I give this 5 stars because it is very well explained, and is powerful wisdom relevant to everyone. We are all caught in a dualistic world, between what we see as good and evil, god and the devil, saint and sinner, light and shadow. But if we embrace ourselves and see all these as belonging to us (although not us), then we can come into wholeness and better appreciate that our shadow sides are not to be suppressed but that they have valuable lessons to teach us. Our shadows can serve as guides for us to live more integrated lives as whole beings, and prevent us from feeling fragmented. Then we can experience oneness. You would understand the concept of the shadow if you are able to say "No one is complete good or evil. We are a bit of both."Deepak Chopra explained it very well when he said that our shadow or darker traits are like beach balls - the harder we try to push them under the water of our psyches, the harder and more furiously they push themselves up to the surface. As co-author Debbie Ford said, that is the reason why so many giants of moralities have fallen under the same vice that they condemned in others. I find that a very good point that Chopra made was that we cannot use our light to suppress and overcome our shadow because the brighter the light, the darker the shadow. The only way to reveal and manage our shadow side is to shine consciousness on it. This way, we can better understand the impulses that drive our thoughts and actions. These impulses have a root that needed to be examined, to be understood. For instance, he cited the example of a young man who was good friends with a rich couple who often extended their hospitality to him. One day, during a dinner party at the couple's home, when discussion about synchronicity, the young man said in front of all the guests:"Did you recall the last time that we were in this city and both of you were arguing so badly that you didn't notice anything else? A van pulled up and on it was written 'Blue Tantrum'" This embarrassed his hosts who later asked him to examine his motivation in that flash of the moment. He did, and realised that deep inside, he envied his friends and felt humiliated that he could not reciprocate their kindness. Being conscious of his shadow's impulses was a powerful lesson for him.The authors come form a very compassionate position. They encourage the reader to see our shadows as basic parts of our natures and psyches and not as something evil or or a sine that needed to be suppressed or condemned. Only by exercising the light of our consciousness can our shadows come out of their hiding places. Otherwise, many of us will live most of our lives dictated by our shadows but never know they even existed. By seeing our shadow as part of us, we begin a journey of conscious living and by understanding that our shadows arose from pain and fear, we begin our growth.I found the section on "collective unconscious" by Deepak Chopra very interesting. This was a term Carl Jung coined. Very often, the decisions that we make are dictated by this collective unconscious (one can also call it common values or social norms) and we need to understand if that collective unconscious in a particular case is serving or hampering our growth.Overall, Chopra and Ford's sections were marvelous. I didn't really get Marianne Williamson's section as it was peppered with too much Christian and pseudo Christian analogies and lingo, and that was kind of a put off for me. But 5 stars still! The Shadow Effect is a good book which helps you think about your own actions in life, and also make you think about other situations which have happened. It is almost a piece which helps you reflect on how you have judged, reacted, and pushed through in certain situations, and how you could have improved upon them. I liked the book when it analyzed and broke down specific examples, and helped you decide which alternative actions can be taken to resolve the situation. It also talked about how being quick to judge, may keep you from seeing the larger picture. Overall, the books content was good, but towards the end, the last author was incredibly preachy. The last 25% of the book was OK, but could have brought in more life examples and views on the situations instead of preaching God’s love every other sentence. I honestly have nothing against this, but the book is about the dark shadow people have and how to recognize it, and alternative ways to have it work for you instead of against you. I understood what he was saying, but it became rather repetitive. Overall, I would like to give the book more than three stars, but because it diverted back and forth between alternative thinking, and preachy word at the end turned it from an interesting read to a struggle to finish. Overall I recommend reading it once, if not to just read the first two parts at least.
What do You think about O Efeito Sombra (2010)?
I really liked this. Learning more about myself and my relationship to the world.
—Blues
A great book. One to read again and again especially Deepak's part.
—sabica
Really eye opening... Well written from 3 different perspectives.
—koonj88
Not my normal genre, but Den recommended it. VERY insightful!
—Dee
