Fear is, and has always been, nothing but a self-limiting reaction that we cling to in the darkness of our present life-level, having mistaken it for a shield of self-protection. But no wrong reaction can keep you captive once you begin to see it for what it is.
You can prove this powerful principle to yourself anytime you want. Just dare to proceed even while being afraid. But remember, your new aim isn't to be courageous or to try and act strong in the face of fear. We've seen that won't work. You simply want to be more curious about your frightened thoughts and feelings than you want to believe in them. If you will follow this simple but higher instruction, not only will you start to see these habitual reactions that have been keeping you scared and running, you'll actually start seeing through them. This is where the real miracle occurs. Each new insight into the actual nature of these negative reactions removes some of their power over you. And their loss is your gain. You are stronger now, and you know it. You also know this new strength will never fail you because it isn't just the temporary appearance of a bold opposite. This new strength of yours is the absence of an old weakness.
The seemingly scary condition, whatever it may be, is not the problem. It is your reaction that is fearful. This is why if you will become conscious of your condition instead of afraid of it, you will change forever your relationship with fear. It is only within this special kind of inner relationship that there is real safety, because now you are interacting with fear in an entirely new way. You are no longer letting it dictate to you how to act or what to do. Instead, you are aware of the fear. You are learning to quietly observe and study it. And, each day, as you discover something new about the strange and shaky nature of your own fearful reactions, they begin to lose their power over you.
Why? Because you are at last seeing them for what they have always been: unintelligent mechanical forces. You are slowly becoming stronger than they are, because by seeing them as they are -- not as they would have you see them -- you have helped yourself to climb above and outside of their influence. This self-insight is the difference between trembling through your life and being in command of it.
You no longer let fear dictate to you how to act or what to do. Instead, you are aware of the fear. You have learned to quietly observe and study it. And, each day, as you discover something new about the strange and shaky nature of your own fearful reactions, they begin to lose their power over you. You are at last seeing them for what they have always been: unintelligent mechanical forces. You are slowly becoming stronger than they are, because by seeing them as they are -- not as they would have you see them -- you have helped yourself to climb above and outside of their influence. This self-insight is real safety; it is the difference between trembling through your life and being in command of it.