"Cuida que no pierdas la sustancia por aferrarte a la sombra"

Simplified Meaning:

This saying tells us to be careful not to give up something valuable by chasing after something less important. Imagine you have a really good friend who is always there for you, but you start spending all your time trying to get popular with a new group of people who don't care about you as much. In the end, you might lose your true friend while trying to be liked by others who don't actually matter. It also happens sometimes when people focus too much on making lots of money and forget about spending time with their family. They work all the time and end up missing out on important moments with their loved ones. Here, the real happiness and love from family (the substance) is much more important than just having money (the shadow). To use this advice in your own life, always think about what is really important to you and don’t get distracted by things that seem interesting but don’t actually matter much. Focus on what truly brings joy and meaning, and don’t let small, unimportant things take that away from you.