OVERCOME THE FEAR -- Nanganallur J.K. Sivan
I once read a powerful speech and noted the thoughts conveyed in my mind as it appealed greatly to me. It was about Fear.
We are afraid of so many things, the most important of it being the Fear of Death. Philosopher J.Krishnamurthy used to say 'Death is a pleasant experience because it is not only inevitable but it also frees one of disease, worry, attachment, possession and feelings about anyone or anything. We are afraid of expressing our views, disagreement and do not protest anything we find wrong . Instead we get emotionally upset accepting any insult without opposing it. Many fear God which is unfortunate. God is never cruel and do not punish anyone. In many houses, elders misguide the children that God is watching their every action and will punish, even blinding the eye, if they did anything wrong.
Another fear generally is about what will happen after death. Some feel they have sinned would be tortured and pushed into hell, where hot burning oil would wait for them to be roasted. No. it is not so. May be such a fearful idea was conveyed to prevent one from committing wrongful actions and to put them on the righteous path.
Every action has a simultaneous reaction. Good begets good as love begets love. 'As you sow so you reap' teaches adequately instead of threats of torture and hell.
The life we live now on earth, is in fact, the heaven or hell -- both being of our own making and creation. One can live happily and create very happy and pleasant moments of every second lived, for himself and others. He has option to pollute and cause an atmosphere of menace to himself and others as well.
Man is the form of what he thinks. His education, personal background and character contribute greatly to what he is. A honest person, disciplined as he is, has nothing to fear and is always straight forward and bold. Nobody fears himself. Only those who have respect for their conscience and are aware fully of their misdeeds, show signs of restlessness and fear for consequence of what they intentionally and knowingly did , which they know is incorrect, improper or illegal.
No one is afraid of himself. Fear is only towards people and things other than him. The fear is restricted towards the persons who disagree with him, not being of same wave length and frequency, differing with his way of thinking. The person who fears others, is much worried about the reaction of others and their behaviour.
Fear is an emotional product. We need to handle it carefully and calmly using our intellect. We are afraid of voicing our views and express our objection when we know we differ with what others say or do and feel it is not right.
There is a fear of even opening the heart in love because of the fear that the other person concerned can take advantage of it. There is fear of waking up in the morning for some as they have to face the world with the sunlight and this keeps them behind their covers until they can sleep no more.
Fear arises when one is not confident of himself or aware that he is doing a wrong thing. Thought patterns are originated and stagnated in one's mooladhaara chakra. Mooladhaara means root base. Our negative thoughts create the fear. Until we make an attempt to overcome the negative thinking fear will continue to haunt.
Fear prevents one from acting boldly in situations where people dominate and have a right of their way. What to do then? The solution is:
1. Keep the mind calm, whatever may come. Let anyone do whatever they wish and let anything happen around me, I shall remain calm, quiet and composed. I shall be happy and cheerful. Then fear is weakened and cannot oppress..
2 Pray to God. I cannot do everything as I wish, and I have to accept what comes. Let me do what is right and good as my conscience prompts me to do. That is all. Result is not something for me to worry about. It is His domain.
Every one is born with fear and eliminating it absolutely is impossible. When we are emotional, fear is part of it. Fear necessitates building up character and teaches us how to act with courage. Fear is a natural response for all when things are uncontrollable.
''Fear of the unknown'' is the general term by which we refer to our fear for something we haven't anticipated, or exposed to before. Direct confrontation with such fear is the best way to overcome it. It will prove beneficial when confronted head on , with a particular person or situation we are afraid of. Mental strength to encounter the source of our fear removes the scare and fear we have about the person or situation.
Always be prepared to face and deal with failure. Confronting a fear is hard. It may not always lead to a successful end . Yet we have to confront the fear many times before we conquer it. Don't confuse fear with fate.
If you're afraid of failure, you might decide that it is your fate not to start an action you always wanted. The truth is, you have control of your future. You have the power to determine the path you will take. Resist the temptation to hope things turn out for the best and leave it up to fate. This is the positive attitude.
Don't let other people control you. When someone feeds your fears, it kills your enthusiasm, discourages you, brands you by telling you're inadequate or incapable of changing. Avoid such people.
Surround yourself with people who want you to overcome your fears and reach your potential. Courage can't come into play unless you have a fear to face and solve. By owning your feelings you've taken the first step toward gaining control over the situation.
Name your fear. Sometimes fear makes itself known immediately, clearly, and other times its more difficult to name the cause of those anxious feelings lurking in the back of your mind. Let your fear rise to the surface and give it a name.
Write it down. Writing down your fear is a way to officially admit that you have a problem you want to overcome. Keeping a journal is a good way to track your progress as you work toward conquering your fear. It can serve as a guide for the next time you've got a problem that needs to be solved. You can overcome fear by facing it every time it comes your way, and, once you decide to make up your mind, your fears will dissolve away.