Our greatest sense of dis-ease, often comes from expecting ourselves to “be” only one way, like always “be”-ing happy or always “be”-ing positive – and then being very disappointed with ourselves when we find ourselves “being” in ways we don’t want to “be”.
But being human means that we do experience our “selves” in a multitude of different ways.
The survival part of our human psyche is tasked with keeping us alive, steering us away from what it perceives as danger and towards safety – and the harder we resist and fight the fear in this small-self, the more scared it becomes. And more scared means he/she has to fight even harder for survival, creating an inner war of me fighting myself.
“Embracing our dark side gives us a new found freedom to be with the darkness in others. For when I can love all of me, I will love all of you.” – Debbie Ford
“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. When you embrace your shadow you will no longer have to live in fear. Find the gifts of your shadow and you will finally revel in all the glory of your true self. Then you will have the freedom to create the life you have always desired.” – Debbie Ford
“The greatest act of courage is to be and to own all of who you are – without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth of who you are.” – Debbie Ford
Turning away from big emotions that we don’t know how to deal with feels like it’s helpful, but because we never deal with the fear that is the root cause of our triggers this never gets better, only worse.
When we learn to listen to what our anger, our sadness, our fear is trying to say, there is an embrace of our darker side, a making peace with our shadow.
Having acceptance for our “worst” parts and allowing them to “speak” doesn’t mean that we’re putting our shadow in the driver’s seat, but it does mean we understand that these parts of us are really just scared. Our own empowerment comes not from fighting our shadow, but from surrendering to our higher-self, who has arms big enough to hold our scared parts until the fear has passed.
Here are some guiding mantras to light your path:
- I am a whole person, encompassing all emotions, light and dark.
- I listen to my emotions, seeking the wisdom they bring.
- I accept my shadow, knowing it contributes to my wholeness.
- I surrender to my higher self, finding strength and peace within.
- With each step towards self-acceptance, I shine brighter and truer.
Join us for today’s meditation and embark on the journey of discovering your authentic self. Remember, embracing the darkness is not about dwelling there, but about finding the light within its depths.
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: A sense of self.