THERE ARE TOO MANY
FEARS
“Fear” is defined as the feeling
that one has when something dangerous, painful or frightening is anticipated to
occur. Even otherwise life is surrounded by a number of fears. It is fearful to
feel unsafe in many places like roads, rivers, mountains, forests, and
conditions like extreme heat and cold, heavy rains and darkness with
probability of accidents.
Almost all people are afraid of death, disease, failure and loss.
Poverty, unemployment, homelessness, loneliness, enmity are also replete with
fears.
So many of us are afraid of thefts,
robberies, fights, injuries, physical attacks and murders.
A totally fearless existence is a
dream. So many individuals hire body guards or equip themselves with weapons to
cope with possible dangers.
Some synonyms of fear are : dread,
horror, fright, alarm, panic, terror, scare, apprehension, etc.
The English author Samuel Johnson (1709-80)
says : All fear is painful, and when it
conduces not to safety, is painful without use. Every consideration, therefore,
by which groundless terrors may be removed, adds something to human happiness.
Fear is also described as result of
wrong-doing, errors, mistakes, faults, crimes, vices, sins, evils, fool-hardiness,
immaturity, rashness, etc. All these breed a sense of fear of punishment or revenge
or retribution. A thief, a robber, a bad character, a murderer cannot be
fearless. The fear of God’s wrath or the punitive action under government laws
is always there.
The American clergy Henry Ward
Beecher (1813-1887) says: God planted fear in the soul as truly as he planted
love or courage. It is a kind of bell or gong which rings the mind into quick
life and avoidance on the approach of danger. It is the soul’s signal for
rallying.
According to the French
mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal (1628-62): there is a virtuous fear
which is the effect of faith, and a vicious fear which is the product of doubt
and distrust. The former leads to hope as relying on God, in whom we believe;
the latter inclines to despair, as not relying upon God, in whom we do not
believe. Persons of the one character fear to lose God; those of the other
character fear to find him.
To conclude, here is a quote by the
Greek writer and journalist Nikos
Kazantzakis ( 1883-1957): “I hope nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.”
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G.R.Kanwal
22 July 2025
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