End of Fear

A little while ago I wrote a blog post titled: "End of Worry", the message of which would be enough to completely transform your life, if applied consistently. Here I am attempting to go one step further: to consider your life without any fear. What would you do if you had no fear? What would your life look like? Can you imagine that? Most of us are so accustomed to living with our fears that we find it hard to imagine a life without them. Yet, the beginning of the possibility of life without fear is being able to imagine such a possibility! Let's see if we can do it.

Let's start by imagining that... Hmm... Where would you start? Just when I was trying to figure that out I noticed a big spider crawling on the blanket on my lap. Although I claim not to mind spiders, I quickly tried to get rid of the spider. I did not want one crawling on me! When my attempt to remove the spider with the arm of my sunglasses failed, I jumped up and started shaking the blanket. I was afraid of the little spider!

Now I know where to start. I must start with not being afraid of nature. I think a lot of us have removed ourselves so far from being in tune with nature that we have become fearful of the natural world. We have become fearful of other creatures that inhabit the Earth with us, and we have become afraid of the forces of nature, such as possible floods, hurricanes or earth quakes. We have lost our sense of oneness with nature. Let us start by acknowledging our connection to nature and knowing that no harm can come to us if we respect Mother Nature.

Let us love the Earth and Mother Nature and She will lovingly take care of us. It is no accident that She is called a Mother. She gave us life, and She nurtures that life even as a mother takes care of her children. She provides us with food and shelter. Our very physical lives would be impossible without Her life giving energy. We can feel completely safe in Her loving arms. We can trust that all of our physical needs will be met by Her. We need not go hungry or cold. She is capable of providing for us.

This is something I was contemplating this morning; that although many of us live in artificial environments, forgetting where our true sustenance comes from when we buy our food from the super market in glittery packages, throw it in the microwave, and scorf it down absentmindedly in front of the evening news after a hard day in the office under the fluorescent lights, all that keeps us alive and well still comes from the Earth. We may not grow our own food, but without the life giving energy of the grains and fruits and vegetables grown in the soil of the Earth, we would not survive.

So, this is my starting point in living a life without fear. Let us imagine a life where our every need is met easily and effortlessly; where we need not be fearful of running short of food or going without shelter. Now let us imagine that we are also perfectly safe always; that the world is a safe place. If we do no harm to the smallest of God's creatures, no harm can come to us. I will not harm even a spider; although I may move it outside, if it lands on my lap. Yet, I need not be afraid.

Now that I feel perfectly safe and taken care of in the world, I am free to imagine a life without fear. When I am completely in harmony with nature, I can also be in complete harmony with my environment which includes other people. Let us imagine that we are not the least bit concerned about other people's opinions; that we give ourselves the freedom to follow our heart's joy without worrying about what others will think. If we live our lives in fear of others' judgements, we will not be free. Rather, we have made ourselves slaves to our fears of disapproval. Let us give ourselves and each other the freedom to choose our own course in life. Nature does not tell the cucumber to become a tomato, no mater how many more tomatoes than cucumbers grow in the garden.

I think I have touched on the two most basic fears that we have: the fear of not having our basic survival needs met and the fear of not belonging, of being disapproved. These are also our two most basic needs: to have food and shelter, and to have a community of others who support us. If we did not have these needs met unconditionally as a child, we may not trust Life to deliver them consistently. Yet, now as adults, it becomes our duty to question the validity of such fears. For the truth is, the Universe is a benevolent place where all that we could ever need is available to us. Our job then becomes to believe that we deserve it and open up to it!

Yes, we deserve all of our needs to be met, the greatest of which is the need to be loved. But let us not go searching for love and approval outside of ourselves. Let us start by giving it to ourselves. Each of us is perfect just the way we are. Everything in nature is perfect. It doesn't matter the shape and size of the tomato or the cucumber. There will not be two that are identical, but every single one is perfect in its own way. This has got to be the least we can do for ourselves: to let ourselves off the hook when it comes to trying to fit in or be accepted by others. Each of us was born to deliver something unique to the world!

We are not random passers-by in the world; we are not insignificant. We are players in a grand movie called life, and each of our parts are important. We have a gift to give, a song to sing, a message to deliver. It is time that we release our fears and step into our power! Aha! There it is - our ultimate fear: that we are powerful beyond measure! We have come to fear our own power. How could this be? Why are we afraid to show our true colors? Why are we afraid to create the lives that we want? Why are we afraid of being Who We Really Are?

The answers to these questions may lie in the same place where our other fears were found: by removing ourselves from the natural world, WE have become unnatural! We have covered our true identity with all kinds of roles and pretenses. We hardly remember Who We Really Are. So, the end of fear is actually this: remembering our True Selves, remembering Who We Really Are. And as we continue to remove fear, we become more and more natural; we get in touch with our True Selves more and more. Let us not let this lifetime pass by without singing our song! It is time for our voices to be heard.

It is time to come out of hiding. There will be something missing in the world until we deliver our gift. Let us not be afraid, for we will discover that the more that we bring out our True Selves, the more everything in our lives starts falling into place. Our basic needs will be met easily and effortlessly. As we connect with our joy, we delight and inspire others. We step into our Path of Service by bringing out our gifts, and therefore the Universe will serve us in return by taking care of us in every way. We need not worry about our well-being. All we need to do is keep on sharing our gift.

The gift can be anything. Only you will know what yours is by what gives you the most joy. It may be growing or making food; it may be painting or singing; it may be knowing how to comfort those in sorrow, or to discover a cure for a disease; it may be knowing how to create beautiful spaces for others to enjoy; it may be knowing how to care for children. The possibilities are endless. You will discover your gift as you lift the veil of fear and step into the sunlight. There you will find your True self. You will love what you see, and you will not be afraid to show it to the world, for it is beautiful!