issue 13: Shadowlands

As the light of day wanes and the veil between worlds grows sheer, we are invited to go more within and even dare to peer beyond that gauzy partition that keeps at bay our fears into… the Shadowlands… where death, darkness, “the devil”, lost souls and all manner of monsters reside… Shall we take a little ride?

Samhain, Halloween, Allhallowtide, All Saint’s Day, All Soul’s Day, Día de Muertos (rooted in the ancient Aztec Mihcailhuitl “festivals of the dead”), The Hungry Ghost Festivals of East Asia and Surva in Bulgaria… For many thousands of years and in all cultures around the world, connecting with the dead and contending with darkness is in our DNA. What I love most about these traditions and festivals is the playful and celebratory spirit with which all cultures have long confronted the darker side of life. As a humanity, we have always known darkness and we have always found a way to disarm it through basic acknowledgment, making light of it and partying alongside it in style.

Truth is, all those darker things we would rather avoid are alive and well just beneath the surface of our everyday lives. For those with a foot in two worlds, who perceive multiple layers beyond the façade, who’ve faced their own darkness and, through much toil and dedication, have earned their doctorate at the University of Hellenback… the Shadowlands are a familiar terrain and their inhabitants come to be regarded more friend than foe. The amicable acquaintanceship and good humor one necessarily cultivates when residing among these realms has a way of taming the dragons, befriending the devils, subduing the serpents, declawing the demons, defanging the vampires, turning werewolves into puppy dogs and generally neutralizing the spook factor of it all. Those who’ve been to the dark depths and returned empowered with greater wisdom, discernment and confidence make very good guides, a bit like Rick Steves of The Underworld. These are the shamans, mystics, sages and pioneers of the mind who’ve come to see and appreciate the deep and vast interrelatedness of all things.

Why, pray tell, would anyone want to explore the Shadowlands? When we are not facing our Shadow it is being projected before us from behind, appearing as other people and situations outside our locus of control. We end up engaged in endless shadow boxing matches to the point of mental and emotional exhaustion rather than using that valuable energy toward our own evolution, creative pursuits and the upliftment of others. To begin confronting the Shadow is to start claiming our sovereignty and free agency. When we better know ourselves within, we also become more discerning about the world without; the construct of consensus reality no longer has the same sway over us; no longer can narcissistic vampires drain us of our vital essence nor psychopath werewolves lure us into their dens of sadistic fantasy. To dance with our shadow, dine with devil, confront our carnal nature and ultimately prevail over our own baser instincts gives us access to higher realms of conscious awareness where we are endowed with greater sovereignty and greater access to a wellspring of creative energy.

Is there a map at least? Shaman psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung refers to the great adventure of deep introspection as the process of Individuation. It is a lifelong journey of becoming a whole and distinct individual by uniting the unconscious with the conscious self. The process involves confronting and integrating aspects of the personality such as the "Shadow" (repressed traits) and the "Anima/Animus" (contrasexual archetypes), and balancing the external "Persona" (social mask) with one's inner life to realize one's own unique purpose. The process aims not to achieve perfection but to realize a more complete and authentic self, one that is ever learning and discovering because of its imperfection.

How does this relate to community? In the Hero’s Journey (representing the basic map or template for Jung’s Individuation process), the hero must face a fearsome dragon that has been the source of torment and malignant darkness in the world. This formidable beast happens to also be fiercely guarding piles of stolen gold and a hostage maiden (the soul or ‘Anima’ in the male psyche, ‘Animus’ in female) in its dark lair. To liberate the maiden and retrieve the treasure, the dragon must be slayed or subdued. The great treasures of the cave are then taken back to the place of origin and shared among the community. The hero and maiden are married (integration of the Anima/Animus) and the community is enhanced by the great offering won through the hero’s steadfast commitment to his own courageous quest for wholeness. This is the general idea and it is but a creative framework we can relate our own lives to. The greatest adventure of all is how we live our own stories of this process, both individually and collectively. What parts of us must we liberate and integrate, what dark caverns must we brave and what inner dragons must we conquer to gain the great treasures hidden within?

Now that we have a basic map in hand and our “why” compelling us from within, it’s time for a little adventure. With Jung as our guide, let’s go spelunking into the deep and expansive caverns of our own human psyche!

In Truth, Beauty and Goodness,

Brandy “The Vampire Slayer” Monique

………………………………………………………………………………

✺This newsletter is intended to be a collaborative project so if you would like to make a contribution to any upcoming newsletters, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

All archived back issues of The Community Garden may be found here.

LOCAL SPELUNKING

Carlsbad Caverns

An Apache story tells of a medicine man who ventured into the caverns and was never seen again. Every year, tribal members would visit the cave around the anniversary of his disappearance and leave food for him at the entrance. In 1903, when Texas cowboy Jim White first explored the cave’s depths, he found a skeleton…

Carlsbad Caverns is vast, mysterious and of an otherworldly beauty. There are over 30 miles of mapped passages in its main cavern system and more than 100 known caves in the park. The "Big Room" within the cavern is the largest single cave chamber in North America, spanning 8.2 acres. Other large caves in the park include Lechuguilla Cave, which extends over 140 miles, making it the longest in the United States. A real treasure right beneath our own feet!

DEMON CHASERS

Stranger Than Fiction: Kukeri

The Balkans is home to an ancient pagan tradition where magic and mystery still have a sacred place in the cosmic order. The Kukeri festival has had a strong hold over Bulgarian cultural life since the fifth century, surviving the Ottomans, Christendom and communist rule. Every winter, hundreds of terrifying figures prowl snow-capped forests and village centers in search of evil spirits to dispel from their communities. Oversized bells, gnarled horns, wooden staffs and fantastical masks are just some of the familiar components of a ‘kuker’s’ costume.

In this short film, we peek into the story of one family’s commitment to maintaining this ancient tradition, taking on the very important and necessary role of dispelling demons from their community. Sort of like supernatural street sweepers.

FLORA & FAUNA

The Misunderstood Lives of Bats

A band of gorgeous teal-colored sky hovers between the radiant yellow of the setting sun and the oncoming deep blue of night as I await the evening exodus of all the bats inside Carlsbad Caverns. It is my first visit to the southeastern New Mexico national park, but not my first time ever seeing bats. I grew up watching them dart under and over our neighborhood streetlights in Crownpoint and flutter in and out of the stadium lights at every summer rodeo…

Bat symbolism, spiritual meaning and medicine.

A TALE OF TENDERNESS

The Lindworm with Martin Shaw

In this short film, mythologist, author, and storyteller Martin Shaw tells the old Norwegian story of “The Lindworm,” a mythical creature that is part human and part snake. This ancient tale poses a timely question: what have we exiled that returns to us in fury? This telling of “The Lindworm” reminds us of the enduring wisdom of this timeless myth and of our often fraught and fearful relationship with the wild.

For an extended reflection on the intelligence that lies at the heart of myths, listen to EM’s interview with Martin Shaw: https://emergencemagazine.org

LISTEN

Me and The Devil

Legendary bluesman Robert Johnson made a deal with the Devil. As the story goes, he went down to the crossroads at midnight to meet the Devil. He hands the Devil his guitar, the Devil tunes his guitar and hands it back. Robert accepts it and, in that moment, Robert becomes the greatest blues legend of all time.

As the verifiable story goes, Robert Johnson was a lover of music, the guitar specifically, and wanted nothing more than to embody that music and share it with the world. His father was a sharecropper and the same path was expected of him, but he resisted. He fell in love with and married a young woman. They would soon after be expecting a baby though both mother and child tragically died during childbirth. Robert had nothing more to lose at this point… except for his soul. He forsook all that constrained him and dared to completely embrace that which was forbidden, that which resided deep in his soul and wanted to be let loose into the world…

The lyrics of this song conclude with the lines "You may bury my body down by the highway side" / "So my old evil spirit can catch a Greyhound bus and ride”. Brilliant!

The Soap & Skin version is also very good!

WHAT HIDES BENEATH

The Tell-Tale Heart by Annette Jung

Ed hates the disgusting eye of his father and so he made up his mind to take the life of the old man to rid himself of the eye forever. Based upon the novel “The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe.

EXLPORE

An Animated Tour of the Inner World

In this video, Amy Lyne guides us through Jung’s Map of the Soul, her beautifully animated tour of the inner world. We explore the Persona, Ego, Personal Unconscious, and Shadow to understand how each shapes the complexity of the self. This isn’t a lesson as much as it is a journey. It invites you to reflect on the parts of yourself you know well, and the ones that still feel mysterious.

SHADOW WORK

The Shadow – Carl Jung’s Warning to The World

We must identify the contents of the shadow and integrate them into our personality lest they become a nuisance if not danger to ourselves and others. This is the process of “the realisation of the shadow”, also known as shadow work.

Through shadow work, one can observe one’s shadow outwardly by watching one’s emotional reactions and being radically honest about one’s interactions with others, and inwardly by exploring one’s dreams.

This allows one to become enlightened and reduces the shadow’s destructive potential, not so much, as it were, by waging war against the darkness, but by bringing the darkness to the light, the light to the darkness. As Jung writes:

“There is no light without shadow and no psychic wholeness without imperfection.”

Carl Jung, C.W. Vol. 12 “Psychology and Alchemy”

DREAM WORK

“The Cave”

During my early childhood I had a brief but powerful dream that still remains with me. It goes like this:

I am in a dark cave so dimly lit that I can see barely anything at all. I am being led by what I perceive to be non-human beings that I do not see but sense are guiding me down this cavernous corridor then into a small room or cell within the cave wall. I somehow know this cell is one of many cells that line many corridors of the cave system. Since it seems I was escorted in, and did not arrive here by choice, I assume I’m in some kind of prison cell. Upon coming to that conclusion a voice enters my mind and says to me “there are no bars and no locked doors…”. My choice is implied. And so, with just a bit of hesitation, I head toward the opening where I entered then simply walk out. I’m not sure where to go exactly and I consider that I could be caught outside my cell. Then I think about all the many people in all those cells throughout this cave system, who knows how many. I have no plan but a simple impetus: how can we all get free?

………………………………………………

The power of dream work lies in its ability to act as a bridge between the conscious and unconscious mind, offering insights for problem-solving, healing, personal growth and creativity. By engaging with dreams through practices like journaling or dialogue, we can access deep-seated emotions, overcome psychological blocks and integrate their dreams' wisdom into waking life for greater self-awareness and well-being

Interested in analyzing your dreams? A Jungian Life analysts guide us in How To Work With Your Dreams.

Find their Dream School, Dreamography and Dream Telepathy Project here.

FILM

Cave of Forgotten Dreams

Cave of Forgotten Dreams is a breathtaking 3D documentary from the incomparable Werner Herzog. The film follows an exclusive expedition into the nearly inaccessible Chauvet Cave in France, home to the most ancient visual art known to have been created by man. Through the lens of Herzog we get a unique glimpse of pristine artwork dating back to human hands over 30,000 years ago -- almost twice as old as any previous discovery.

Let’s take a tour!

Read the Smithsonian Magazine article about the cave and its discovery here.

DEPTH PSYCHOLOGY

Shadow, Evil & Individuation

The devil archetype carries three qualities: it promotes bestial violence of every kind, it tries to convince us that the material world is the only reality, and it fools us into thinking we can spiritually ascend through intellect alone. On a personal level, it gathers our disowned infernal traits—envy, rage, greed, and the wish to dominate —and seduces us into believing those qualities are virtues. Once we face our own devilishness and grant it a symbolic form, we can assume a choiceful stance. Lacking that, we try to evacuate our own evil by projecting it onto others and then punishing them. As Jungians, we understand that our inferior function will first present as an imp. Still, with kind concern and thoughtful opportunities, it can transform into an uncanny ally that rescues us from malignant innocence. In its subtle form, the demonic attitude tempts us into literalism as it attacks our capacity to reflect and hold a symbolic attitude.

ORIGINS OF EVIL

Native Exorcist Spiritual Lessons & Tales

In this chilling episode of Unearthing the Supernatural, we explore the origins of evil and the ancient being known as Oł’bąądíí, the enforcer of cosmic order and the embodiment of shadow. From the dawn of creation, where light and darkness first took shape, Oł’bąądíí’s story unfolds—a tale of control, chaos, and the balance between good and evil. Join us as we dive deep into:

The cosmic conflict between Oł’bąądíí and So’Holkaa, the being of light 🌕
How Oł’bąądíí spawned countless evil beings to prove that chaos reigns
The sacred ceremonies that Hero and other guardians have revived to push back against the forces of darkness
How to recognize the subtle temptations of evil that seek to destroy your creativity and connection to the light
This episode will haunt your thoughts as we reveal the duality of the universe and the necessary balance between light and shadow. Evil isn’t just an enemy—it’s part of the natural law.

Join us as we Unearth the Supernatural and confront the terrifying beings that exist in the darkest corners of our world.

Note: The interwoven night vision video footage is from some of their nocturnal exploits addressing skin walkers, lost souls and malicious spirits that live on that land who lure those vulnerable to surrender their lives and often feed on the energy of the living. The team uses a technology that essentially provides a frequency medium which can be manipulated by non-corporeal entities as their “voice”, in lieu of actual vocal cords.

The most important takeaway from the wisdom of the Diné is that balance and harmony is the Natural Order and it is this order and balance we must endeavor to preserve and maintain. The aim of the native exorcist/spirit warrior is not to destroy all evil but to keep it in check when it goes out of bounds.

HERO’S JOURNEY

Legend

This 1985 epic dark fantasy provided my early education about the duality of this reality. The rich imagery and costuming, great soundtrack, brilliant acting and writing make this film a true classic! The story revolves around Jack, a pure being who must stop the Lord of Darkness who plots to cover the world with eternal night. It is often described as a dark fairy tale and as a return to more original and sometimes disturbing fables originating from the oral tradition of ancient times before reading and writing were widespread.

The Seduction of Darkness

Through dreams I influence mankind

What is Light without Dark?

LIGHT OF AWARENESS

“D”, The Dark Factor

What is “D”?
Put simply, D describes the tendency to ruthlessly pursue one's own interests, even when this harms others (or even for the sake of harming others), while having beliefs that justify these behaviors.

Dark personalities are cold, callous, manipulative, vindictive and casual if not habitual deceivers. They also have a way of coming across as warm, charming, kind, generous, social and seemingly interested in you... Why the contrast? Because they are predators, deeply invested in their outward appearance to achieve their self-serving aims at any cost to others. So how do we know who or what we’re actually dealing with?

Education:

How to Identify Human Predators with Dr. Karen Mitchell

The Dark Triad: Dealing with Narcissists, Sociopaths, and other Toxic People | Being Well

The Psychology of Psychopaths - Predators who Walk Among Us

Dark Triad - Tracking the wolves in our midst (a Jungian perspective)

Why psychopathy is more common than you think, with Abigail Marsh, PhD

Inside the brains of psychopaths | Kevin Dutton, James Fallon, Michael Stone | Big Think

Extreme psychopathy to extreme altruism

How Vampires are a classic depiction of the Narcissist

Exposure to the Light of Truth Disinfects Abuse

MAKING LIGHT (HUMOR)

“Just a regular guy”

A hilarious parody of a serial killer documentary.

It does point to the very real issue of cognitive dissonance when it comes to properly seeing predatory behavior. Why is it when predators are finally caught people always seem so surprised and say things like “No, not Phil Intheblank!” “He was such a nice guy, such a pillar of the community”... Only in retrospect do people who knew (or think the knew) them refer back to potential indicators that something was… nooot quite right. Our challenge in aligning two seemingly incongruent things (ie appearance of “goodness” on the surface with devious behaviors) can cause us to fall prey to this predators or become unwittingly complicit in the mistreatment of others whom they target.

CHECKS & BALANCES

Real Life Vampire Hunters

I am Hero. I am a Diné Guardian of the High Council. And in this episode, I bring you face to face with one of the oldest, darkest truths: We have always hunted monsters. Long before vampires were ever written in books, long before crosses and silver bullets, my people and many other Native nations fought against beings that fed on life, spirit, and balance. These entities walked not just the physical world, but the worlds beyond—across the thin veils where only Guardians dare to walk. In this episode, we dive into: The real Guardians who stand as exorcists, demon hunters, and slayers of evil. The truth behind the Choctaw hunters seen in Sinners — warriors who confronted the darkness without fear. The ancient battles fought by the Diné Monster Slayer, the Raven Mockers of the Cherokee, the Stikini of the Seminole, the Soul-Eaters of the Choctaw, and more. The sacred role of the High Council, as protectors who walk between worlds to keep the balance when evil threatens harmony. Evil takes many forms: vampires, spirits, witches, shadows. But we have always stood in its way. We are the ones who guard the balance. We are the reason the stories end. If you want to know what Sinners truly touches on — this is the real story behind it.