The Shadow Self and Success in Magick
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"I swear if I hear one more whiny magician I'm going to scream!"
Those words came out of my mouth this morning while chatting with a friend and business mentor over my cup of coffee. Brother Jupiter (as I will refer to my friend in this little essay), had been telling me about the current statue Brother Saturn, who had recently made a big change in his lifestyle and moved about 700 miles to start fresh. Well, things haven't been so fresh for Brother Saturn since his move: he found a place to live which is great (but he deliberately chose a place that was outside of his means because other options had bad feng shui, according to him), he found a job (however, he was poorly treated and poorly paid), and recently he got laid off from aforementioned job. Mind you, Brother Saturn has useful credentials (much better credentials than myself!) and should be able get his foot in the door at a respectable business with a descent starting wage. However, he demonizes corporations and excuses himself "karmically" from working at such places.
Now, I do agree that there are certain companies for which I would not work simply because I know I would find myself in an expendable position, but I would not turn down an opportunity to secure myself in a long term position for good money. For me, more money = more time for my practice, especially when I don't need to break my neck to acquire more money. But to choose not to work because of an abstract idea of "bad karma" in business practice is ridiculous. Consumers have money they want to spend and they will always pay the price that they feel something is worth, if they choose not to explore their options that is the problem of the consumer not the seller.
Anyhow, back to the story: Brother Saturn, has now found himself jobless and with rent and bills to pay, so what does this so called magician do? Nothing. He complains about his position and is now considering moving back from whence he came. I find this mentality laughable for the following reasons:
- He is not a novice magician, in fact, he has been at it for quite a while.
- He has very worthy credentials that could aide him in finding a job.
- Where he currently lives has more job opportunities then where he came from. (at least 50 new job offers daily on craigslist, verses 10-15)
- He moved to get away from rude people, smog, and crowded streets. Now he lives 20 minutes from the city with the outdoors right by his front door.
I have actually given some advice as to how to handle the situation, and the advice I gave was not new or original: create a sigil of intent and charge it! Not very refined but highly effective. But he still sits and does nothing but complain about his situation! Thinking, thinking, thinking, thinking that this is somehow his karma and his necessary cross to bear rather than picking up the Wand and exercising his Will! I do feel that the wealth that we have is part of our karma, but how can you pursue your spiritual discipline if you can't keep a roof over your head? How do you meditate when your belly is always empty (and not because you are fasting!)? Why do some magicians that perform awesome ceremonial magick live with a woe is me attitude and constantly struggle?
I think that the answer is simple: They have not confronted their shadow-self. They have demonized the most basic part of their self for whatever reason be it family, society, culture, taboo or what-not. They hid it from their minds and fed it with fear and anxiety until it grew into a great monster that manipulates them in subtle ways so that it can continue to sustain itself. Eventually, it grows to such proportions that it develops a will and mind of it's own and seems to be so monstrous that it cannot be contained and it contaminates everything the magician touches with decay and failure.
I can't think of anyone who would want an untrained dog constantly biting their behind, and peeing on the carpet, and chewing on their shoes. Why then should this shadow be allowed to persist in it's destructive behavior? Either this part of ourselves will work for us or it must be destroyed. How then do we destroy this nasty thing? I posit this: Along with a good therapist, one should spend every waking moment evaluating oneself. Calculate your fears and anxiety and confront them head on. If you feel as though you can't make friends then everyday you need to introduce yourself to every person you meet. If you feel as though you are not a success at your job starting going to work earlier and staying later giving 100% of your energy to your job while working. If you feel as though you are worthless because of such and such reason, throw the idea of self worth out the window or start behaving in ways that you feel people of worth should behave.
Or don't do anything at all... eventually your shadow-self will grow to such monstrous proportions and it will continue to grow until it overcomes you, cuts you of from the source of your life and consumes you entirely.
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93,
Two thoughts. First off, having magical or mystical ability predisposes most people to be at odds with the world around them. So as you suggest (and Israel Regardie advocated), psychotherapy in the early stages of magical work is a sound idea.
Secondly, the classic training pattern in western mystery schools sets up ordeals that introduce us to the bits of ourselves we don't wish to deal with. I don't know if Bro. Saturn followed this course, but practicing magick before that process has been undergone carries penalties of progressive alienation from self, rather than closer contact with the sacredness of one's own being. If it's too late for him to learn to act with some degree of maturity, he can at least serve as a warning to others.
93 93/93,
Edward
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My thoughts run counter to Edwards. Be advised, they are just thoughts and impressions, so please don't take them as criticisms. I'm only posting them because they are a different take.
I guess If I were your Saturn friend, I would expect my friends, which would include you, and my family to respect my process.
The Germans have a word/concept that, like many other words, doesn't quite have an equivalent in English, It's Auseinandersetzung. A German dictionary is not very help here, but in theater it is something actors and directors attempt to achieve in discussion and maintain in their work. My best translation is: the ability to set yourself apart from the ideas and influences of the world about you. The validity of the whole theatrical process hinges on this concept, otherwise the work is considered unconscious or too reliant on general assumptions about right and wrong.
I think this notion can be applied to our dealings with autonomous others—people we might not understand fully, or approve of. We should give them the space where they can set themselves apart and work things out on their own terms. We might not understand what is going on with someone, but baring a self destructive or mentally unstable scenario, it's generally how I would expect people to treat me.
Similarly, if I understand the concept of the shadow properly, it has the most validity as a concept when we are dealing with ourselves, not when we think we see it in others. It is what we repress and don't admit as that part of ourselves that we tend to project onto others.
There are many things in the unconscious other than the shadow that could cause someone to act antisocially. I tend to avoid whinny people for my own reasons. Still, it's hard not to have thoughts that 'so and so' should get a life when they are a pain to be around. That doesn't mean I really know what's best for them.
@TheSilent1 said
"I can't think of anyone who would want an untrained dog constantly biting their behind, and peeing on the carpet, and chewing on their shoes."
I would allow my dog to chew on my shoes, I might even encourage it; the biting my butt would also be okay by me—I'm a sucker for eccentric behavior.
love and will
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Robert,
Don't misunderstand me, Brother Saturn is a very dear friend to me who I have respect. I do not respect people's weaknesses, however, as I believe that their weakness does not exist no matter how much they believe it to be so.
I know my faults quite well and I appreciate when others point them out to me as well, it helps me keep track of things.
I only posted this as a warning for those on the magical path: "you will have to deal with your bullshit." I have seen what happens beyond this little scenario for those that don't deal with it, believe me it's not pretty.To each their own as always.
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93,
Eh. To be honest I've been in a slightly similar situation [The difference being that I am young and have no real credentials to use to make things better monetarily], and can only blame him for not looking at the signs- house is too expensive, can only take a crap job, etc. That should have been a warning that the course of action is hard.
In my situation, one day I decided to just crawl back home. Once I put those events into motion, everything got better immediately inside my head. I wasn't feeling rage, or even melancholy anymore. So, I can respect his decision to leave his current place, and just give up- if that would serve him better than staying [And I wouldn't know, as I am not him]
Of course, I really, really, REALLY hate whining. I've left women BECAUSE they feel the need to share a problem I can't help with, in less than subtle ways. I think it is among the worst issues among magicians. I think we get far too used to being inside of our own heads [Or out, whatever] and when adversity comes for us, we freeze. Perhaps there is a lesson in that.
93 93/93
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"[But it's not about money. You cannot measure the worth of someones life by money. No-one can measure YOUR life by how much money you bring in. That's always been a nonesense....
sigh
I hope that's recognised before I die."
You're right. Your value isn't determined by the amount of money you have, Alrah, but by what you can give others. And the amount of money you receive is in direct proportion to number of people you serve and how well you serve them. But that's a convo for another day.
But to address the initial topic of the shadow self and success in magick, from my limited "haven't reached Tiphareth" perspective, I believe you gotta get the shadow on board with whatever it is you want to do. And this is uncomfortable because it requires us to be vulnerable, deal with pain, confusion, fear, etc. But we can't get anywhere if we don't reconcile and integrate the shadowy aspects of ourselves. The trick is to approach the process from a position of Love and with the conscious awareness that even though we have to deal with some shit we don't want to deal with, it'll make us stronger in the long run. Sounds cliche but that's what's working for me at least. The sooner we deal the better off we are.
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@Reef said
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"[But it's not about money. You cannot measure the worth of someones life by money. No-one can measure YOUR life by how much money you bring in. That's always been a nonesense....sigh
I hope that's recognised before I die."
You're right. Your value isn't determined by the amount of money you have, Alrah, but by what you can give others. And the amount of money you receive is in direct proportion to number of people you serve and how well you serve them. But that's a convo for another day.
"I disagree with both of you and here is the reason why:
I have met through my profession quite a few self-made millionaires, and these individuals possess such a high caliber of focus that it can intimidate most people. The morbid focus required to acquire riches shares a similar quality to success in magick, as well as, anything else in life. Perhaps not all can be judge by their money, but one can easily measure the success of a self-made individual.
If someone has more of ANY quality that I lack or wish to possess, I make every effort to learn what I can from them rather than impose my own fears and skewed morality upon them. IMO having wealth or at the very least a steady job and freedom from debt allows the magician freedom of time and mental energy (if you disagree: think about how much time you spend worrying about your bills) to pursue spiritual attainment.
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It's not about how much money a person has, but it is about being able to succeed at your intentions. And certain topics - like money - are usually associated with deep emotions.
If you're poor, and never give more than the merest passing thought to money because you're happy with your system, then you can count it as a success. But if you find yourself repeatedly making simple resolutions - like trying to live on a budget, avoid overdrawing your account, pay your bills on time, etc - then part of you is interfering with your intent.
Even though I don't make much more money now than I did a couple years ago (because, ahem, I am addressing a shadow complex about demanding a good sized raise!), the difference between my money situation now, and a year or two ago is very big. I used to waste a lot of time looking for cheaper solutions for every one of my wants and needs, I used to overdraw my account fairly regularly, I had a hard time budgeting and paying bills on time.
I started to realize how much I had invested in staying "poor" or keeping a poverty-driven mentality. I addressed the 'shadow' components, and then committed to change. Now, if I can afford something I need or want, I buy it without endless price comparisons and bargain-hunting. I don't overdraw my account hardly ever. I budget, and pay bills on time. Discussing my finances doesn't trigger anxiety.
I don't believe that 'anyone' has the potential to be 'rich'. I doubt that it's everyone's True Will. But a healthy person should, IMO, be able to make a reasonable, rational, doable resolution in any area of their life and accomplish it. I've watched myself (and others!) with important goals and dreams that just require a small initial step, delaying and procrastinating the undertaking for years simply because the shadow isn't addressed properly.