Fear and Existence

"Fear is the mind-killer . . ." ~ Frank Herbert, Dune

It might be even more appropriately said that "Fear is the Heart killer." - but yes, it can certainly extinguish our minds as well.  That's why it is so very important to be in a conscious relationship with our fears.  A long time ago, I created an online radio program about moving beyond fear, The Frontier Beyond Fear.  And yet, we are human. It's a process.

What I can say is that it absolutely is possible to over time, make significant progress in calming your fears.  I know this because I have lived it.  Calming does not imply "completely".

When fear dominates our lives, we can neither think nor feel clearly.  There is a further quote from Dune, which was a favorite of my teens, worth reflecting on: 

 "Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration."

Why?

Because when we allow it to dominate us, we are diminished piece by piece, and eventually our freely expressed authenticity, which is a fundamental spiritual concept, is crushed.  We lose sight of ourselves and our choices.  When our choices are gone, we are too.

 

 

Winter Tree photo by Susan Larison Danz.

Rules of Engagement

"An open heart is an open mind." ~ Dalai Lama XIV  
Lately I have been noticing how the way we all tend to interact and perceive has everything to do with our own relationship with Love.  If what we see is drama or fear or some form of division, then perhaps we need to spend some time working in the space of our own hearts.   

I claim no particular state of perfection.  I am reminded continually of my own heart work to do.  But little by little, by leap and by step, I seem to make progress.  To avoid the divisions of judgment that inevitably create suffering, my primary rule of engagement needs to be Love.  It starts with the healing of divisions within.
 
And that is the Miracle.  The more Love we consciously let into ourselves, the more Love we will perceive in the hearts of one another - and the more Love we can meaningfully and openly share.  

The divisions we were so very convinced were so very real mysteriously fade.  What remains at the Center is Love.  It is Infinite, you know...