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The Fear of Death and the Four Methods of Conquering It

Generally speaking, perhaps the greatest obstacle in the way of man’s progress is fear,
a fear that is many-sided, multiform, self-contradictory, illogical, unreasoning and often
unreasonable. Of all fears the most subtle and the most tenacious is the fear of death. It
is deeply rooted in the subconscient and it is not easy to dislodge. It is obviously made
up of several interwoven elements: the spirit of conservatism and the concern for self-
preservation so as to ensure the continuity of consciousness, the recoil before the unknown,
the uneasiness caused by the unexpected and the unforeseeable, and perhaps, behind all
that, hidden in the depths of the cells, the instinct that death is not inevitable and that, if
certain conditions are fulfilled, it can be conquered; although, as a matter of fact, fear in
itself is one of the greatest obstacles to that conquest. For one cannot conquer what one
fears, and one who fears death has already been conquered by it.

How can one overcome this fear? Several methods can be used for this purpose. But first of
all, a few fundamental notions are needed to help us in our endeavour. The first and most
important point is to know that life is one and immortal. Only the forms are countless,
fleeting and brittle. This knowledge must be securely and permanently established in the
mind and one must identify one’s consciousness as far as possible with the eternal life that
is independent of every form, but which manifests in all forms. This gives the indispensable
psychological basis with which to confront the problem, for the problem remains. Even if
the inner being is enlightened enough to be above all fear, the fear still remains hidden in
the cells of the body, obscure, spontaneous, beyond the reach of reason, usually almost
unconscious. It is in these obscure depths that one must find it out, seize hold of it and cast
upon it the light of knowledge and certitude.

Thus life does not die, but the form is dissolved, and it is this dissolution that the physical
consciousness dreads. And yet the form is constantly changing and in essence there is
nothing to prevent this change from being progressive. Only this progressive change
could make death no longer inevitable, but it is very difficult to achieve and demands
conditions that very few people are able to fulfil. Thus the method to be followed in order
to overcome the fear of death will differ according to the nature of the case and the state
of the consciousness. These methods can be classified into four principal kinds, although
each one includes a large number of varieties; in fact, each individual must develop his
own system.

The first method appeals to the reason. One can say that in the present state of the world,
death is inevitable; a body that has taken birth will necessarily die one day or another,
and in almost every case death comes when it must: one can neither hasten nor delay its
hour. Someone who craves for it may have to wait very long to obtain it and someone who
dreads it may suddenly be struck down in spite of all the precautions he has taken. The

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