"It is difficult to feel fear without thinking that something is going wrong. We react impulsively when we judge others or ourselves in an attempt to escape the pain of suffering.

It doesn't work, just as running away into the woods doesn't work either. Even sacred places are doomed to disappoint us if we go there motivated by a desire to escape. However, if we take refuge in the Dhamma, interest in understanding fear and learning from it can be triggered.

Can we experience the feeling of fear without becoming afraid? Fear is still fear, but it is recognized through an expanded consciousness that is less foggy and less threatened. We can even begin to realize that fear too 'is what it is'.

A non-judgmental and wholehearted recognition, in body and mind, of the condition of fear, here and now, can transform our pain into freedom. The willingness to recognize where we stand is the way."

Ajahn Munindo