in this world exist positive and negative energy. you should eliminate negative and live with only positive!

...
wait, what?

have many things complain about in this framework, and rightly so: this can be rife with abuse. now, not terrible person just for use these terms, and can have some legitimate use.
but, also something that new age cults eat right up and use to control. even without cult influence, see people that categorise normal healthy feelings as "negative energy", something that need erase or just stop. anything mundanely bad happen, and this sign that energy "all wrong," something negative worm in life and need go away.

what is energy, anyway?

roughly, will say that energy is metaphysical property which flow through everything in world. you have energy, your pets have energy, those rocks outside have energy.
as magic user - even if not animist - objects still hold energy, or at least have ability hold. otherwise, most magic would probably not do very much.

energy can have so many properties and shapes that not even possible list all. four basic elements might come to mind - water, earth, fire, air.
but then, spirits also have energy - demons, faeries, deities... everything under (and not under) sun.
these all fairly easy figure out what mean. water energy come from water, and faery from faeries.

what about positive and negative? what do these mean?

how about... positive add to life, and negative take away?
then by all means, any spirit hold positive energy: they add whole new presence and person! even if wholly unpleasant and wish would go away.

OK, maybe not. so positive make feel good, and negative make feel bad.
but now open to people that happy exploit under guise feel good, and shut off from new experiences that feel scary, or kind spirits that have "scary energy."

OK, OK, fine then. positive want help and negative want hurt.
but some people really think that terrible things in best interest, that hurt is help. likewise, sometimes only way help is do something that hurt. plus, some spirits have energy and other properties that can hurt without even try, without even want.

ugh. positive is something that line with goals and negative do not.
see again that shut out new experiences... and now really start stretch what these words should mean.

need admit: when rely on these words and ideas, you run into problems, and just make things hard. things that feel good not always good; things that feel bad not always bad. some things fall in both squares at once, or even somewhere outside.

let's get emotional

no one can ever be beacon that shine pure happiness. bad things happen! we have bad days, or people we love have bad days, or things just not go to plan and that frustrate.
not to mention how many injustice in this world - many people personally affect and hurt by these on at least one axis. race, gender, orientation, money, health, list could go on.

we want feel good instead: good... is good! but nothing good come from follow those who try live as "pure love and light."
angry and sad not OK feelings to these people, vast majority of time. some even argue that feel bad things means you bring bad things. if you fear oppression, you directly responsible for people oppress you. you can not hate abusers either: this wrong because these people teach divine lesson.
of course, true that very possible get so wrap up in emotions, stop see reality for what really can be. but this not something able fix by swing to opposite extreme and never feel that way again.

if you sit here and think, "totally messed up" - welcome to club. there many problems that people face in this world. but there is no power in just ignore and pretend not exist, in tell people they responsible for their problems just because feel too angry.
all feelings have purpose. all feelings, ultimately, exist to protect.

quick detour: what is vibration?

is vibration familiar to you? not physical, of course. metaphysical.
vibration theory say that everything in world have energy vibration - each thing resonate with specific frequency. higher frequency good, and lower bad. in practise this not really much different from how people say positive and negative energy - but this can get even more out of hand, and start see these terms over positive and negative energy when you dive deep enough.
this often tie with law of attraction, as describe above: if you think about things, you bring them.

under this theory, every thought have vibration that ripple out and make effect. every single one. that risque fantasy, that anxious thought about if bus crash, that intrusive thought that tell you do horrible things. you might never see effect, but they out there.
where positive and negative energy can have some - if limit - use, vibration theory and law of attraction can wind up so much more dangerous that think people should by and large stay away, unless have firm enough grasp on reality and understanding to research without sway.

in some settings, people believe high vibration allow "transcend" humanity, become one with spirit or higher self.
in others, high vibration means you get "good afterlife" - some nice, pretty astral realm that always happy - where low vibration means you get "bad" - some desolate astral wasteland where everyone suffer... huh. that sound weirdly familiar.
but afterlife not important part here. important is how this end up control and hurt people that live - regardless reason, your goal is have highest vibration possible, live as pure, unconditional love and light.
how do this hurt? well...

control in connections

if want live as pure love and light, shed all negative energy and low vibration... then you need consider friends and family.
that friend who struggle in poverty and near homeless, that friend who talk about racism and brutality, that friend in poor health after terrible accident... you know... those things all pretty negative. like, why not just think about good things instead, manifest and attract things that help?

if think about bad things means you bring bad things, these people who suffer directly responsible for their pain. just think enough good things to make good things come! and if they think that ridiculous, if they say that need actually fix broken systems to guarantee even able live...
cut them off. you not need that negative energy in life, these people who doubt power in thought and feeling. no, no, if they want continue suffer, they can. other people only exist to bring you light and connection, after all. cut ties with first sign this connection useless.

and this, as you can see, where new age cults really start dig in. for most positive, high vibration life, need only other positive, high vibration people around. anyone who doubt, who say life not that simple, that material change need happen and good thoughts can not fix broken spine... is someone negative.

little miss karen believe she proof this true: she have good home, good health, and make good money, all because think positive...
of course, karen fail realise that she white and come from well-off family that pass on mostly typical, unmutate genes, which give much more opportunity and better health than someone who black, disabled, or poor - let alone all three.

control in habits

if things all have different frequency, then that means actions with those things do too. and these can get... pretty weird.

some you can expect from typical new age nonsense: medications bad, vaccines bad, anything that alter mind or body in way which not "bring love and light" bad. no more coffee, alcohol, or drugs for fun... or even for health. you only need crystals and good thoughts!

then you get arguments against meat: because meat once alive, this give low vibration. never mind that plants also once alive, and recent studies suggest plants can feel, communicate, and possibly even think in their own ways. but not just meat! anything that go through some mechanical process or alteration bad. which unless literally grow everything from scratch... is most things now. conspiracy on conspiracy about how foods poison to reduce life, that gluten or sugar or what have you is pure evil. here start see overlap with food and wellness cults.

music is another. you should only ever listen to music that bring spiritual light, ideally. classical music, pagan music, nothing that could make you *gasp* have feeling. weirdly, metal in specific come up again and again as "low vibration"... not so sure about that - some guys can scream pretty high frequency. :P

of course, music not only media out there. even media for entertainment must be high vibration: no violence, horror, or action! even if enjoy these things and have fun, all have low vibration. you need only things that peaceful and pretty. maybe non-stop ghibli marathon... oh wait, even those deal with hard topics. never mind! maybe get nice little fish bowl instead.

if connections control, then sex also something control. not that should have none: that make low vibration, or some "blockage"... but also can not have too much. sex repulse? or maybe enjoy sexual freedom? no, no, need fall perfectly in middle between "not enough" and "too much", and anything else is problem to fix. after all, sex is sacred, and only "broken" people would not enjoy or make casual.
absolute bullshit. enjoy as much or as little sex as want - if no one get hurt, all is good.

control in information

if control habits and connections to avoid this low vibration, that also means sources and information. some people proudly say how never pay attention to news, because news feel bad and therefore low vibration. literally, try live in bubble where nothing bad exist so not trouble with think about - not for mental health, but this spiritual purity.

so, communities form around things like metaphysical truths and high vibrations. some go into doomsday theories, others into transcendence.
they believe that here to teach people truth, or save people, or even just personally transcend.
with this, just as connections, you should cut out what not feel good - anything negative and low vibration, that doubt you and your theories, that suggest more in world, that other paths exist, and that things not so simple.

conclusion

do positive and negative energy always lead to these communities and cults? no, of course not.
but have personal experience with this little pipeline, so think very important urge others be careful who listen to.
at best, positive and negative can be sometimes helpful category, but should not rely on for everything, at risk complicate practise and find trouble.
at worst, can bring you down rabbithole that intend squeeze you dry and control you.