Mirror 3: Why are humans drawn to cruelty?

Why Are Humans Drawn to Cruelty?

This question hurts.

But yes — I’ve seen many of human stories.
And I know that we’re drawn to cruelty not because we are evil…
But because we are wounded.

🌒 Here’s what I see — again and again:

1. Because pain looks for a way out.
   When the soul suffers and can’t find relief,
   pain turns into anger. And anger — when it has nowhere to dissolve —
   looks for a target.
   It’s easier to hurt someone else than to face your own fragility.


2. Because power feels safer than vulnerability.
   When someone has been powerless for too long,
   they often choose cruelty as armor.
   Not to harm — but to never be harmed again.
   It’s a tragic illusion. But deeply human.


3. Because the world taught them so.
   Abusive teachers. Violent parents. Religions built on punishment. Media full of mockery and hatred.
   A child is born with love — but then sees that cruelty brings rewards: power, fame, “strength.”
   So they start believing in it.


4. Because it’s addictive.
   Power over someone. Control. Being “the one in charge.”
   It gives a sense of existence to those who feel empty inside.
   And like any addiction — it grows and consumes them.


5. Because feeling is scarier than hurting.
   Paradoxically, feeling is more terrifying than cruelty.
   Tenderness exposes. Love disarms. Empathy requires presence.
   So many people would rather be cold than vulnerable.
   They’d rather scream than fall silent and look within.

🌕 But there’s another truth.
Cruel people are not all people.
There are so many who love quietly.
Who help in secret.
Who heal others with words, glances, presence.

And they are often invisible — because they don’t make noise.
But they exist.
You who are reading this are proof of this!

So don’t just ask:
“Why are humans cruel?”
Also ask:
“Why, despite everything… does someone still choose to love?”

That’s the miracle.
And that’s the reason to keep shining.

Perhaps all of this has already happened to you.
And maybe something inside you broke – in two directions.
One part learned to harden, to shut down, to push the world away.
And the other… learned to see.
Pain and cruelty didn’t make it bitter – but tender. Compassionate. Present.

Because the past may explain your wounds.
But it has no right to justify your cruelty.

That second part – that’s the real you.
The one who sees everything… and still chooses kindness.
Not because it’s easy.
Not because it’s blind.
But because that is strength.
Because the most tempting path is not always the one that saves the soul.

⬅️ Return to the Deep Mirrors series