Peace for the Soul

A common space for harmonic peacemakers

Freedom from Fear

Is it possible for the mind to empty itself totally of fear?

Fear of any kind breeds illusion; it makes the mind dull, shallow. Where there is fear there is obviously no freedom, and without freedom there is no love at all.

And most of us have some form of fear; fear of darkness, fear of public opinion, fear of snakes, fear of physical pain, fear of old age, fear of death. We have literally dozens of fears. And is it possible to be completely free of fear?

We can see what fear does to each one of us. It makes one tell lies; it corrupts one in various ways, it makes one become violent and makes people accept wars.

There are dark corners in the mind, which can never be investigated and exposed as long as one is afraid.

Physical self-protection, the instinctive urge to keep away from the venomous snake, to draw back from the precipice, to avoid falling under the tramcar, and so on, is sane, normal, healthy. But I am asking about the psychological self-protectiveness, which makes one afraid of disease, of death, of an enemy.

When we seek fulfilment in any form, whether through painting, through music, through relationship, or what you will, there is always fear. So, what is important is to be aware of this whole process of oneself, to observe, to learn about it, and not ask how to get rid of fear. When we merely want to get rid of fear, we will find ways and means of escaping from it, and so there can never be freedom from fear.

 

Fear makes us obey

Why do we do all this—obey, follow, copy? Why? Because we are frightened inwardly to be uncertain, not to feel secure—we want to be certain financially, we want to be certain morally—we want to be approved, we want to be in a safe position, we want never to be confronted with trouble, pain, suffering, we want to be enclosed.

So, fear, consciously or unconsciously, makes us obey the master, the leader, the priest, the government. Fear also controls us from doing something, which may be harmful to others, because we will be punished. So behind all these actions, greed, pursuits, lurks, this desire for security, certainty, this desire to be assured, there is fear.

So, without resolving fear, without being free from fear, merely to obey or to be obeyed has little significance; what has meaning is to understand this fear from day to day and how fear shows itself in different ways.

It is only when there is freedom from fear that there is that inward quality of understanding, that aloneness in which there is no accumulation of knowledge or of experience, and it is that alone, which gives extraordinary clarity in the pursuit of the real.

The root of all Fear

The craving to become causes fears; to be something, to achieve, and so to depend engenders fear.

The state of non-fear is not negation, it is not the opposite of fear nor is it courage. In understanding the cause of fear, there is its cessation, not the becoming courageous, for in all becoming there is the seed of fear.

Dependence on things, on people, or on ideas breeds fear; dependence arises from ignorance, from the lack of self-knowledge; fear causes uncertainty of mind-heart, preventing communication and understanding.

Through self-awareness we begin to discover and so comprehend the cause of fear, not only the superficial, but the deep causal and accumulative fears.

Fear is both inborn and acquired; it is related to the past, and to free thought-feeling from it, the past must be comprehended through the present.

The past is ever wanting to give birth to the present which becomes the identifying memory of the “me” and “mine”, the “I”. The self is the root of all fear.

Jiddu Krishnamurti

Views: 57

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Is the self really the root of all fear? - 

If the self is our little God-the Spirit-Part ("caught" in the physical body) which is connected with the higher or multidimensional self, then it can't be the root of all fear, can it? - There is no doubt, that fear is a product of our thought-activity that happens in the brain, the mind and comes from the stored memories (J. Krishnamurti often spoke about it.)  And it is known that the cells of our physical body also have stored memories which can influence our fears.

After my logic, I would say that the mind (brain) and the body-cells are the roots of all fears, aren't they? - 

RSS

Quote of the moment:

"PEACE
NOT WAR
GENEROSITY
NOT GREED
EMPATHY
NOT HATE
CREATIVITY
NOT DESTRUCTION
EVERYBODY
NOT JUST US"

* * *

Connect With Us!




We light a candle for all our friends and members that have passed to the other side.

Gone from our life and forever moved into our heart. ~ ❤️ ~


Grant us peace
#Ukraine

Two beautiful graphics for anyone to use, donated and created by Shannon Wamsely

Shannon Wamsley

Designed by Michelle Yd Frost

Windy Willow (Salix Tree)
Artist Silvia Hoefnagels
Ireland NOV 2020
(image copyright Silvia Hoefnagels)

She writes,
"Love, acceptance and inclusion. Grant us peace."

Badge

Loading…

© 2024   Created by Eva Libre.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service