fearlessness

There is a certain fearlessness; a fearlessness which comes with enlightenment. And with this fearlessness comes the capacity to really enjoy life. For it is our fears, our anxieties, which detract from the enjoyment of life.

So why does this fearlessness come? There are many aspects to this. One aspect is the fact that, if our energy is focussed on the present moment, there is no time, no space, for fear. The fear is always about the future; perhaps the near future but a few seconds away; or perhaps the more distant future, years down the line. But either way, our fears are not of the present moment. They regard something that is yet to come. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a situation where something terrible is happening, perhaps a road accident you are involved with it, but in that moment, there is no fear. You might see things unfolding more intensely than you normally do because you have been thrust into the present moment and fear is no longer of any use to you, there is no time for it. And so, regardless of what is happening in the present moment, if our energy is focussed in the now, then fear will drop away.

But before that happens, a fearlessness can be nurtured by two other disciplines, I suppose you could call them. One is to foster courage, a courageous attitude to your spiritual journey. Sooner or later, courage will be needed. Sooner or later on your spiritual path, you will stand quite alone. None of the teachings will be there to support you. You will be naked before existence; totally alone. And you will need to step into the dark, into the unknown, without any support.

This takes courage; to let go of all the props, all the things that have been giving you comfort and security; to be able to let go of all these things, not just material things, not just people and relationships, but your own concepts, beliefs, ideas. To let go of all these takes courage. And that courage is a fearlessness; or the courage to have fear and still go ahead.

And the other aspect, the other side of that same coin of fearlessness, is to do with trust. If you can trust in the whole of existence, if you can trust that life has its own flow, its own dance, its own ways, which you probably do not fully comprehend; from that trust also comes fearlessness.

And as your fears drop away, life becomes lighter; life becomes easier, effortless. All our struggles come from our fears. And when fear has gone, that effort, that struggle, drops away and becomes a flow. And you will find yourself carried by life, in a choiceless state of enjoyment.

So, become fearless. And live. Live the easy way of the lucky ones, without fear.