So, fear is an illusion?   We all talk about it, but what about real experience?  It happens more and more often now, that I find myself going straight into a fear, and every time, without fail, I find that it is not there.  It's not that it disappears, it's that it was never there to begin with.

Does anyone else relate to this? It surely is a magnificent journey.

Love
Gustaf

Hi Gustaf,

I can definitely relate. It seems to be a prerequisite to reach altered states for me personally. Fear of unity, loss of identity, and loss of boundaries. Once overcome the illusion is more obvious but ego is cunning in its attempts to understand the particular mechanisms involved in the attainment of freedom from it. Mystress once said you will never be able to outsmart your ego. If you can see the ridiculousness in trying to outsmart your ego, you'll have a good laugh.

Fear is destructive in our duality it is very real here I think , but transmuting it through the heart connects us back to the place where we can see the illusion of it and ascend to unity. It becomes just another thing that is part of all that manifests in an infinitely expanding experience of all that is.

Yeah exactly!   And what you say about trying to outsmart the ego is so spot on.   What is ego really? Other than programming...  Layer and layer of defense trying to keep us away from pain.. And it's all fear.  Trapped life force on different levels of our being, mental, emotional, physical, etheric, karmic, and so on.  I would love to hear about your experiences with transmuting through the heart.

@Willy - My experiences are resonant with yours in terms of fear being a 'prerequisite'.

@Gustaf - Spot on about nothing being there once you follow the fear.
It's sort of funny. These days, when I am afraid of something, it also excites me. Because I feel like Goddess is showing me what next to surrender. Next layer of the 'ego onion' is ready to be peeled! Some tears may be involved. LOL.

Reg. ego -
Both in India (where I am from) and in general, whenever someone talks about the ego, they are always like 'get rid of your ego'. Ego is almost always talked about as something that is bad for one's own spiritual progression and as something that needs to be gotten rid of. I believe Mystress once mentioned something along the lines of 'If you got rid of your ego in one day, you will go insane/die'. The 'ego = bad' thinking is specifically prevalent in 'guru-disciple' type of relationships where guru is another individual and not the Inner Guide. A lot of the gurus get away with a lot of horrible abuse by chalking it up to the disciple's ego. After joining FST, a lot of this changed for me.

I am not exactly sure where I heard this from. But I have found this metaphor helpful. Ego is like a very faithful dog. Ego's job is to protect and bark when it senses danger. The trouble starts when we identify as the dog and not as the care-giver. For example, when some stranger walks to our door, the dog barks. The dog might not know that even though the person is a stranger, that he might not be harmful. Or may be the stranger is an old friend whom the dog cannot recognize. In this situation, the dog does its duty - protect when it senses danger. It's upto the care-giver to step in and say 'It's okay!' and calm the dog down.

This metaphor really helps me because it makes me realize that I don't have to kill the dog. In fact, it makes me be immensely grateful for it's loyalty. When was the last time ego gave up on you? And as Willy points out, ego is also very clever. Why fight, condemn, and kill something that is so smart, faithful, and designed to protect you? This being said, the leash needs to be surrendered to Goddess. Every time I face fear, I ask myself if I am identifying as the dog and who holds the leash. Unleashed dog running the household is sure to be a disaster. And when faced with fear, it is always the ego barking vigorously at something it senses as danger. Union by definition obliterates all duality and hence all boundaries. So these days when the dog barks, I simply say 'Thank you for bringing that to my attention. Now go surrender to Goddess.'

I am not saying this is the only way to do it. But it surely changes the dynamic of the relationship since it brings in gratitude and surrender into the equation instead of condemnation, shame, and guilt about having an ego. It makes me realize that All is Goddess and the ego was also put by Her in the first place to help me with my own journey. I do want to stress again that the leash needs to be surrendered to Goddess.

Much love,
Gopi

Yes.

The Litany against Fear, from "Dune":

"I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain."  ~Frank Herbert.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIDtN8CDQmk

I made 3 attempts to reply each one got eaten, lol.

Gopi, your post regarding ego helped me identify some prejudices within me in how I relate to my ego so thank you.

Gustaf, one experience that comes to mind regarding transmuting fear through the heart involved a presence I felt late one night while sleeping. The presence felt heavy and foggy there was fear within me. I remembered to just love it unconditionally. No matter how ugly how gruesome it is and how sorry or sad the story it was telling, do not judge it. As I gave it love a comfort and peace came over me I heard it leave there was audible sigh of relief and the density within my heart released like opening a 2 liter bottle of soda the pressure exited. Ghost, Entity or Archetype I don't know or dont remember? I kept questioning and it kept trying to convince me why it needed to stay but trusting in your heart that unconditional love can handle these encounters is one of the more empowering experiences I can remember.