Most fears are nothing but a movement of thoughts. And a thought is a language that we give to words, pictures, and feelings. Put differently, a thought is just a movement of word, picture, and feeling. When you interpret thoughts in your mind in a language that you are afraid of, you experience fear. What happens when you are in a state of deep sleep? In that state, there are no thoughts, and you experience no fear at all. A snake may glide close to you, but you are not afraid of that snake in such proximity because you are not thinking about the snake. On the other hand, when you are awake, the sight of even a piece of rope can fill you with fear because you think that the rolled coil is a snake. See how thought plays tricks! Be careful about how you represent your experience in your mind in terms of the words of your language.
Connect this to living in the past or in the future. If you are uncertain about your future, do not formulate your uncertainties in language and represent them in your mind. If you do, you will become afraid of your future. First, stop this kind of interpretation, and your fears will cease.
Some fears are physical in origin. Such fear arises from a threat perceived in our immediate surroundings. For example, you may be in the jungle and know that there are tigers there. You will genuinely be afraid in such contexts. Even then, you can turn that fear into an enjoyable experience—what advertisers of adventure sports call an ‘adrenaline-pumping’ or ‘hair-raising’ experience. Such fear also has great survival value. Ask professional hunters and experienced trekkers, and they will tell you that it is fear that keeps them alert and alive.
You can work on reducing or eliminating your fear. If you have a fear, first understand the nature of the object that arouses it. Let us say you are afraid of your future. What you really fear is the uncertainty that surrounds events yet to happen. By living totally in the present and through proper planning, you can reduce this uncertainty and, hence, your fear. If you do not know how to plan, you can go to a counsellor and seek guidance. You cannot plan for all the uncertainties of the future. Yet being prepared reduces your fear of uncertainty.
Fear arises from negative thoughts. When fear arises, the psychological programming of your subconscious mind should change before any real change can occur. Your subconscious mind comprises engrams. Engrams are mental traces created through life experiences. These consist of both positive and negative associations. These psychological representations act like the programming of a computer. So as long as the programming remains the same, the computer will function only in the manner dictated by that programme. What is required is wise or discriminating thinking, which can distinguish between negative and positive engrams. It leads to discrimination between good and bad, essential and non-essential. A negatively oriented person sees only obstacles and no opportunities. Wise discourses help you change your attitude toward the engrams, irrespective of their polarity. When you have changed your programming, you begin to perceive and act positively. Thus, wise thinking holds the key to a positive frame of mind.