Some lyrics from R.E.M.’s ‘Everybody Hurts’:
Well, everybody hurts sometimes.
Everybody cries.
And everybody hurts sometimes.
And everybody hurts sometimes.So, hold on, hold on…
Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on…
Everybody hurts.
You are not alone.
Everybody Hurts – is this not the First Noble Truth for us unenlightened ones? To clearly and personally recoginise and accept that we hurt doesn’t aggravate our suffering. It is the first step towards alleviating it, by seeing the problem as a problem. It is to be able to deeply empathise with ourselves. If we are unable to do this, we would not be able to empathise with anyone else, as we are not being true to the nature of suffering itself.
Strangely, in a twisted way perhaps for many, the knowledge that everybody hurts seems to lessen personal pain when one realises that we are all in the same boat. However, for those who are more awakened in their empathy, it is a spiritual call to relieve as much suffering as possible, that of oneself and others. Why should we only hug each other and cry about our oneness in plight? We need to wipe away each other’s tears too.
The music video hints of the song awakening the masses to the universal human condition. At the end, they walk off together to somewhere. I hope they decided to take the Noble Eightfold Path – that path towards the end of hurt for one and all. The lyrics in essence do not offer much solace in terms of wisdom, but the consoling tune helps. Sometimes, it’s not what you say but how you say it. It’s the power of sound, of music. (Below is a feminine cover version by The Corrs)
Related Article:
We Wept Hard
https://moonpointer.com/new/2010/06/we-wept-hard