As you emerge from your shadow work, you may find that everything around you seems different. This is because you are different. Your perspective has deepened and expanded, balancing the light and the dark. Here are some things you may be experiencing as you cycle back into the light as your new self:
Emotional Stability: When you’ve looked long and hard at yourself, as you do in shadow work, you accept some difficult truths. This forces you to change yourself from within, and with this comes a calm acceptance of your own emotions. Understanding your own emotions and responses to life’s events allows you to think objectively about situations. Next time you encounter hardship, you will have a far more level and reasonable reaction.
Inner Strength: Things you used to think you couldn’t do, risks you wouldn’t take, hardships you thought you’d never be able to endure … you’ve done some of those things now. Just as when you exercise a muscle in your body, it becomes more resilient, the same can be said for your spirit. Standing up to your own inner beasts has made you stronger on the inside, like you have the deep roots of a tree holding you in place. This will come through anytime you face adversity or negativity.
A Forgiving Heart: In the past you may have regarded certain people with anger or disdain based on their behavior or circumstances. You may discover that now you see their side of the story instead, and rather than pushing them away with dislike and avoidance, you can identify with their situation, sensing the core of what is really driving them. This transforms them from a monster into a frightened child, in your perspective.
Less Desire to Cause Harm: You will have gained a fuller understanding of curses, which can lead to the realization that you very rarely actually need them. When you first picked up this book, the idea of cursing your enemies may have sounded like a good solution to certain problems, but if you’ve done the inner work, there’s a very good chance you’ve come to realize that most of those feelings can be conquered by looking inward at yourself.
An Acceptance of Endings: While grieving is an important part of loss, having done your shadow work, you’ll now see the bigger cyclical picture. With a greater understanding of death and rebirth and being mindful of this endlessly repeating pattern in nature and the cosmos, you will be better equipped to handle change.
Understanding of Physical Death: In doing work with your ancestors, you may have realized just how much of them you have inside you. The same can be said for non-biologically related people who were special to you. You will understand that you are part of a bigger legacy, and that the people who came before you live inside you still, contributing to your life’s purpose. We are all one and all working toward something much larger.
A Connection to Animal Life: Understanding and communing with the spirits of animals creates a strong bond between you and the natural world. For instance, you might realize you’re not afraid of spiders anymore after you’ve done some spells with spider energy (this is what happened to me!). By working with the bones and therefore the collective spirit of creatures, you will appreciate and understand the living ones all that much more.
Cleaning House: Doing your shadow work means letting go of, or even banishing, toxic relationships and people in your life. This leaves so much room for positivity and growth. A new beginning means you can become and experience almost anything. It also means you are ready to welcome positive relationships and experiences into your life.
Knowing the Benefits of Sacrifice: Along with creating a bond with deity, sacrifice makes you stronger. During your sacrifice practices, you will have realized many things about your own needs and what is really important to your spirit. You will have gained an understanding of what techniques you employ to distract yourself from spiritual work or to numb yourself to life’s difficulties, as well as discovered that you’re strong enough to live without them.
Go forth into the darkness and do your work. Try not to get lost. Whether you exist in the dark or light right now, I wish you courage and insight as you cycle through this life and all the ones to come.