To endear or to fear?

Learning Point No 174




Life is for us to endear and not to fear.

In the world of today 2012 and the future, there is not only competition between nations but also amongst men.

Nations fear that they will be upstaged by other nations but diplomacy calls for civil way of managing this fear. But it is better for detente and endearment amongst nations.

Likewise for man, men must not fear men and try to be what other men are and to outdo other men. There is often the overbearing fear factor and if this is too predominant, fear can be a nightmare in the lives of men. 
 

True, some anxiety can be good but not to the point of pathological fear that stifles the spirit and robs away the peace and joy of life. Men are not young children who cannot think as well as adults. Parents may need to resort to fear factor to keep young children safe but better to educate and grow wisdom even in the young children.

Often, men in the lead or in position of authority feel inadequate and have fear of not being able to effect control and achieve mission or goal. They exert pressure on those below them and can be unscrupulous in making sure they get what they want. In the process, they who are in fear of losing control create atmosphere of fear in their fellow men --- their subordinates, contemporaries and colleagues. This is all because they feel inadequate and wants to achieve at all cost and in quick time.

It is better to grow with other men and to bring them along without culture of fear. This is true in the mundane world but even that more true in the spiritual world. 

Do not for once think that God is like man. We should never entertain the thought that God will exert control over men who do not toe the line and will punish men to hell on earth and beyond.

Fear is the way of inadequate men but not the way of God and saints.

Lord Bo Tien said in 1975 that let there be no fear with regards to the divine doctrine and with regards to God and saints. It is alright to doubt and to disagree with the doctrine of a church or temple.

The lord saint reiterated that doubt arises because men do not understand and they need to find out more. Those in a temple should not be upset with them or to fear that they will cause dissensions. It is bad enough to have fear that they will create dissension but it is worse to want to threaten them and instill fear in them so that they can be cowed to believe and to toe the line.

God is perfect and not inadequate like men. God and saints do not instill fear but men in their inadequacy may have fear and even exert fear in others. They think God and saints are like men. God and saints are not.

Do ponder on the issue. Is it good to have fear ? It may be so at times but should not be that so overbearing and predominant in life.

Perhaps and hopefully you will agree that in life let us endear with life our own life before we should endear with that of the lives of others.

Let there be love and endearment and not fear which has to do with ill-will and unpleasant thoughts. But endearment must be with insight and wisdom.

There should not be any sacrifice of oneself nor overindulgence in oneself at expense of others.

When there is overindulgence, we invariably will end up creating fear in others so that we could be better off at others expense. Others will just do our bidding out of fear and not out of conviction and endearment for one anothers' lives.

Isn't this reflective of the animal origin in man? Animals in a pack has fear of the alpha leader who holds sway because it is able to dominate through fear factor and not through endearment.

Man however has evolved to be very remote and far removed from his animal ancestry and is capable of wisdom. But for men to extrapolate that God and saints too are like man and will resort to creating fear in men to exert control, coercion and grip over men is to discredit the much higher wisdom and manifold more divine nature of God and saints.

That be so and so be it --- 'amen'. Let us do justice to the good name of God and saints in all religions and sects and even those saints outside religions and sects, be they on earth, in heavens or in hell. (There are indeed saints in hell to assist those in hell to upgrade themselves to exit hell)

For those with fear, fear can drive them to the grave even before they are due for the grave. For those with endearment or love for life, even if they are near to the grave due to terminal illness or old age, endearment makes every last minute a joy and a treasure.

They who endear life rejoice in being man and in being able to endear life the way God and saints do. They are resurrected to endearing life even before they reach their end as man. They light up their life which would otherwise be snubbed out by fear of death even before death. Their endearment for life live on beyond the grave. Cheers