C.G. Jung & Meeting "the Shadow"

Shared Left Border

Help Yourself
And Others

Notices

What's New on
AYP Plus?

AYP Retreats
Worldwide Listing

AYP Teacher Training

Local Contacts
Meditation Groups,
Training & Retreats

Key Lessons

Spinal Breathing
Pranayama

Spinal Bastrika
Pranayama

Heart Breathing

Yoga Nidra
Cosmic Samyama

Self-Inquiry
Jnana - Advaita

Modifications to
Baseline System

Teaching

Retreats

Enlightenment
Milestones

More Resources

audioicon1.jpg (812 bytes)
AYP on Radio & TV

International
Translations

Press Releases

Articles & Media

Promotional
Materials

AYP Public Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

AYPsite.org Forum

Other Systems and Alternate Approaches

C.G. Jung & Meeting "the Shadow"

New Topic

Reply to Topic

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

aguacate

Germany
44 Posts

Posted - Feb 28 2018 : 5:12:12 PM

Hi fellow yogis,

I recently met a Jungian who introduced me to "Active Imagination", the relaxed state where you meet the archetypes and the shadow and can directly talk with the subconcious.

Does anyone here has more experience with it? Did it help on your spiritual path, e.g. with getting rid of Karma/Samskaras?

Edited by - aguacate on Feb 28 2018 5:12:33 PM

jusmail

India
491 Posts

Posted - Feb 28 2018 : 8:50:46 PM

Those, I feel, fall under the scheme of tarot.

aguacate

Germany
44 Posts

Posted - Mar 01 2018 : 06:09:39 AM

@jusmail thanks for your answer, i am not sure what you mean. can you elaborate what you mean with falling under the schemes of tarot?

Did you use active imagination or know what it is?

Edited by - aguacate on Mar 01 2018 06:25:24 AM

BlueRaincoat

United Kingdom
1730 Posts

Posted - Mar 01 2018 : 08:05:14 AM

Hi Aguacate

Meeting "the archetypes and the shadow" in Jungian terms, or the Samskaras in yogic terms, is something that happens naturally as we progress with yoga practices. For those who have a level of inner silence, "active imagination" could be the same as passive awareness meditation. As you probably know, in AYP passive awareness is not recommended to beginners in meditation, precisely for this reason - if there isn't enough silence, all that will happen is that the person will be caught up in mind stories and not really meditate.

So for an AYPer, Jung's approach is rather like putting the carriage before the horses, or leading with the scenery.

Having said that, when the contents of the subconscious start to come into the light of consciousness, some people find it useful to stay with them or write them down (keeping a diary).

Bodhi Tree

2972 Posts

Posted - Mar 01 2018 : 08:12:11 AM

I went to a holistic counselor in San Francisco when I was going through a divorce in 2010, and we did what he liked to call "shadow work". One of the techniques was very much in line with active imagination. It was vision questing into the underworld.

Basically, you imagine a place on Earth in which you can go underground, then you travel through a tunnel and ultimately emerge in the so-called underworld, where you can get in touch with power animals and other lower forces. I liked it, and I'll still do it on rare occasion. Michael Harner is a good resource.

In Deep Meditation, my imagination can become quite active, and the shadowy parts of my psyche/personality tend to get integrated somehow. The main lesson I've learned is to give the primal, negative, hateful aspects of myself a chance to be transformed and channelled to my higher ideal of enlightenment.

I value anger and animosity. They've become fertile emotions in helping me get closer to the Utopian Dream.

The Shadow and the Light are One.

aguacate

Germany
44 Posts

Posted - Mar 09 2018 : 7:48:04 PM

Thanks for the helpful responses!

Didn't know but was assuming that the archetypes relate to the Samskaras - thanks for clarifiying BlueRaincoat!

Bodhi Tree: that is exactly the same technique the person I met told me! :) Beginning of this week I tried it for a second time, I'm doing it at home. I had a nightmare I did not understand...

I can imagine it is also easy to get caught up in it and distracting people from the path. For me, interacting with the archetypes was really helpful beginning of this week. Daily life and meditation is a lot better since then. :)

I find it useful as it is a way to find out about dreams or to get some advice / get something showed from my uncounciousness without the need for an external interpreter.

> The Shadow and the Light are One.

Thats something I also started to think about in this week, especially how it works with the "separation" of the light and the shadow. Is it coming from the mind-ego machine? And also what happens to the shadows of very highly advanced yogis, i.e. Lahiri Mahayasa, Buddha or Ramana Maharshi?

selfonlypath

France
297 Posts

Posted - Apr 02 2018 : 08:34:59 AM

quote:
Originally posted by jusmail

Those, I feel, fall under the scheme of tarot.

From what I remember, Car Jung did use tarot among his technique and more particular as one approach to support synchronicity.

Carl Jung also wrote a book "the psychology of kundalini" so one can wonder how he was able to connect all the dots.

Topic