From a Taoist perspective, harmonizing with the deepest spiritual impulses leads to good fortune. This happens when a person seeks to be their truest self rather than conforming with others for ego-based reasons.
One complexity in the “how-to” is dealing with a part of the human psyche known as the destructive shadow. Carl Jung wrote extensively and passionately about the need of modern humankind to acknowledge and take responsibility for the shadow. He especially encouraged individuals to take responsibility for their individual shadow. But who wants to know about immoral and unseemly parts of their own personality? Having a hunger and thirst for righteousness doesn’t always come naturally.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6
Like the frog who sits in warm water and doesn’t know the water will eventually reach a boil, being in spiritual stagnancy often doesn’t feel like a problem. When there’s unconsciousness of personal shadow, the shadow plans and executes its next move. The elegant Dr. Jekyll thought he could simply suppress his shadow, but Mr. Hyde had too much energy and wherewithal to let that happen.
I take “righteousness” to mean the capacity to act morally and with integrity. To want to seek righteousness implies that one must first realize a lack of it. The fourth Beatitude points to the need for brave honesty as a way to gain momentum in spiritual practice. In Jungian dreamwork, when a dream presents a destructive shadow figure, a common reaction from the dreamer is disgust and repulsion, if not denial. The first impulse is usually not a feeling of happiness and gratitude for the information, and a desire to know more. But it’s sometimes possible to acquire hunger and thirst for righteousness through contemplation and self-reflection.
For instance, the very common dream of being chased by something hideous can mean many different things, depending on the dreamer’s situation. But one possibility is that the dreamer is being chased by a destructive shadow figure – part of one’s own psyche. Suppose Jane says her boss, Jessica, is horribly inconsiderate of people’s feelings, as well as aggressive and unconscious. Then Jane dreams of being chased by something hideous. In working with the dream, Jane says she ran, but looked back and noticed that the hideous creature’s eyes looked like Jessica’s. Compassionate but persistent exploration of the situation then shows that Jane herself has a lack of consideration and an aggressive impulse to blame Jessica while remaining unconscious of these qualities in herself. In such a case, her dream is showing:
- How she’s being pursued by her own destructive shadow;
- That she projects this aspect of destructive shadow onto Jessica.
The great thing is that if Jane bravely recognizes she has a habit of callousness and blaming, then she can fight the shadow as an inner enemy. Then she can also discover she has a capacity for caring that had been covered up by her shadow. She can open to greater connection in relationships, and she can reconsider how to relate more positively to Jessica. This could lead to a sense of peace in the workplace, and possibly new career potentials.
In my experience, an important key to this type of work is the ability to be friendly enough toward oneself so that you can digest unflattering information, while also being firm enough to persist to a point of resolution. These are some suggestions to consider:
- Cultivate openness to recognizing where lack of morality abides in thoughts, feelings and actions.
- Cultivate an attitude of friendliness and encouragement about your innate positive potential.
- Examine unflattering feedback. Contemplate any resulting insights.
- Get help if needed in being firmly objective while being compassionately supportive of yourself.
- Revel in the fruits of victory.