Does shadow work help with manifestation? The answer: Yes, but not in the way you think.
Most people who get tied up with the idea of manifestation have usually have gotten it from what’s known as The Law of Attraction.
Manifestation, or The Law of Attraction, is the idea that you will get whatever you put your focus, thoughts, and feelings into. It’s the belief that whatever you set your sights on and truly desire, will come into your life.
So you surround yourself with pictures, quotes, and good vibes to get you closer to the things that you desire.
Personally, I never found manifestation to work. And it’s not because I didn’t try.
Every day I would tell myself affirmations. My phone and laptop wallpapers would be images of things I wanted. For the longest time, I’d be a hopeful, workaholic masochist.
But I wasn’t getting closer to what I desired.
What causes manifestation to not work?
Like I mentioned earlier, the things that you desire most, and that you put work into, are the things that will manifest in your life.
However, your conscious desires won’t always align with your unconscious desires.
And in a battle between your conscious desires and your unconscious desires, the unconscious will always win.
This means that you unconsciously desire things on a much deeper level than you are aware of.
Your problem isn’t an issue of manifestation. Your problem is a lack of self-love for your complete being.
You aren’t loving your shadow self enough. You aren’t giving it the validation and acceptance that it needs.
What is your shadow self?
Your shadow self is the part of your personality, that you’ve ignored and repressed, so much that you’ve pushed it out of your awareness,
It’s the part of you that genuinely wants to experience struggle and tragedy. And it’s the exact reason why your life is the way it is right now.
You can read more about these unconscious desires in How Sado masochism is Ruling Your Life Without Your Permission.
Your conscious will cannot beat your unconscious will.
Instead what you have to do is meet your unconscious and validate its wants and desires. Acknowledge your unconscious manifestations as your own conscious desires.
Because when you finally validate and accept everything about your shadow, including its desires and qualities, you will integrate your shadow into your personality.
You do this by performing shadow work.
What is Shadow Work?
Shadow Work is building a relationship with your shadow and accepting it in the entire spectrum of your being. It’s honoring the other side of yourself that you aren’t fully aware of through heavy honesty.
When you finally integrate your shadow, you are celebrating the fulfillment of its desires that is your life.
Afterward, it will redirect its energies from manifesting your unconscious desires to help you manifest your conscious desires.
So you see your problem isn’t one of manifestation. Your problem is that your shadow self is obstructing those manifestations.
Remember: Your unconscious desires must always come first. Then you must accept it and celebrate it.
My experience using shadow work to help with manifestation.
I used to have two lists of affirmations that I would repeat to myself every night before bed, and aloud in the car when I went for a drive.
I’d repeat my affirmations, over and over and over again. Even while working toward my goals.
But I was barely making any progress.
One day I just stopped. I was pissed because nothing was working for me. For some reason, I couldn’t put two and two together and I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong.
I decided that this whole manifestation thing was complete garbage—a lie.
That night I sat down for dinner and, like usual, my dog would walk up and sit down by the kitchen table. Staring at me, hoping I’d throw her some food.
In a patronizing tone I thought to myself:
“Look at this dog. The way she stares at me, hoping I’ll give her scraps. In her little world, she thinks that by using the power of thought she can will me into giving her what she wants.
She thinks that sitting there and intensely focusing on me will manifest scraps for her to eat.
What a joke.”
But if you’ve read my other articles, then I’m sure you understand that the reason why I couldn’t manifest what I wanted was that my worldview was distorted.
I had ignored my shadow for so long that it was affecting my psyche.
When you ignore your shadow, it begins to feel rejected and neglected. Give it enough time and it becomes hostile towards you.
Before I confronted my shadow, my view of the world, of people, and everything was twisted.
It wouldn’t be until much later, when I was in the grip of my shadow’s hand, that I acknowledged and accepted who I truly was.
It wasn’t until I finally started doing Shadow Work and integrated my shadow that I was able to manifest what I truly wanted.
Before then I was in a very dark place, to the point that I was blaming the world for how things were turning out. As if it were my fate to live a life that I didn’t want.
It wasn’t until I integrated my shadow, to work on becoming whole, that I realized that I was in my own way.
But I just couldn’t see it. It was outside of my conscious awareness.
So does Shadow Work help with manifestation?
Yes, it most definitely does.
What they don’t tell you is that shadow work is actually Step Zero when it comes to The Law of Attraction.
It’s a secret reason why people don’t get what they want and fail at manifesting.
So you must do shadow work.
Because when you do, you are finally accepting and celebrating the fulfillment of your unconscious desires.
And by doing this, your unconscious will let go of its celebrated desires, and shift its energies to help you achieve your own.
Check out the Shadow Work Course here.
Check out A Light Among Shadows: A Guide to Self-Love & Being here.
