Alan Watts on Carl Jung: Accepting the Darkness of Self and Others

Carl Jung is famous for formulating the concept of the shadow, the portion of everyone’s personality which, through the course of one’s life, is relegated to the darkness of the unconscious.

“One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious. The latter procedure, however, is disagreeable and therefore not popular.” (Carl Jung)

When one’s shadow is relegated to the depths of the unconscious, it can wreck havoc on one’s life in the sense that it will exert unconscious control over one’s thoughts, emotions, choices, and actions. “That which we do not bring to consciousness appears in our lives as fate”, as Jung said. This accounts for the self-destructive behaviors so many individuals struggle with and are unable to control despite consciously knowing they would be better off not engaging in such actions.

The task in life which thus confronts everyone, according to Jung, is to become conscious of and integrate one’s shadow into one’s conscious personality: accepting it with open arms not as an abhorrent aspect of one’s self, but as a necessary and vital part of one’s being.

“That which we do not bring to consciousness appears in our lives as fate.” (Carl Jung)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exbcF8lvMwY

Audio Clip is taken from an Alan Watts lecture on Carl Jung Accepting the Darkness of Self and Others

Background Music by Reinier - Vibrations [Full BeatTape]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNXKYugwQDw

Video Edit by SatoriD. https://www.minds.com/SatoriD