Define fear.
Fear is an unpleasant, often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger. It is a primordial emotion that exists in all sentient beings. Fear is an emotion that everyone has experienced at some point or the other in life. Most of us have experienced the fear of either losing someone, our honour, money, property, happiness, position or also that of being attacked by someone. Whatever it is, fear basically is imagining something that has not happened yet! Even if it is fearing the repetition of some unpleasant incident in the past, it is still the fear of something that has not happened until that point of time.
The root cause of fear is attachment. Those who fear losing someone or something, do so because of their attachment to the object they feel they would lose. The fear of losing one’s reputation stems from one’s ego. People who dread physical attacks fear damage to their body, which is sure to perish at the end of a Janma or lifetime. A person who understands the impermanence of everything physical or materialistic and realises that he or she has nothing to lose; fears absolutely no one and nothing.
In order to reach a higher level of understanding, it would be necessary to comprehend that a person’s body, mind, intelligence, the senses and the Atman are separate from each other. Studying the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, helps clear misunderstandings that cause faulty thinking, which is one of the prime causes of all misery.
Reading and imbibing the truths in the selected life changing verses, from the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, given below can aid in removing fear out of the mind.
Remember that a disturbed mind can achieve nothing and that a calm mind is the first requirement in preparing oneself to receive Divine Blessings.
The first words of Bhagavan Krishna in the Srimad Bhagavad Gita are:
02:02-03 The Supreme Bhagavan said: O Arjuna, where, in this hour of crisis, where did these qualities like weakness, which are unbecoming of honourable men, come from and take over you? Such qualities will prevent you from reaching higher levels in life and will also ruin your honour and get you a bad reputation. Do not give in to cowardice which is not manly and does not suit you. Shed this weak-heartedness and get up, O destroyer of enemies.
After Arjuna expressed his anguish, despondency and weak-heartedness to Bhagavan Krishna, he made the wisest decision of totally surrendering before the Supreme Bhagavan as a devoted student would do before his master with the sincere request to teach him.
SBG 02:07 With my mind in a state of confusion regarding my duty and the feeling of helplessness because of weakness, I ask you to tell me what is good for me. I am your disciple and I have surrendered my soul to you. Please teach me.
SBG 2:14 O Arjuna, impermanent things like happiness and sadness, heat and cold in summer and winter, come and go. They are temporary. Therefore, learn to endure them.
02:54 Arjuna said: What is a man, O Bhagavan Krishna, who is steady in Samaadhi or Self realisation called? How does such a man talk? How does he sit and how does he walk?
02:55 Shree Bhagavan Krishna said: One who gives up all desires of the mind, O Partha (Arjuna), and when one has a purified mind and is in a pure state of the soul, he is called a ‘Stithapragnya’ or a man of steady consciousness.
02:56 He who is not agitated or disturbed despite the threefold miseries, or is also not euphoric when he has comforts, and he is free from attachment, fear and anger is a sage with a steady mind.
02:57 He who is free from attachment and neither rejoices when he achieves good nor hates evil has steady wisdom and perfect knowledge.
02:60 The senses which are so strong, O son of Kunti, can forcibly lead astray even the mind of the wisest person.
02:61 He who keeps his senses under control and meditates on Me by fully surrendering unto Me, has steady intelligence.
02:62 A person who thinks of sense objects develops an attachment for them. From this attachment desires are born and from desires, anger is born.
02:63 Anger gives birth to delusion and this delusion results in confusion of memory. When memory is confused, intelligence is destroyed and from the destruction of intelligence, the person perishes.
02:64 But the person who controls his senses in spite of being with sense objects, is free from both attachment and aversion. Such a person attains serenity.
02:65 When this serenity through Divine Consciousness is achieved, all his material miseries are destroyed. Such a person’s wisdom is steady.
02:67 When the mind follows any one of the senses herding over him, it takes his wisdom away just like a strong wind moves away a ship sailing on the water.
02:68 Therefore, O mighty armed one, a person whose senses are bridled before objects of desire, has steady wisdom.
05:24 A person who is ever happy within, who rejoices within, who is illumined within, is a Yogi and he attains absolute freedom, total Self Realisation and Moksha. He himself becomes one with the Supreme Bhagavan or Brahman.
05:25 Those whose sins have been destroyed, whose minds are clear of doubts, and are always engaged in working for the welfare of all living beings, achieve liberation and absorption in the Supreme Bhagavan.
05:26 Sages who are free from passion and anger, who have their mind under control, who have realised the Self and are constantly aiming for perfection are assured of liberation in the Supreme here and hereafter.
06:33-34 Arjuna said: This Yoga of equanimity taught by You, O Krishna, I do not see its steady continuance, because of restlessness of the mind. The mind is certainly restless, turbulent, strong and unyielding, O Krishna! I think it is extremely difficult to control it just as wind is.
06:35-36 The Blessed Bhagavan said: Undoubtedly, O mighty armed one (Arjuna), the mind is difficult to control and restless. But it can be restrained through practice and dispassion. Yoga is difficult to attain for a person whose mind is not controlled. But it is possible for one who has his mind under control and works through prescribed means.
16:01-03 Shri Bhagavan Krishna said: Fearlessness, purity of heart, steadfastness in Yoga and knowledge, alms-giving, control of the senses, sacrifice, study of scriptures, austerity and straightforwardness, non violence, truth, giving up of anger, renunciation, peacefulness, not possessing crookedness, compassion towards beings, not coveting, gentleness, modesty, not fickle, vigour, forgiveness, fortitude, purity, absence of hatred, giving up of pride are qualities that belong to one born in a divine state, O Arjuna!
16:04 Hypocrisy, arrogance, self-conceit, harshness and also anger and ignorance, belong to one who is born in a demoniacal state, O Arjuna!
16:05 The divine nature is deemed for liberation and the demoniacal for bondage. Grieve not, O Arjuna, for you are born with divine properties!
16:21 There are three gates that lead to destruction. They are lust, anger, and greed. Therefore, one should abandon these three.
Tavamithram Sarvada 