Paramhansa Yogananda

Dear All,

Fear is one of the 5 Kleshas ( coloring of Ego)  dealt in detail in the posts under the theme MBCA ( Manas, Buddhi, Chitra and Ahankara ) in this blog.

Fear is actually  fear of change when a human being fears the uncertainty of outcome of a change in his  life- may it be in  his social or  career or spiritual front.

We are presently leading our life in a particular way, at our home dealing with relations and  at our office front, associated with certain people at peer level or at higher or lower level , some of them whom we know / think as good or bad !! However they are, they are predictable and we learn to live with their nature.

Also, in the context of spiritual path, we are presently following a routine path - attending weekly bhajan, praying for few minutes daily, attending some satsangh once in a while, undertaking pilgrimage once in a while and are happy and contended (!!) with our spiritual evolvement.

There comes a master or we listen to Divine discourses where in  we are commanded/ instructed/ advised  to take the spiritual path seriously with conviction that  “ God realization is the only purpose of  our life” 

Here, when we think on what that person has conveyed to us and when we sit and think of plunging into the spiritual path, FEAR sets in.

Why?

Because, we are embarking on an unknown territory in the spiritual path where we know the starting step but have no clue as to where we will land , what all sacrifices we have to make in our present way of life  if we take a serious plunge in the new found path !!!

Paramahamsa says “ Fearlessness is faith in God”. 

This is the initial, strong faith in God that once we take up the spiritual path with conviction and take one strong step, He will walk 100 steps towards us. He has promised us about His 100 steps. Hasn’t He??

The author ends with  indicating the ultimate stage of fearlessness after one attains Self- Realization where, there is no fear of any change to his very identity, even no fear of death or any future birth, to clear the so called  karmas !!!!

This is the stage of total fearlessness where, one transcends the ego and ignorance of identifying oneself to one’s limited body mind and intellect.

That is the stage like that of  janaka, seated before sage vasishta in acharya's Kutir, totally stilled . 

When rumour mongers run in panic on getting a rumour that Mithila ( kingdom of Janaka) is under fire and the king is asked as to why he is still seated where he is without the  FEAR of his kingdom getting ruined due to fire, the king who is a realized  seer, a videha mukhta, says “ when and if  mithila is burnt, nothing of mine is lost “.

What does that mean?? He had totally transcended his identity as a human, as King, as owning mithila, as a Jiva with any physical identity where , the “ mine” referred above is  the state of absolute freedom, of absolute fearlessness.

So, we have to start with fearlessness caused due to faith in God and  out spiritual journey must culminate in total fearlessness which is actually  total realization!!

The last trace of unknown subtlest fear within us is cut off/ transcended only when SELF REALIZATION dawns within!!

Hari Aum Tatsat