The Power of the Fearless Heart

I hope you all had a great week. Last week there was a strong voice in my head loudly pointing out all the things that could go wrong. That voice does not typically take over such a large presence in my mind but this past week it was like a sports commentator offering a play by play of my fears. I felt very tired and worn out after a few days of wrangling that voice because the fear we carry at times can consume us. And often what we worry about doesn’t come to fruition. Just like this quote from Mark Twain “My life has been filled with terrible misfortunes–most of which never happened.” 

Our fear conditioning becomes almost an addiction and the habit of fear in the mind forms quickly. We get hooked on the worried thoughts and they take over and cloud our mind creating anxiety and exhaustion. What I shared with my classes last week is the antidote to this cycle of fear that we may find ourselves in at times; it’s called a fearless heart. A fearless heart offers us the chance to not be imprisoned by fear and self doubt. 

First we need to pause and notice the fear. Then we name it, pay attention to how it makes us feel in our bodies, how long it lasts and the scary story it tells. Often the fear is anticipation of something in the future that likely will not happen. Lastly…. in order to cultivate the fearless heart… we need to befriend the fear. This quote from Jack Kornfield explains this part beautifully; “So, how can you live in love rather than in fear? The first step, I’m sorry to say, is to love your fear. There’s a way in which you actually have to bow to the fear and say ‘I know you, You too are part of this humanity.'”

So, just as I offered the practice of a fearless heart to my students, I worked on cultivating my own. With that practice I noticed that the commentator in my head got quieter, the cloud cleared a bit and my energy and focus returned. Fear is normal and sometimes it can be very loud. I fully expect to hear from that voice again and when I do I will be grateful for the gift that the practice shares to bow to the fear with recognition and compassion.