Does fear have its own velocity? - 2 January 2012

Does fear have its' own velocity? Are we hungry for our own fear?
Bharat Bhushan - 2 January 2012

Feeding into our fears is a primary tangent, going away from our actual lives. Fear is a tangent. It is meant to go away from us. Our mind does not allow it to happen. We make the 'impossible' to become a significant reality of our lives. We make the tangent turn back, after the point of intersection, and cause it to re-enter our lives. The tangent does not turn back. It never actually happens.

Our mind assumes with extreme certainty that the tangent of fear actually has turned back to re-enter our circle of life. This fallacy is pure myth. But, we cause the aspect of fear to assume primordial shape and substance. Fear evolves into fright, gets converted to a phobia, and changes into diurnal, nocturnal and daytime realities. the actual reality of fear touches our circle of life for only a brief moment in time.

The cause emerges from nowhere, some point of unknown origin, and establishes its own velocity and touches us and goes on its own manner, path and behaviour. There is only one reality in terms of fear. The reality of fear is that there is no reality. Fear never existed. It is our response to a situation, stimuli or understanding. Our response assumes a real and organic existence within our unclear lifestyles. Formative myths take strength from our insistent realities and demand to feed on our fears.

We get to be hungry for our own fear, and we want more of it. There is no satisfying our hunger, to use a cliche. We get to be happy with the aspect of being frightened inspite of the fact that it is not real. there is notable means of being stronger, and there are ways and means of avoiding fear. Associated thought leads to consolidation of fear and our refusal to part with it. We begin to establish ownership over our fear.

We love that we are in fear of a certain issue. We start deliberating over it, and we end up in being afraid of exploring alternatives to our fear. What was a tangent, and should have been allowed to continue on its path, is now accomodated within our lives, and is now resident within us. The tangent has now taken over the circle.

Does time and the past contribute to fear in life? - 22 September 2008

Does TIME and the PAST contribute to FEAR in one's own life? 
Bharat Bhushan 22 September 2008

Time generally contributes greatly to fear. In this regard, some truths need to be accepted -

• The past no longer exists.
• The past is made of bits of memory. 
• The future is not here, as of now, i.e., today.
• The only truth of existence is that of the present moment.

The mind is aware of its own thoughts. The mind is not helpless. Rather, it actively controls what we perceive as involuntary responses and functions. The mind creates defense mechanisms. The mind creates EGO, to help itself. The EGO is the defensive system of the mind to help it against fear. The EGO produces thought, through the mind, with cognitive memory.

The ego begins to believe in itself, and thereby creates untold damage to the world of the person and family. It thereafter and therefore begins to defend itself. A verbal assault is a mental threat, and are seen as a direct threat by EGO as an attack. In response, the mind and EGO can create hostility.

Ego believes in itself. --> Direct threat to mind --> thereby creates damage --> begins defense

Verbal assaults --> Direct threat to mind --> mental threats --> begins defense --> hostility in response

What is the real damage by verbal attacks on an human organism? NONE. There is no real damage.

We inflict such damage on to ourselves by help of our vivid imagination. Verbal assault is an imagined threat. But, EGO does not differentiate between the real and the imagined. And therefore, EGO feels threatened. So, EGO goes into a loop and stays alert. EGO now searches for more and more stimuli as possible threats. 

The body and mind is now trained by the EGO to do, what can be merely seen as defense. Some are ready to take offence. There are levels of dysfunction. EGO can make your react at the lowest levels. It can lead to a form of mental paranoia. It is EGO's reaction that is more harmful than what is said, felt or thought about. 

EGO is in a constant state of self-enhancement to become more and more secure. It thus seeks more material goods, power, prestige and so on. It begins to search for - contentment, happiness and fulfillment from its acquisitions. This pushes the EGO to seek more. This becomes addictive and insatiable.

There are no intellectual solutions to tackling one's EGO. The mind is not properly equipped to do so. It requires training and persistent practice and most importantly, it requires a teacher. We need to always examine ourselves, especially our mind and EGO. We need to adopt a higher level of forgiveness. This is indeed very difficult. Forgiveness does not intend or imply 'forgiving' a wrongful action or hateful or hurtful situation. The act of "forgiveness" requires one to 'forgive' the hurt and hate within oneself, in order that the burden of memory is removed. 

Do not be judgmental on EGO. The EGO is a segregationist. Higher self sees itself as a part. One has to establish and absorb the essence of compassion. Ego causes most of the problems. One needs to dispense with ones' ego. 

Reference - John Bendix, spiritual writer. 

Can hunger lead you to anger? - 14 June 2008

Can hunger lead you to anger? Is the anticipation towards a good meal a stimuli to anger when disappointed? 
Bharat Bhushan - 14 June 2008

Yes. It can. I know from experience and very good experience. My stimuli usually are - not able to get a good cup of coffee, not able to get a decent wholesome meal, and when confronted with badly planned or leftover pushed-out food. That, and much more. There are several other stimuli. I get angry when faced with thick gooey gravy, but I think, who would not? In fact, who would not get angry when presented with badly cooked food, ill-choices, leftovers presented as pretend newly cooked dinner.

And, like a perfect cliche, and I know that this would be absolute manna for psychiatrists and psychologists, I look at my mother as an absolute example. She was in bad health for most of her life, and had her tummy opened up thrice - 2 times for caesarian and once for a badly diagnosed hernia. As a result, she was packed up with all the illnesses possible. Hypertension, bad heart, blood pressure, too much water in her legs, hernia, diabetes, glaucoma, poor aerobic strength and what not. On top of it all, she was a school teacher, and in her later years, a supervisor and much later, a headmistress or a principal. She would consider her work as religion, and would leave the house by 7 am and return by 8 pm or thereabouts.

We were only four of us, parents, me and my sister. And later, when my sister got married, my brother-in-law came to live with us, and when I got married and we had a daughter in Chennai, we moved and thus, there were 7 and sometimes 9 persons living in a 320 square feet house in Wadala, Mumbai. In all my life, I do not remember that I slept with a straight posture, or in a cushioned mattress. But, we did the best we could. My mother was simply the best. And that, is not a cliche.

She would wake up much before 7 am, and get through her preparations while cooking breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner. All the foodstuff, mind you, separate dishes for separate meals, would be cooked and kept separately on the dining table. She would be very sanitary - that is, she would boil milk in a dedicated vessel, boil in a different vessel and deep fry in a different one and all that. You get the point. But, before she would get going to the school, there would be all the food that we needed, on the table. Without help from her daughter or her daughter-in-law during the day, who would go through the day, biting and carping at each other and destroying the peace of the family.

And now, after my mother has moved on to the higher temple in 1996, and since then, I see a miserably managed kitchen, without any fresh food, and sometimes, without food. I remember the enormous metabolism that I had before 1996, and when along with my brother-in-law and his father, the three of us could eat out a restaurant. But, my mother planned for it, and there would be enough quantities of food for the three of us, and the others. Now, my distress is that there is not enough food or properly cooked food for my metabolism when it is at 1/20th of what it was prior to 1996.

And I get angry. I see a dirty kitchen, and I clean it up, and WHAM!, its back to being disgustingly dirty. Once, a helper boy, who lived in the really bad slums near Pune, who was helping clean up the refrigerator, got shocked and invited me to visit his slum hut and see how some people cook clean and decent food and how they take care of their health. That was a real shameful moment in my life. And, I get angry because of that.

I am beginning to recognise the stimuli. Hunger pangs, and faced with no food at home - Yes - leads to anger. Needing a cup of coffee in the morning - Yes - leads to anger. Anticipating nicely cooked dinner, and heading home from office, and awaiting some hot meals - and faced with leftover food that was previously badly cooked and now, disguised as fresh dinner - Yes - leads to anger.

What can you do about it? What can I do about it? Nothing. So, if one cannot do anything about it, how can one manage the anger? No good way to do it. So, one should not get angry. Go away, and do something else. Go and get a good meal. Enjoy your life and go and get something really good to eat. But, do not get angry. THAT, is the moral of the story.