Using The Hermetic Principles to Guide Your Depth Work

The concept of the shadow refers to the parts of our psyche hidden from our conscious thought level. Your personal shadows are both negative and positive and are formed as a result of your social and childhood conditioning or trauma. Most who come to the practice of depth work do so to clear away the suffering that comes with managing a life clouded by shadow. But by confronting and integrating your shadow, you not only heal, but you also gain a deeper understanding of consciousness. You learn to adjust your perspective to take a more expansive view of your reality. Through this insight, you clear away programming that has blocked your genius from being realized. Although most come to their depth work to clear away suffering, those who stay find it is a valid path to liberation. Shadow-informed depth work is a path to liberation that opens to a life of exploration and genius.

The Hermetic principles, as outlined in the Kybalion, offer a valuable framework for understanding the relationship between our consciousness and reality. These principles include Mentalism, Correspondence, Vibration, Polarity, Rhythm, Cause and Effect, and Gender. By applying these principles to our depth work practice, we gain a deeper understanding of the nature of consciousness and the reality we experience. We deepen our practice and learn to understand the mind's programming and how it operates. We move past our limitation-based practice and step into a broader perspective that depth work offers.

Mentalism

The first principle. You could spend your whole life meditating on this one principle and it would not be wasted. It states that all is mind, and all of the universe is mental. This principle suggests that everything we experience is a product of our thoughts and consciousness. In depth work, this principle highlights the importance of our thoughts and beliefs in shaping our reality. By examining our thoughts and opinions about ourselves and the world, we can identify the shadow aspects we have repressed or denied. The most accessible place to see this principle is your projections. By looking at where you find yourself charged by someone else's actions, you see a part of yourself that needs to be integrated. You stop projecting this evil onto the world by learning to make peace with this part of yourself. When enough of us stop projecting this outward, this evil is no longer realized in the world.

Correspondence

The second principle states that there is a correspondence between the macrocosm and microcosm. This principle suggests a relationship between the larger universe and our individual consciousness. In the context of depth work, this principle highlights the interconnectedness of all things and the importance of examining our personal shadow in the context of the larger universe. By understanding the relationship between our personal shadow and the larger universe, we can better understand ourselves and the world around us. You start to see the power of story in all things. You find your personal mythology. You begin to understand the whispering voice of your genius. Everything is fractal; this means that, at some level, you are everything.

Vibration

The third principle states everything is in motion and has a vibrational frequency. This principle suggests that everything, including and especially our thoughts and emotions, has a vibrational frequency that informs our reality. In the context of depth work, this principle highlights the importance of examining the vibrational frequency of our thoughts and emotions. By identifying and transmuting our thoughts and feelings to a higher vibrational frequency, we integrate our shadow aspects into our consciousness. Our "in-theater" work becomes vital. We start to see that our plot is the looking glass that contains the quality of our consciousness. You begin to develop a daily practice such as our Mental Cleanse process. Your genius begins to peek its head around the spring of life. 

Polarity

The fourth principle states that everything has an opposite and that opposites are identical in nature but different in degree. This principle suggests that all things, including our shadow aspects, have a polar opposite that is equal in nature but opposite in degree. In the context of depth work, this principle highlights the importance of examining the polar opposite of our shadow aspects. By identifying and integrating the polar opposite of our shadow aspects, we can achieve balance and harmony within ourselves. An advanced practitioner starts to see that it's all story, all the way down to the gaze of God. The meaning made always has an equal and opposite. Anticipation is power. If we have a sacred identity, there must be a profane. If there is profane, there must be sacred. Learn to notice how you navigate through meaning by leveraging the law of polarity.

Rhythm

The fifth principle states that everything has a rhythm and flows in and out. This principle suggests that everything, especially our emotions, and thoughts, have a natural ebb and flow. In the context of depth work, this principle highlights the importance of examining the rhythm of our feelings and thoughts. By understanding the natural rhythm of our emotions and thoughts, we can identify the patterns and loops we are caught up in. By noticing the loops, you can track the shadow "in-theater." The law of vibration and rhythm teaches us to anticipate the shifts in the wind. By transmuting and neutralizing the lows, we can navigate the sea of the mind more easily. We learn to stay away from the hurricanes that we used to unconsciously find ourselves trapped in. 

The Mental Cleanse process leverages your natural rhythm to gain agency over your mindset. By working to understand how the principle of rhythm shows up in your life, you can transmute your shadow at the plot or narrative layer.

Cause and Effect

The sixth principle states that every action has a reaction. This principle suggests that our thoughts and actions directly impact our reality. In depth work, this principle highlights the importance of taking responsibility for our thoughts and actions. I worked with two clients today who brought up generational depth work. This is a shadow cast by the wounds of previous generations. Through understanding the law of cause and effect, we can help identify shadows that can be released from generational wounds passed down the line. It is equal to not that the law of cause and effect supersedes the illusion of time. This means that doing the work to heal generational shadow not only heals your wounds but heals the wounds of your ancestors and your offspring. 

Gender

The seventh principle states that everything has a masculine and feminine aspect and that these aspects are necessary for creation and manifestation. This principle suggests that all things, especially your consciousness, have masculine and feminine elements that must be balanced for optimal growth and development. In the Shadow Tribe, we understand that some depth work needs both energies present. This principle highlights the importance of examining your masculine and feminine energies and how they appear in shadow. By understanding the relationship between masculine and feminine energies and shadow, you begin to understand how the programming of your mind is created. You take back the agency trapped in unconsciously living in a story engine you have been unconsciously programmed to generate.

The practice of depth work can be challenging, as it requires you first to confront and integrate parts of yourself that you have been avoiding or denying. However, by using the principles of Hermeticism as a guide, you can achieve a deeper understanding of consciousness and the world you live in. Through depth work, you can release the negative patterns and beliefs holding you back and make space for the genius archetype to shine through you.

Depth work, in its core, is a practice of self-reflection. By examining your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors, you can identify the shadow aspects you have been repressing or denying. This means being willing to face beliefs you have held that are so painful that you lie to yourself about carrying them. You have to be willing to peer into the darkness. In that commitment, you will find something stares back.

Another important aspect of depth work is acceptance. It can be challenging to accept the parts of ourselves we have been hiding. Still, by acknowledging and accepting these shadow aspects, we can begin integrating them into our consciousness. This acceptance can be done through affirmations or self-talk, admitting that these shadow aspects are a part of who we are and that it is safe to confront and integrate them.

The process of depth work also involves taking action. Once we have identified and accepted our shadow aspects, we must take action to integrate them into our consciousness. This can involve changing our thought patterns, behaviors, or beliefs. It may also include seeking new experiences or opportunities that challenge old patterns and ideas.

Ultimately, depth work is a journey of self-discovery and self-awareness. By using the principles of Hermeticism as a guide, you achieve a deeper understanding of yourself and the world around you. You develop a practice of releasing the negative patterns and beliefs that have held you back and embracing your genius. You can achieve balance and harmony through depth work, allowing us to live a more fulfilling and authentic expression and life experience.  Our tribe does the great work both online and in person. Having a tribe of committed shadow practitioners support you on your journey will open up your practice by adding the medicine of community. You can connect with us on Facebook or reach out to me for private support.