Shouldn't psychosynthesis organizations consider developing some sort of shadow management tool to ensure we are openly and systematically addressing our organization's shadow?

In a televised interview with Jeffery Mishlove, psychiatrist Arthur J. Deikman pointed out that there is no precise distinction between a cult and a culture. To the degree that any of us unconsciously abdicates our individuality by adopting our culture's speech, dress, government and other shared customs, we are under the non-chosen influence of our culture. A cult's culture (notice the word "cult" is short for culture) is an extreme form of abdication of individual choice, but it is not possible to clearly define where "normal" culture ends and where cult begins.

Roberto Assagioli is instructional on the nature and management of shadow in his monograph, "The Balancing and Synthesis of the Opposites." When we consider Assagioli's opening line, "Polarity is a universal fact..." we are reminded that shadow can be conceptualized as the polar opposite of light. When we shine a light on an object or idea, the light reveals the object, but it also creates a shadow which is hiding a part of that object or idea. If we go around to the other side of the object with our light to see what is there, then the original side is now hidden in the shadow. Thus, light and shadow play an endless game of cat and mouse. The resolution of this game occurs once we have developed a level of unity-consciousness which can simultaneously perceive and hold the polarities of light and dark at the same time in the same mind. Ideally, this is the synthesis of opposites. In reality however, this process may not occur quickly, easily or completely, rather at varying degrees over time with the application of intention and practice (p. 9). Assagioli and many other transpersonal writers advise us that it is useful to practice identifying, balancing and synthesizing polarities as a means of encouraging and strengthening our mind's ability to navigate and manage the interplay of light and shadow in our individual and community lives. Thus we should be able to use the principle of polar opposites to help identify and manage our shadow issues.

I have developed an evocative exercise that helps individuals in identify personal shadow issues. First you generate a list of positive qualities with which you are highly identified, and then write a list of literal polar opposite qualities (smart - stupid; graceful - clumsy; etc.) Then, with a confidante or with yourself, discuss the influence your shadow issues may have had on your thought-patterns, your self-esteem, your feelings and your behavior.

This "Literal Opposites Exercise" helps us to identify personal shadow issues which may be somewhat unconscious to us. Thus, it does not merely involve creating a list of things we like and dislike about ourselves. It is a wholistic exercise which is designed to evoke information from our feelings, our mind and our body to provide insight into our potential shadow issues.

In Step 1 we use our feelings to choose our favorite qualities. In Step 2 we use our minds to choose the literal opposite. In Step 3 we determine the validity of this test when we bodily react to the "sting" of the shadow. Imagine the shadow-sting continuum from soft to hard. A soft-shadow sting is usually experienced as a humorous twinge of self-deprecation. "Ha-ha-ha, yes that's true." The body shakes mildly. A hard-shadow sting is usually experienced more strongly perhaps as a wince of repulsion or pain. "Ouch." The body flinches.

In applying this exercise to our psychosynthesis community or center, we would (1) list our greatest passions, hopes, and visions for psychosynthesis and/or for AAP, i.e., the issues we are most positively identified with. Then, we would (2) list the literal opposite of these. The literal opposite usually identifies the most shadow-provoking scenario. Next, we might discuss within the group the influence these identifications and shadows may have on our thinking, feelings and actions. For example, in looking through our AAP directory in the section "Hopes for psychosynthesis," I see several themes repeated. I have listed them below and developed some possible literal opposites. Review them to see if they hit the target of the shadow-sting we are deliberately looking for.

The Literal Opposites Exercise

Psychosynthesis Community Passion/Hope	Literal Opposite
the mainstream acceptance of psychosynthesis	psychosynthesis will be publicly banned
to increase AAP membership psychosynthesis	members will diminish
to develop psychosynthesis theory	psychosynthesis theory remains stagnant
psychosynthesis will be used to reduce and resolve conflict	psychosynthesis becomes mired in self-conflict

You may notice that all of the above passions and hopes have a positive or favorable quality -- that is, they are events many of us want to have happen.

Conversely, their literal opposites are events we hope will not happen. It is also possible to use the Literal Opposites Exercise with issues which have a negative or unfavorable quality. These are issues the group has an awareness of but prefers to neither acknowledge nor address. Naturally this means they are already recognized as shadow issues. However the Literal Opposites Exercise shows us that even known shadow issues can have an additional hidden shadow which may unknowingly affect our community. For example:

Known Shadow Issue	Literal Opposite (neg. identification)
- power	- weakness
- money	- poverty
- marketing	- obscurity
- shadow	- light

The list of opposites generated on the left appear to be issues in which the psychosynthesis community has been traditionally mired down. I have reviewed these issues below in reverse order.

Shadow.
Does our fear of shadow keep us focused on the light, keep our head in the clouds, make us ungrounded in our thinking and actions? We may have read this critique of psychosynthesis in other sources. Does our fear of shadow cause an over-attraction to light which then unbalances our political and organizational acumen and behavior? What would happen within our organization if we spent as much time exploring and mapping the shadow as we do the light? Would we be more grounded, more balanced, more effective? If Assagioli's theory of balancing opposites is true, it would seem by doing so, we could expect to improve our organization.

Marketing.
Why do we hate this word? Are we so irritated by marketing that we will remain forever stuck in transpersonal obscurity? Are we captured and controlled by a stereotypical shadow-view of marketing which tells us it involves crass commercialism, or the sinister manipulation of unsuspecting minds? Are we blind to the shiny and positive side of marketing which tell us it is merely a well-refined linear system for introducing new ideas into public discourse -- a tool which could be used to ensure the mainstream acceptance of psychosynthesis and increase AAP membership as envisioned by many of our members? The Sierra Club uses a strategic marketing plan to keep us focused on the importance of environmental issues. The ACLU uses a marketing plan to advocate for free speech.

That is not crass commercialism. It is taking a highly-organized public stand for what the organization believes is important. Is psychosynthesis important enough to warrant a well-developed marketing plan?

Money.
We nearly all have money issues. Isn't our fear of confronting money as a shadow issue evidenced by much poverty among psychosynthesis members and training centers? Don't we continue to remain uncertain of how to approach the public marketplace and how to charge for our service in providing the wonderful gifts of psychosynthesis?

Power.
Lastly, and related to all of above, are we not afraid of power? So afraid that we will do just about anything to avoid using? Or afraid to admit when we ARE in fact using it? And as a result do we not remain weak? Weak as a body of theory. Weak in developed applications. Weak as a politically astute organization which wisely and intentionally utilizes the time-tested organizational tools for the advancement of psychosynthesis? What is it that keeps us from collectively developing a way to safely and constructively help each other use our personal and collective powers?

While reading the above, if your body registered any soft-shadow ha-ha-ha's or hard-shadow flinches and winces of pain, then it is likely this exercise has helped identify and verify some shadow issues for you. However, choosing a set of literal opposite words is idiosyncratic and may result in a different shadow critique than I have sketched out above.

The main block to dealing with light/shadow polarities is finding a way to do it safely. Assagioli says, "The first task is to prevent the drives and emotions from overwhelming and submerging the reason and the will"(p. 5). Evoking and acknowledging the shadow's influence on us and our community is a difficult and delicate process. However, if it can be accomplished safely, healing at a deep level can occur. The Literal Opposites Exercise has the following safety features:

1. Voluntary and Self-Created. Participation in the Literal Opposites Exercise is completely voluntary. It is we the members who create the list of our identifications on the left, and the list of literal opposites on the right. We, the members, can repeatedly change any word in either list to suit our needs. And we, the members, develop the discussion regarding the influence of any of these words may have on us.
2. An Impersonal Tool. The Literal Opposites Exercise is merely a framework we have chosen to use to help us identify our shadow issues. It doesn't judge us or evaluate us. It is an impersonal exercise which is activated if and when we decide to use it. While it would not be wise to have this be our only means of shadow management, we can all rest a little easier knowing that the exercise will probably do most of the more dangerous work of naming the really big shadow issues. Having done so, we can take our time deciding how we will deal with these issues. The Literal Opposites Exercise should help make us a kinder and gentler community.
3. Wonderfully Unreliable. You may have noticed that the exercise sometimes identifies opposites which have more shadow-sting than others, and some which have no sting at all. The unpredictability and unreliability of the Literal Opposites Exercise is another safety advantage. We want our shadow-identification tool to be only loosely accurate so that we don't develop resentment toward its use. If we know ahead of time that we are going to get stung every time we use it, we would tend toward not using it. The unreliability of the exercise promotes a relaxed approach to the process. This encourages a friendly discussion which softens the polarities and allows the opposites to evolve to a new synthesis.
4. Regular Ritual. One of the outstanding features of rituals is their ability to provide preventive maintenance for a community. We do them whether we feel we need them or not. If we engage the Literal Opposites Exercise regularly (perhaps annually), the practice should enable us to stay current with our evolving group-shadow development. We also could create a written record of our shadow issues which could become part of our community's archives that future members could review. This would enable new members to join us fully apprised of who we are and how we are willing to work as group to be honest with ourselves.

I believe in the development of community. I believe that if we, as a community, regularly and formally identify what is shadow and what is light about ourselves, we will be taking big steps toward developing an ever-maturing community. I believe if we ask ourselves what influence our shadows are having on our thinking, feelings, behavior and community, we will naturally and organically reveal safe and surprisingly simple solutions to our resistant shadow problems-solutions which are useful for ourselves and also for other communities. As a beginning, we could use the Literal Opposites Exercise to gently tell the truth to ourselves. We could help each other to hold each others' polarities. If we did, I think we'd all let out a long-held breath of very old air -- the soft-shadow sigh of healing.

Gary Riestenberg lives in St. Paul, Minnesota. Please send comments to VGRiesten@aol.com.