Awareness of the Negatives

Archetypes are soul energies that constantly seek expression. Every single event, behaviour, feeling or thought has an archetypal energy as its cause or its foundation. Inner and outer realities are not separated in fact, only in awareness or consciousness. It is this awareness and consciousness that we are interested in changing and expanding.

When you reject or resist any outer aspects of life you simultaneously reject or resist the positive expression of an archetype within yourself. But it is impossible to completely block it; it will continue to be present unconsciously and will then manifest in a negative way. It is easier to talk about archetypes having both positive and negative potentials, rather than soul energies, but they really are one and the same reality.

Essential to the activation or positive expression of an archetypal energy is some need in our form or personality life. This can be anything of a physical, emotional or mental nature. It can also be a soul-felt compulsion for expression in response to another’s need. One simple way of entering the sphere of the archetypal energy is to ask a question relating in some way to an existing need – perhaps a need to know, to make a choice between alternatives, to be more creative or to fulfill some purpose that you sense.

Need evokes the soul’s response. But that need must be expressed in thought and words. Through expressing it, you are opening your personality to receive the soul’s energies.

Growth is intrinsic to the nature of life. Need is always related to growth. So a need implies then that some type of change has to take place because growth always involves change. Whenever we are disappointed, frustrated, confused, ill, angry, fearful, or are experiencing any negative emotion or negative thought, these are all signs that growth must take place, that change is required. There is need for a soul energy to be activated and expressed in greater fullness.

All the negatives are simply messages that sufficient awareness is lacking for positive soul energies to manifest. Only the negative aspects of the archetypes are manifesting. And this will not change until we learn what we need to learn and make a choice for greater love and compassion which will activate the positive archetypal energies.

Making a choice for soul when experiencing the negative in the personality is not easy. Our past habits and patterns of laziness, selfishness and ignorance resist different choices. We then need to ask ourselves what is more important than the choices we have made in the past which keep us experiencing some negative. You can be sure that the answers relating to what is of greater priority will have something to do with opening your heart and mind and expressing love and understanding, both of which imply first of all a greater acceptance as an antidote to current resistance.

Every form of resistance, no matter what is being resisted, is fundamentally and implicitly, a resistance to your own soul and its archetypal energies. (Regret, for example, is a form of non- acceptance, e.g., "I wish it would not have happened…") Acceptance of what is being resisted is fundamental to accepting the direction of love and wisdom that comes from your essence, the soul.

This acceptance is not really possible without seeing the issues you have been resisting as having some kind of useful purpose, and seeing them as meaningful for your growth. You cannot know definitively what that ultimate purpose is, but you can always ask yourself what you need to learn from the situation. Look at the characteristics of your negative reactions and feelings, and you will get all the clues you need to what you must learn and express.

Awareness of the negatives in ourselves or our situations show us what the limitations are that need to be addressed. Awareness of the positive in ourselves or our situations show us what the potentials are that need to be activated more fully, the fullest expression of which exist at a soul level.

Exercises:

1. What are your principal resistances? What can you learn from your resistance?

2. What soul energies or archetypes are you resisting? Meditate on them and imagine yourself being imbued with these energies and expressing them practically in your daily life.