FEAR, AND NOT THE VIRUS, IS THE ENEMY TODAY

There are nearly 3 million confirmed cases of Coronavirus worldwide. There have been just under 206,000 deaths and more than 861,000 people have recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University website. Scanning the headlines each morning, there are specters of danger on every page. Every television channel is showing these horrific graphics and regurgitating newer horror stories of disease and devastation. The news anchors gave gone epileptic with horror charts and projection of doom has become their favourite pastime. Media today is a merchant of fear.

So why is there this atmosphere of fear almost akin to one in a war zone? Today we are afraid because we are confronting an unknown enemy. We have seen it ruthlessly ravaging countries after countries, those which were far more economically resourceful and strategically developed than we are. So naturally we are anxious. We are afraid of what the future holds for us. We are afraid of poverty, of unemployment, of dishonor, of disgrace, of disease and even of death. Fear psychosis and paranoia have hijacked our society's most vulnerable section as both life and livelihood seem to be threatened.  

Fear is a product of, and sometimes a cause of, vulnerability. And inequality, in all its forms, makes us feel ever more vulnerable. On an individual level, there’s fear about not being able to pay the bills or put food on the table for the family. Every day, people fear how they will be treated based on their vulnerabilities. There’s fear that they will be denied the right to determine their own future, to rise as high as their talent permits and work as hard as only they can. The lockdown has locked their talents and left them penniless and vulnerable.

The virus unfortunately has come with a stigma and both the patients as well as the health workers have been on the receiving end of this stigma. Doctors have been forced to leave their rented accommodation and patients are mortally scared of not being accepted back in society once they test positive and so they are hiding away from the reach of health officials and spreading the disease. Fear of quarantine away from their family and imprisonment of the family if they are caught hiding them is preventing them from speaking out, from being themselves, from doing what is right for them, their family and the society. And these threats continue to mount.

Certain actions—such as the increase of government surveillance, and timely cordoning off of the hot spots are vital to contain the disease but are causing fear in the minds of certain communities. Meanwhile, the underlying causes of that fear - the effective use of propaganda, or a persistent cultural narrative, go without being examined, let alone addressed. Stern action against such propaganda in the social media is mandatory to nip the effort of giving a communal colour to this distress in the bud. This is because fear seizes upon our differences and exaggerates them, and almost always compels society to divide along lines of “us” versus “them.” It entices the desperate or the frustrated or the furious. It empowers demagogues and strongmen who exploit the very real anxieties of ordinary people while amassing power for themselves and their cronies. It drives governments, even elected ones, to make decisions that seek to preserve “law and order” at the expense of freedom and dignity. The government has assumed some extra powers to tide over this crisis but should be ready to shed these powers once the crisis is over so that people can regain control of their lives and assert their freedom and the government once again becomes a symbol of national aspiration and well-being and not remain a jail warden overlooking a pan India prison. 

In other words, fear is toxic to our society because it discourages people from taking the actions that might help us feel safer, or make us freer, or allow us to heal and instead it drives us apart. If one of the intended effects of fear is that it stifles action, then to oppose fear, we must be willing to act. This is particularly true when the action required is inconvenient or uncomfortable or risky, when taking action might be considered hazardous for our reputations or even dangerous for our careers. More than just acting for ourselves, we must be willing to act on behalf of others—especially those who live in fear. Our actions can bolster those who might otherwise be vulnerable, and can provide cover to those often targeted because of their identity or affiliation or simply poverty.

If we have understood the problem of the pandemic and if we see what efforts are being made worldwide to counter it then we have two choices - either we can pull up our socks and help or we can act as victims and fear. We can submit to fear and allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by it and make our life miserable or we can overcome the fear, consider it as a challenge and an opportunity and be our creative best. The choice is completely ours.

Of course, this responsibility to act does not require that we act irresponsibly. Our safety and self-care remain paramount, especially in these dangerous times. Masking up, maintaining social distancing and washing hands with soap and water repeatedly should not be forgotten. But if we have the privilege to act, or if our privilege grants us some respite from fear, we must do what we can to create for others those feelings of safety and of being seen. Throughout history, there has been no better guardian of the freedom from fear, no better defender of the vulnerable than Gandhi ji, Nelson Mandela, Aung San Suu Kyi and Martin Luther King jr. Franklin Roosevelt once said “let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is...fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” The challenges faced by these great people were different but their common enemy was fear!

Fear is the root of all our problems. It does nothing constructive but saps all our vital energies leaving us too drained and sapped out to savour the pleasures of life. Fear paralyses the mind and brings in negativity and misfortune. It causes anxiety, stress and tension and undermines our wellbeing. Worst of all it robs us of happiness and destroys our peace of mind. No wonder Milton wrote "The mind is its own place and in itself can create a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven."

Happiness is a gift from God to people who have a habit of thinking positively in all situations. Sunshine in the mind can make flowers bloom in barren deserts. Life demands us to be courageous to fight against negativity and gloom. Be free from fear. Be fearless and have faith in the divine is what the Bhagwat Gita tells us.