Shadow Work: Embracing Your Darkness to Find Your Light

I remember the first time I heard the term “shadow work.” I was in my early twenties, sitting in a dusty room with a group of fellow seekers, listening to a teacher who had a twinkle in his eye and...

I remember the first time I heard the term “shadow work.” I was in my early twenties, sitting in a dusty room with a group of fellow seekers, listening to a teacher who had a twinkle in his eye and a way of speaking that cut right to the bone.

He said, “You all want the light, but you’re running from your own darkness. You can’t have one without the other.” That hit me like a ton of bricks.

I'd spent years trying to be "good," to be "spiritual," to meditate my way into a state of perpetual bliss. I was terrified of my own anger, my own jealousy, my own fear.

I'd pushed it all down, locked it away in a dark closet in my soul, and pretended it wasn't there. But it was there, and it was running the show from behind the scenes. Think about that.