Due to the disastrous intrusions of Nature, many countries are in awe. Firestorms to floods and Tsunamis – all these could be Nature’s response to the unprecedented human exploitation of Nature and its resources. Pandemics come as a bonus. Some time back, when AIDS was at its zenith somebody asked Osho, how shall we save ourselves from this deadly disease. Osho replied that the right question should have been on how to save ourselves from the fear of death caused by AIDS.
He continued to say that viruses could be controllable but it is difficult to scare off the elements of fear inside. More people die not because of viruses but because of fear of death. He said that no virus greater than fear has so far been found out. Osho said that unless we understand fear, much before we actually die, we become corpses. This has grown into mass hysteria. Osho also asked us to remember that fear was the actual reason for many pandemic alleged deaths.
What happens when we get afraid? Our internal chemistry changes. Uncontrolled trembling of body muscles, especially that at knees, is one of the effects. It can even end up in total freezing of the body. While in fear, the heart beat keeps increasing and the parasympathetic system is activated. At critical conditions like this, the body may not have enough energy to be shared for its normal functions like thinking or seeing or perceiving properly. These are times when the heart system hires energy from other distribution networks in the body. This crisis may lead to death too – all for the simple reason of having been in fear. In short, fear damages our ability to resist, develops heart related issues, ulcer like abdominal complaints and allergies of varying kinds.
There is an adage saying, what that appears in our lives are what we basically were afraid of. Over anxiety about children may damage the future of children. Same is the case with fear of varying kinds, be it fear of God. Fear of God needs to be taken in its proper sense. Handle fear by facing it!I remember the story of a small bush frog that fell in front of a cobra. The frog was sure that it was finished. However, it decided to try a trick. The frog told the cobra that it’s okay to eat it but the cobra also would die of poison. The frog claimed that it is more venomous than the snake. The cobra asked the frog to prove it. Both the frog and the cobra waited near a footpath, as agreed upon. The frog asked the cobra to bite the first one that passed by and the frog would bite the next. There came a pedestrian; the cobra bit the man and jumped to the other side of the path. The man turned back and saw a little frog sitting there looking at him. Thinking the bite to be from a frog, he continued walking, as if nothing happened. Next it was the turn of the frog. When the next man came close, the frog jumped to the other side of the road just touching him on his leg. When he turned back, he saw a cobra looking at him, fangs spread. He thought that he was bitten and fell down unconscious. The cobra understood that the bush frog was venomous as was said. It soon slithered into the bushes.
Fear that forms within grows and spreads around; we would be the reason for the vibrations it generates in the society. It may even shake the integrity of the nation. With frightening statistics and stories from Covid and other disaster hit areas, the media spreads fear, perhaps knowing not the impact of their carelessness. In 2021, I remember Idukki Dam, to have opened for a while. All media, print and visual, were fully on reviews and evaluations on the heavy damages it might create. The next day, many people from the marked area didn’t even know that the dam was opened. A mask is not enough to remain safe from them. Positive media is what we badly need!
