We observe certain constellations of family interactions which we have epitomized as the pattern of family interdependence, roles those of destroyer or persecutor, the victim of the scapegoating attack, and the family healer or the family doctor. Nathan Ackerman, 1968

I think people are not the Problem, the patterns are the Problem.

Unconscious cyclical struggles amplify in darkness. One human pattern is the Karpman Triangle, first described by Ackerman, depicting shifting positions that rotate through families, but are also at work in our inner domains and our shared histories. The Perpetrator takes varied forms in our current Name Brand society. Gang leaders, spoiled billionaires, opportunistic executives, politicians, lawyers, and abusive spouses, etcetera. If we live in the dark, by which I mean lack awareness, we are likely to give them leeway, even glorify them, maybe openly as a cult figure, or secretly as a dangerous force larger than life. We see their external successes, the power they wield with ruthlessness, their rage and targeted nastiness which our primitive biology tells us is the image of a leader.

If you have been targeted you may find some clarity in learning about “bread crumbing,” how bullies hold you in their spell, or “flying monkeys,” which is a common pattern in triangulation; essentially, the perpetrator will trick you into returning or will gather enemies against you, as any wicked witch will do.

If we are targeted, scapegoated, we tend more and more to live isolated and fearful of being dragged into the fields and set on fire. But if we stay hidden from our inner life and each other, we can never find what is most precious, our Self and our tribe, those who share our compassionate vision, those who wish to lay the foundation of kindness.

I wish that was all hyperbolic, but horrors happen every moment in the Fallen world, inside and outside of us, while we turn away, and the Oligarchs and the sociopaths strip us of Truth and work energetically to destroy what is Beautiful.