fear

genkaku

Posted elsewhere, but I thought I would post it here as well:

As a matter of curiosity, I wonder:

Which, if either, would be better -- to conquer your fears or not to be afraid in the first place?

I don't mean this in some high-seat, spiritual or self-improvement way.

It's just a matter of curiosity.

taiyaki

i think conquering fears is probably better. it's more practical than say having no fears.

conquering is seeing through a fear and seeing it for what it is. so there is a practical and straightforwardness to actually doing something about fear.

whereas just not having fears is not practical advice and for most people they don't have the tools and mindset to do such thing.

ultimately i do think that when we conquer by examining our fears with wisdom/compassion then the energy of fear dissipates. in that sense fear is no more. but such can only occur when we actively engage and allow fear in our lives.

so what is fear? on some level it is an attachment to self or desire.

how does one get rid of fear? just see clearly into the nature of the phenomena itself. in that seeing then fear goes away on its own.

thus fear can arise and it can fall, but it has nothing for you. it just is what it is. just another bubble.

Mountains

Would it matter? You would end up without fear either way. The fact is, we have fears, so not being afraid "in the first place" (we are not born with fear, btw) is just a mental exercise.

robot

In my life as a mariner I have experienced plenty of fear. It seems pretty natural to me. Fear is overcome by experience. People without fear in this business are either foolhardy or experienced. The absence of fear does not equal courage out there. Anyone who has gone skydiving for the first time would probably agree. Arriving in port in one piece after sh*ting yourself for hours is quite satisfying.

person

I think that conquering fear is courage. Absence of fear is just that absence of fear, maybe its some sort of wisdom. I don't know if one is better than the other but how can someone have courage if there's no fear to conquer.

robot

I think that conquering fear is courage. Absence of fear is just that absence of fear, maybe its some sort of wisdom. I don't know if one is better than the other but how can someone have courage if there's no fear to conquer.

Thats what I told my daughter. She called be from the airport when she was flying to Turkey for a solo trip to the middle east to tell me that she felt scared. I said I thought that it was brave to keep moving ahead even though she was afraid..

genkaku

@robot ... Arriving in port in one piece after sh*ting yourself for hours is quite satisfying.

Amen.