EppsNet Archive: Fear

Has Religion Made Useful Contributions to Civilization?

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My own view on religion is that of Lucretius. I regard it as a disease born of fear and as a source of untold misery to the human race. I cannot, however, deny that it has made some contributions to civilization. It helped in early days to fix the calendar, and it caused Egyptian priests to chronicle eclipses with such care that in time they became able to predict them. These two services I am prepared to acknowledge, but I do not know of any others. — Bertrand Russell, “Has Religion Made Useful Contributions to Civilization?” Read more →

There are more things, Lucilius, likely to frighten us than there are to crush us. We suffer more often in imagination than in reality. — Seneca

How to Defeat Fear

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Once, there was a young warrior. Her teacher told her that she had to do battle with fear. She didn’t want to do that. Fear seemed too aggressive. It was scary. It seemed unfriendly. But the teacher said she had to do it and gave her the instructions for the battle. The day arrived. The student warrior stood on one side and fear stood on the other. The warrior was feeling very small and fear was looking big and wrothful. They both had their weapons ready. The young warrior aroused herself and went toward fear and she asked, “May I have permission to go into battle with you?” Fear said, “Thank you for showing me so much respect that you ask permission.” Then the young warrior said, “How can I defeat you?” Fear replied, “My weapons are, I talk very fast and I get very close to your face. If… Read more →

Two True Stories About 2020

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Looking back over 2020, it was a year of fear, suffering, and pain . . . but also a story of courage, compassion, heroism and accomplishment. Do our brains have an automatic negativity bias? It seems we much more easily remember and give attention to bad experiences. But both stories are true. Read more →

Benediction

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I acknowledge my sadness and fear and anxiety. Grant me the courage to be a better version of myself, and the hope to be virtuous to others, to be resilient in the face of tragedy. Read more →

Two Great Fears

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We now know that the human animal is characterized by two great fears that other animals are protected from: the fear of life and the fear of death. — Ernest Becker, The Denial of Death Read more →

Teaching Computer Science: Say Your Ideas Out Loud

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[I learned about Scary Ideas from Jim and Michele McCarthy — PE] I’m volunteering a couple mornings a week in a high school computer science class . . . “The main thing I wanted to tell you is that you’ve got to say your ideas out loud . . . “A scary idea is not an idea that’s going to scare people when they hear it, it’s an idea that you don’t want to say because you’re afraid of how people will react to it. Maybe they’ll think you’re crazy. “Here’s a couple examples of scary ideas. “You recognize the speaker in this video?” Everyone does. “Ok, let’s see what he has to say.” I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. “Keep in mind that he’s… Read more →

It will never be known what acts of cowardice have been committed for fear of not looking sufficiently progressive. — Charles Peguy, Notre Patrie (1905)

How Did the Rose Ever Open Its Heart?

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How Did the rose Ever open its heart And give this world All its Beauty? It felt the encouragement of light Against its Being, Otherwise, We all remain Too Frightened — Hafez Read more →

Lose the Pastels and the Mopey Attitude

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Americans love gay people. Since this photo has been posted, it has 60,000 shares, 60,000 comments (including presidential candidates) and 640,000 (that’s six hundred and forty thousand) likes. In the short time since the Supreme Court’s gay marriage ruling there’s been a national competition to see who can demonstrate the most elation about it. (OK, if you’re gay, a few bad apples will dislike you based on that alone but that’s true if you’re identifiable as a member of any group, which we all are.) I’m afraid about the future. I’m afraid people won’t like me. Leave out the part about being homosexual and you could post a picture of anyone. The percentage of Americans who can’t get through the day without medication — I’m including self-medication via alcohol, cigarettes, coffee, food, etc. — is a lot closer to 100 than it is to zero. Nobody’s life is a fairy… Read more →

Letting Go

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Let go of grief. Let go of joy. Let go of hope. Let go of fear. Let go of history. Let go of coming and going. Let go of culture. Let go of waiting. Let go of letting go. — Rudolph Wurlitzer, Hard Travel to Sacred Places Read more →

Can You See the Real Me, Doctor?

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I decided to get off meds for a while . . . Things That Are the Same I start every morning thinking about how great it would be to just stay in bed the rest of the day. Repeatedly hitting the snooze alarm — does life get any better than that? I live in fear of negative judgment. I dread being around other people. (May be just a restatement of #2). Things That Are Different I don’t feel like I’m in as much of a fog all the time. I feel sadder, angrier, happier, more scared, more alive for better or worse. Read more →

Fear of Lightning

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Yes! Especially if you’re a dog! Ordinarily, I’m very loving but I don’t put up with a lot of nonsense! — Lightning Read more →

To be useful was the best thing the old men ever hoped for themselves, and to be aimless was their worst fear. — Marilynne Robinson, Gilead

The Ways of the True Gentleman

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The Master said, The Ways of the true gentleman are three. I myself have met with success in none of them. For he that is really Good is never unhappy, he that is really wise is never perplexed, he that is really brave is never afraid. Tzu-kung said, That, Master, is your own Way! — The Analects of Confucius Read more →

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