Well, I suppose positivity begets positivity. Which by default displaces negativity.
I also suspect that frequent visits by non-involved others probable deters crime. If I was going to, say, mug someone, I would not pick a street corner with a Buddha where people came to pray. I wouldn't pick one with an altar to [deity of choice] where people came to give offerings, either. Nor would I choose one with a shrine that people visited often, or a crucifix where people came to pray, or a prayer rug where people regularly made supplications, or a nice comfy chair where people regularly meditated.
Observation, especially by physically present witnesses, deters crime. Cause, even if they won't interfere, they might well make a police report. It also appeals to the "good" in people who will be "bad" if they think nobody is watching, but behave under other circumstances (sadly, that accounts for a lot of Homo-self-proclaimed-sapiens).
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"Alas, our dried voices when we whisper together are quiet and meaningless, as wind in dry grass, or rats' feet over broken glass in our dry cellar." --TS Eliot, "The Hollow Men"