Said to be dark and gloomy, shadows are usually associated with sorrow, sadness, grief, and mystery, as you’ll see in these shadow quotes.
Shadows have a lot of meaning.
As a form that is seen behind a person or a thing when directed with a ray of light, shadows just come and go depending on the time.
It follows you wherever you are but suddenly disappears when all the light illuminates around you.
Tell us your favorite shadow quote in the comment section below.
What are the benefits of reading these shadow quotes?
In life, shadows are also linked to our trials—they have a cycle of appearing and vanishing through time.
These shadow quotes will remind us:
- that life is fleeting
- to be curious about how things in life work
- that things we perceive as dark can also have positive impacts in our life
We may perceive shadows as something that brings darkness and sorrow but know that shadows are there to guide and be friends too.
These shadow quotes show it can help you find out this mysterious form’s real meaning.
Don’t forget to check out these light quotes on becoming awakened.
Positive shadow quotes and sayings
1. “Even the purest cast a black shadow.” – Kaitlyn Jones
2. “All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow.” — Leo Tolstoy
You will also enjoy our article on sky quotes.
3. “Befriend your shadow and life will be easier.” – Robert Jabert
4. “I like my shadow; it reminds me that I exist.” – Mehmet Murat ildan
5. “We think not in words but in shadows of words.” – Vladimir Nabokov
6. “Shadow owes its birth to light.” – John Gay
7. “To light a candle is to cast a shadow.” – Ursula K. Le Guin
8. “Some there be that shadow kiss; Such have but a shadow’s bliss.” — William Shakespeare
9. “Glory follows virtue as if it were its shadow.” – Marcus Tullius Cicero
10. “One can live in the shadow of an idea without grasping it.” – Elizabeth Bowen
11. “The brighter the light, the deeper the shadow.” – Jay Kristoff
12. “It is only through shadows that one comes to know the light.” – St. Catherine of Siena
13. “Where there is much light, the shadow is deep.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Shadow quotes about light and darkness
14. “To confront a person with his shadow is to show him his own light.” – Carl Jung
15. “If you don’t have any shadows you’re not in the light.” – Lady Gaga
16. “The brightest flame casts the darkest shadow.” – George R. R. Martin
17. “We are linked by our shadows, not by our light.” – Jun Mochizuki
18. “Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
19. “Even in the valley of the shadow of death, two and two do not make six.” — Leo Tolstoy
20. “Some people seemed to get all sunshine, and some all shadow…” — Louisa May Alcott
21. “There is no sun without shadow, and it is essential to know the night.” — Albert Camus
22. “The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection.” – Michelangelo
23. “There is strong shadow where there is much light.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
24. “There is no light without shadow, just as there is no happiness without pain.” – Isabel Allende
25. “Somethings can only be seen in the shadows.” – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
26. “Every light has its shadow, and every shadow hath a succeeding morning.” – Nicolaus Copernicus
Shadow quotes about conquering negativity
27. “Most of the shadows of this life are caused by standing in one’s own sunshine.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
28. “I’ve seen George Foreman shadow boxing, and the shadow won.” — Muhammad Ali
29. “Some people have an identity. I have an alibi. I have a shadow self.” — Andre Aciman
30. “A false friend and a shadow attend only while the sun shines.” — Benjamin Franklin
31. “What would your good do if evil didn’t exist, and what would the earth look like if all the shadows disappeared?” ― Mikhail Bulgakov
32. “For every light, there was a shadow, for every dream, a nightmare.” — Amber R. Duell
33. “The eye is always caught by light, but shadows have more to say.” — Gregory Maguire
34. “Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.” – Carl Jung
35. “Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” – Abraham Lincoln
36. “Light and shadow are opposite sides of the same coin. We can illuminate our paths or darken our way. It is a matter of choice.” – Maya Angelou
Other inspiring shadow quotes
37. “The shadow that hidden, repressed, for the most part, inferior and guilt-laden personality whose ultimate ramifications reach back into the realm of our annual ancestors.” – C.G. Jung
38. “Nobody can rest in the coolness of their own shadow!” — Mehmet Murat ildan
39. “Shadow is not an umbrage only but the proof of our Existence.” — Samar Sudha
40. “Never fear shadows. They simply mean there’s a light shining somewhere nearby.” – Unknown
41. “But only he who, himself enlightened, is not afraid of shadows.” — Immanuel Kant
42. “Shadow is a colour as light is, but less brilliant; light and shadow are only the relation of two tones.” – Paul Cezanne
43. “Life is a mixture of light and shadow. Calm and storm, and it’s all good.” — Susan W. Krebs
44. “In life have a friend that is like a mirror and shadow; mirror doesn’t lie and shadow never leaves.” – Unknown
45. “May the dark remain in your shadow and the light shine upon you.” — Giovannie de Sadeleer
46. “The dearest friend on earth is a mere shadow compared to Jesus Christ.” — Oswald Chambers
47. “I’ve been trying to convince my shadow that I’m someone worth following.” — Rudy Francisco
48. “There is a time, when passing through a light, that you walk in your own shadow.” — Keri Hulme
49. “The very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream.” — William Shakespeare
50. “Unless you learn to face your own shadows, you will continue to see them in others, because the world outside you is only a reflection of the world inside you.” – Unknown
Shadow Quotes That Speak to the Ups and Downs of Life To Endure Adversity
51. “I live my life free of compromise, and step into the shadows without complaint or regret.” — Alan Moore
52. “Evil and good are everywhere, like shadow and substance; inseparable (for men) yet not hostile, only opposed.” — Thomas Carlyle
53. “Adversity shows whether we have friends, or only the shadows of friends.” — Publilius Syrus
54. “Look, up at the sky. There is a light, a beauty up there, that no shadow can touch.” — J. R. R. Tolkien
55. “I wonder how it takes you, that moment when everything turns to shadows. – Somerled.” — Juliet Marillier
56. “If you look toward the sunshine, you will never see the shadows.” — Helen Keller
57. “I’m afraid of love, because it involves things that are beyond our understanding; it sheds such a brilliant light, but the shadow it casts frightens me.” — Paulo Coelho
58. “What happens tomorrow is but the shadow of thoughts we held today.” — Joan Bennett Kennedy
59. “When it comes to our integrity: one moment in a dark place can cast a shadow for a lifetime.” — Steven Furtick
60. “Loss and possession, death and life are one, There falls no shadow where there shines no sun.” — Hilaire Belloc
Shadow Quotes To Make You Face The Light
61. “Turn to the light. Don’t fear the shadow it creates.” ― Ted Dekker
62. “It is only the quietest one who can hear all the voices of the world; only the shadows can see all the lights!” ― Mehmet Murat Ildan
63. “How can I be sincere if I am constantly changing my mind to conform with the shadow of what I think others expect of me?” ― Thomas Merton
64. “Shine out fair sun, till I have bought a glass, That I may see my shadow as I pass.” ― William Shakespeare
65. “I have harnessed the shadows that stride from world to world to sow death and madness.” ― H. P. Lovecraft
66. “Time is but the shadow of the world upon the background of Eternity.” ― Jerome K. Jerome
67. “The shadow is the greatest teacher for how to come to the light.” ― Ram Dass
68. “Under the shadow of swords, any plan is good.” ― Mehmet Murat Ildan
69. “When small men begin to cast big shadows, it means that the sun is about to set.” ― Lin Yutang
70. “Your shadow will always release whatever overshadows you.” ― Bill Johnson
What did you learn from these Shadow quotes?
Another meaning of the shadow is that it represents the emotions opposite of your “light.”
This means shadows are connected with whatever positive emotion you have.
If your light is happiness, your shadow is grief.
If you are outgoing and sociable, your shadow is afraid to be left alone.
It is one’s alter ego, and it defines your inner character.
It offers you something to learn that you can apply to a similar situation next time.
The shadow may not disappear in your life, as it will always come to you when there is little light, but you should know that it is there to remind you of your true self.
You just have to stay true to yourself and be real.
What’s your biggest takeaway from these Shadow quotes and sayings?
Do you have any other favorite quotes to add?
Let us know in the comment section below.
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