Shadow Cave

direct link: Shadow Cave.  [The video is subtitled, so you can read along if you like, or have Google automatically translate the text into one of 25 languages. The option appears after you press play. If the cc in the play bar is red, the subtitle track is on; if black, it's not. Mouse click to toggle. Click on this image to see the steps to opening the subtitle/caption file:


How to discover what your splits are. What you've repressed in yourself. The shadow isn't necessarily 'Dorian Gray' -but can contain positive aspects that you've buried. In this video, the woman goes on a trance journey into the cave of her imagination where she discovers surprising selves. A Paleolithic artist, a woman-child, an angry reflection. The video is about integrating the shadow into the self during a shamanic dance.

Some comments on Shadow Cave:

"...your dancing is simply incredible. Poetic, visceral, physical and spiritual. I love it. Simply, I love it for the energy you are and the feelings it evokes in me. Makes me want to go out and dance to the moon." Kathryn Esplin

"After my first view "shape changing" seemed to stick in my mind. That is a pretty deep level of connecting/shifting." He calls it an "expressionistic masterpiece." william d.

"An interesting combo of creativity - the dance and choreography, the words and rhythms, the story and the feelings of motion rounding up the darkness becoming light ... in self-realisation." Bernard C.

"I love this video in more ways than I can say...

I love the leafy screen overlay-- that places the story squarely in the wilderness. I love the flashes of color that appear at key moments. I think the visual climax is probably when the dark shadow self emerges and sometimes follow the movements of the self but sometimes does the opposite. Excellent!

Lastly, I love that you've challenged the idea of Plato's cave, where one can see only external shadows. Internal shadows are much more important, and I'd like to think that Jung would also have seen his internal shadows within the cave." Ann Marcaida

"OMG, this is so beautiful, and I know someone in deep crisis right now...  who would benefit from viewing/listening to this... except [their] grasp of English isn't good. You know, you brought tears to my eyes with this one... It's so light, even with a light/sly sense of humor instilled here and there in the most appropriate of ways, yet I don't think I've experienced anything so deep and profoundly essential and so healing from you yet. It's as though you almost let all veils down, briefly and safely, and then bring it all together. Brings a whole new meaning to "mother and child reunion." And there's so much more. Love the symbolism of the snake... and the fat man. This is so well done, a real masterpiece, of describing a journey of integration." Bent Lorentzen

[I did mention that the subtitles can be translated by Google into other languages, maybe not perfect, but enough to get the gist.]

Also, I have been deeply moved by responses to this video by young women struggling with eating disorders, cutting, and other self-harming strategies to maintain an 'acceptable social self', or I would say, sanity in an insane world. And a young man dealing with alcohol addiction said it was kinda kooky but he understood it and understood that you can accept and live with all the parts of yourself.