repressed and isolated from consciousness, it never gets corrected.” - Carl (C.G.) Jung
“If you feel an overwhelming rage coming up in you when a friend reproaches you about fault, you can be fairly sure that at this point you will find a part of your shadow, of which you are unconscious. It is, of course, natural to become annoyed when others who are "no better" criticize you because of shadow faults. But what can you say if your own dreams —an inner judge in your own being— reproach you? That is the moment when the ego gets caught, and the result is usually embarrassed silence. Afterward the pain and lengthy work, of self-education begins— a work, we might say, that is the psychological equivalent of the labors of Hercules. This unfortunate hero's first task, you will remember, was to clean up in one day the Augean Stables, in which hundreds of cattle had dropped their dung for many decades — a task so enormous that the ordinary mortal would be overcome by discouragement at the mere thought of it.” - Marie-Louise von Franz
“To really free ourselves and live our shadow lives, we have to be able to not just remove the mask we’ve been wearing but to look at the monster that hides beneath it and learn to love it.” - Oli Anderson
“Our work is to integrate and eventually transcend darkness and light altogether by holding them equally in a state of interconnection.” - Sasha Graham
“Your life will be transformed when you make peace with your shadow. The caterpillar will become a breathtakingly beautiful butterfly. You will no longer have to pretend to be someone you’re not. You will no longer have to prove you’re good enough.” - Debbie Ford
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” - Carl (C.G.) Jung
“Your Shadow is a dark omen, a powerful teacher that reveals to you the places in your life where you are energetically blocked. When you continue to ignore these signs, you perpetuate the cycle of your suffering.” - Mateo Sol
“The shadow is not necessarily always an opponent. In fact, he is exactly like any human being with whom one has to get along, sometimes by giving in, sometimes by resisting, sometimes by giving love—whatever the situation requires. The shadow becomes hostile only when he is ignored or misunderstood.” - Connie Zweig
“We all have a dark side. Most of us go through life avoiding direct confrontation with that aspect of ourselves, which I call the shadow self. Theres a reason why. It carries a great deal of energy.” - Lorraine Toussaint
“Becoming conscious of our own darkness dispels our sense of being better (or worse) than anyone else. This recognition connects us with the rest of humanity—as we are all recognized to be in the same boat.” - Paul Levy
