Here you can read what and how many interests you:

http://www.shadowwork.com/about.html

http://www.transpersonalscience.org/Papers/daniels00b.pdf

http://www.transpersonalscience.org/wwarch.aspx

http://www.psychicscience.org/

http://www.creativity-portal.com/bd/jill.badonsky/shadow-gifts-dark-side.html

http://www.soulfylliving.com/july02features.htm

http://buddhism.lib.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-EPT/simm.htm

In Jungian psychology, the shadow or "shadow aspect" is a part of the unconscious mind consisting of repressed weaknesses, shortcomings, and instincts. It is one of the three most recognizable archetypes, the others being the anima and animus and the persona. "Everyone carries a shadow," Jung wrote, "and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is." It may be (in part) one's link to more primitive animal instincts, which are superseded during early childhood by the conscious mind.

According to Jung, the shadow, in being instinctive and irrational, is prone to project: turning a personal inferiority into a perceived moral deficiency in someone else. Jung writes that if these projections are unrecognized "The projection-making factor (the Shadow archetype) then has a free hand and can realize its object--if it has one--or bring about some other situation characteristic of its power." These projections insulate and cripple individuals by forming an ever thicker fog of illusion between the ego and the real world.

Jung also believed that "in spite of its function as a reservoir for human darkness—or perhaps because of this—the shadow is the seat of creativity."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_(psychology)

I was just reading an article by Alden Tan about the monster within. He said you may not be as nice as you believe you are.

In his retelling of what happened to him he revealed that he found he had a monster within. This monster is also known as the shadow self.

He went to a movie and people there ruined the experience of watching the movie so much that he wanted to ring their necks! He didn't though but her could feel this anger welling up inside of him.

This shadow self we all seem to have, even Jesus expressed this shadow self when he whipped the money changers and threw them out of the church.

He expressed a point that what if people that do violent things are just like everyone else but not controlling that shadow or monster within.

That makes something to think about, you may think, I would like to punch him in the face! Then you read in the news somewhere someone punched someone in the face and you think, that is terrible, how could he be so mean!

Now here is something really spooky to think on, what if and it sure seems there are, people that are polar opposite, their shadow self is the dominate self? This seems to explain people that we see in the news that harm others.

So the question comes to mind, could this monster within ever be doused out of existence or always only controlled?

It seems since even Jesus became angry that it can only be controlled.

But this brings us back to your question, just what is this shadow self?

I have a DVD called The Shadow, it talks a lot about this self we all have but as to just what it is, no.

It seems it comes from things being different from how they ought to be, but that is placing it outside of the self and the shadow is from within.

Acceptance would work but then there would be no improvement of the situation. Jesus would have just walked through the church ignoring the money changers and nothing would have be taught or learned in that situation.

Maybe this shadow has a purpose as righteous anger, such is the case for every action that has lead to improvement of life. Someone comes along mad as hell and not going to take it anymore and sets out to change things. This happened with the equal rights amendment. This happened many times through history, so this anger from this monster within is funneled into positive action. It could also be unleashed in a negative way, but most of the time that isn't good as an idea.