Our shadow selves are those dark and mysterious places within us that we have refused to shine the “light” on, for one reason or another.
The human shadow contains every thought, feeling, desire, and personality trait that we have rejected or suppressed.
Consider this test an initiation into the shadow work path if you haven’t entered it already. No matter what result you get, it’s always crucial to incorporate some level of shadow work into your life and spiritual awakening journey.
What is Shadow Work?
Shadow work is the practice of finding, befriending, and transmuting the wounded, suppressed, and buried parts of yourself (i.e., your shadows) so that you can regain access to your inner Light.
Our Dark Side & Carl Jung Shadow Self Quotes
Where does this idea of having a dark side come from in modern times? The concept of the shadow originated in the work of Swiss psychoanalyst Carl Jung.
Here are a few of the most famous Carl Jung shadow self quotes to contemplate:
Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.
(Psychology and Religion)
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognising the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.
(Aion)
People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.
(Psychology and Alchemy)
The shadow is a tight passage, a narrow door, whose painful constriction no one is spared who goes down to the deep well. But one must learn to know oneself in order to know who one is.
(The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious)
Shadow Self Test
So, how dominant is your shadow self and what effect does it have on your life?
Find out by taking our free Shadow Self Test.
What result did you get in this shadow self test?
Share your results!
Want to take another test? Try our Shadow Archetype Test.
Need more shadow work guidance? See our Shadow Work Journal, Mindful Shadow Work book, or Shadow & Light Membership for more ongoing support with working to embrace and transmute your Shadow Self.
Large. I completely agree. I haven’t been able to dive into Shadow Work like I should because I have low self-esteem and because of this amazing website, I know I shouldn’t dive too deep until I’ve practiced a lot of self-love. Now I know how to put in the necessary steps to be a better me. Thank you for this, Lonerwolf!
No problem Angel, it’s always important to be gentle when doing this work 💜
Large Shadow Self was my result. I agree. I used to think I knew myself and my world but I realised I had been running away from my truths for so long. They now are massive dark shadows within myself, all because I tried to blot them out to be likeable and fit in… lovely quiz thank you
No worries Laa, thank you for sharing. As Jung put it so eloquently: “Whatever we resist, persists!”. Everything has its own season to deal with it when we’re ready 💜
thats true, thank you
Small Shadow Self…. I have done ALOT of inner work…. ALOT – I am proud of the person I have become. Yes, my life as a child was disturbing, dark and violent but it made me who I am today. And today I’m a Healer and Councillor who can really truly understand what others are going through.
This is so powerful and inspiring, well done Karen! 💗
Small. I can’t say I’m surprised. Nonetheless, I came to grips with a certain shadow recently that badly needed attention. I will not go into detail, but I will recommend that those who can, with earnest certainty, say they have small shadows consider how even what’s left of those impact their lives. I will leave any recommended methods to nobler souls, I think.
I received a result of Small Shadow.
I can’t explain that.
If I told you about my childhood and my adult life you’d probably be shocked.
I haven’t read the Shadow Work Journal, yet.
It’s next on my list.
I wonder if I’ve been working on that most of my adult life. . .
I said that I couldn’t explain it.
Then a few minutes later, in my FB feed was this post.
“Here is a truth you often don’t hear:
Traumatized women have the potential to become the most powerful people in this world.
The most ignorant members of society call this type of woman “damaged.”
But she is the most powerful type of woman there is.
What they forget is that survivors have the most dangerous advantage of all: resilience.
When you try and you try but you can never bring a woman down, you’ll know there is no going back.
Don’t fool yourself. You could never defeat her. You never will. This is the woman who will always rise from the dead; Lady Lazarus, after going through hell and back.
This is the woman who has burned her feet in the flames time and time again and always lives to tell another tale – even if she has to crawl back to life. . . .
When someone tells her, “You can’t do it,” she says, “Watch me.”
She is fiery light birthed out of wintery darkness. Brought into the underworld by Hades, Persephone brings forth spring and rebirth when she reemerges finally from the cold. She owns her shadows and seamlessly weaves them into the fabric of her freedom, creativity, imagination and independence. . . .
She lived all of her nightmares in high definition. She was given every reason to give up, handed every justification to never believe in herself or anyone. But there is raw magic in the ways in which she cultivates a faith in herself, to manifest the dreams her soul was meant to bring forth.
Despite it all, she still conquers.
She still survives and thrives.
The “damaged” woman is capable of immense manifestation not just in spite of, but because of the traumas she has gone through. There is no one more motivated than a woman who has constantly been told what she cannot do or who she cannot be throughout her lifetime. There is no one more determined to succeed than someone who has nothing left to lose.
The “damaged” woman doesn’t sign up for the hardships of her journey – but she plays the hell out of the cards she’s been dealt.
The “damaged” woman is not damaged at all – she is wounded, and in channeling and healing her wounds, she becomes the source of incredible energy, the site of unbelievable potential for abundance and change.
She possesses the power to use her wounds for the greater good and her highest good. She builds her own success and becomes her own rugged hero; tends to her own scraped knees. She uses every stone thrown at her to build the foundation for her empire. Brick by brick she builds – and despite every attempt to tear her walls down, she rescues herself again and again. Despite it all, this type of survivor may still face hatred, envy, greed from those around her. . . .
As a result, she becomes the survivor of countless witch hunts, the target of many persecutors. Yet when they try to burn her at the stake, she does what comes naturally: she resurrects herself. . . .
Now when she creates, she creates new worlds and transforms and manifests on a level that cannot be recreated by someone who never had to struggle to survive. When you hear the voice of a powerful survivor and the will of a warrior – there is nothing you can do but to stop and listen. She is the voice of a million lifetimes lived. She is the voice of the hopeless and the powerless when the fire is brought back to their eyes. She is the harbinger of the justice that the voiceless have longed to hear and feel and touch. Regardless of how much you try and how it may seem, you can never truly bring a survivor like this to her knees; she already knows the value her scars bring.
She knows how to fill the cracks between her wounds with gold. She knows how to transform each bitter word cast upon her into an iron-clad will that will set her and other caged birds free. You can’t ever defeat a “damaged” woman, because she knows exactly how to save herself.”
~ Shahida Arabi, excerpts from SHE IS POWERFUL
Small Shadow. That didn’t come easy. I went through 10 years of dark night of the soul. I lost my health, freedom to leave an abusive marriage and I was completely alone. I only had my cat those years. I lost my spiritual connection and attempted suicide several times. I only prayed for death. Things got so ugly in my marriage I hated him and had ugly thoughts. I’d never hated or wanted to harm anyone in my life and it scared me. You can call it my 1st glimpse at my Shadow. I was afraid of doing something terrible and just said without thinking “God I don’t want to end in prison because of this man.” A few days later I got a check from my disability they’d been holding!
I couldn’t believe it. I called and verified several times. It was my first check. Yet, how odd that it arrived when it did. I didn’t think twice and ran to get my divorce papers done. I forgot the severe chronic pain I was in at that moment 🤣! After 3 years I finally was free of that relationship. However, my health continued to deteriorate.
Out of the blue I had 5 recurrent dreams with my 1st husband who I had no contact in over 2 decades! Long story short I got in contact with him. I was very young when I married him. I didn’t know I was an empath and he is a narcissist. I didn’t know those words.
I thought I’d healed from all the trauma. I had grown and changed through the years. I didn’t have any grudges. I didn’t repeat the same mistakes.
My 2nd marriage was also terrible but a different experience. I never expected to encounter a sociopath!
Anyway, when I saw my ex-husband I was shocked to see he was the exact same person I knew! Also, I didn’t realize how much trauma I had completely repressed all those decades!
It was funny seeing him playing his games and expecting me to fall for it again 😂 ! The very first time I saw him he wanted to kiss me! He asked twice and both times I said no. As an entitled narcissist he kissed me on the lips anyway. The slap he got in the face shocked him 🤣! He’d always gotten his way with me. I was always afraid of him. “No means no! I’m not that teenage girl anymore. You treat me with respect or you leave!”
Seeing him was what triggered my spiritual awakening. I started researching and found this site. I downloaded a few books. The 1st one I started was the Shadow Work one.
It was a life and insanity saver! I am so grateful to you. I tried other stuff before but it was all about manifesting money, love and I wasn’t interested.
I finished the entire book. My 1st awakening was intense and overwhelming. I finally was in touch with source and my guides (I’ve had a deep connection with the spirit world my entire life.). I asked them to please give me a break. They didn’t. It was a constant tug to do something and I couldn’t ignore it.
It was a nonstop purge.
My disabilities were getting worse. I tried every medication, supplements and changed my diet. I constantly researched. Everything I read said I wasn’t going to improve. I’d continue living in constant severe pain and my joints being damaged. I had 3 autoimmune diseases.
During my 1st year of my spiritual awakening I got off the meds I was on. I was spending all this money for nothing but opiate withdrawal. If my doctor of 10 years hadn’t suddenly turned on me and called me an addict I might not have. That hurt because I thought we had a good relationship and I never abused my medication. When he gave me a script for a drug dependency clinic I lost it! I couldn’t stop sobbing and telling him how dare he treat me this way. It was a blessing in disguise.
I’m going through withdrawal from opiates, having a spiritual awakening, being flooded by so many traumatic experiences I completely had amnesia for decades and dealing with my ex-husband who is still up to his old tricks.
One dayI was listening to music and realized I was tapping my thigh! I didn’t let people touch me because a tap felt like a punch and here I am tapping to the beat of the song! I literally started hitting myself everywhere 🤣! Then the arthritis literally reversed itself. All the joint damage went away! My feet are the only part that didn’t fully reverse. They aren’t as pretty lol. I could go for long walks again after 10 years! I could dance again. It’s a passion of mine.
It’s like all my health problems were a manifestation of my emotional pain and as I worked through it I healed emotionally, spiritually and physically. Miracles do happen.
I told my psychiatrist and he even told me to contact the medical community! He even called it a miracle. I even tapered down from those meds.
At the end of the year I communed with my spirit guides and source. I thanked them for everything and asked for a small favor. 3 month break. I’d had a spiritual burnout already. Well, I guess they didn’t hear the month part. I got 3 days.
Then had a Kundalini awakening! Won’t go into detail, suffice to say it made that 1st year feel like a walk in the park!
I finally done shadow work and it transformed me into a spiritual being
How do I find out the results of the quizs
there is a ‘skip to results’ button u can press after u do the quiz hopefully that works
I’m just so scared of what’s inside of me and I need help to get rid of the darkness that lives within me
I’m sorry to hear that you’re so scared of what’s inside of you, Leon. You’re welcome to continue exploring this website for support. Our Shadow & Light Membership can also provide you with that gentle ongoing guidance that you might be looking for: https://shop.lonerwolf.com/product/shadow-light-membership/ Wishing you the best 💜
But now I finally accepted my shadow so thank you
‘Large Shadow’ I’ve been thru some messed up experiences during my teen /adult years. Had a great child hood, but I was just always depressed and feeling worthless. I became a woman at 9 and I’ve felt like this since, always thinking of bad things, like go instance death. Idk why. And I have an obsession with how I look. If I don’t look a certain way I will not leave my house. I have what they call Body-Morphic Disorder. It’s a mental illness which actually cause me to go anorexic. I was 160 lbs and went to 90. Since my body structure is the way it is, I physically couldn’t loose more weight. My dad was going to send me somewhere to get me some help, he was scared for me because I stopped eating. I only ate enough to allow me to keep going on. I dropped out of school from the depression and anxiety. I sabotaged myself so much growing up, thinking I had to be this or look like that because of how society expects. Thinking so negative all the time. I have my daughter now, she is 11 and she’s just like me which in terms scares me. Because I don’t want her going down this road like I did. She’s is a woman already, like me at 9. And is depressed and feels alone in school. Just lïke me, her body is more developed than kids her age and she is very mature I just hope that it doesn’t play history over again. I now know what my dad was talking about. I still struggle everyday, with my depression and the way I look. Me getting older isn’t helping me either. I’m actually worse because I am getting old. My looks are going to go away. And I am terrified about that. I didn’t enjoy my youth like I wish I had. My problem. Is the same still, but now I feel like I am way too skinny! I regret starving my self. I wish I would of taken better care of me. What I didn’t know then was that I was at a good weight, yeah 160 sounds like a lot but it’s not, not for my bone structure. I wasn’t fat and people didn’t even know that I was 160. Because I wore it well, I also hated my teeth and my hair. I just hated all of me. And now what I wouldn’t give to get that back. I’m too skinny now and my teeth are gone because of my choices in life. Like I said I’ve been thru a lot more than most people and I haven’t even began to scratch the surface. This is not even a quarter of the things that I’ve lived thru. Anyway my point is that I now realize that my shadow yes, has done all kinds of bad for me. And I let it. I let it destroy good things about me. I still fight myself everyday, some times I can get by with it. I’ve mostly became numb I guess and gotten use to it. My point is to tell that young girl, listen I know it may seem dark right now, but there is always a way to get back your light. The light that some of us let go dim the older we get. Don’t let that go so easy, I can’t say how you keep it because I really don’t know. I am trying to get mine back, but you want to keep that childlike sense of wonder and imagination. Because that is going to be your most beautiful attribute. And it also will keep your shadow self from taking control of your life. Believe me, that was my biggest mistake that I wish I never did. I completely let mine take over everything and now I regret that. You don’t get to go back and try again. I’ve missed out on life because of it. Now, the older I get the more bitter I am. The more numb I become because I really did nothing with my life because that little voice in me kept saying ‘You can’t’ & Iistened to it. And I was so wrong. It took me almost dying from liver failure and sepsis to realize that I did absolutely nothing with my life but doubt. I doubt everything. Besides the love I have for my daughter & if I were to die today what would. Be left behind and the thoughts were absolute negativity & nothingness. That’s my shadow that has won there. & that’s what I’ll leave behind if I die here and now.. No way!!! That is what I’ll leave for my daughter, uh no way I’m not doing that again. So, when I got out o decided to change & so I did. But it took me a very long time to see this. I’m half way thru life now, and nothing to show for it. Because of my shadow. I wish I could tel you everything that has happened because it would maybe help someone realize that they can do it no matter how bad things are. You can get out of that. Not saying that I am 💯 I still have my moments but right now my shadow is no longer steering us. I’m trying to get back out of the dark. And I am going to. Just like me you can too! You have to really believe in your self tho.. Let your light shine baby, for that is the way to stay out of the dark.