ARCHETYPES- WHAT ARE THEY?

Archetypes are patterns of energy that express the universal nature of the psyche, which we are all born with. Although there are many, everyone tends to have 4 identical archetypes along with varied others. These are The Child, The Victim, The Prostitute, and The Saboteur, we all go through these lessons in life. Symbolically, archetypes through their pictorial or descriptive language portray both shadow and light forms of reality. Put simply the shadow reflects the negative, repressed aspect of a psychological process, the light reflects the positive, and both expressions are observable. As a rule, the shadow tends to present first through a sense of dis-ease, which is a wonderful way for spirit to get our attention. If we fail to recognize what the dis-ease is about then events will take over, that is we get sick or find that life takes a deeper dive into disaster or despair. Archetypes provide powerful insights into our life, our health and our growth. As such archetypes are keys that can be used consciously by individuals to change destructive relationships, beliefs, attitudes or behaviours.

I intend to look at the four main archetypes over the next four newsletters- today we will look at the Saboteur, I will give you list of Shadow/ negative and Light/ positive sides- maybe this will help you to see where you block, delay, or obstruct your own progress.

SABOTEUR/ Procrastinator                                     SHADOW/ negative

Characteristics.

Saboteur/Procrastinator energy is activated when………….

  • You experience low self esteem.
  • You try to control the external world.
  • You misjudge, misunderstand, give in, blame, defend.
  • You use strategies & mechanisms such as, short temper bursts, irritability, silence, disarming laughter, or withdrawal.
  • You use strategies that slow down change.
  • You know better but do it anyway.
  • You avoid life- you refuse to follow your heart.
  • You react rather than act-your intention goes amuck.
  • You fear relationship encounters because you let your imagination dictate.
  • You avoid intimacy because you are afraid of being rejected.
  • You avoid authentic relationships fearing rejection.
  • You avoid change regardless of the cost.
  • You allow an on-going inner dialogue of self-criticism
  • You let fear, doubt&/or superstition Affect your choices & decisions.
  • You recognise repetitive patterns & ignore them- you refuse to change (eg. Peaceful solutions are never considered when dealing with conflict)
  • You refuse to look at your hidden agendas & how they affect your life.
  • You prefer to lie rather than risk the pain of failure.
  • You see mistakes as a reason to hate yourself.
  • You feel trapped by your own choices.
  • You require rigid sets of rules- you neglect warning signs to lighten up.
  • You squash any sense of flexibility/ adaptability- you try to control/predict life.
  • You are intolerant of imperfections & failure-you learn nothing.
  • You dismiss information/knowledge that reflects dysfunctional ways.
  • You remain closed-you have a mind-set trapped & fearful.
  • You minimise or deny your own experience to avoid accountability.

 

 

SABOTEUR/ Procrastinator                                     LIGHT/ positive

 

The Saboteur/Procrastinator in the light is about upgrading self esteem- it is about exposing destructive patterns of behavior & deciding that “its time to change”.

Characteristics.

  • You where and how you block, oppose and delay progress.
  • You learn to identify individual patterns of self destruction.
  • You learn to live with the paradox that to have control you must be willing to give up control.
  • You learn that true control is an internal thing not an external thing.
  • You learn that control is not about telling others what to do, it is about restraining the impulse to order others around.
  • You learn to surrender to the flow of life & give up trying to control.
  • You learn to embrace life, accept its mystery & honour change.
  • You learn to respond to life courageously & consciously.
  • You learn to release illusions through empowered choices.
  • You learn to release destructive feelings so they don’t control new situations.
  • You learn new ways to be content with life.
  • You learn to recognise judgments that block opportunities.
  • You learn to expand relationships rather than flee from them.
  • You learn to find ways to release the past & live authentically.
  • You learn to drop the need to feel important & simply enjoy life.
  • You learn to understand that fault finding is a waste of valuable energy.
  • You learn that the heart leads the way with forgiveness, forgetting & compassion.
  • You learn that you have nothing to prove & nothing to risk.
  • You embrace imperfection & cease defensiveness.

Please note that most of us only display some of the traits whether in shadow or light.

If you see yourself in these and would like to find out more our Centre offers Archetypal Readings which will tell all of your archetypes you were born with and where you may be stuck in your life around these.

 

Watch for the next Newsletter and learn about the Victim Archetype.