A sampler of Swamiji's articles on all types of subjects...
That which I feared the most came to pass.
And what I dread befalls me.
- Holy Bible, Proverbs
In the early 90s I was learning to fly a paraglider. In one of our first classes, our little group was taken by the instructor to a large empty field overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Our instructions were simple: run towards the edge of the cliff and as the large wing deploys over your head, let the ascending air carry you upward gently, turn over the ocean and land on the field where you started from, facing the sea. This field had been selected because of its gentle sloping grade toward the cliff’s edge, and was completely free from any obstacles, such as bushes, trees, or high wires—except for a small cypress tree in the far right corner. Surprisingly, a good proportion of the students landed in that very tree on their first landing. After everybody got disentangled, the instructor gathered us in the center of the field and explained: "You see what happened? You always end up where your mind is drawing you, whether it is out of fear or out of pleasure. As you were hovering over the center of the field and preparing yourself for landing, you spotted the tree that was to be avoided, created a mental picture of what would happen if you landed in it, and unconsciously started drifting towards it. Now I want you to fly up there again and this time, as you prepare to land, keep your concentration on the bull’s eye in the middle of the field, NOT on the tree!" Happily, all students successfully completed their second and all subsequent landings.
That experience taught me the power of concentration. If we concentrate on fear, we will experience it over and over again until it completely paralyzes us. If we concentrate on our bull’s eye (the fontanel), we will reach our life journey’s ultimate goal—God-realization.
The Original Fear
Why and how do people concentrate on fear, since it is the one thing we most want to avoid in our life? A popular theme nowadays is that all fears are about loss, as imagined by the ego. God created the universe out of a fraction of His own unlimited Being, and entered His creation as a living soul. The Aitareya Upanishad 1:1:1-2 says: "The Self, verily, was all this, one only, in the beginning. Nothing else whatsoever winked. He thought, ‘let me now create the worlds.’" This living soul projected a mind, senses, ego and body out of its own self, and entered into the world of duality and maya (illusory bondage). As the ego took over the functioning of this human vehicle, the soul’s eternal and blissful nature became completely forgotten. However, the ego feels at a deep unconscious level that he is a temporary creation bound for dissolution and is deeply afraid of it, although he tries to act as if he were immortal. The ego’s full time job is to make the mind believe that the material world as experienced through the senses is the only permanent reality, yet he intuitively knows that he is a walking time bomb, destined to explode into nothingness at any moment. That is the original fear imagined by the ego at the core of every creature—loss of identity, of I-ness.
But is this fear real? All spiritual traditions and great mystics proclaim it: the soul is just as afraid of coming into existence as the ego is afraid of dissolving into non-existence! As the great 13th Century Sufi master Rumi wrote in his Mathnawi, "Look at yourself, trembling, afraid of non-existence: know that non-existence is also afraid that God might bring it into existence. If you grasp at worldly dignities, it’s from fear, too. Everything, except love of the Most Beautiful, is really agony. It’s agony to move towards death and not drink the water of life."
An anonymous 14th Century Christian mystic confirms it in the classic The Cloud of Unknowing, "He alone feels authentic sorrow who realizes not only what he is, but that he is. Anyone who has not felt this should really weep, for he has never experienced real sorrow. And yet in all this, never does he desire to not-be (…) In fact, he rejoices that he is and from the fullness of a grateful heart he gives thanks to God for the gift and the goodness of his existence. At the same time, he desires unceasingly to be freed from the knowing and feeling of his being."
So the original fear is not about disappearing into non-existence (i.e. our formless stage), nor is it strictly about coming into existence. It is about feeling an existence separate from God.
A baby is born with very little fear, because his ego is also very little. As the ego develops, his vested interests in maintaining the status quo grows proportionally, and the fear gradually crystallizes around five areas of life, as manifested through the five lower chakras: loss of wealth and support (bottom center); of sexual performance, beauty and family (sex center); of life, vitality and power (food center); of love and respect (heart center); and of righteousness and communication (neck center). We fear to lose these things because we identify them as the source of happiness. We have been conditioned to think that there is a proportional increase of happiness with the accumulation of these, and a corresponding decrease of happiness with the loss of them.
Fear has become not only a habit, but the primary filter through which we process all our life experiences and act on it. The ego gradually builds a fortress of protection in a desperate attempt to stave off these proliferating fears. This fortress is made of personal rules, professional licenses, common laws, insurance, lobbies, armies, organized religions, mass-consumerism, addictions, etc. Thus fearful individuals form fear-driven families, neighborhoods, professions, cities, institutions, nations… The whole world is thus completely enmeshed in fear.
The Price of Fear
On a physical level, when a person experiences intense fear, his or her whole body becomes fear: the eyes dilate to take in more light; all non-essential biological processes are suspended i.e. urination, peristaltic movement, digestion, etc.; the veins and arteries sink deeper into the body to minimize the possibility of blood loss should there be a wound (this is why we become "pale with fear"); the adrenal glands flood the whole system with adrenaline which gives tremendous speed, agility and heightened perceptions; the breathing becomes very deep, to allow more oxygen in the whole system; all muscles are burning their fat at an accelerated rate, ready to spring into action; perspiration increases to cool the body down; the heart rate soars, supplying an increased volume of blood to all the major muscle groups; the hairs of the body stand on end, to allow better dissipation of the body heat; etc.
This type of psycho-physiological response is perfectly appropriate if a tiger suddenly jumps into your living room through the open window. It will give you instantly all the mental and physical resources to face the danger (the proverbial "wings of fear").
If however the fear reaches a paroxysmal level, the adrenals will flood the body with steroids until the person goes into shock and loses consciousness. In the face of inescapable suffering, this is the mercy of God; the ultimate escape route.
Even at much lower levels of fear, these internal reactions are still occurring to some degree, and are gradually robbing the whole body of its reserves of energy, and draining the mind of its ability to respond appropriately to different stressful situations. Fear is the slow hidden killer.
Besides the physical price exacted by fear, there is also an emotional domino-effect. In the Bhagavad Gita, the best psychology handbook ever written, the Lord clearly details the consequences of fear: it breeds confusion, anger and hatred. We have been taught to fear what we do not know, and to hate what we fear and don’t understand.
In spiritual circles, fears are particularly heightened, because we are dealing with the Absolute Mystery of God. If the student is not guided, step-by-step, very lovingly and carefully by a living realized master, many doubts, fears and confusions may arise which could block the spiritual progress of the seeker for months, years or the whole life.
There is another price to pay, however, that most people are even less aware of: fearful people attract frightening circumstances. This universal law can be verified in all aspects of life. Prey animals always choose the most terrorized, i.e. helpless, animal as their victim. Human bullies, too, sense instinctively who is most afraid of them and pick on them. In a general sense, and as my flight instructor pointed out, people attract what they fear most because they unconsciously concentrate on it, instead of concentrating on the positive.
Buying Ourselves out of Fear
How do we, "civilized" people, cope with these fears and anxieties? We fill our lives with an ever-increasing supply of mind-stupefying products, services and hobbies. The result is, well, rather frightening:
1. Increasing visits to the doctor for a "magic" pill that will make everything all right. 500,000 American children are currently taking Prozac and other anti-depressant pills.
2. Escalating use of psycho-physical stimulants to alter our mood: alcohol, hallucinogens, sex, anger, overwork, caffeine, tobacco, television, newspapers, food, loud music, thrill-producing activities, movies, sports, etc.
3. Increased dependence on professional counselors to allay our anxieties: psychotherapists, ministers, psychics, social workers, politicians, etc. While these professionals may have some valuable coping strategy to offer, this reliance on outside ministering has a tendency to be habit-forming; even worse, endlessly talking about one’s fears makes the subject relive them and engrains them even deeper into his subconscious.
No one has ever attained liberation or even lasting peace of mind through therapy, prescription drugs, or mind-altering activities. These only provide temporary coping strategies, a desultory little Band-Aid applied to an abysmal emptiness of being.
Freedom from Fear
Here in the spiritual path no effort is lost, nor is any loss of progress found. Even a little of this discipline protects one from great fear.
- Bhagavad Gita 2:40
All fear is a matter of wrong identification, of mind-conditioning. And the only true way to be free from fear is to meditate. True and sincere meditation, learned directly from a master, will de-condition the mind, illuminate the intellect with the light of Real knowledge, and terminate the false reign of the ego. The yogic scriptures have propounded a three-pronged approach since time immemorial: karma yoga—the path of selfless action; jñana yoga—the path of spiritual knowledge; and bhakti yoga—the path of love and surrender. Contrary to what many pundits think, and as explained by our Gurudev Paramahamsa Hariharananda, these are not three separate paths, but the three different stages of a common process of spiritual evolution, shared by all human beings at every moment of their life. In this process, Baba adds, "We first take some action (karma); from this action we gain some knowledge (jñana), from which we eventually derive divine love (bhakti)."
Kriya Yoga is the essence of all three yogas. In our dealing with the problem of fear, or with any emotion or situation, we should use the Kriya Yoga approach with a proper understanding of what these three stages entail:
1. Use the Slow and Feeble Breath (Karma Yoga)
A simple child
That lightly draws its breath
And feels its life in every limb
What should it know of death?
- William Wordsworth,We Are Seven
Fear is such a powerful emotion that we must first disengage from its hold by practicing the small, feeble Kriya breathing technique. A complete change of mood can happen in a matter of seconds, or even less than a second if we practice it very deeply on a regular basis.
Gurudev keeps repeating this fact, because no one seems to really apply it in their life: every emotion is associated with a different type of breath. Change your breathing pattern, and you will change and gain mastery over that emotion. Fear is a shallow, constricted type of breathing that is primarily centered in the upper portion of the lungs. Use instead the slow and feeble Kriya breath—watching it ascend calmly like the smoke of an incense stick until it touches the fontanel and rebounds back into the lungs, before being exhaled very feebly through the nostrils. So feebly in fact, that if you place your index finger under your nostrils, you should hardly feel any warm air coming out.
In Mark 4:35-41 and Luke 8:22-25, a vivid story describes in metaphorical terms the fear that grips seekers in their spiritual journey, and how to conquer it. "And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"
The boat is the human body, the sea is the mind, the storm is the negative emotions and thoughts that keep disturbing our fragile balance. The disciples are the spiritual seekers, and Jesus is the soul, the living presence of God within. The wind is the breath that is not controlled, and the water that is threatening to sink the boat is the emotions.
Thus the metaphorical teaching is this: Jesus—the soul—when he is awakened (i.e. through the scientific process of soul-culture as practiced in Kriya Yoga), controls the wind-breath and subdues the sea of raging emotions whipped up by the wind-breath, through faith.
In the yogic scripture Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2:2, the same teaching is presented: chale vate chalat chittam nishchale nishchalo bhavet yogi sthanuttvam apnoti tato vayur nirodhayet—“When the breath is restless, the mind is restless. When the breath is still, the mind is still. By breath-control, the yogi becomes realized. Therefore, control the breath.”
2. Apply Reason to Erase all Doubts (Jñana Yoga)
Our doubts are traitors,
And make us lose the good we oft might win,
By fearing to attempt.
- William Shakespeare
Overcoming fear is essentially a matter of acquiring true knowledge, which will change our perception forever. In an ordinary state of consciousness, the letters F.E.A.R. stand for "Forget Everything And Run"—in other words, throw away your reason and react impulsively to anything that feels unfamiliar and uncomfortable. This behavior is common to both animals and ordinary human beings. To the yogi however—the person of inner detachment and spiritual discrimination—the same letters F.E.A.R. stand for "False Evidence Appearing Real"—in other words, he or she knows that all fear is based on wrong identification, and that happiness is the state of remaining in God-consciousness—the state of inner equipoise. “He who is free from passion, fear and anger and whose meditation is steady is said to be a sage.” (Bhagavad Gita 2:56)
As Shri Shankaracharya wrote in verse 12 of the Viveka Chudamani, "By adequate reasoning the conviction of the reality about the rope is gained, which puts an end to the great fear and misery caused by the snake worked up in the deluded mind."
People’s biggest fear is death. Yet if we examine fairly and meditate on the law of karma and reincarnation, we realize that we are immortal—we simply change our bodily costume over and over again in order to gain knowledge. So what is there to be afraid of? “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:55)
Paramahamsa Yogananda once cured the fear of hell in a devout Christian by applying the power of reason. Because his method was highly unusual, and his timing most unexpected, it made a deep impression on that man. Yoganandaji was traveling in a train and he noticed that the man in the seat in front of him looked very unhappy. By his yogic powers, Yoganandaji immediately saw that the man was extremely worried about his son who was leading a very dissolute life. So he asked him point blank, "Brother, why are you looking so gloomy today?" The man, startled, denied his feeling and told Yoganandaji to mind his own business. Our great master prodded him more "It is because of your son’s wayward life, isn’t it?" Stunned by his extraordinary accuracy, the man asked him whether he was a fortune-teller or some kind of sorcerer? The man finally had to admit that it was true, that he was extremely preoccupied by his son’s wayward manners. Yoganandaji proceeded, "You are also thinking with great fear of hell, aren’t you?" The man responded that yes, he was still mulling over a sermon he had heard this morning about hell and eternal damnation, and that he was terrified by this prospect for his son. Yogananda then said "I have the solution to correct your son: ask four of your strongest friends to build a huge pyre, to set it on fire, then to bind your son’s hands and feet together and toss him in the fire." The man screamed, "Are you a monk or a devil?" Yoganandaji calmly replied, "I am only suggesting a way to solve your son’s problems, and your worries about him at the same time." The man shouted, "I may be extremely unhappy with him, still he is my son and I love him…" At which point Yoganandaji interjected very matter-of-factly, "You, being an earthly father, could not tolerate the thought of doing any harm to your own son; think only how much more love our Heavenly Father has for all His children, who are made in His image. How could He possibly condemn them to eternal hell and damnation?" These words hit a deep chord in that man, and he realized there and then that the concept of hell was completely inconsistent with the God of love and justice that he worshipped. From that day on he became a close friend of Yoganandaji.
This external used of reasoning (from the teacher to a student) can also be use internally, once the mind has been sufficiently stabilized by the use of the Kriya breath.
3. Embrace the Law of Love, not the Law of Fear (Bhakti Yoga)
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
- Holy Bible, 2 Timothy 1:7
Should we fear God? In the Bible, God is constantly represented as causing fear in people ("God-fearing people", etc.). But this is a misinterpretation. The sentiment that the Most High evokes is not "fear", but awe. How can we be afraid of God when He has created us, is sustaining us, and will eventually reabsorb us only out of love? Most representations of God in Hinduism show Him or Her in the abhaya mudra—extending the palm out vertically in a gesture signifying "fear not". The same is found in the representation of Buddha, and of Mother Mary in the Catholic church. And what more sublime display of fearlessness than the figure of Jesus crucified, the Son of God inviting all devotees to merge into his beatific figure in spite of all difficulties, dangers and obstacles? An attitude encapsulated in the Bhagavad Gita 18:66: “Abandoning all duties, take refuge in Me alone, I shall liberate you from all evils; do not fear.”
In the same Bhagavad Gita, we see the remarkable transformation of Arjuna, Lord Krishna’s beloved disciple, from a miserable fearful individual who whines "I will not fight" in chapter 1, to the fearless and mighty warrior who declares to his beloved Guru and Lord "I will do whatever You command me to do" in the last chapter (chapter 18).
Remember your heritage: you are born of infinite Spirit, sons and daughters of the King and of kings, destined to rule over all created worlds. The Upanishads exhort us: ma bhai—never be deluded by fear.
Any belief, dogma or rule that is fear-based should be vigorously rejected as untruth. Abusive organized religions, false prophets, cults, sects, all try to control their flock through fear: whether it be the "fire-and-brimstone" Sunday sermon, or the threat of excommunication, these should be seen clearly for what they are: manipulations to protect the corporate self-interests. No group has a monopoly on Truth. There has never been and never will be a universal organized religion. It is God’s desire to experience multiplicity, and it is man’s mission to find God’s unity through this marvelous diversity, not to try to reduce God to a single prophet, message, or creed.
If there is to be a single common thread throughout all religions, it is love, not fear. Lord Jesus said “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” (1John 4:8) and “God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.” (1John 4:16).
Practice Small Acts of Courage Everyday
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me.
- Holy Bible, Psalm 23
The human brain has the marvelous capability of producing opposite emotions in quick succession. Love can turn into hate within minutes, pleasure into pain, etc. We can use that ability in a positive way, too. Any time a fear strikes, we can instantly decide to apply the opposite remedy—by practicing small acts of courage. These acts are completely personal and depend entirely on our own circumstances. Be creative, be bold, and be free—but always make sure that your acts are ethical and reasonably safe. Do not jump off the Golden Gate bridge if you have a fear of swimming! Start with simple things: if you have a fear of catching a cold for instance, take a leisurely walk under the soft rain. One mother had a deep-seated fear of a certain ethnic group. One of her friends offered her this wonderful advice: "Start by getting to know one person in that group, then play with their children; one day, you can invite the parents over for tea; another time, they may invite you to their house, and to meet their neighbors and friends, etc." This gradual process of discovery completely cured this mother of her fear.
What is the greatest act of courage one can ever do? It is not massacring scores of villains single-handedly, flying a trapeze without a safety net, or facing a raging bull in the arena. It is simply to love, unconditionally. The most courageous act ever performed on earth is to have the audacity to say and to practice "Love thy neighbor" and "Turn the other cheek" when the enemy hits you. It is the bravery of a small and frail little Indian man and his followers who calmly walked up to the formidable British army who has just massacred his fellow citizens and who declared "No matter how many of my brothers you strike down, another will rise to take his place; we will never hit you back." This diminutive body housed a spiritual giant: Mahatma Gandhi.
Famous or obscure, these men and women have merged their consciousness with the Supreme, acting out His law of love, which conquers all, and ends all. As Swami Vivekananda said, “If there is one word that you find coming like a bomb from the Upa-nishads, bursting like a bomb-shell upon masses of ignorance, it is the word, fearlessness. And the only religion that ought to be taught is the religion of fearlessness. Either in this world or in the world of religion, it is true that fear is the sure cause of degradation and sin. It is fear that brings misery, fear that brings death, fear that brings evil.”
Come to the Edge
A poem by Guillaume Apollinaire
“Come to the edge,” he said.
They said, “We are afraid.”
“Come to the edge,” he said.
They came.
He pushed them
...
and they flew.
Written a few days after Baba's Mahasamadhi day,
December 7, 2002
The scene is forever burned in my mind-after two weeks of intense physical pain-the first in his bedroom in Homestead, the second in the Baptist Hospital in Miami, Baba has indicated that is he is willing to relinquish his physical form. Baba is praying, "Supreme Almighty Lord, reveal Thyself to me now… now… NOW!"
For a few days now, Swami Shuddhanandaji has been chanting the whole Bhagavad Gita, while the other swamis and two attending mothers from the ashram have been devotedly holding Baba's noble hands, massaging his precious feet, stroking his beautiful brow…
On the last but one day Baba was expressing immense love and gratitude. He repeated to the doctors, nurses, and attendants, "I am happy. God is happy. You all be happy. I want to bow you all unlimited times" before slipping back into unconsciousness. Later, in the night, he inquired what was the time, and told us to go home and eat. Seeing that no one made a move, he repeated several times, "You all go now and take food. Don't delay." To the very end, Baba only thought of others' needs and welfare…
On his last earthly day, Baba proceeded to leave the body house, as carefully and methodically as he conducted his whole life. Withdrawing his life force from each peripheral room, turning off every light on his way, steadily ascending to the top, Baba left quietly, his house in order. Witnessing the simple departure of such an inconceivable mahatma, the words of Rabindaranath Tagore's Gitanjali were quietly echoing in my mind:
I have got my leave.
Bid me farewell, my brothers!
I bow to you all and take my departure.
Here I give back the keys of my door—
and I give up all claims to my house. (…)
The sky is flushed with the dawn and my path lies beautiful.
Ask not what I have with me to take there.
I start on my journey with empty hands and expectant heart.
To give him more serenity in this holy passage, the kind doctor had removed all monitoring equipment and IV fluids from his body, only keeping the oxygen mask on.
First the bowels stopped, then the kidneys shut down. The body remained heated by a constant fever, but the restlessness had vanished. He did not talk, and his beautiful eyes were now almost always closed. Baba was gently falling into his last sleep. The oxygen level of his blood started to decrease gradually, and the feet and legs started to grow cooler. His breathing, which had been very labored due to the severe pneumonia which Baba chose for his return Home, started to become scarcer and scarcer.
Present in the room at that time were eight servants of the Great Master-4 brother-monks, and 4 mothers. Baba had arranged the symbols of his last and greatest act on the world-theater marvelously.
Around 6:40 pm we noticed that Baba was now breathing only once every minute or so. We all started chanting the Gayatri Mantra, while massaging gently his divine body. At 6:48 pm, Baba took another breath, and never took another one. I was holding his right hand, and felt it still warm, pulsating and wonderfully soft. I checked the pulse and felt it still beating. Baba's doctor, an extraordinarily compassionate and loving being whom he loved so immensely and who loved Baba so dearly, was informed by telephone. She could not come right away, but told us to keep monitoring the heart rate, as death could only be pronounced when the heart stops.
Baba's beautiful heart continued beating for a full twenty-three minutes. The marvelous soul-bird which had been roosting in this body-tree for 95 years had suddenly taken flight into the infinite expanse of the sky above, but the tree below was still vibrating under the impulse of the flight home.
Gradually, gradually, the pulse was decreasing, becoming fainter and fainter as the soul-bird was merging with the Infinite Light. At 7:11 pm, the pulse could no longer be felt.
There was no fear, no sorrow, no loss at that holy moment. Only love and gratitude remained in the room. Baba's whole life had only been for giving. His last breath, naturally, had also been his gift to us all, to show us how divine love is endless… |
