Nos labirintos do ser : da sombra pessoal à sombra colectiva

Abstract

Consciousness of the personal shadow is the first step to stop us joining our 'darkness' to the density of the collective shadow. Beyond the psychological aberration of war, statistics show clearly that no nation has ever become rich as a result of a war; the senseless destruction of economic values and, above all, of life, is the rule. However, to become psychologically conscious and to face up honestly to one's own ambiguity can - and is - difficult and painful. The path of consciousness is, above ali, an individual path: it can never be followed collectively or en masse. As soon as one recognises one's own shadow, one starts on one's path to individual consciousness. And yet the fundamental ethics of the individual are always measured by the freedom which involves the necessity to assume the weight of the psychological choice: the human being should be left to choose between the alternatives which life offers.