"Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others." - Pema Chödrön
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This is partially why I feel so unsettled by the constant pressure towards positivity in hippie circles, or cleansing darkness from the internet (banning of r/watchpeopledie). The less we are in touch with our own pain, the less compassion we can hold for others.
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Surely there's a balance to be had? WatchPeopleDie was pretty extreme, graphic depictions of grisly sorts of death are hardly conducive to compassion. That community was pretty vile, in any case. Surely there are better formats, like ambulance documentaries and such?
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I regularly frequented r/watchpeopledie for years - the community was very not vile!
And I appreciated it for allowing access to an intense sense of horror and grief. An ambulance documentary wouldn't make me feel enough pain.
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My hippie friends in the 80s we're far too positive about shady bullshit I the spirit of going with the flow, being cool, etc. Some of it just excused bad behavior. My punk friends of the same era were much better and more honest at calling out BS.
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It can be likened to a form of alchemy, transmuting negative energy to golden perfect. Or, 4 hippies, simple repression. I think closer to enlightenment is acknowledgement of conditions and a mindful preservation of a golden state. Darkness cannot be purged, but held in accord.