INTEGRATING & ACCEPTING

UNCOVERED ASPECTS OF SELF

WITHIN THE SHADOW
*Disclaimer: These are my personal ways of integrating and working with the uncovered parts of
the shadow. There are other different ways of shadow work. If you are interested in this work, I
encourage you to do your own research in hopes of finding ways that which resonates with you.

I. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF SHADOW AND PROJECTIONS.

“Shadow is hidden or unconscious aspects of oneself, both good and bad, which the ego has either repressed or
never recognized” Sharp.

“The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the
shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of
the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge, and it
therefore, as a rule, meets with considerable resistance. Indeed, self-knowledge as a psychotherapeutic measure
frequently requires much painstaking work extended over a long period of time.” Jung

As seen from above, shadow are those parts of ourselves that we deny or hide. One must keep in
mind that these aspects of ourselves are unconscious until brought into daylight. We can recognize
our shadows by paying attention to our strong projections onto others.

“Projection is an automatic process whereby contents of one’s own unconscious are perceived to be in the others.” Sharp

“As we know, it is not the conscious subject but the unconscious which does the projecting.” Jung

“Projections change the world into the replica of one’s own unknown face.” Jung

“The general psychological reason for projection is always an activated unconscious that seeks expression.”
Jung

Thus in my view, paying attention to strong projections elicited toward others, paves the way to
uncovering our shadow.

It is important to keep in mind that by integrating shadow aspects of ourselves, we don’t become
more of that quality! On the contrary, we become less affected by the experiences that used to
trigger emotional reactions in us.

Therefore, it is important to become aware of our shadow. To bring it into the light of our
conscious awareness. Only by becoming aware of our shadow, we can begin gaining greater
freedom to respond vs react.

This enables us to be more mindful, compassionate, and mature human beings in situations where
we used to be triggered.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

II. ACCEPTANCE & INTEGRATION OF SHADOW SELF

As far as I could deduce, Jung didn’t discuss explicit techniques on how to integrate shadow. He did,
however, acknowledge the importance of recognizing one’s shadow.

“It is a therapeutic necessity, indeed, the first requisite of any thorough psychological method, for
consciousness to confront its shadow. In the end this must lead to some kind of union, even though the union
consists at first in an open conflict, and often remains so for a long time. It is a struggle that cannot be abolished by
rational means.” Jung

“This process of coming to terms with the Other (aka shadow) in us is well worthwhile, because in this way we get to
know aspects of our nature which we would not allow anybody else to show has and which we ourselves would
never have admitted.” Jung

To integrate an inner quality, shadow aspects of ourselves, is to take ownership and responsibility
for it, rather than rejecting or denying it.

Once you have made your shadow aspect(s) of Self-conscious, as discussed in video series 2, there
are many different ways to engage in integrative work.

Some of the steps (in no particular order) that I found personally helpful in my work are:

CULTIVATE COMPASSION & LET GO OF GUILT & SHAME

Before beginning shadow integration, it is important to cultivate compassion toward the Self.
Without compassion, it is difficult to face parts of ourselves that Ego perceives as negative.

Remember, positive aspects of the Self also reside in the shadow.

If feelings of shame or guilt come out, it is important to reframe these emotions into self-
acceptance and self-compassion. Accepting our own humanness is a start!

We all have a shadow side! Every one of us.

Often, the shame and guilt arising from the repressed shadow Self is a collective shame and guilt. It
is seldom ours!

TAROT SPREAD - CREMATION & LETTING GO: I recommend using majors only. However,
you are welcome to use minors as well if you choose to do so. Additionally, I recommend pulling a
card from an oracle of your choice that tends to have “healing” tendencies. For example, an oracle
carrying goddesses, hence feminine, receptive energy, or an herbal theme oracle. In general, any
oracle that feels “healing” to you is welcome.

In this spread, the goal is to cremate guilt and shame and to let it go by releasing it to the wind. By
this time, you have already done the work needed to uncover the shadow aspect you are working
with.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

1
1. First Card: Represents the areas within ourselves that lead to
feelings of guilt and/or shame in relation to this shadow aspect.

2. Second Card: Represents the cremation chamber. This is what

you need to bring into your life right now to help you create
feelings of guilt/shame.

3. Third Card: Represents what you need to embrace in your life to

2 4 let it go. Imagine this archetype as a wind carrying cremated dust
into the universe.

4. Fourth Card: represents a healing guide whose energy you may

need to bring into your life for weeks, months, or however long
you may need to let out feelings of guilt/shame. I recommend
3 using an Oracle deck for this pull.

ACCEPT FRAGMENTS OF SELF aka YOUR HORSE STABLE

The fragmented parts of ourselves have been disowned long enough. It's time to bring them home.

An analogy I like to use is a horse stable. Imagine your Self as an owner of a large horse stable.
And numerous horses representing aspects of your whole Self.

Imagine you have parts of Self which you like. Even love. These are the top horses that you turn to
again and again. If there is a horse race, you turn to these selected few to claim a win.

Now imagine that your disowned parts of Self, your shadow aspects, are also horses. Good and bad.
Some might not be as strong or fast. Perhaps a few walk with a limp. Whereas others (good
shadow parts) have potential that is not realized and brought to life.

As a stable owner, what will you do with these horses? Will you trade them? Sell them? Or take
them behind the barn and shoot them?

The decision is yours!

In my view, it is important to care and mend for these horses as much as one cares and mends for
the top runners. Because these horses also bear a gift! One you cannot recognize unless you engage
in relationship with them.

In my experience, it is often these neglected horses that bear the most life lessons. Acceptance of all
parts of our Self is a key to integration.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

TAROT SPREAD - HORSE STABLE: Again, I recommend using majors only because we are
working with big parts of ourselves, hence energetically charged archetypal energies. An oracle deck
of your choice is also recommended to use to illuminate our blind spot.

In this spread, we will work on identifying how we see a particular horse aka shadow part, and what
stands in the way of embracing it. As well as illuminating our blind spot.

2 3 4

1. First Card: Knowing what shadow aspect you are working with since you have already
uncovered it, go through the tarot deck and select a card that closely represents it. This is the
horse you are struggling to have in your stable.

2. Second Card: Represents what you are not willing to see or acknowledge about this horse. The
meaning of this card is the gift of seeing what this horse has to offer.

3. Third Card: Represents what you are not willing to hear about this horse. The meaning of this
card is the gift of hearing what this horse has to offer.

4. Fourth Card: Represents what you are not willing to speak/praise about this horse. The
meaning of this card is the gift of praise, or silver lining, the horse has to offer.

5. Fifth Card: Represents our blind spot. This is an obstacle that prevents us to embrace the gifts
this horse has to give us. I advise to use an oracle deck for this pull.

PRACTICE AWARENESS & MINDFULNESS

Shadow work for me begins with daily awareness and mindfulness.

Meaning every time I notice myself getting triggered by the part of Self which used to be shadow
but now is in my conscious sphere, I practice awareness.

I remind myself of what these triggers represent for me.

Awareness leads to withdrawal of projections toward another person. It also leads to a calmer state
of mind where I can practice mindfulness.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

Mindfulness, to me, begins with the retraction of projections and operating from a response stance
versus a reactive stance.

This allows me to communicate and express myself as a holistic human being. Versus one who is an
emotionally activated grenade ready to go off.

Awareness and mindfulness is an ongoing practice. By engaging in it, I help my brain create new
neuro pathways and to re-route its ways of seeing and relating to my triggers.

This work may take months, years, or even decades.

TAROT SPREAD - OPEN YOUR EYES: I recommend only using an oracle deck of your choice
for this spread, however, if you wish, you are welcome to use a tarot deck.

In this spread, we will work on clearing our vision in order to better embrace awareness and
mindfulness into our life.

1. First Card: Represents the center of the eyeball. What you can embrace in your life to see
better, aka be more aware.

2. Second Card: Represents cleaning cloth. What you can bring into your life to enhance your
vision of being more mindful.

3. Third Card: Represents prescription glasses. Outside help can enhance both our awareness and
mindfulness.

2 3

CHOOSE WHICH PARTS YOU WANT TO CHANGE

As mentioned, not all aspects of shadow are negative or bad. Both so-called negative as well as
positive parts of shadow can be assimilated into the whole Self.

By assimilated, I mean incorporated into our lives and changed for the better. However, certain
aspects of shadow should not be incorporated into our lives. For example, if one has a shadow
aspect that desires to hurt others, acting out on this behavior is not appropriate. In this case, one
only works on accepting that part of Self in order to NOT act out on it.

Other parts of shadow that are seen, both negative and positive can be adapted into our lives. In
fact they need to be assimilated into our Self. Especially positive aspects.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

Remember, we repress parts of ourselves because they are not socially acceptable, are not within the
family milieu or due to difficult emotional reactions, to name a few.

Positive shadow aspects may be our own ambitions, which we may repress because we were taught
to not aim high or succeed.

A great example of positive shadow aspects in our culture are homosexuality and transgender
identity. Many people were told that attraction to the same sex is wrong, therefore leading to the
repression of sexual impulses.

Similarly, people were told that desire to be the opposite gender is bad, further repressing their true
sense of Self.

As we can see, deciding which parts of the shadow to assimilate is up to us!

Assimilation works by claiming these parts of ourselves and starting to live our lives in accordance
with it. For example, transgender individuals begin by claiming their true identity and by starting
gender transition to embody their Self.

In the second series on shadow work, I explored an example of shadow projections on to a wealthy
neighbor. The shadow aspect boiled down to lack of value within oneself. To assimilate these parts,
one may start by evaluating what they do for a living. Does it equate to the sense of value they
contribute to work? Is it time to ask for a promotion? Increase one’s hourly rate? Or seek a new
place of employment?

Change starts with acceptance and leads to accountability and responsibility. Only you can decide
what feels appropriate for you at this time in your life! As I said, for many, accepting and becoming
aware of shadow parts of Self may be all that one does.

TAROT SPREAD - CROSSING THE BRIDGE: I recommend using both majors and minors for
this spread. In addition, I encourage using an oracle deck of your choice, preferably one with strong
archetypal energies.

This spread is all about assimilation. By this time you have identified shadow aspect and I am
assuming, have made a decision to assimilate it into your life.

Take a crystal, candle, or any other object that can symbolize a bridge for you and put it in the
middle of the cards. This is a bridge we must cross to assimilation.

1. First Card: Represents where you are moving from. This part represents the current status quo
and is often where most of resistance arises from since a part of our ego does not want to
change.

2. Second Card: Represents what to leave behind. Imagine it as “water under the bridge” that you
need to move past from. Often this can represent what we tend to cling to but that which no
longer serves us.

3. Third Card: Represents our strengths. This is our inner potential in regard to the shadow aspect
we are trying to assimilate.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

4. Fourth Card: This represents where we are crossing to and is the overall picture of what
assimilating of this shadow part looks like.

5. Fifth Card: Represents the guiding hand as we cross the bridge. This is an outside universal
energy guiding our crossing that we can rely on.

1 BRIDGE 4 5

*The idea of Bridge spread comes from Ana Cortez.

III. BRANCHING BEYOND

For me, integration and acceptance of shadow is life. It is part of us growing into mature, healthy
adults. Self-knowledge is power and a key to self-individuation. One cannot achieve self-awareness,
in my view, without shadow work.

It is important to find a method of shadow works that resonates and works for you. The above-
mentioned suggestions are my own ways of working with shadow.

I encourage you to be creative and to find what works for you. Analogous to cooking, the above
ideas are just ideas on how to make a stew. Feel free to look within your own pantry to find what
ingredients you already have on hand.

Perhaps you are an artist who assimilates best by painting or sculpting. Or a musician who works
best by writing a song about your inner Self.

Some ideas to consider:

• Paint or collage shadow aspects you uncover. Talk to them. Engage in dialogue. Befriend these
parts for they are fragments of Self.

• Sculpt shadow aspects or how you envision them assimilating into your life. Give them
movements, give them realness.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva

 • Plant herbs, fruits or vegetables representing shadow parts of Self. As they grow, harvest and
incorporate them into your food so that you can introject them into your Self.

• Have a tea ceremony with your shadow part(s). Set an extra tea cup on a table and have a
conversation with that part of you.

The possibilities are endless. Shadow work is also creative play. Have fun. After all, these are
fragmented parts of us. They are not as inferior to us as we tend to believe.

REFERENCES & SUGGESTED READING

The Collected Works of C.G. Jung. 20 vols. Bollinger Series XX, translated by R.F.C. Hull, edited by H.
Read, M. Fordham, G. Adler, and Wm McGuire. Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1953-1979.

C.G. Jung Lexicon: A Primer of Terms & Concepts. Daryl Sharp. 1991. Inner City Books, Toronto,
Canada.

Owning Your Own Shadow: Understand the Dark Side of the Psyche. Robert Johnson. 1991.
HarperCollings, New York, NY.

The Inner Journey: Lectures and Essays on Jungian Psychology. Barbara Hannah. 2000. Inner City Books,
Toronto, Canada.

© 2019 Natalia P Zhikhareva