“Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”

—Frank Herbert, DUNE

The Wizard’s Reflection

The Myopic Moment

Fear is a contraction of perspective, a myopic moment that brings with it a sense of urgency and self-preservation. This is helpful in such moments when we need to pull a hand from the fire to avoid getting burned. The shadow arises when we habituate to this kind of perspective, narrow, urgent, self-preservation obsessed, and build our relationship with the world on it. Decisive focus is empowering. Anxiety-driven entrainment is not.

The act of focusing brings with it a sense of power. We have reduced our creative awareness down to a single point, and everything we have is flowing there. This is indeed a powerful capacity, but it can become covertly addictive to the point where we try and live in such a state. Such states, in the long term, are immensely limiting, isolating, and entropic. They cut us off from the vast resources of awareness that would otherwise help us overcome the myriad obstacles of life, inside and out.

Suggested Divination Meanings

What fears do I justify having because they make me feel powerful?

What fears do I hold that limit my creative abilities?

Do I allow fear to convince me to accumulate more fear?

Have I succumbed to fearful thinking patterns without realizing it?

Is my fear indicating that it is not the time or is it telling me I am just afraid to act?

Which of my fears were inherited or trained into me, and how can I address them?

Am I operating from a system of self-referencing fears?

Is fear holding me back from taking powerful actions?

Can I sit in my fear and let it pass through me?

What can I learn from my fear?