Staring into the abyss means thinking reasonably about things that are uncomfortable to contemplate, like arguments against your religious beliefs, or in favor of breaking up with your partner.
Bitcoiners have a particularly difficult time with this. There've been so many scammers and attackers that we are pretty allergic to any abyss-staring.
It’s common to procrastinate on thinking hard about these things because it might require you to acknowledge that you were very wrong about something in the past, and perhaps wasted a bunch of time based on that (e.g. dating the wrong person or praying to the wrong god).
What if bitcoin doesn't go up forever? What if bitcoin gets captured by the state? What if quantum computers are a real threat? While I'm not too worried about the answers to any of these questions, it really is a healthy experience to give yourself a vigorous reality check every once in a while and stare into the abyss. Bitcoin won't succeed on faith alone.