What are you afraid of? We all have so many fears, large and small. There are so many things that scare us, worry us, or make us anxious. Apart from the obvious causes, there are also things like the fear of failing. Even in the face of success, we sometimes feel fearful. If we get the job we are going after, we maybe worried we won’t like it, or we won’t live up to other peoples’ expectations. Then, there is the fear of different kinds of loss, and ultimately the fear of death.

In this world, if we think something is desirable and we want it, we may pray to get it, or try to get into the positive thinking groove and focus on our attempt to acquire it. But the whole time we are desiring something—planning for it and doing what we think we need to get it—there is this gnawing feeling, this anxiety, and fearfulness that maybe we won’t get it.

Then, as soon as we get what we want, we are always in anxiety that something is going to happen to it. It’s going to get damaged, or we are going to lose something or someone. When we finally do lose the things and people we have grown attached to, and that we thought we desperately needed, we experience another type of fear and anxiety;connected to the loss itself. As unpleasant as this fear is,it is part of material existence. The truth is that we can never be at peace because of the constant presence of this fear.

We can understand from all yogic scriptures and great saintly teachers that all fear is ultimately rooted in the fear of death. The fear of death is so overwhelming that as soon as we are put in the proximity of a dead body, or in a situation where we might suddenly lose our life, we experience a dramatic change in consciousness.

One of the spiritual masters in our lineage,from a couple of hundred years ago, wrote a beautiful song which has this line, “kamala-dala-jala, jivana-talamala”. It means that this life is tottering just like a drop of water on a lotus leaf. If you have ever seen a large lotus leaf with a drop of water on it, the water collects together in a round drop which rolls about on the leaf. Because it is not fixed or stable, at any second it can simply roll off the leaf and be gone. This represents our life in this body. It is so precarious and at any moment it can be lost.

Why do we fear death?

Why are we so afraid of it? The reality is that death is the great disrupter. At death, everything is thrown into chaos. When someone has a critical illness,where they are slowly wasting away, even when people have had one or two months of preparation, when that spouse or friend finally dies, it is utterly devastating. We have a desire for permanence. We cling vainly to the hope that all the circumstances of our life will be permanent. But death demonstrates that all relationships and all possessions are impermanent. This world is impermanent by nature.

According to the great sages, the pain that we experience from the death of a loved one, or any fearful situation, is meant to be a learning experience for us, so that we will seek a solution to our suffering. One of the biggest freak-outs associated with death is fear of the unknown. What is going to happen to me? What will the experience of death be like?

The foundation of our desire for permanence can be found in our own spiritual nature. We, the living beings, are eternal. If you look at animals, or even the lowest of forms of life like bacteria, they all struggle against death. Death goes against everything fundamental to our eternal spiritual nature.

The material conception of life is that we are our bodies, and fear is inseparable from this material conception of life. As long as we cling to this misconception, fear will exist. The hearts of the great saintly persons, the great yogis,are filled with pain from observing the suffering of,not just humanity, but of all forms of life. They see the suffering, fear, and lack of fulfillment associated with material existence, and they understand it is both unfortunate and unnecessary.

This “I am my body” misconception is born of ignorance, and ignorance causes pain. We cannot separate them. According to the degree that we are covered by and acting in ignorance, we will experience pain—the greater the ignorance, the greater the pain. Knowledge,however, means freedom from pain. Knowledge results in spiritual blissfulness. If we look at a person who is not living in ignorance, we will find that such a person is enlightened and peaceful.

One who is not disturbed in mind even amidst the threefold miseries or elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind. Bhagavad-Gita 2.56

The Vedas divide the miseries of this world in three categories

The first is Adhidaivika. The suffering we experience from natural calamities and things that are beyond our control. Then you have Adhibhautika– miseries that are caused by other living beings, whether it’s our partner, children, or parents, or even a so-called ‘enemy.’ These living entities also include, for example,mosquitoes that bite us and infect us with disease, or ingesting something with bacteria that causes us to have diarrhea and fever. Finally, there is Adhyātmika–the miseries that are due to our own body or mind, such as if we fall down and break an arm, or if our mind is disturbed with worries and fears.

But when a person is equal in both happiness and distress, and is free from attachments, fear, and anger, they are called a sage of steady mind. Their mind is in a very calm and stable condition. The only reason that we can exist in that state is due to spiritual knowledge. Spiritual knowledge destroys the darkness of ignorance. When everything is dark and you turn on the light, instantly the darkness is dissipated. In the same way, knowledge instantly evaporates the darkness of ignorance. The process for cultivating spiritual knowledge is to hear from spiritual authorities – the great spiritual teachers. Hearing also means reading the instructions found in the yoga scriptures. By accepting such instruction, we make it part of our personal practice. This spiritual path requires focus and dedication. If we are able to practice under the guidance of a proper spiritual teacher, we begin to taste a form of sweetness and happiness that continuously increases and grows. It is very transformative for our life. This knowledge is an awakening, and we see things from a completely different perspective.

In the final chapter of the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna is speaking to Arjuna: Oh son of Prtha, that understanding by which one knows what ought to be done and what ought not to be done, what is to be feared and what is not to be feared, what is binding and what is liberating, this is in the mode of goodness. Bhagavad-Gita 18.30

Krishna explains that there are different types of knowledge. Knowledge in the mode of goodness is completely enlightening. However, the so-called knowledge that people generally cultivate in this world, more often just academic knowledge,is considered in the mode of ignorance,if it contributes to their increased material entanglement.

Spiritual knowledge teaches us what is to be done and what is not to be done. In the beginning, refraining from what should not be done may be a little difficult. But, as we begin to tread ever so carefully down the spiritual path, there is an internal transformation. There are spiritual insights, an awakening, and the development of a wonderful and joyful spiritual flavor to life.

The Bible states: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body.” Matthew 10:28

The soul can actually never be killed, but the light of your spiritual life can be extinguished, by becoming completely covered by ignorance. In this case, it is like the death of the soul.

In the Bhagavad-Gita, it says: In this (spiritual) endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous types of fear. Bhagavad-Gita 2.40

We exist with all kinds of fears that are often buried deep inside us, only surfacing from time to time. Because we live in this continual state of fear, we are not always aware of our actual situation.

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If we look up the dictionary, it defines peace as “freedom from disturbance” or, “quiet and tranquillity”. If we look at our life, there are so many things that disturb us. If we attempt to draw up a list, we are likely to run out of paper in no time, because life is filled with so many disturbances.

Many people think of peace as the absence of war. That is also a valid definition. But war or armed conflict is only one type of grave disturbance.

We can think of disturbance in relation to other issues as well, one example would be economic calamities, just as we experienced in 2008. The world economy took a massive nose dive and it still has not fully recovered. It created a great deal of disturbance within society; it became much more difficult for people to find work. People’s asset bases, their homes, their bank accounts, all eroded, and this was very disturbing for them, particularly for those approaching retirement.

But this lack of peace also manifests in a myriad of other ways. For instance, on a more personal level, with the idea of personal friends and betrayals. It’s tremendously disturbing when someone we thought of as a close friend, someone who was trusted and relied upon, and after some turn of events, that person betrays us. Even being “unfriended” freaks us out or causes huge disturbance for some of us.

Body Image

Studies show that the use of social media tends to result in a greater lack of peace than of peacefulness. People are searching for something, but they don’t realise that what they’re searching for is peace and happiness. They’ve got their phones and they’re swiping and swiping away. What is it that they are looking for? People say, “I’m trying to see what my friends are doing.” But they’ve been constantly following what their friends are doing for the past four or five years and it hasn’t stopped. Because they’re actually searching for something else, something deeper.

Today, body image reigns supreme. It’s the age of selfies. Selfie is pretence. You have to get the right look on and the right angle, and get the selfie stick out, take a picture of yourself enjoying the moment—it’s all so fake. Nobody wants real video or real pictures. They don’t want a picture of themselves brushing their teeth, using the toilet, eating and dropping food on their clothes. They don’t want to be caught asleep on the sofa with saliva coming out of their mouth.

It’s not just youngsters, older people are into it too. Some people have had so many facelifts and so much body modification that they look stunningly youthful. “Oh, you look so great!” — but then they have to stand up and start walking and you suddenly become aware that “wow this person is actually 80 years old!”

How we want people to see us and relate to us, leads to becoming troubled by thoughts of how acceptable we are. This also leads to self-doubt, about whether others can actually accept us, and whether we are truly lovable. People end up in so much self-doubt and pain.

Unfulfilled Desires

Another thing that brings disturbance into people’s life is the thought of not having something that they desire, or not having enough of it. They become agitated and disturbed: “I’m not getting enough of this sort of activity. I’m not getting enough out of that relationship. I’m not able to afford a certain new toy. I’m not able to afford something else. I’m just not getting enough stuff.” They’re feeling both distracted and disturbed, and looking for more. But no matter how much stuff, money or anything else you get, it will never satisfy you. You will continue be disturbed.

So, with unfulfilled desires, the things that we desire or want and are just wishing and hoping for, there is this false idea that the disturbance I’m feeling within my heart will be erased if I can get these things—if I could just get the perfect body, if I could get more possessions. I think that if I could just get these things, then everything is going to be great and I’m going to exist in a peaceful and happy condition. But that is the opposite of truth. If you lead a life of material pursuits, it’s absolutely not true that by getting all these different things you will find relief from your emptiness and suffering, that you will come to a state of happiness, fulfilment and peace.

What does the Bhagavad-Gita say?

The Bhagavad-Gita is probably the best known of all the Hindu or Vedic scriptures and is used as a reference or a guide for any serious practitioner of yoga. It teaches us many life lessons including the subject of peace and peacefulness.

The Bhagavad-Gita literally means the ‘Song of God’ and it was a dialogue between Lord Sri Krishna and a very great warrior prince named Arjuna about 5,000 years ago on a battlefield. It is quite different, in many ways, from other scriptures and it contains profound knowledge about the nature and purpose of life. It examines the basic question of identity: who am I? what is my life’s purpose? where can I find happiness and perfection in life?

There is a beautiful verse in the Bhagavad-Gita:

One who is not connected with the Supreme can have neither transcendental intelligence nor a steady mind, without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any happiness without peace?  [Bhagavad-Gita 2:66]

If we reflect upon this verse, it is saying that material life, chasing all these material things and experiences, instead of providing peace, leads to more agitation, more painful experiences. And this results in a dimming of whatever intelligence we have. If we are to actually come to the position of being fulfilled and peaceful, to have a spiritual life, and if we are to see things with clarity, then it’s necessary for us to have transcendental intelligence.

In another two verses, the Bhagavad-Gita describes this situation:

As a strong wind sweeps away a boat on the water, even one of the roaming senses on which the mind focuses can carry away a man’s intelligence.

Therefore, O mighty-armed Arjuna, one whose senses are restrained from their objects is certainly of steady intelligence. [Bhagavad-Gita 2.67-68]

If we want to be able to achieve happiness, fulfilment, and peace, having steady intelligence is necessary. It’s also necessary to curb this endless chasing of the demands of the senses and of our minds.

A couple of verses later, the Bhagavad-Gita it states:

A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires—that enter like rivers into the ocean which is ever being filled but is always still—can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires. [Bhagavad-Gita 2.70]

If we are going to dedicate our life to simply following our minds and our senses, focusing our minds on all the different desires of the senses, we will not be able to come to the position of experiencing peace, to be free from disturbance. The chasing of desire is the same as putting gasoline on a fire. If I want to put a fire out and I add gasoline, although it’s a liquid it doesn’t put the fire out. It makes the fire burn brighter.

So, if my life is spent trying to fulfil the desires that manifest in my senses and mind, without any consideration of whether this will actually bring me happiness, and whether this is a wise choice, then I will simply be experiencing an ever-increasing agitation instead of going the other way. In order to experience happiness, one must cultivate spiritual intelligence.

A faithful man who is dedicated to transcendental knowledge and who subdues his senses is eligible to achieve such knowledge, and having achieved it he quickly attains the supreme spiritual peace. [Bhagavad-Gita 4.39]

What is the Solution?

We are embodied—we have a material body. We are living in this world. The important thing for us to do is come to understand and appreciate what is the actual goal and purpose of our life. And that is to find this fulfilment we hope for, to experience the actual happiness that we desire in our heart of hearts, to awaken the natural condition of spiritual love and to have this very extraordinary and completely fulfilling experience of spiritual love and happiness.

If we follow the path of materialism, founded on the idea that I am the material body and that I will experience fulfilment by constantly bombarding my body and mind with sensual experiences, then this is actually a display of a lack of transcendental intelligence.

The intelligent path, as it is pointed out in the Bhagavad-Gita, is when we engage in the activities of life, but focus them as an offering to the Supreme Soul, to dovetail our life in the service of the Supreme Soul and of other living beings. If we live our life in this way instead of greedily trying to grab things and suck the juice out of all this fruit that we get, hoping it will fulfil us; if we instead redirect our life and make it one of being connected with the Supreme Soul and with others in a mood of humility and service, then we will have another experience. We will actually find that condition of unlimited peacefulness, of tremendous spiritual happiness and love.

The principle spiritual process to bring about this change is to engage in meditation, and particularly kirtan meditation, under the guidance of a genuine spiritual teacher, which brings about a purification of the heart and the mind.

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