Two Lectures on The Topic of Fear

The text comprises two lectures by Roberto Assagioli, M.D., which focus on the nature of fear and its implications for spiritual development.

By Roberto Assagioli, M.D.

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Abstract: The text consists of two lectures by Roberto Assagioli, M.D., focusing on the nature of fear and its implications for spiritual development. Assagioli identifies fear as a significant obstacle on the spiritual path, rooted in the instinct of self-preservation and manifesting in various forms, including acute terror and chronic anxiety. He categorizes fears into innate (hereditary) and acquired types, emphasizing that many fears stem from psychological traumas, repression, and societal influences.

The consequences of fear are profound, affecting both mental and physical health, leading to disorders and impairing spiritual growth. Assagioli argues that fear is intertwined with desire, which binds individuals to material existence and hinders their ascent to higher spiritual consciousness.

To combat fear, Assagioli proposes both psychological and spiritual methods. Psychologically, individuals can utilize reflection, psychoanalysis, physical activity, and imaginative training to confront and diminish their fears. Spiritually, he suggests recognizing the illusory nature of fear through understanding the indestructibility of the soul and the interconnectedness of all life, promoting love and trust in the goodness of existence.

Ultimately, Assagioli urges individuals to actively work on eradicating fear from their lives for personal and spiritual liberation, emphasizing that overcoming fear is essential for achieving higher states of consciousness and fulfillment.

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PART I — FEAR

 

By Roberto Assagioli. (Doc. # 23710-11, 23714-15 Assagioli Archives, Florence)[1]

Original Title: La Paura. Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm

One of the most serious obstacles encountered on the path of spiritual development is fear. It is therefore appropriate that we deal with it. Today, therefore, we briefly examine what the nature of fear is, what its origins and causes are, and the various forms and reactions it gives rise to. We will then highlight how serious and disastrous its consequences are, and this will encourage us to resolutely fight it within ourselves, to become its masters instead of suffering it.

We will then examine the various psychological and spiritual methods, both general and specific, by which fear can be overcome and even destroyed.

This is a topic of great practical importance that deserves our full attention. It is a difficult but necessary step that we must take on the path to liberation: it is better to face it resolutely.

I. THE NATURE, ORIGIN, AND CAUSES OF FEAR.

Fear has been defined as “The emotional reaction produced by the vivid representation of a possible pain or harm.”[2] This definition is fairly accurate for the ordinary fears of an adult, but, as we shall see, it does not include all forms and types of fear. Fear is determined by the instinct of self-preservation, understood in its broadest sense. Thus, all phenomena that threaten physical life are causes of fear, as are all those that in any way impair the personality in every aspect:

• fear of any discomfort or physical pain;
• fear of poverty;
• fear of any moral impairment, of any injury to vanity or pride, and therefore fear of the opinion of others – and in general fear of physical and moral suffering in all its forms.

Given the fundamental importance of the instinct for self-preservation, which is also found in lower animals, we should not be surprised that fear is so deeply rooted in us and that it is therefore difficult to get rid of it, because to do so we must overcome and transcend that instinct.

A. Innate fears

Their existence in animals has been proven beyond doubt: In an experiment, Gratiolet[3] gave a dog that had never seen a wolf a piece of the animal’s skin to smell, and the dog was seized by intense fear.

Preyer[4] similarly aroused terror in chicks by showing them a hawk, while the sight of a dove left them calm. Similar responses have been observed in children. This shows that there is a hereditary fear; i.e., one transmitted by ancestors.

However, we spiritualists go further and ask ourselves: are all innate fears in humans inherited from their ancestors, or could they be part of the mysterious individual inheritance of the soul through the cycles of reincarnation? In this regard, I recall what I mentioned earlier, namely that those who accept reincarnation do not deny the existence of heredity, including the psychic characteristics of ancestors. There is no contradiction, but rather a “sum of influences.” Our personality is the confluence, the result of these two orders of facts, of these two currents. This explains many things and provides satisfactory answers to many questions. [5]

B. Acquired fears.

Not all fears whose origin we cannot find are innate. There are:

1.  Fears whose origin we have forgotten. Impressions, psychological traumas — especially in childhood — have great importance. They give rise to morbid symptoms (phobias, etc.).
2.  Fears that derive from the repression of tendencies and impulses. It has long been observed, and confirmed by recent studies, that the forced repression in the subconscious of vital tendencies, especially sexual and combative ones, can give rise to a sense of fear, generalized anxiety, and even phobias and obsessive ideas. In fact, those imprisoned forces, defeated but not subdued, simmer in the subconscious and tend to break free, thus arousing in the consciousness a sense of unease, of danger, and therefore apprehension, fear, and anxiety, which are all the stronger the more unknown and mysterious the cause.
3.  Fears derived from events whose origin we remember: We remember, but we cannot control; the memory and the association trigger the emotion.
4.  Fears derived from current events – Fears due to the suggestion of others. Collective fears, imitative panic, which is found in herds of animals and in armies and crowds of humans.
5.  Fears derived from extranormal influences: Psychic phenomena, apparitions, nightmares, and certain dreams. Since many impressionable people with a psychic temperament are unable to overcome their fears, and fear itself (as we shall see shortly) is very harmful, this is one reason why we strongly advise such people not to engage in psychic experiments. [6]
   
   

The Intensity of Fear

This varies greatly among individuals. It depends on:

1. Intensity of the instinct for self-preservation (which varies greatly in “young” souls and “old” souls — in egocentric personalities with a highly developed sense of self, and in broader and more expansive, communicative personalities).
2. Emotional constitution: the intensity of the whole emotional life; great emotional resonance that is prevalent in children and women.
3. Liveliness of the imagination.
   
   

II. THE VARIOUS FORMS OF FEAR

A. Acute fears – terror, fright.
B. Chronic fear – apprehension, worry, anxiety, anguish, hypochondria, shyness, pathological fears, various phobias.

III. CONSEQUENCES, EFFECTS, REACTIONS OF FEAR

A. Reactions (immediate) to acute fears: Psychophysical disturbance: paleness, redness – “goose bumps” – cold sweat – palpitations – etc.

B.  Motor reactions.

1. Flight – This is the characteristic and normal reaction to fear.
2. Defense – a special type of this reaction has often been observed in recent wars.
3. Offense – “flight forward.”
4. The tendency to throw oneself into danger.
5. Fascination – similar in some respects, but differs from the previous reaction.
6. Momentary paralysis.
7. Permanent disorders of various kinds.
8. Death – There are cases in which a condemned person was made to believe, as a joke and as an experiment, that he was going to be killed, and the person actually died of fear.

C. Consequences of chronic fear: Lowering of the vital tone, of mental and physical strength; therefore: nervous asthenia; greater susceptibility to illness and difficulty in recovering; digestive disorders; inability to concentrate and distract oneself from worry. This is one of the greatest obstacles to meditation.

In short, fear disintegrates the personality and is a source of the most serious damage, dangers, and pains. That fear is a source of pain, indeed that in every pain there is an element of fear, is confirmed by its close relationship with desire, which, as the Buddha demonstrated admirably and definitively in the first of his four noble truths, is at the root of all pain. In fact, every desire implies the fear that it will not be fulfilled, and every fear implies the desire that the feared thing will not happen. [7]

Desire and fear, therefore, are the rope that binds us to the earth and to matter, in an intimate and indissoluble intertwining; that prevents us from rising to the summit of spiritual consciousness, to bliss, to the conquest of the Kingdom of Heaven, to liberation, to nirvana. Therefore, everyone, but especially those who follow the spiritual path, must overcome and destroy fear.

Thus, The Voice of Silence[8] warns:

“Beware of the fear that spreadeth, like the black and soundless wings of a midnight bat, between the moonlight of thy Soul and thy great goal that loometh indistinct in the distance far away. Fear, O disciple, kills the will and stays every action . . . ”

“The path that leadeth on, is lighted by one fire — the light of daring, burning in the heart. The more one dares, the more shall obtain. The more he fears, the more that light shall pale — and that alone can guide.” [9]

IV. THE DESTRUCTION OF FEAR

 A) In general: Fight the causes, eradicate the roots.

1. Psychological knowledge and self-study. (Psychoanalysis – exploration of the subconscious). Search for old traumas, relive them, release the emotion by expressing and controlling it. Discover the thing we fear most, the secret fear that we often dare not confess to ourselves, the most sensitive point (this is where karma most often strikes us – this is necessary for our spiritual progress).
   
   
2. Spiritual wisdom.
   a. Realizing our true spiritual being and its indestructibility, immortality, and latent powers; identification with eternal individuality. Thus, the sense of weakness and inferiority characteristic of the personality disappear, fear and pain disappear, as does the fear of death. This results in a sense of dignity, courage, and heroism.
   
   b. Awakening a sense of universality, realizing the unity of the whole. This arouses in us a feeling of gratitude for the communion of love. In this field, as in every other, love works miracles. “Perfect love casts out fear.” “Love tames and makes docile even wild beasts.” (see the story of St. Francis and the wolf of Gubbio).
   
   
3. Trust in the goodness of life and in the final liberation of humanity. Every true spiritualist must have such firm trust, whatever his particular way of conceiving the realization of this supreme redemption from matter, imperfection, and pain. [10] That trust gives great strength, infinite patience, imperturbable peace, and a sense of gratitude and adoration for the Supreme. Thus it constitutes a most effective, indeed irresistible, weapon for dispelling all worry and fear.
   
   

B) In Particular: Combat the manifestations of fear. While the roots of fear are being eradicated, it is also advisable to combat its manifestations (some of which may have already become autonomous).

1. Calm analysis through meditation and writing, persuasion, and energetic affirmation of the falsity and vanity of those manifestations.
2. A Culture of energy: exercises in courage using various physical and psychic methods.
3. Pre-vision. See and live in your imagination, repeatedly and in a vivid and concrete way, the event in which you will have to take part and which frightens you (e.g., an exam, public speaking, acting, etc.). This is a very effective method. By living the scene in our imagination, we prepare ourselves internally, we get used to it; we “unload” and “pay off” the emotion in advance. This method is based on the law that every event first occurs in the invisible or inner worlds and then “descends,” “precipitates,” and attracts itself into the external world. We have proof of this within ourselves: first we think abstractly about something, e.g., a building; then we imagine it concretely, and only then do we begin to implement it. This law is explained very well by E. Carpenter in his excellent book, The Art of Creation. [11]
4. Act “as if” you do not feel fear. In many cases, when emotions are not very intense, ignoring them and forcing ourselves to act as if they did not exist is a good way to overcome them. The external attitude of the body and action tend to suggest the corresponding states of mind. Thus, a resolute attitude of the whole person effectively helps to overcome fear.
   
   

Now we have seen the nature of fear. We have seen how fear is a source of serious harm; indeed, how it is intimately associated with desire and is the greatest cause of pain, and how it constitutes one of the greatest obstacles to the rise of the Spirit.

We have seen the various means at our disposal to destroy it. It would be cowardice, indeed a real fault, not to set about seriously and resolutely to eradicate fear from our hearts and minds: we owe it to ourselves, to others, and to God.

Let us get to work, then. Let us free ourselves!

 

PART II — FEAR

Course in Spiritual Psychosynthesis

Lesson II (1938)

Emotional Obstacles: FEAR

 

By Roberto Assagioli. (Doc. #23707 – Assagioli Archive – Florence). Original Title: Ostacoli Emotivi: La Paura. Translated and Edited with Notes by Jan Kuniholm

In the introductory presentation on spiritual psychosynthesis, I mentioned that those who are about to embark on, or are already on, the path of spiritual development must overcome three sets of obstacles: mental, emotional, and volitional. I think it is appropriate to begin with the emotional obstacles, both because they are the most frequent and because intellectual obstacles, such as doubts and skepticism, are often produced or accentuated by emotional or volitional obstacles; they are screens and pretexts behind which fears or resistances that we are not aware of are hidden.

Among the emotional obstacles, we will first discuss fear. Fear is indeed the most widespread emotion. Everyone, albeit to varying degrees, is a victim of it; it often reaches great intensity and has deleterious effects.

I believe it can be said that most of the evils and sufferings that afflict humanity derive from fear. Fear has no measure or limits; one can be afraid of anything! It is a protean thing with countless forms. The evils that cause human suffering are many, but incomparably greater are the misfortunes, accidents, and cataclysms that have not happened and will never happen! They cause those who fear them to suffer as much, if not more than if they were real, because in their terrified imagination they are experienced and suffered countless times.

But fear does not only cause internal suffering; it is a terrible advisor and often causes us to commit harmful actions against ourselves and others; it leads us to perform cruel and violent acts. Who can say how many struggles, how many wars have been fomented by fear? Montaigne’s witty saying therefore has a more serious meaning than it seems: “Il n’est qu’une chose que nous devons craindre, et c’est . . . la peur!” (“There is only one thing we have to fear, and that is . . . fear!”)

Indeed, there are people who come to fear fear itself!

If, therefore, fear is a poison that intoxicates human life, which could be so beautiful, joyful, and creative without it, it is well worth mobilizing our forces and helping each other to free ourselves from what we might call, in the effective expression of St. Paul, “the thorn in our flesh.”

It can be said that there are five main forms of fear, which are based on five fundamental instincts:

1. The instinct of self-preservation, which has its roots in the fear of death.
   
   
2. The sexual instinct, which is based on a sense of incompleteness and the fear of loneliness.
   
   
3. The gregarious instinct, which is also aroused by the fear that individuals feel when they feel isolated, weak, and insecure, and which leads them to seek support and security in association with others.
   
   
4. The tendency toward self-assertion. This would seem to be the opposite of fear. But a deeper analysis shows that at least one of its roots is the fear of not being appreciated, recognized, or valued as much as we deserve (or believe we deserve!), and therefore of not having the power over others that we aspire to.
   
   
5. The tendency to investigate, the thirst for knowledge, based on the fear of the unknown, of mystery.
   
   

We must recognize that these tendencies have driven and spurred man to many useful, indeed necessary, activities, and that therefore even the fear that lies at their root has had and can have a beneficial function; but in the face of this, how much harm it does! One can say of it what Alessandro Manzoni[12] said of love: “There is at least 600 times more of it than is necessary!”

I will mention only briefly (because they would require special treatment) the morbid forms of fear: anxiety, anguish, phobias, and collective fears.

HOW TO FREE ONESELF FROM FEAR

There are two groups of means: I. Psychological means. II. Spiritual means. They operate at different levels, and it is good to use both. The second are naturally the most effective, but the first are also useful and easier to apply and therefore more appropriate in certain cases, while waiting to learn how to use the others well.

I. PSYCHOLOGICAL METHODS

1. Use of the mind. Reflection; Persuasion. Relationships between the mind and emotions. These vary according to the various stages of psychological development:
   
   a) The mind is enslaved to the emotions.
   b) The mind is free from them, but is unable to modify them effectively.
   c) Mastery and transmutation of emotions by the mind.
   
   
2. Psychoanalysis. Unloading the unconscious. Finding the roots of fears and bringing them to light.
   
   
3. Diversion and substitution.
   
   a) Physical activity—sport.
   b) Directing the imagination onto other tracks.
   c) Humor. This can be very effective (the novelist Talbot Mundy[13] saved his own life by freeing himself from the paralysis caused by fear in a dangerous situation by recalling a comic scene).
   d) Cultivate positive and dynamic emotions, such as courage, joy, etc.
   
   
4. Psychagogical[14] exercises.
   
   a) Suggestions and affirmations.
   b) Imaginative training: experience the feared event in advance (exam, public concert, etc.); do this several times until the fear is “discharged.”
   
   

II. SPIRITUAL METHODS

Every fear is based on ignorance or error, and is radically overcome by the light of truth, by spiritual realization. Let us examine the various tendencies:=

1. Instinct of self-preservation: fear of death. From a spiritual point of view, death does not exist. When we abandon the physical body, we pass on to a more beautiful and free life.
2. + 3. Fear of loneliness and isolation. This is overcome:
   a) Through communion with God, with Life, and with one’s immortal Self.
   b) Through spiritual love, camaraderie, and group life.
   
   

(Here is a Paradox: the less one fears isolation and the less one demands love and the company of others, the more one is loved and sought after).

Understand and recognize that isolation is an illusion. We are at every moment part of universal Life, in the presence of and in union with the Supreme.

4. Fear of failure. Sense of inferiority, hence the tendency towards separative and excessive self-assertion. This is eliminated through awareness of our latent powers, of our spiritual nature.
   
   
5. Fear of the unknown and the future.
   
   a) The evils we fear often do not happen (if anything, others do!).
   b) Faith that we will not be subjected to trials beyond our endurance. Difficulties give rise to the energies necessary to overcome them.
   c) Development of knowledge and wisdom. Science has eliminated many superstitious fears. The more you know, the less you fear. But true spiritual knowledge is intimate and direct intuition; it is enlightenment, identification with Truth and Life, which are essentially one Reality.
   
   

In that identification, the limitations of separate consciousness are overcome. Every understanding of new truths brings an expansion of consciousness, a sense of joyful expansion, of liberation.

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[1] The earliest of the many versions of this essay probably dates from 1938, when “fear” was likely an important topic in Europe because fascist forces were becoming militarily aggressive. This editor has compared the different versions, and has selected what appears to be the author’s most likely choices for a single version, including consideration of his handwritten corrections in Doc. #23714. It cannot be determined which document was the “final” one, if any, although some typed versions do incorporate the written corrections noted. It appears that Assagioli edited this essay depending upon the audience to whom he intended to address; for example the version in Doc. #23714 omits certain references to spiritual or parapsychological matters. —Ed.

[2] Sully, quoted by Ribot, in Psychologie des Sentiments, p. 225. —Author’s Note. James Sully (1842-1923) was an English psychologist and philosopher, author of a number of works. Theodule-Armand Ribot (1839-1916) was a French psychologist. His Psychologie des Sentiments [Psychologie of Feelings] was published in 1896. —Ed.

[3] Louis Pierre Gratiolet (1815-1865) was a French anatomist and zoologist who did extensive research in comparative anatomy. —Ed.

[4] William Thierry Preyer [a.k.a. Wilhelm Preyer] (1841-1897) was an English-born physiologist and psychologist who worked in Germany. He is considered a founder of scientific child psychology and a pioneer in research of human development based upon empirical observation and experiment. —Ed.

[5] This last paragraph was deleted by the author in one version of this lecture. —Ed.

[6] This last sentence was deleted in one version of this lecture. —Ed.

[7] One version of this lecture goes from here to IV below. —Ed.

[8] The Voice of Silence (1889) by Helena Petrovna Balavatsky, is a translation of certain sacred books of the East, called “The Book of Golden Precepts. D.T. Suzuki said of it, “here is the real Mahayana Buddhism.” —Ed.

[9] The Voice if Silence, Fragment III: “The Seven Portals.” pp.53-54, “Verbatim Edition,” e-book published by Theosophical University Press, Pasadena, CA. 2015. https://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/voice/VoiceoftheSilence_eBook.pdf

[10] Some versions of this essay omit this last sentence. —Ed.

[11] Published by George Allen & Unwin, London, 1904, and still in print. —Ed.

[12] Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873) was an Italian poet, novelist and philosopher, some of whose works are considered the masterpieces of Italian literature —Ed.

[13] Talbot Mundy (1879-1940) [a.k.a. William Gribbon] was an English-American writer of fiction who also wrote under the name of Walter Galt. —Ed.

[14] “Psychagogy” was the term Assagioli borrowed from Plato to designate his goals for personal development before he settled on the term “psychosynthesis.” Psychagogy places particular emphasis on the combination of awareness, theory, and practice, used with will and intention. —Ed.