Do you then ponder how the supreme of human evils, the surest mark of the base and cowardly, is not death, but the fear of death? I urge you to discipline yourself against such fear, direct all your thinking, exercises, and reading this way - and you will know the only path to human freedom.”
Epictetus, Discourses, 3.26.38-39
While I’m certain Epictetus’ path to human freedom isn’t the ONLY one, he does have a point. Fear of inevitable death is the most human, AND most egoic fear we can possibly have. From gulping down pleasure to running far away from pain, we are terrified of the unknown, and death is the ultimate unknown.
When we fear something, we experience a fantasy world (one not currently happening in the present moment) as if it were completely true. F.E.A.R - fantasy experienced as truth.
Like Flavor Flav said, “don’t believe the hype!”
Fearing death is like fearing the sunrise:
It’s going to happen, AND even though we have a hard time coming to grips with it, it’s occurence makes the darkness (fear) go away. Sunrise ends the darkness in the same way that death is the end of fear.
(See y’all tomorrow)
When we fear something, we experience a fantasy world (one not currently happening in the present moment) as if it were completely true. F.E.A.R - fantasy experienced as truth.
Like Flavor Flav said, “don’t believe the hype!”
Fearing death is like fearing the sunrise:
It’s going to happen, AND even though we have a hard time coming to grips with it, it’s occurence makes the darkness (fear) go away. Sunrise ends the darkness in the same way that death is the end of fear.
(See y’all tomorrow)
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