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ethereal · 01-28-2007, 07:36 PM

Thanks for the replies, Mike and Liara

Interesting synchronicity, I was just walking around my home in Berkeley and found this organization -- Berkeley Shambhala Center -- co-taught by Pema Chodron, as well as seeing her name pop up elsewhere recently too. God works in mysterious ways

As to what I understand about fear, from my own experience most of my fears are caused by ignorance and a lack of proper understanding / recontexualization. When understood and looked at from ever higher levels, they stop bothering me almost completely. This leads me to believe that there might be a way to completely remove fears through wisdom, like Steve did with his Subjective Reality beliefs, or how hypnotists/energy workers remove lifelong phobias. It seems like there are various approaches to fear: 1) it's completely unneeded, understanding/love removes fear, or 2) it comes up as it comes, it's not good or bad, you consciously choose better responses regardless. Still unsure which is more accurate, but fascinating subject

I'll definitely try to check out the books you recommended.

Liara, thanks for the article, easy to understand and cleared things up more for me. These days the cloud of confusion finally lifted a bit, and I understood that it's the motivation/intention behind the thing that really counts, not the act or thought or feeling itself. I was attached to concrete, specific ideas/acts and tried to detach by giving them up or taking the opposite, but in reality what I needed to change was the intention itself and not the act. We can still do the same things or not, but the intention is one of detachment and not attachment.

Glad to be able to work out these things with other people's help instead of by myself

Thanks again all!

01-28-2007, 07:36 PM	#11 (permalink)
ethereal Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 586	Thanks for the replies, Mike and Liara Interesting synchronicity, I was just walking around my home in Berkeley and found this organization -- Berkeley Shambhala Center -- co-taught by Pema Chodron, as well as seeing her name pop up elsewhere recently too. God works in mysterious ways As to what I understand about fear, from my own experience most of my fears are caused by ignorance and a lack of proper understanding / recontexualization. When understood and looked at from ever higher levels, they stop bothering me almost completely. This leads me to believe that there might be a way to completely remove fears through wisdom, like Steve did with his Subjective Reality beliefs, or how hypnotists/energy workers remove lifelong phobias. It seems like there are various approaches to fear: 1) it's completely unneeded, understanding/love removes fear, or 2) it comes up as it comes, it's not good or bad, you consciously choose better responses regardless. Still unsure which is more accurate, but fascinating subject I'll definitely try to check out the books you recommended. Liara, thanks for the article, easy to understand and cleared things up more for me. These days the cloud of confusion finally lifted a bit, and I understood that it's the motivation/intention behind the thing that really counts, not the act or thought or feeling itself. I was attached to concrete, specific ideas/acts and tried to detach by giving them up or taking the opposite, but in reality what I needed to change was the intention itself and not the act. We can still do the same things or not, but the intention is one of detachment and not attachment. Glad to be able to work out these things with other people's help instead of by myself Thanks again all!