Shadow Work Reading List
Beginner and intermediate level. This list originated with the book recommendations in Transforming Darkness. More are added over time.
Shadow Work
Owning Your Own Shadow, Robert A. Johnson - A very popular Jungian beginner’s book on Shadow work. Start here.
Bringing Your Shadow Out of the Dark, Robert Augustus Masters – Highly recommended for practical shadow work.
Shadow Tech – Cracking the Codes of Personal and Collective Darkness (2015), Colin E. Davis and Melissa Mari. Our first book on the shadow, taking a holistic view of the shadow and its relation to evil, plus some of our personal practices and experiences.
Transforming Darkness (2024) - My second book on the shadow. Restating my work in a concise way plus the addition of the shadow in “four quadrants”. Lists 30 shadow work practices across quadrants.
A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle - Chapters 5 and 6 about the pain-body, plus his general teachings.
The Divided Mind, John E. Sarno - For all with physical symptoms, syndromes or pain. TMS theory.
Emotional Clearing and Deep Clearing, John Ruskan – This author’s work is the basis for our Emotional Processing practice.
We All Have Parts, Colleen West - A simple illustrated book on IFS. Great intro.
An Introduction to Internal Family Systems - Richard A. Schwartz IFS therapy.
Jungian Books
Practical Jung, Harry Wilmer - A complete guide to Jung’s theories that is basic and deep with excellent illustrations. Get this.
King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, Robert L. Moore - Essential Jungian work for men with a unique model for understanding the shadow. Women can benefit too. Also see Moore’s audio lectures on YouTube.
Facing the Dragon, Robert L. Moore - The nature of evil plus its relation to grandiosity.
Meeting with the Shadow - Connie Zweig. A collection of chapters by different authors on the shadow.
Jung: A Very Short Introduction, On Jung and Archetype Revisited, Anthony Stevens – Profound Jungian thinker.
Inner Work, Robert A. Johnson – Jungian dream interpretation and active imagination. Plus all books by this author which are great for beginners.
Jung and Shamanism in Dialogue, C. Michael Smith - Important work comparing Jungian thought with principles of indigenous shamanism. Synthesis of Jung, IFS and shamanism at CrowsNestShamanism.com.
Jung’s Cartography of the Psyche, James P. Driscoll - Every Jungian concept concisely defined plus the author’s valuable perspectives on all.
The Gnostic Jung, Stephan Hoeller – A great scholar of Western mysticism and spirituality interprets Jung’s position and analyzes his Seven Sermons of the Dead.
Adam's Return: The Five Promises of Male Initiation, Richard Rohr - Christian-Jungian perspectives on male initiation and spirituality.
Jung on Evil, Murray Stein - Compilation of writings by Jung on the subject of evil, excellent introduction.
Marion Woodman - all books plus her incredible documentary Dancing in the Flames - Inner City Press - all titles are Jungian