A lit candle will cast shadows on other things, and even itself. This is the exposed shadow. To integrate the dark parts and illuminate that darkness, to grow your light brighter is self shadow work.
Two lit candles will expose each other’s shadow, creating a new layer of dimension and more shadows as the lights flicker and bounce.
If you were on of the two candles, then you’ll have two shadows, and one of them is the projection of another candle. The other candle becomes a mirror to point at new shadows that you have. Shadow work here would be to integrate your own shadows cast by yourself and the new ‘blindspots’ pointed out by the mirror candle.
When we burn bright like a bon(d)fire, we might consume the other candle and bond with it in a way, creating followers and people who look externally for their power in you/I/bonfire.
This can scare another candle that isn’t burning at the same level or intensity because they can get sucked up and bond with the bonfire.
Or the other candle may give in and merge with the larger light, becoming a moth to a flame, a follower of sorts.
In essence, we should strive to be twin flames (not in the sacred bond relational sense) that balance and improves eachother. As the old proverb of ‘iron sharpens iron’ goes. If we do this throughout life, we’ll surely be changed and different and evolve in ways that may look to the past as if we were little flame wisps.
I’m reminded of the Bonfire scene from berserk where each fire represents someone’s hopes and dreams;
“Maybe they’ve all brought their own individual little flames together here. You could scatter them just by blowing, so all those little flames throw themselves into the biggest bonfire. . .” –Berserk
Light and Dark
The idea of light cannot exist without dark, and the idea of dark cannot exist without light.
If the world was only light without dark, we would not be able to compare light to anything. We would be blinded with too much light. Like a blinding sun of a flashbang grenade disorientating us.
If the world was only dark without light we would not be able to compare darkness to anything. We would be blinded with too much dark. Like the darkness of a blindfold on a moonless night, lost in our ways.
In the Daoist way, light exists in a dance with darkness, and darkness exists with a dance with light.
Shadows, are the darkness made from light, or the lightness devoured by darkness, they complement eachother like the greyscale between white and black. The light gives shadows their form, and the dark holds the shadow in degree to the light that touches it. As such, the idea of absolute existence and non-existence are such a dance with light and dark. If existence by definition exists, and if non-existence by definition doesn’t exist, what would be the point in having words to describe essentially nothing? It’s a mental riddle you may chew on later (with many answers), the point is, light and dark as concepts and as something we can measure and compare with eachother do exist and one necessitates the other.
If we were to scale the bonfire analogy more
The idea of identity, is something related to our integrated being and authenticity, being true to ourselves, and our light and darkness integrate to form a more unified being, some might call this a unified consciousness which exists on spectrums and degrees to different levels of ‘enlightenment’.
If you were to meet someone that is of a more unified consciousness level or ‘higher’ and ‘brighter fire’, then they could be like a bonfire to your candle. They might appear to look like they have everything figured out and they might even burn with passion or charisma that you could feel your shadow (Jealousy, inferiority, self-loathing, etc.) by just being around. As if the Master sees right through you. You may mistake them as a Boddhisatva or a guru or some one that has the solutions to save you. If you follow them, then you may conform your identity trying to hang on to their coattails. Slowly letting your own fire die out and dwindle under the suffocating light of theirs.
(As a side note, Boddhisatva’s do exist and they do try to help you -my opinion-, try not to confuse non-bodhi’s as being a bodhisattva. Try not to extinguish your own flame to chase theirs. Suggestion, not advice)
Some beings might even appear like a blinding sun, that you may mistake for God themself.
Likewise, in duality, the opposite is true;
If you were the bonfire and come across a little candle, your lighter aspects will look to give grace and empathy. Your self righteousness might even go out of your way to help to guide or give advice in hopes they choose a better path, and the darker aspect might come out of you as you go so far as to force their path -as they say- “for their own good”.
Your darker shadows might be prideful and consider the little candle as lesser than you, you might consider them inhuman or even the contemporary term of ‘bot’ or ‘npc’. A follower that might be pitiful or lost sheep.
Caution to be careful and not be consumed by one’s own ego, to be blinded by the light of their own self righteousness. We may end up doing more harm than good, paving the road to hell with good intentions, for the idea of the greater good. Leaving shadows in our wake, and much darkness. One of the traps is that we might mistake ourselves as Divine beyond all other creations, and build ourselves a god complex without respecting the divinity of those around us.
I am also not saying it’s bad to be a follower or to help others. On the contrary, we can follow and learn from many teachers and mirror candles to guide us on the path we choose, we just have to remember our identity and authenticity to ensure we’re choosing a path that we actually want. To not be a blind follower or a blind leader. The Blind leading the blind will surely put us in darkness.
Tips on helping someone and helping ourselves
Sometimes a bonfire or candle is burning dimly smoldering away and may benefit from some help.
As such, you have to find ways to dim your own light to spark theirs. Some tools like -self-doubt- can sort of limit our light to a degree where we can see others without being blinded by our own light. To meet them where they’re at and not where we want them to be. It does us no good to be at our finish line when their finish line might be somewhere else.
We have to find ways to meet people at their levels of consciousness to help expand theirs. This doesn’t mean to also burn equally dimly, but to give some of our fire to light there’s. You burn slightly less, but also not at the same level. (be careful not to give too much of your fire and lose yourself, like arguing with people on twitter expecting them to understand and come to unity through aggressive debate or something silly)
As Albert Einstein is attributed to saying;
“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.”
In Daoist terms, any obstacle in the way becomes a part of the way, as such any problem in consciousness is also an opportunity for growth. Sometimes we have to take a step back to see the bigger picture, raise consciousness to resolve conflicts and problems to gain more fuel for your candle light, more insight and enlightenments.
Likewise, we can help ourselves by finding ways for us to grow, and we can do this by expanding our light and fire. To integrate our shadows and become brighter as a whole, more authentic. To help meet the teacher or mirroring light at their level. You may find that, when you’re in the act of helping others, you also help yourself.
As the proverb goes; “A single candle can light a thousand more.”
Epilogue
This is not to say that light and dark are good and evil, those are different terms, and you’ll find in life that light has both good and evil, and dark has both good and evil, atleast from a humanist lens of ‘good’ and ‘evil’. My opinion.
We’re all little light motes scintillating in the starry stardust infused universe of materialized density photons.
You can’t hold the light properly, if you’re afraid of casting shadows.
Let your light shine, and try not to consume other lights, it’s not a competition.
Stay sparky you spark of conscious-light you, and remember;
Words Mean Things
Words Mean Things 
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