Edward’s Diary Entry 48 – Virtue 1. Fearlessness: What to do with “fear”?

Fear, manias, phobias, fright, dread, panic, cowardice… Fears are infinite, like the things of the world. Any desire, passion or feeling may attach itself to anything in the world and elicit “fear” into the mind. The remedy is Self-Awareness and the single-pointed application of the Virtue of Fearlessness. All fears, phobias, animosities, etc. are to be cleared from the mind. They are like light or heavy creases in the fabric, produced by feelings and passions and wrong thinking; the lighter ones must be watched carefully and not allowed to elicit reactions; the heavier ones, like so-called “traumatic experiences”, must be ironed out carefully with right thinking and right approach. Right conduct must be maintained to conquer fear. Fear of hurt, bad health, dying, having an accident, etc., is because Nature wants to protect this body – all animals show “fear” in avoiding predators. But who are man’s “predators”? What is to be avoided?

Specific fears/phobias: “Dangerous” insects like cockroaches, wasps, scorpions… A cockroach on the ground is not a threat. Yes, cockroaches eat filth, come from sewers, are quick and “creepy”, but if Nature didn’t do her job, who would? They are part of Nature, like many other creepy, crawly or slimy things. We have no right to kill Nature’s creations. But, condescendingly to our unnatural surroundings, they can be killed without retribution if they invade personal or professional spaces and if the killing is done “purely”, not from fear or dislike, but from reason and from one’s status as sanitizer, restaurateur, waiter, owner, etc. of a public place, or as homeowner. Fears like these are simply habits, and can be counteracted by installing new habits and persevering. Self-awareness is the pre-requisite: catching the “fear” in its inception and controlling it, and acting from reason, not from fear. When, with Self-Awareness, you catch an incipient fear (from past habit), don’t react on it. Create a new habit of non-reaction. Breathe deeply and don’t voice the thought. With effort and right thinking, it will go away.

Invented fears: Not content with the range of natural fears to dwell on, of which there are many – we used to fear wolves – “man-made society” creates new fears to focus on the negative – since civilisation has largely brought about the conquest of nature and the disappearance of supposed man-haters such as lions, tigers, bears, wolves and snakes – the “great contributors to modern thinking” in the form of writers, filmmakers and video game inventors, have projected a series of new fears to keep the human mind-stuff in a state of constant or occasional terror:

1) Ghosts, ghouls, vampires, evil spirits, demons, devils, tyrants, etc. You can hardly imagine “entertainment” nowadays without all these delicious inventions of the fearful human mind. No, it’s not enough to shy away from what naturally should produce “fear” – mass killings, terrorism, border conflicts, nationality conflicts, wars for land conquest, wars for religious persecution, wars for economic reasons, genocidal undertakings, hooliganism, protest marches getting out of hand, pub brawls and bar fights, gender violence, muggings and so many others disasters – our illustrious entertainers have to use all these lower-nature human problems to make us even more afraid to go out at night, always looking under the bed before we can settle down to sleep and feel safe, or waking up in the middle of the night with a film-induced nightmare. 

2) Aliens, extraterrestrials, conquerors from outer space, etc. As if “man” were the only good thing in the Universe and all the rest is out to get him!

3) Beasts, monsters, overgrown insects and serpents, dragons, sharks and other man-killers. No doubt reflections of man’s inner life – a complete bestiary!

4) Killers and assassins and psychopaths. These may be for real, but is it really their fault?

5) Terrorists, hired killers, mercenaries. These are for real, unless fictional, but where does violence really come from if not the human mind?

Many “entertainment” films and books deal with this, which is all totally invented, fictitious, unreal, infantile. The terrible thing is that it insidiously affects the tender, immature mind-stuff of children and teenagers, who devour these stories and creates a “mind-set” that accepts these lies and untruths. The wonder is that most of them don’t turn into psychopaths themselves, but obviously this affects their outlook on life and keeps them in a constant state of fear and negativity. This has its social benefits, as it justifies the existence and behaviour of a series of “heroes” who fight against evil. But the hero of course simply uses greater force or ability against the evil ones, perpetuating the lie that “might makes right”. Both the entertainment industry and the music industry mostly feed on the perpetuation of fears and animosities and their opposites – dualistic thinking that leads nowhere, unconscious bullshit that just leads to more of the same. It is Unconscious Man’s trap to keep you stupid. But remember, if it weren’t there, why would you need to become Enlightened?

So for all fears, apply fearlessness – organise thinking to promote lack of fear. And be pitiless with fears – no acceptance! Conquer fear and half the battle is over.