For the Optimists

These are hard times for those who remain optimistic about humanity. As an eternal believer in the positive evolution of civilizations, I must admit I now find it difficult to maintain my optimism. For some time now, I’ve carried within me a quiet, constant sadness, struggling to process the violence, killings, and escalation that began in Ukraine, spread to the Middle East, and is now severely affecting my native Lebanon.

Far from being isolated incidents, wars, the rise of populism, and the spread of extremism worldwide share a common psychological process: projection. In this mindset, evil is always „out there,“ residing in others. The solution, we are told, is to fight, expel, or even eradicate these external enemies. Borrowing from Jungian terminology, the collective unconscious seems to have taken control. And when the darker side of the unconscious emerges, it is extremely difficult to contain it. History offers numerous examples of this.

Religion, once a source of hope and meaning, is now reinterpreted to fuel conflict and mobilize violence. And so, violence will continue, passed on from one generation to the next.

In the face of such madness, what can one do? When faced with powerlessness, I’ve learned to turn inward – to accept sadness as it is and to try to learn from it. In moments like these, Rumi’s words offer a glimmer of hope: “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”

But is this process possible on a societal level? Will those who strive to change the world first begin with themselves and their followers? Will they pause to reflect on their own failings before projecting evil onto others?

We are spiraling downward into violence – there is no doubt. The question is, when will the wake-up call come? Will it be at the bottom of the spiral, as it was with World War II? Or will a wiser leader break the cycle of projection before it’s too late?

To the fellow optimists, struggling to maintain hope in these difficult times, I offer the words of Khalil Gibran: “Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.”