# Understanding Fear - 2

The logic behind fear is quite illogical, people are afraid of losing their jobs, but are often times even more afraid of going out to seek another job or start a business of their own. There are people who are scared of contracting a major illness, but are even more afraid of getting tested. People are often times scared of life, but they are also scared of death. We are afraid to die, we are afraid to live, as life has become so complicated, risky and insecure.

>A ship in the harbour is safe, but that's not what ships are built for.

[source](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcQ4vY6g77T_4dKbOqJn5UXOdEMbJJJbsh9Ft-Ayf31O4bUqfOJN)

Absolute security and freedom from stress and anxiety are illusions, let me tell you a story. A man once meet with his Doctor friend and to him of his unending problems.

*I'm fed up of my fears, my insecurities and tensions, I want to move away from all of it, so I've decided to sell all of my properties and businesses and go to somewhere, anywhere, a place I can find perfect peace and quiet!*

*Perfect peace and quiet....hmm* nodded his friend.

*Do you have a place in mind? Can you recommend a place for me?* this man inquired from his friend.

*I know of one place, its not too far away from here,* the doctor said.

*Not very far from here! Is that even possible?*

*Yes, its right in this city,* said the doctor, *I've had many people moved there in recent times, and none has made further complains ever since moving there.*

*Please take me to this place at once, I would love to move there as soon as possible* the man said.

*OK then, let's get going,* said the doctor.

The men got up, and set off briskly. Just a few minutes drive, and they were facing a massive, sturdy iron gates set between two great walls.

*Here it is,* the doctor said with a flourish, pointing to a cemetery that lay behind the closed gates.

*But you can't be serious!!!* cried the man. *You can't expect me to live in a graveyard!!!*

*My dear friend, this is the only place I know where there is the **perfect peace and quiet** that you demanded. As I said, the dead have no complaints whatsoever. When will you be moving in with them?*

Dismayed, the man shook his head in dissent.

*In that case you must learn to face life more confidently and positively* said the doctor.

[source](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcTP9dchcPAIFj1QxOsqlt8aOqIOMxBUoOgX7a7fTAkTMc-jZXpD)

Of a truth, absolute peace, absolute security and safety are not conditions of life and living. Courage is the key to live a full life. Life demands that we live with courage. Where the mind is without fear, that's where the land of freedom lies. For fear and freedom cancel out each other. If you are afraid, you cannot be free, and courage can liberate you from the clutches of fear. Life poses series of unanswered, at times unanswerable questions. Why do bad things happen to good people? Why are beautiful babies sometimes born blind or deformed? Why this? Why that? Life is full of uncertainties, the unknown and even the unknowable. If we are to live in peace, then we have to develop a high tolerance for uncertainty, for so much in our lives is outside our control. Losing control, living with uncertainty generates fear, and this fear can be conquered by the right attitude.