“At the innermost core of all loneliness
Is a deep and powerful yearning
For union with one’s lost self.”
Brendan Behan
What parts of yourself have you lost?
What parts of yourself do you hide?
What parts of yourself do you reject or exclude?
How do you guard against these parts of yourself that are in shadow? How do you stop them from revealing themselves and acting out in your life?
Maybe they are acting out already, but you do not recognise them?
Working with men, I have seen that all parts of us want to be seen, known and loved for who we are.
Our lost boys, our wounded and traumatised parts, the parts that stood up to fight back, the parts that gave up, the parts that turned against us, the parts that turned against the world, the parts that hid from the world.
All of us want to come home to our loving heart.
Of course!
To be known, loved, and held rather than rejected, hidden, and lost.
Of course, all of us want to come home!
This is our King’s work, to bring all of us home.
To recognise, know, love and hold all of who we are.
Image by: Jean-Claude Götting
Great blog Hugh. Loved the quotes and image too. Your statement raises an interesting question about the balance of dependence on self and other. It's often said that we are wounded in relation, but also healed in relation. A big part of reclaiming oneself is a personal, inner task. But it seems to me there are also limits on what we can achieve without others to encourage, support and guide us along the way. To that extent healing is also a communal process. I'm really with Hillman here that one of the limitations of modern psychology is its tendency to interiorise, privatise and subjectivise psyche.
Your blog also raises the question what the outcome is of this union with the…