When we talk about fear, or listen to talks about overcoming fear, and hear that everything we’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear – it often sounds like the ways to overcome our fears are things like jumping out of an airplane or diving with sharks!
But let’s be real, most of our fears aren’t fueled by a desire for extreme adventures. Our deepest fears lurk in the shadows of our own self-perception, the whispers of “not good enough” and “what ifs” are what hold us back.
Krishnamurti’s message today gets to the root cause of the fears that determine our paths.
“One of the major causes of fear is that we do not want to face ourselves as we are.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
The view that I have of myself. What I fear I am, and what I’m scared I might never be… these are the fears that steer my thoughts and my daily actions and reactions.
“Fear is one of the greatest problems in life. A mind that is caught in fear lives in confusion, in conflict, and therefore must be violent, distorted, and aggressive. It dare not move away from its own patterns of thinking, and this breeds hypocrisy. Until we are free from fear, we may climb the highest mountain, invent every kind of God, but we will remain in darkness.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
“Fear is the destructive energy in man. It withers the mind, it distorts thought, it leads to all kinds of extraordinarily clever and subtle theories, absurd superstitions, dogmas, and beliefs.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
“What is needed, rather than running away or controlling or suppressing or any other resistance, is understanding fear; that means watch it, learn about it, come directly into contact with it. We are to learn about fear, not how to escape from it.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
“If you come across fear, stare into its eyes. Face it and you will notice that fear fades away.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
There lives within you, both a scared human and also a Fearless Creator and you get to choose who steers the ship. Understand this though! You cannot be the Fearless Creator by pushing away the scared human. If you reject and abandon the scared human you are causing only more fear! If you are at war with yourself you only guarantee that your most fearful parts will fight for control of the wheel.
But if you listen to the scared human. If you allow her to be heard. If you ask him why he is scared, if you seek to understand and to hold the scared human, then a softening happens, the fear gradually subsides.
And what’s more, ask yourself this question, “If I am looking at the scared human. If I am listening to and holding the scared human, then who am I BEING?”
Well of course you are being the Fearless Creator!
Today, I invite you to:
- Reflect: What fears hold you back? Where do they stem from?
- Listen: Give voice to your scared human. What is she/he trying to tell you?
- Hold: Offer compassion and understanding. Let the fear know it’s heard.
- Expand: Step into your power as the Fearless Creator. Who are you meant to be?
We spend our lives running from imagined deficiencies, insecurities, and perceived limitations. We fear not living up to some self-constructed ideal, creating a constant undercurrent of anxiety that shapes our choices and actions.
We break the bonds that fear holds over us only once we come face to face with our fears about ourselves, and look at them in their eyes until understanding brings a softening to our gaze.
Today’s meditation explores the role that fear plays in the formation of our personalities, and the work that we can do to get beyond our fearful voices. Please join us.
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: A sense of self.