mindtooloud Posted May 26, 2016 hey so i came across this on a page about introspection , and i don't fully grasp the idea. from what i understand our selfs shadow is the us that has been changed by our surroundings. and our inner self is.....not sure, heres the link for context http://www.researchersoftruth.org/teachings/introspection cheers 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thelerner Posted May 26, 2016 (edited) Not a bad practice, The one I'm familiar with is to rewind your day dispassionately at night. Slowly remember and review your actions without emotion. The one in the thread seems to limit it to a certain scene during the day. Its training in contemplation and to be less reactive. Not so much shadow work, where you delve into motivations behind your actions and speech. Especially the darker side, being both critical and appreciative of it as a source of good, ie will, strength and not so good, selfishness and destructiveness. Edited May 26, 2016 by thelerner 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mindtooloud Posted May 26, 2016 (edited) reactive. its funny you use the word reactive, i just made a post about it a day or two ago http://www.thedaobums.com/topic/41128-reacting-vs-responding/ Edited May 26, 2016 by mindtooloud Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted May 26, 2016 its funny you use the word reactive, i just made a post about it a day or two ago http://www.thedaobums.com/topic/41128-reacting-vs-responding/ Yep. I too picked up on the usage of the word. My shadow self. I guess I'll have to go read the article. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted May 26, 2016 They never did define "shadow self". Basically they are talking about awareness including self awareness. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
liminal_luke Posted May 26, 2016 (edited) Reading about the "shadow self" reminds me of a meditation experience I had many years ago. I´d decided that I was going to meditate for ten minutes each and every day, but for some reason I just couldn´t get myself to sit down and do it. Weird, right? I was berating myself. Ten minutes, I told myself, was such a teensy amount of time to do anything. Well, finally I´d just had it with myself and said I was going to do it right then no matter what. And as soon as my butt hit the cushion I was in tears. Immediately I got it....oh, THIS is why I was putting off my meditation. Turns out there was a bunch of not-so-easy-to-face emotion right under the surface, and I didn´t even know it until I started my practice. Or rather, part of me did know it (which was why I was avoiding meditation) but it wasn´t a part of myself I was consciously aware of. We´re all like this. There´s the part of ourselves that we know easily, and an often much larger part of ourselves that we don´t know, a part lost in shadow. Often we keep parts of ourselves that we don´t like very much repressed in the shadow where it seems we don´t have to deal with it. Shame especially gets locked in the shadow-self closet. But the funny thing about the shadow is how much good stuff there is down there too -- joy gets buried along with the shame, childlike wonder, playful spontaneity. Much of what we talk about when we talk about practice involves engaging with these shadow aspects of who we are. The idea is to know yourself better. To take aspects of self hidden in darkness (where they often end up controlling us from behind the scenes) and bringing them to the light. Edited May 26, 2016 by liminal_luke 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mindtooloud Posted May 27, 2016 Reading about the "shadow self" reminds me of a meditation experience I had many years ago. I´d decided that I was going to meditate for ten minutes each and every day, but for some reason I just couldn´t get myself to sit down and do it. Weird, right? I was berating myself. Ten minutes, I told myself, was such a teensy amount of time to do anything. im having the same/similar problem, whenever i sit to meditate i just cant, i try for several seconds and get distracted and i dont push my self to keep tying, i just cant get my self to meditate like i would before sometimes Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted May 27, 2016 im having the same/similar problem, whenever i sit to meditate i just cant, i try for several seconds and get distracted and i dont push my self to keep tying, i just cant get my self to meditate like i would before sometimes Sounds like you need a method that requires you to devote a lot of attention to the meditation process. Something that keeps your mind totally occupied so it can't play its monkey games. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mindtooloud Posted May 27, 2016 Sounds like you need a method that requires you to devote a lot of attention to the meditation process. Something that keeps your mind totally occupied so it can't play its monkey games. hmmmmm, like would counting backwards from 100 while meditating be helpful, or do you mean something different? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted May 27, 2016 hmmmmm, like would counting backwards from 100 while meditating be helpful, or do you mean something different? Actually, that is the method I was taught for self-hypnosis. Yes, I think it is worth at least trying. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
