How to Overcome Fear

How to Overcome Fear has some relevance here. I am a born perfectionist. That is why I have always wanted things to be in impeccable order. Whenever I have found things not to be in perfect order, I have become very troubled and distressed. This anxiety increased to such a great extent during my childhood that I wrote a poem on it. The following is one of its verses: Zindagani hai ke ya khwab koi vehshatnaak (Life seems to me to be a dreadful dream). I have read and thought a lot about this subject. It is obvious that this is a common problem for every man and woman. But, in this world, according to the law of nature, man has to live with contradictions. That is, man is himself a perfectionist, while the world itself is far from perfect. Things will frequently be seen not to be in perfect order. After this discovery, I developed a realistic approach to life. In those days, I came across a relevant maxim: ‘Maturity is the ability to live with things we cannot change.’ Bearing this in mind, I was able to rationalize the issue and live with a tension-free mind. Although fear seems to be external, in reality it is within one’s own mind. Often when people enter a dark room, they think that some deadly animal is crawling across the floor. But when they switch on the light, they realize that there was nothing of the sort in the room. It had only been a figment of their imagination. Therefore, the solution to the problem of fear cannot be found outside oneself, but has to be managed at the level of one’s own mind. Fear is overwhelming so long as it is considered real. If you can come to grips with the