The unintegrated personality does not have the character strength to hold the tension, but tends to release one side of the tension in favor of the other side, which is favored due to safety, comfort, or familiarity.
There is evil in this world and in the human heart. If we don't recognize this, we have a naive attitude that can get us into trouble. Jung thought the soul could benefit by coming to terms with both kinds of shadow, losing some of its naive innocence in the process. It appears to me that as we open ourselves to see what our soul is made of and who we really are, we always find some material that is a profound challenge.
To some extent, care of the soul asks us to open our hearts wider than they have ever been before, softening the judging and moralism that may have characterized our attitudes and behavior for years. Moralism is one of the most effective shields against the soul, protecting us from its intricacy. There is nothing more revealing and maybe nothing more healing, than to reconsider our moralistic attitudes and find how much soul has been hidden behind their doors. People seem to be afraid that if they reflect on their moral principles they might lose their ethical sensitivity altogether. But that is a defensive approach to morality. As we deal with the soul's complexity, morality can deepen and drop its simplicity, becoming at the same time more demanding and more flexible
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its finding the whole you, instead of hiding from the whole you.
ReplyDeleteSing it Ariel. Hiding from the shadow doesn't make it go away. It only gives it control over your life in unhealthy ways.
ReplyDeleteis the first paragraph thomas moore or the whole thing or are you paraphrasing throughout?
ReplyDeleteSorry, I guess I didn't make that very clear. It's all Thomas Moore.
ReplyDeleteYou have an intriguing way of posting things without comment. For example, I'm never sure whether you share certain stories & links because you like & agree with what's being said, or more for provoking thought & inquiry, or as a joke. Way to be a though-provoker, jon.
ReplyDeleteI suppose I do do that. (I said do do). Usually when I post something like the above, it's because I like it. Or at least I like the thoughts that it provokes, or what it opens up. Sometimes I don't comment because I guess I feel like it speakds for itself, sometimes I don't because I want people to get whatever they would get out of it without me interfering, and sometimes I'm just to lazy to produce my own commentary. :)
ReplyDeleteI can tell you, however, that this post was in response to something specific. We can discuss if you'd like.
If your readers and you like Thomas Moore's writing, you may want to visit a blog, Barque, dedicated to him - http://barque.blogspot.com. Moore has a public Facebook page with a Discussions link. I like Moore's position, "Moralism is one of the most effective shields against the soul, protecting us from its intricacy."
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