{"id":968924,"date":"2026-09-25T12:01:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T12:01:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chemcrete.com.pk\/?p=968924"},"modified":"2026-09-28T10:06:45","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T10:06:45","slug":"compassion-in-conflict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chemcrete.com.pk\/index.php\/2026\/09\/25\/compassion-in-conflict\/","title":{"rendered":"Compassion In Conflict \u00ab"},"content":{"rendered":"

Threat focused right-wing discourses and narratives began to stimulate different motives in our minds, not to care and share, but to try to hold and control our own claim on resources (Wilkinson and Pickett, 2010). Moreover, as divisions between the haves and have nots widen, with a media increasingly selling the idea that wealth creates happiness and freedom from anxiety, competition and fear of being one of the \u201chave nots\u201d or more recently \u2018have less\u2019 grew. Companies that needed to sell their products and compete in the marketplace came up with increasingly slick advertising campaigns linking their products to status, happiness and security.<\/p>\n

Many of the people in our prisons did not have good starts and their capacities for empathic connectedness to others is limited. Can these individuals be turned to change these fundamental evolved strategies that are running their show? Shirtcliff et al. (2009) show that individuals who are callous are not emotionally in tune or physiologically responsive with their own emotional pain. However, keep in mind that mentalities are co-regulating and therefore if individuals can start to process their own pain and their unmet needs to have been cared for, this might open up that social mentality. It does not open up unless those inner care receiving systems are worked with; trying to help them feel a sense of remorse or guilt when their own emotional pain systems are closed down may fail.<\/p>\n

If we are to create a more compassionate world, that serves the common good (Ekman and Ekman, 2017), then much depends on how we formulate, contextualize and think about two issues. (1) Be much more engaged with the suffering in the world and how to address it, and as part of this (2) Address the challenges of \u201cresource caring and sharing\u201d versus \u201ccompetitive controlling and holding\u201d (Piff et al., 2018). We vote for leaders who appeal to our own desires to control and hold rather than care and share and therein lies one of our difficulties (Lipman-Blumen, 2005; Mols and Jetten, 2020). Compassion, caring and sharing will require sacrifice of some of our personal material wealth for social wealth and health. To pursue this endeavor we can explore the evolution and dynamics of caring, sharing, and compassion, how we evolved the potential to be a compassionate and courageous species but also the nastiest, vicious and cruel (Gilbert, 2005, 2018; Black, 2016).<\/p>\n

In essence, resolving conflicts with compassion involves a blend of self-awareness, active listening, empathy, selective battles, and collaborative problem-solving. By approaching conflicts with these principles, you not only address the immediate issue but also strengthen the foundation of your relationship, fostering a deeper connection and understanding. Conflicts are an inevitable part of any relationship (you are going to have big arguments occasionally), but it\u2019s how we navigate and resolve them that defines the health and strength of our connections.<\/p>\n

Grassroots movements, public discourse, and interfaith collaborations can amplify the call for leaders to act with integrity and prioritize shared humanity over divisiveness. The blog acknowledges Rahmah (mercy) in Islam and Chesed (loving-kindness) in Judaism as universal values that transcend cultural boundaries. It critiques how these ideals, across all traditions, are sometimes narrowed or distorted in the realities of human conflict.<\/p>\n

How Art And Creativity Can Enhance Compassionate Connections<\/h2>\n

Importantly too, in order to deal with conflict, different strategies have to turn on some motives, algorithms and emotions and turn off others. For example, if we want to go to war, then we have to turn off caring motivation and concern with the suffering toward these other human beings seen as a threat or the enemy we want to kill and maim. Generally speaking, much is done to stop us becoming aware of the intense misery we cause others in our wars, callous competitive behaviors, in sweatshops in far off countries and factory farms. Highly competitive motives tone down caring social mentalities (Piff et al., 2018; Basran et al., 2019). In addition, they inhibit empathy and being distress sensitive and steer us toward callousness, becoming insensitive to the suffering of others or even seeing them more as a resource to be exploited than to be nurtured or empathically connected to.<\/p>\n