The Pendulum of Duality: The Beginnings of Shadow Work

Many of us are aware, on some level, of the concept of duality. Without having consciously expressed it to ourselves or others, we know that hot is the opposite of cold and hate is the opposite of love, as examples. We tend to box these concepts in by thinking of them as either one or the other. It is either hot or cold, love or hate, evil or good, slow or fast, etc., but in reality these things are only compartmentalized within the frame work of our minds.

Everything exists within a measurement of both dualities. Temperature shifts between the different degrees of hot and cold. Hate and love exists within a measurement of both, shifting back and forth, though sometimes staying closer to one side of the apparent duality, or the other. Everything exists within degrees of itself. It is not that life is dual, but that we perceive it as such because of how our minds function.

We typically organize ideas and thoughts according to where it fits within our minds. Our senses filter into our brains and tell us that things are sweet or sour, hot or cold, pain or pleasure, and we see them within this frame work, automatically. This is both a natural function of our brains, and even more so if we have experienced trauma. The mind will compartmentalize events in order to function more effectively, despite the trauma we have experienced. The more compartmentalized we think and experience life, the more duality will exist within the structure of our experience, typically.

The reality of life, and the power it holds for those who understand that life exists beyond duality, is that everything exists on a kind of line of measurement. Hot is both cold and hot. Hate is both love and hate. Anger is both patience and anger. It is not one or another, but is both, existing at once as the same thing.

There is a core concept of ideas within this line of measurement. As an example, hot and cold exist within the line of measurement that we call temperature. Hate and love exist with the line of measurement of feeling that is connected to our sense of fear and trust in ourselves, others and life. Anger and patience are linked to fear. To fear is to experience a fight or flight response, which is another duality linked to the base of our ego experience. Ego is the line, and fear and trust, hate and love, anger and patience, are the links in the measurement of duality that exist within that line, existing seemingly within their own measurements, but intricately linked to ego and fear. These are deeply complex measurements of duality than may not be fully explained except in its own separate article to explore these related concepts behind the measurement.

Within the same concept are our traits, which appear as strengths and weaknesses within the concept of duality. We tend to think that strengths and weaknesses exist within us as two separate qualities that we posses. Strengths are our good points and weaknesses are to be vilified and denied at worst, within us, or to be accepted, to some degree, as something we must fix and work on to improve. Our good points, which are seen as strengths, we want to improve upon. We fight with ourselves in a constant back and forth of one or the other. Good days cause us to feel elated and bad days feel as if we are taking two steps back, with only one step forward, and we never seem to fully progress. We do, but it is difficult to see it within the cage of duality.

There are certain qualities we all have in varying degrees, which fall in line with the idea of the measurement of these qualities, upon the line of the degree it falls under, and they exist within the idea of duality. The opposite of tenacity is letting go, the opposite of intelligence, which expresses itself in different ways depending on the type of intelligence an individual may possess, is stupid. Introversion and extroversion also exist within duality. All these things may be linked to the concepts of love and fear, as everything stems from these two seeming dual ideas.

Tenacity, may be linked to both fear and love, as we will hold fast to something, because we fear to lose it. Or we may hold fast to something because we love it and only in unconditional love is fear completely dissolved. Intelligence may be experienced equally within a concept of mind and thought. We may think deeply profound thoughts, which allow us to be perceived as intelligent, and then forget to unfasten our seatbelts before we exit the car, as a favorite meme has suggested. This may make us appear to be both intelligent and dumb, or air headed and unware to others. Introversion and extroversion appears differently to others, but may be measured by the degree of how much energy is gained by spending time alone or with others. Both are dual, but every person that exists experiences life within a measurement or spectrum of these two opposites.

Life is not dual. The experience of life is a kind of measurement that we perceive as dual. When we begin to look beyond duality, we glimpse the experiences of our life as a spectrum of both apparent dualities. We begin to learn to both accept and integrate all aspects of ourselves into our being and we begin to understand that those things within us that create both dualities are a root of the same quality that creates the measurement which appears dual. Life swings on a pendulum, and it varies in degrees. We measure by duality, yet in reality we exist within the line as the pendulum swings back and forth.

When we learn to flow within the spectrum of definition and measurement that creates our experience of duality, we learn and experience freedom and grow into, and draw to ourselves, more love. We begin to experience ourselves outside of fear, and we begin to grow and actualize our power, because to step outside of duality, knowing it exists within our conceptual minds, but understanding it as it is, not as it appears, allows us to become powerful, aware and rooted.

The pendulum of life is a basic truth that, as we begin to understand it deeply, we will begin to experience a deep acceptance, love and appreciation for ourselves and this love and appreciation will begin to extend outward towards others, as we explore the many facets of this concept and integrate all aspects of ourselves into our psyches. This is shadow work at its most basic level.

The information in this article was absorbed and learned from the book, The Kyballion, by Three Initiates. You may find a free copy here online at: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14209