Home Coaching AlCHEMY Journey From Innocence

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Journey From Innocence

1st April 2020

The Innocent

The innocent trusts life, ourselves and others unconditionally. The part of us that keeps the faith. Expects to be cared for totally outside the mother’s womb.

Goal- remain in safety and security.
Fear- abandonment and rejection
Response to dragon/problem – deny or seek rescue.
Task – fidelity, discernment
Gift -trust, optimism and loyalty

They believe in what authority tells them, whether they have their best interest at heart. They trust when trust is not warranted and believe what they are told about themselves, others and the world. It’s not ok to be or have qualities others condemn. The journey begins in a utopia, which is safe, secure and peaceful. They are then thrown into a world of judgement, where conflict and violence are rampant, with illusions shattered. Soon become the orphan, outcasts or strangers within a strange world—the fall from wholeness into dualism, with the knowledge of good and evil.

The shadow refuses the fall to protect innocence and naivety. They are prone to denial and don’t want to see their parents as anything other than the idealised images, and they lack good judgement. This leads to staying in abusive jobs and relationships with poor patterns of behaviour. They cannot take responsibility for their actions and the part they play, unable to admit to imperfections without feeling inadequate and horrible. It’s important to stay defined by their imaginary persona and social roles, keep deep secrets hidden and act superficially. Other archetypes interact as follows.

Orphan – tempts the innocent to transgress
Warrior – wages war via criticism and punishment
Caregiver – demands sacrifices and accuses the innocent of being selfish if they show any regard for their own desires or welfare.

They subsequently project threatening archetypes onto others

The seeker is seen as a heretic
The destroyer is seen as an enemy
The lover deemed the immortal seducer
The creator guilty of dangerous hubris

They end up with obsessive sexual urges, self-destructive habits, with unconscious impulses to create drama and difficulties. Due to their purity of belief, they assume the authorities and society will forever support them. They are continually seeking a repeat of the symbolic relationship with their mother, as they believe others want what they want and believe what they believe as they cannot see others as separate or real—alternating between idealising/perfectionism and disillusionment/cynicism. They need to learn the paradoxes and survive the struggles of life. The sacrifice is needed psychologically to move out of the illusion of denial and start the spiritual process. We can then reach a new level of truth and reality whilst keeping our dreams and ideals intact.

Shadow – denial, repression, blaming and conformity. Irrational optimism and risk-taking.
Call – a safe, secure environment with a desire for perfection. Experience unconditional love and acceptance.
Level (1) – unquestioning of authority, parents and environment. The world is as experienced. (2) Experience of the fall with disillusionment, with the retention of faith in adversity (3) Return to paradise -the wise innocent with trust and optimism without denial, naivete or dependence.

The Orphan

Goal- regain safety
Fear- exploitation and victimisation
Response to dragon/problem – powerlessness, wish to rescue, cynical compliance.
Task – process and disillusionment, receive help from others.
Gift -interdependence, empathy and realism

They were deprived of parental protection as they were not cherished but abandoned and neglected. They feel betrayed, victimised and disillusioned, compounded by social pressure to deny our vulnerability and pain. When the orphan is dominant, they feel helpless, and the future is bleak; where they seek out world injustices and claim solidarity with rebellious groups fighting the oppressors. Wounded or suffering people seek wounded people to confirm their relativistic subjective opinions, where no moral absolutes exist. They have no inner meaning and operate through caring for others. They continually resist rescuing as they don’t need help from others; they settle for work they don’t like or love, and lovers they can’t trust whilst restraining dreams and ideals.

They bond with peers by sacrificing themselves with no separate sense of self and look for dysfunctional groups. They need to feel safe in healthy groups to express their ideas without rejection and leave when needed. The extreme version seems neurotic and shallow, but it is so common it does not stick out. Living pseudo lives with pseudo lovers, creating a false persona to avoid abandonment and betrayal. Susceptible to manipulation and marketing, seeking intrinsic satisfaction based on money, work and appearance. They play appropriate sex, work and social roles, with an intense fear of looking inwards and facing inner demons. They only tend to seek help when the drugs, alcohol and drama is not working. They self-sabotage and find it hard to progress as they lack discipline and commitment. Respond to feeling high levels of guilt and shame when doing things for themselves and placing boundaries around others.

Shadow – cynicism, masochism. Use the victim role to gain attention and manipulation.
Call – abandonment and betrayal, disillusioned and discrimination.
Level (1) – acknowledge the truth of one’s plight and pain, loss of faith in others, authority, and society (2) Accept the need for help with a will to be rescued and ask for support. (3) Releasing dependence on authority with interdependence. We can all band together against authority and develop realistic expectations.

They may have to wait until they hit rock bottom to accept help from others and set boundaries with tough love, and be a model for them. This is a crucial part of growth and development. We learn our wounds can define us, and we can choose who and what we are. Essential in building ego strength and connecting to the soul.

As we can acknowledge our wounds, we gain enough strength to share them, allowing intimacy, opening up the heart developing compassion and empathy.

The Warrior

They started to search for treasure and were called upon to slay dragons with self-ideals. They are willing to risk their lives to defend the kingdom and protect the weak from harm.

Goal- win, get your own way, make a difference in the struggle
Fear- weakness, powerlessness, impotence
Response to dragon/problem – slay, defeat or concert
Task – high-level assertiveness, fight what matters
Gift – courage, discipline and skills

High level of commitment and integrity, fighting for their own principles, claiming one’s power in the world and exerting change by force or persuasion by protecting boundaries to avoid intrusions of others and learning to overcome the enemy and acknowledging the world’s evil, injustice and dishonesty.

The negative warrior is a villain surrounded by villains and victims participating in wars, poverty and oppression. Believe and prove they are better than normal humans. All they desire is money, status and power, and they are willing to cheat and lie to achieve them. People who block their quest for power and dominance must be destroyed, conquered or converted to submission. The warrior takes our dreams and ideas and creates a plan of action to develop a sense of identity.

Shadow – ruthlessness, obsessive need to win and use power to conquer and convert
Call – confrontation of a great challenge /obstacle
Level (1) –learnt to fight for self and others to win (2) principled fight for self, abide by the rules and fair play, altruistic intent (3) forthright assertiveness with no need for violence. Preference for win/win solutions with increased honesty and truth

The mature warrior diligently prepares, picks their battles carefully, and has a high chance of winning. Courage to control an inner demon, an ability to confront outer demons, convince others to work with them with good Comms and passion for working towards unified goals.

The Caregiver

Goal- help others, make a difference through love and sacrifice
Fear- selfishness and ingratitude
Response to dragon/problem – take care of it, those it harms
Task – give without harming self/others
Gift – compassion and generosity

Teaches to earn the way of the world and become self-sufficient. All about nurturing people and creating situations that help them grow and develop—the transition from ego concerns to the ones of the soul, greater compassion with more self-interest. Men who don’t adopt their caregiver seek a woman to mother them, remaining a mummy boy, acting out misogyny. Unable to say “NO” and may lose themselves in other’s needs. Men and women may be scared by symbiosis and closeness, expecting their partners to play their opposite-sex parental role.

Unless we develop our inner caregiver, we will always depend on others to nurture and care for us

We need to seek out role models and adopt healthier ways of caring to tolerate and challenge obstacles in front of us. We need to implement tough love instead of some of the 12-step programmes available that can encourage enabling and group dependency.

Shadow – suffering martyr, devouring mother /father, guilt-tripping and enabling
Call – responsible care for self and others. Recognition of neediness or dependence
Level (1) –the conflict between their own needs and those of others. Sacrifice own needs and rescue (2) care for yourself, enriching, not maiming, tough love (3) willingness to care beyond your immediate family, friends and community.

Learn to think globally and act locally. Wanting the best for all people where we can live and work freely.

Innocent – what we want
Orphan – want defines us to grow
Warrior – goals and priorities and fight for them
Caregiver – refines our identity through our wounds and sacrifice.

Self-knowledge refines to know one’s own limits and priorities with the ability to say NO to the ego’s demands if they are conflicting with the soul.

The Seeker

Responds to the call of the spirit to ascend.

Goal- search for a better life or a better way
Fear- conformity, becoming entrapped
Response to dragon/problem – leave it, escape and take off
Task – be true to a deeper, higher truth
Gift – autonomy and ambition

Late adolescence starts with great exploration, learning new ideas and beliefs about the world. Poor ego strength may be full of dread instead of a joyful, pleasurable experience. A way to live with more significance and depth beyond one’s social persona where you have creative ability and expression. When life feels empty and confusing, one needs to make new choices without a sense of alienation and limitation, with a battle between individuality and conformity. Often, we start by knowing what we don’t want instead of what we want. This creates a void where the ego used to be and feels confused, wandering in the desert; we must remain faithful to the journey with higher purpose and meaning.

When we stop our commitment, we can become stuck wanderers, are closed off from others, and are terrified of intimacy. Unable to keep commitments and bonds only when we decide to cross the threshold. We will experience several tasks to see if we are adequately prepared and committed. The more challenges and dragons we slay, the greater our warrior skills become—a big desire to encounter authenticity in oneself and the world and reach a transpersonal realm.

The shadow seeker – obsessive need to be independent- keeps us isolated and alone, ignored via denial and physical symptoms. Our pathologies are the calls from the gods. An untempered spiritual ambition used for success and wealth, full of pride and hubris with inflated beliefs of spiritual attainment

Shadow – excessive ambition, perfectionism, pride, inability to commit, addictions
Call – alienation, emptiness with opportunity knocking
Level (1) – exploring, wandering and experimenting (2) ambition, success, the best one can be (3) spiritual searching and transformation. We must die to our Former selves for true transformation.

The Destroyer

Goal- growth and transformation
Fear- stagnation, annihilation, death without rebirth
Response to dragon/problem – be destroyed by it or destroy it
Task – learn to let go, turn it over, accept mortality
Gift – humility, acceptance

One tries to cling to innocence, the ego-oriented position and deny the soul, often possessed by death and disorder. The childlike ego wants to know God and keep them safe, otherwise acting out recklessly. We need to realise evil, death, and cruelty also lie within, which can either cripple us or lead to transformation. We may come crumbling down and succumb to madness or cynicism.

Suffering moves us out of ego attachments, and we let go of the old; facing our worst fears allows us to gain freedom from attachment. The hero’s journey aims to balance the ego, self and soul. We learn to give up what no longer serves us without denying the associated pain and grief with the surrender. Child abuse, robbery or murder can manifest where we cannot take responsibility for the harm we cause or have experienced.

Shadow – self-destructive, destruction of others
The call – the experience of pain, suffering, tragedy and loss of attachment comes under the protection of Eros. Without Eros, our souls never fall to earth.
Level (1) – confusion, grappling with the meaning of death and loss, (2) acceptance of mortality and loss of power, (3) choosing to let go of anything no longer serving us with renewed values, ideas and growth.

It calls us to descend into the depths and integrate our capacity for integration and creation; when we are too attached to being good and wanting social acceptance, we are cut off from our sacred souls. Entering the mysteries leads to death, and, if we are lucky, our divinity. If the Ego is too weak to contain the position, we can’t contain the intensity of connection without losing ourselves or our false self.

The Lover

Without love and soul, we don’t engage with life.

Goal- Bliss. Oneness and bliss
Fear- loss of love and disconnection
Response to dragon/problem – love it
Task – follow your bliss, commit to what you love.
Gift – commitment, passion and ecstasy

Good attachment and bonding come under the protection of Eros. The feeling is deeply primal. Sensual and physical with sexual intimacy, where are desires, closeness is expressed through the pleasure of being known and knowing. When the body and mind are in harmony, we make better decisions based on instincts and body cues. Eros serves the soul, not the ego. We live in civilisations and societies that rarely free one`s Eros. A strong identity is needed to contain intense passion. A negative lover will give over to cynicism, where we fear our souls with shallow, callous lives. This is where the destroyer – represses us of much of what we are attached to or addicted to.

Allow more people into our inner circle of love with abundant spiritual supply.
As deficient warriors who can’t see our limits, we rescue and enable others, whilst we need to learn tough love by setting effective boundaries.
We need to learn to love ourselves without addictions, with no scarcity, as we love ourselves.

A possessed Eros manifests as sexual addictions, affairs or torture and abuse. Truly detest intimacy and sexuality, powered by lust, with no nurturance. It can lead to sickness, jealousy, object identification of self and others, and a loss of life force. Real love “Agape” is achieved with the feminine /masculine inner marriage of wholeness with self-acceptance.

Eros is the power from within which we need to connect to. Love is about joy, pleasure and the art of conception, be it in birth or creative ideas.

Shadow – jealousy, envy and obsessive fixation on love / sexual addiction, pornography
Call – infantile, seduction, yearning, falling in love (idea, person or work)
Level (1) – following your bliss, what you love (2) commitment to what you love (3) radical self-acceptance, the birth of the self and the transpersonal, individual to the collective.

The therapist`s job is to love the client and be present and empathetic. We develop the capacity to love the beast in ourselves and others to transform the beast into a prince. We find out true treasure when we recognise the soul within containing the numinous, divine and universe.

The Creator

As we create our own individual souls, we create the world’s soul. The ego makes security and status the main priority. The soul makes initiation, instinct and creation focus.

Goal- the creation of life, a new reality of any kind.
Fear- inauthenticity, miscreation and failures of imagination
Response to dragon/problem – willing to create another reality
Task – self-creation and acceptance
Gift – creativity, identity and vocation.

Creation is confined by conditioning, social constraints and natural law, where we are not in control of what is happening in a unique way to pull life together. Imagination helps to find meaning and beauty by interpreting the magic around us. We need to learn to honour our experiences with honesty without denial, where we are worthy and valuable. We recognise our inner beauty in the body, mind and character. Becoming a co-creator takes great courage to be vulnerable, open unarmed, with full consciousness of what you are and do. The ego often stops the endless creative flow by its judgements and censorship; we can only create if we are good and compliant.

Shadow – the creation of negative circumstances, limited opportunities, workaholic
Call – daydreams, fantasies, images and flashes of imagination
Level (1) – open to receiving visions, images, instincts and imagination (2) allowing yourself to know what you want and does not support you (3) experimenting with the creation; what you imagine can become dreams.

True to the deepest soul reality and let it emerge with treasure, protected by the ego. A conscious sense of destiny developed with an effective vision for our lives to commit to and complete.

The Ruler

Goal- a harmonious and prosperous kingdom (life)
Fear- chaos, loss of control
Response to dragon/problem – find it, constructive use
Task – full responsibility, express deeper self in the world
Gift – sovereignty, responsibility and competence.

Preparation for leadership with a symbol of wholeness and achievement of self-completion. A unified vision, wisdom of truth, the young and old, feminine and masculine held in dynamic tension, completion of alchemical processes and transformation. The Ruler does not have the leisure of illusions and needs to know their enemy, motives, and desires, the reality of evil. Without the divine and a soul, we lean into egotism, arrogance and great abuse of power.

The shadow ruler cannot trust the process and is interested in power and status with instant gratification. Ogre tyrants operating out of scarcity, where there is not enough, very selfish, narrow-minded and vindictive. With a little imagination and real intellect, has given over to the “Dark Side” where they are not manifesting enough internal power. The positive ruler does not waste time bemoaning what they wish was true but learns to make the best of all we have

Shadow – controlling, rigid, tyrannical and manipulative
Call – lack of resources, harmony, support or order in your life
Level (1) – seeking the healing of wounds, concerned with our life and family, a life of scarcity (2) developing skills and creating structures for manifesting our dreams good of the world. (3) utilising all resources, internal and external, good for society

They learn to let go of their passion, become wise and responsible, sacrifice desires for the greater good. Learn to relinquish self-sabotaging opportunities and reclaim your own power

The Magician

Transforming reality by changing consciousness

Goal- the transformation of lesser into better realities
Fear- evil sorcery (negative, dark side)
Response to dragon/problem – transform or heal it
Task – alignment of self with cosmos and divine
Gift – personal power

Can move into altered states via meditation and prayer or guided fantasies. May be able to foreshadow events in dreams and premonitions. Consciously develop one’s intuition and psychic abilities with a great capacity for discernment. Positive thinking should never be sued to avoid deeper introspection and responsivity for your harm to yourself and others. Forgiveness is more powerful than any affirmations and less dangerous than denial. Healing can begin in the four centres of energy power: the heart, mind, body and spirit.

Our wounding helps us to heal others as a model of experience. One can be moved out of denial by meeting or hearing a humble magician, discerning truth from any falsehoods. One can grow strong and wise if one has enough ego strength and development.

Shadow – the evil sorcerer, the wicked witch, calling negatively to yourself, turning positive into negative.
Call – physical /emotional illness and experiencing synchronicity.
Level (1) – experiencing healing, starting to notice synchronicity, (2) growing inspiration, acting out visions and dreams that can come true. (3) Using knowledge, whole connection, developing mastery by changing mental/emotional and spiritual realities.

The ego needs to be very strong with a good container and not used for evil purposes; the greatest response to the shadow is a realisation of their own mortality, which brings freedom and the ability to live in the moment without fear. Learns to find like-minded people and create a circle /community healed by empowering fellowship and sped up the process exponentially.

The Sage

Goal- truth, understanding
Fear- deception, illusion
Response to dragon/problem – sturdy, understand and transcend it.
Task – the attainment of knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment
Gift –wisdom, non-attachment, scepticism

The sage works as an undercover sleuth, searching for reality and moments of truth, decoding the clues, and solving the riddles of existence. The appropriate response to each form and mode of inquiry goes beyond the realm of the ego. It stands beyond our thoughts, feelings and desires, merely observing and not absorbing.

Shadow – cut off, unfeeling, above it all, courteous and judging, pompous behaviour and attitudes.
Call – confusion, doubt, deep desire to find the truth.
Level (1) – truth and objectivity (2) scepticism, awareness of multiplicity and complexity of truth, seen as relative and accepting subjectivity. (3) Experience of ultimate truth and wisdom

Must develop the mind and heart to the highest degree so we can let go; we stop wanting to know and allow truth to come into our lives as a gift. We are only free when we let go of illusions and attachments; we seek to align our own will with the true self and never struggle against it.

The negative sage is cut off from reality, where their life happens to them, and they are unconnected, feeling numb. Can’t commit to people, projects or ideas, obsessed with reality and don’t act like nothing is real. They control knowledge in a non-threatening way to show their superiority, where the primary focus becomes evaluating others. Guards against competing demands of others, treating and judging them as naïve, incompetent and dangerous.

The Fool

Goal- enjoyment, pleasure and aliveness
Fear- non-aliveness
Response to dragon/problem – play with it or play tricks on it
Task – trust in the process, enjoyment of the journey
Gift –joy, freedom and liberation

The fool precedes the innocent. The inner child that you know how to play, to be sensual and in the body. A basic sense of vitality and aliveness, expressed as primitive, childlike, playful and creative.

Amoral, anarchistic, irrelevant energy, exploding categories and boundaries. The child’s innate desire to try anything, everything, even the forbidden. Often emerges at the most painful periods, loss of a job, break up or death of a loved one. The fool is a trickster who likes breaking the rules, well-meaning and genuine, with the capacity to get up and try again.

Shadow – self-indulgence, sloth, gluttony and irresponsibility
Call – boredom, desire to have more enjoyment.
Level (1) – cleverness used to trick others. Find a way around obstacles, tell the truth without impunity (2) life is a game to be played for fun (3) life is experienced fully, life is a celebration and lived in the Moment and one day at a time.

The negative sage can be expressed as madness when the ego cracks and the unconscious erupt chaotically into the consciousness.

“We learn to be conscious of the games we play (Berne, 1964) we can then use them for higher purposes and teach others. “

9 Stages of the Journey

1+2 -experiencing and understanding dualism. One finds the truth as disillusionment sets in and one falls from grace
3+4 – multiplicity and revolution of thinking with no absolutes
5- evaluation of others with no judgement, learning discernment
6+7+8 – commitment in the context of relativism. Orientate ourselves in relative choice and experience. Commitment means returning and searching for the absolute, becoming objective with non-attachment with no preconceived thoughts or biases.
Each stage calls two archetypes into question with a press for resolution experienced as opposites of yin/yang relationships. Most people have good functioning in one and some, if not any, of the others.

Security

Innocent – Pre-fallen person trying to live in Eden with naïve trust, optimism and belief in things as they are, preserved by denial. Aim to move to transcendence and greater awareness.

Orphan– wants to live in a safe world. The orphan feels betrayed, abandoned and victimised. Moving from victim and cynic to a vulnerable and interdependent being

Identity

Seeker-explores int/ext. Realities are willing to give up security and community for intimacy and autonomy. Differentiated and separate from others. Move from an outsider to finding a unique identity and vocation.

Lover– learns who and what they love. Moving from only loving a few people to expanding love and respect of all things and others -who have greater diversity /Responsibility

Responsibility

Warrior-Defeats the villain and rescues the victim. Courageous and disciplined and aim to ascend to high standards creating a better world.

Caregiver– At worst, they are sacrificing and manipulative. At best, they are passionate, genuine and great helpers with authenticity.

Authenticity

Destroyer. Sees the effects of tragedy and loss. Greater capacity for new ideas, empathy and compassion for others with a deeper knowledge of own identity

Creator-process and discovery of a new sense of self, creating a new identity. Transformative with a more fulfilling, effective life.

Power

Magician – creates new realities and transforms old ones. Catalyzes change. Moving from evil sorcery or creating a win/win situation and empowerment

Ruler– responsible for inner/outer lives. We are moving from a despot or creating a community of inclusion and wholeness.

Freedom

Sage– learns to understand the big picture and increase their capacity for detachment—little interest in the ordinary or mundane. Detachment is combined with love, wisdom and joy of life.

Fool-enjoy every moment. Lighten us up, be innovative, clever and develops ways around obstacles when they can accept responsibility and stop being a trickster