Halloween; A Time to Celebrate Our Shadow

Carl Jung explains our shadow as the unknown or ‘dark side ‘ of our personality,  as this is the part that holds the ugly parts of ourselves. Whatever it is that we deem evil, inferior or unacceptable in ourselves, we deny and this forms part of the shadow. In this blog post by Gretchen Schmelzer the shadow side is illuminated through the lens of Halloween and it makes for a fascinating and insightful read.

In it she unveils the mystery surrounding our shadow and encourages us to see it, befriend and find it’s own beauty. She tells us that Halloween is where we are allowed to play with our darker sides and in this we learn not to be so afraid of it. Our shadows sides are closely linked to shame, which is linked to silence and to secrecy. The more one denies the existence of their own shadow, the more they fuel negative beliefs which then creates a persistent cycle of self-doubt.

It is only when you can come face-to-face with your own selfishness, greed, envy, anger, rage, jealousy, lust or power – just to name a few – and accept them  that they lose their power. So, let the holiday of Halloween be the first step in making friends with your shadow side  –