Seeing Our Shadow in the Light of the Full Moon

Robert L. Haden III

“With new lenses, new compassion, new courage from our own inner work and our nightly dreams—we turn and face our shadows.”

Nature is such a good reflector and connector for us to our greater selves. And this was one of those synchronistic moments. We headed out at night to go see the “Blue Ghost” lightning bugs. Hiking into the woods in the dark of the forest we found them! It was so magical—by the thousands, they hovered low and the forest floor seemed to come alive as if it were moving! We became still and my 11-year-old and I just took in this otherworldly moment. On the way back, mesmerized by this magical moment with nature, I was stopped in my tracks!

In the full-moon light coming from an opening in the trail, I saw my own shadow—the feminine moon illuminated me and gently but clearly presented me with my shadow. I immediately understood its meaning. Seeing my shadow in the full light of the moon, I no longer needed other sources of light — I had discovered the light in the darkness, embracing all of me, allowing Grace to become the light.

Wholeness is not achieved by cutting off a portion of one’s being, but by integration of the contraries. —Carl Jung

We suffer, we hurt others and ourselves until one day we see our shadow in the light of the moon, in the light of the feminine divine. With new lenses, new compassion, new courage from our own inner work and our nightly dreams—we turn and face our shadows.

With a sense of humility and a sense of humor, understanding is gifted to us, and then through us to others. We are driven to grow a practice of being still, as we understand that stillness is where everything begins. We embrace being present at every moment, and every dark moment, because we know gold may be found there for ourselves, someone else, or for all. With the psyche having found its true center, standing on a foundation of earth and inner connection—truly present, one day that inner voice begins to speak—that true Self begins to speak. This feels different from that voice of “God” you may have heard in a life-shattering desperate moment long ago, because it is that same divine but coming from within. You are not just in relationship to the divine, your body and the earth—you are in relationship with yourself—your inborn divine Soul Self. You are in relationship to the invisible glow of energy around you, and just like the shadow from the moon, it is not invisible anymore.

We all had this sense of who we are, and where we come from for a short time in childhood. The principle of synchronicity acknowledges this inner world. When the moment is right for us to hear, to see—we hear, we see what has always been. It takes readiness from our inner work, to hear the deep meaning of our Soul beyond ego, a growing consciousness. Synchronistic energetic meaning lands when we are “present,” we are reminded, and we remember deeply who we are and that we are part of something greater.

“Our ancestors knew that the silence is not silent, that the darkness is luminous. We must be alone if we are to find out what is that supports us when we can no longer support ourselves. Only this experience can give us an indestructible foundation”. This foundation supports you from within, links you to transcendence, re-frames the perspectives received from your history, and provides the agenda of growth, purpose, and meaning that we all are meant to carry into the world and to share with others.” —James Hollis, Second Half of Life.

The training, sacred space, and community of the Haden Institute’s Dream Work and Spiritual Direction Certification Courses support such inner work. It sure feels like the feminine full moons of this moment are illuminating and calling our courage for deep shadow work. With newly awakened curiosity and self-compassion, what might you see in your shadow of the moonlight?