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Bert Pursoo, Cebu
This Post deals with Fear as postulated by Desh Subba, the Hong-Kong based Nepali thinker/philosopher. In a look at the theory of Fearism, B. Maria Kumar asks:
Why do we have to live; what is the purpose of our existence?
Do we live in order to?
1. attain the kingdom of God
2. seek pleasure and avoid pain
3. preempt suffering
4. realize ouer true potential by making choices freely
5. accept absurdities and rebel against odds and uncertainties so as to find meaning in life,
In 1. Soren Kierkegaard, the Danish theologian links our purpose as being to exist in the service of God - too obtuse for me.
In 2. Indian sage Charvaka mirrors the philosophy of Epicureanism, which is concerned with glorifying pleasure and abhorring pain.
In 3. The Buddha is concerned with finding a way to preempt suffering.
In 4. Sartre posits that life has purpose because it enables us to make free choices, which sounds a bit like Freewill.
In 5. however, Camus - a complex philosopher wonders if living isn’t about accepting absurdities so that we can find reasons to rebel against odds and uncertainties in our effort to find the meaning of life.
While all of the above appear plausible, Dr. Subba not only challenges but seems to reject them all. He insists that from his study of the human condition, life is conducted, directed and controlled by fear and by extension all our thoughts and actions are a function of fear.
Subba engages in deductive logic to support his argument tracing the volatile state of contemporary unstable human affairs back to the original cause. He does, however, suggest ways and means as to how the uncertainties and insecurities could be dealt with rationally and credibly towards the end of his book Fearmorphosis.
Subba looks at the philosophy of Kafka, who states that the human condition as we know it is absurd. Kafka jokes (I imagine) that humans were created in one of God’s bad days and hence, there is no way to make meaning of life. To bolster his case of absurdity Subba points to the situation of Camus’s Sisyphus, condemned to repeat the same absurd and meaningless task ad infinitum. And moreover, Subba challenges the notion that man is a thinking animal, a social being or a political specie. Does he pay homage to the term Homo sapiens? It doesn’t really appear so, having placed sapience in a tertiary position, with fear-stricken man a close secondary. He does, however, accept as first that man is a free animal at the instant of birth in conformity with Rousseau, who claims that humans, unlike other creatures, are born free agents but subsequently becomes a stranger to himself as the result of fear.
In his self-imposed state of apparent wisdom, Subba laments that we are all aliens to our own self and sympathizes with all humans because of the fact that everybody’s fate is similar to that of Sisyphus. Subba, by looking into Kafka’s Samsa concludes that the metamorphosis is the result of fear as we struggle to find and also to express our own identity in an ever-changing world. Now, while Kafka is obsessed with the concept of the absurdity of it all, Subba sees Sisyphus as a resultant product of the fear that he himself created while moving in his existential journey and from which he now cannot extricate himself.
Subba sees fear in everything, in various forms of constructs. Born free but metamorphosed into a fear-ridden being, Sisyphus consequently becomes victimized as a scapegoat, as a surveillance target and also as an exploited proletarian - simply because he cannot disobey the unjust dictates of his authoritarian gods. But it is only his self-imposed fear which forces him to blindly carry out these destructive commands.
Stanley Milgram, American psychologist, along with others like Britain’s Lord Acton, Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi, and South African leader Steven Biko came to the same conclusion that it is fear of losing power that drives people in authority; and the fear of survival that forces those at the receiving end to succumb to the dictates of the gods in much the same way that Sisyphus was induced to toe the line.
One has to admit that despite the logical direction, Subba’s dialectics do seem rather pessimistic. But Subba is far from an inveterate pessimist. His has a technique to counteract this apparent nihilism uplifting human thinking. He now seems to move away from his Sisyphusianism in exchange for one in which he has complete faith in the indomitable spirit and willpower of humanity. To solve the puzzling fear conundrum, he resorts to the Fearlessness paradigm as postulated by R. Michael Fisher, a Canadian philosopher and educator who conceived and formulated its essentials, including the premise that fear must be looked at from both sides, in much the same way we recognize that to understand good we need to understand bad also.
Since fear, according to the good doctor, propels the individual to perceive people, things and situations as absurd, restricted and hostile, Subba points out that a fearless spirit can certainly turn the tide. He exudes confidence that his fear-morphed Sisyphus will be able to navigate adeptly through the frightened global landscape if he is capable of reshaping himself as fearlessness-tempered. No doubt, it is within the control of Sisyphus himself to achieve freedom from fear and this, then, is the message that Subba delivers to the world in his book.
I do recognize that fear does play a significant role in one’s behaviour, thoughts and plans from all directions. What I have difficulty accepting is that it constitutes the sole reason for all our actions. According to Subba, the wife demonstrates and displays love and affection for her husband out of fear that failing to do is likely to cause her to lose him, making her actions one of mere survival. I have to look to a middle road, with fear on one side and genuine desire on the other side. I do agree, nonetheless, that we would never be able fully disregard Sisyphus and that feeling of being a scapegoat.
According to Subba’s philosophy of fearmorphosis, the love or satisfaction I derive from say working as an educator or playing professional tennis is based on the fear of not having that satisfaction, which he sees as something I have convinced myself is something I need to survive. I can rid myself of this fear if I reshape myself as a fearless tempered self which would allow me to adeptly navigate our frightened global landscape, but Subba does not go into details as to how we can achieve this and reach the end of the rainbow, at least as far as I am able to see.
12/06/2023
This article is shared by author after reading "Opinion: Brewing Freedom From Fear" by B. Maria Kumar. Article was published from Hyderabad, India in Telangana Daily on first of December, 2023. It was one of the best Fearmorphosis article. Author has posted it in his Facebook page The Philosophical Factory (Public Forum). With his permission, it is re-published here. -D. Subba
EDUCATION, it's history recently and its roots and routes, related to fear/insecurity and economics, is really important to understand and critique today. I am impressed with this particular lecture by activist-film-maker author Astra Taylor, who tells of this connection.
"Learning to Care in an Age of Insecurity"... these are the words on my tongue... *
OK. Fearlessness Project (religion) has been on my mind for centuries and in 1989 it came to brith [1]. It's about time to renew this blogpost 3 yrs ago on the FM ning. It is on my mind these days to start-up with a group, or just lead it myself(?).. an iteration in the 21st century of The League for Fearlessness-II, and I'm imagining the content for this. [Note: I never did publish more of my research into the group from 1931, I guess there wasn't enough interest from readership in 2020 and after]. The intriguing thing for me today is thinking about how would I start writing such a brochure and what would be some of its key 21st century notions, much different but with overlap, from the 20th century version. Let me know if you are interested to work on this project.
The League for Fearlessness- birthed in 1931
There's a long story behind my finding this 4 pp. fold-out brochure in a medical library in New York City. It is the only evidence currently available on this group [1] that was apparently started under the guidance of the famous theosophists, Alice & Foster Bailey. Since 2006, when I found this brochure (which I made in color, aged, and adapted with a few excerpts here only using photoshop), I have been searching for answers to the mystery of where this group and The League 'disappeared' and why no traces. Currently, the fine folks at Lucis Trust, NY, are attempting to search into this. Curiously, no body in the current big American theosophical organizations has heard of this League but they do suspect the Bailey's were quite likely to have taken on initiating such a project. IF anyone has any leads to finding out more about this group, let me know:
r.michaelfisher52@gmail.com
But besides that fascinating historical evidence, and a story yet told, I wanted to share the brochure today, it seems appropriate as just 5 days away from one of the most important elections ever in U.S. history. The level of tension, fear, dread, etc. is palpable. It's also in my dreams. And, so, I thought it would be good to share these words, ideas, and spirit of fearlessness from this group in 1931, of which North America was deep in the Depression and fear was rampant. If you haven't already picked-up the nuanced connection between The League's mission and my own via the In Search of Fearlessness Project (1989- ) and later, founding the In Search of Fearlessness Research Institute (1991- )--and, the uncanny sense of a paralleling historical soul-based work that is wanting to go on in this world, it is so obvious to me--and yet, struggles of resistances to manifest this Project effectively are so powerful as well. To say it bluntly, there is no such project that has such a systematic well-thought out "program" to improve fear management and remove fear on the planet as a barrier to the evolution of consciousness. This is powerful beyond words. I wished, in retrospect, I would have found this brochure in 1989--boy, that would have made a big difference! But, that's the way it is.
End Note
1. Just recently, I have attained a few documents on this group, I am reviewing, and will keep you posted with updates, if you let me know you are interested.
* A variant theme arrived after, which is more accurate to Barbara and my visioning and planning: "CARING ABOUT CARING, IN AN AGE OF ANXIETY"
End Note (for this blogposting)
1. "Religion" sounds awefully strong I know. I could have said "spirituality" or "philosophy" and I could have not mentioned this at all. I suppose it was thrown in just now [a week after I posted this all] because of my critical reflective journaling on what it is that I am doing and attempting to ignite on this planet. I wrote, that the In Search of Fearlessness Project 1989- came as if from centuries before there was an 'I' or 'prophetic moment' of encountering with this truth path and revelation. But everything I can write and publish and teach on fear and fearlessness, really won't make sense until the total context of it is understood by others. It is a religion--meaning a religio (a return to source connectivity and sanity thereof) and it is a therapy--meaning a therapia (a philosphical therapeutic corrective in metaphysical dimensions and structural dimensions of the evolution of consciousness and dysplasia within that developmental circuitry) and, it is an education--meaning edu-care . I have qualified, using Latin words for what I am onto and called to bring out to this planet's evolution. A much longer discussion of course. And, as for the religio of fearlessness, if you attune to it, and go beyond what most "religions" are these days and in the past, you'll perhaps come into a new learning and imaginary of another kind (aka for the 21st century). You'll have the potential to see what I see, or know what I know, and to breathe and to move to action. A religio of fearlessness has never been strange to me since its inception in late 1989, however, I am not one to go around talking or promoting religion. That said, in my 2010 first major book published [2] I went so far as to see (and act out) that I could easily articulate a first draft of a "Credo of Fearlessness" (see pp. 39, 126, 205, 214). That Credo came about as a reflecting on what it was that is going on with this whole fear and fearlessness thing. Indeed, Credo's are part of all religions pretty much.
2. Fisher, R. M. (2010). The world's fearlessness teachings: A critical integral approach to fear management/education for the 21st century. Lanham, MD. University Press of America/Rowman & Littlefield.
Mark Satin, author-activist R. Michael Fisher, Host, FearTalks series
I recommend anyone interested in the domain of political activism, visionary leadership, and American political movements, that you check out FearTalk #22, that I recently did with Mark Satin. We explore diverse topics, including the impact of anger/fear and its downfall for many activist movements. Mark shares his new book (excerpts):
"Up From Socialism" (recently published by Bomardier Books, 2023). Go to the interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv-tFgxRXUQ
[Note: Nov. 30, 2023: I have been reading Mark's book now for a few days. In the video talk above he said at one point that he searched his word.doc file of the ms. for "fear" and/or related terms and said there were 30+ uses in the book. Well, I can tell you there are way more than that. I'm see 40-50 uses in the first 35 pp. of the book, when one does a basic fearanalysis. Indeed, what is this new book about but "fear" and organizing in the political domain. Now, what is good fear and what isn't? A larger set of questions arises...].
A volume in the series: Studies in the Philosophy of Education. Editor(s): John E. Petrovic, The University of Alabama.
Published Nov. 15/23 2023 and for sale (see ordering flyer): SITPOE8.pdf
Also, add Discount Code for a good price reduction deal: discount code TFP23, effective today, ending March 31, 2024.
[also, as of Dec. 18/23, I made a 30 min. video on introducing the book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tXi-uEE4fk ]
The author, with over three decades of focused research on fear and fearlessness and 45 years as an emancipatory educator, argues that philosophy and philosophy of education have missed several great opportunities to help bring about theoretical and meta-perspectival clarity, wisdom, compassion, and practical ways to the sphere of fear management/education (FME) throughout history. FME is not simple, nor a luxury, it is complex. It’s foundational to good curriculum but it requires careful philosophical critique. This book embarks on a unique transdisciplinary understanding of The Fear Problematique and how it can be integrated as a pivotal contextual reference for assessing the ‘best’ way to go in Education today and tomorrow. Educational philosophy is examined and shown to have largely ‘missed the boat’ in terms of responding critically and ethically to the insidious demand of having to truly educate ourselves when we are so scared stiff. Such a state of growing chronic fear, of morphing types of fear, and a culture of fear, ought to be central in shaping a philosophy of fear(ism) for education. The book challenges all leaders, but especially philosophers and educators, to upgrade their own fear imaginary and fear education for the 21st century, a century of terror likely to grow in the cascading global crises.
CONTENTS
Preface.
CHAPTER 1: Introduction.
CHAPTER 2: Philosophy and a Fearturn.
CHAPTER 3: Education Philosophy 'Misses the Boat.'
CHAPTER 4: Fear(ism) as Philosophy: A Transformative Paradigm.
CHAPTER 5: Fear Management/Education for the 21st Century.
CHAPTER 6: Fearlessness as Educational Philosophy.
CHAPTER 7: Recommendations.
Glossary. References. Index.
Ed. Note: Fearmorphosis book by Desh Subba 2023 reviewed here below, was first posted in The Existentialist Cafe group on Facebook. On that post David Grahame Armes commented. His comment cannot be shared with readers. For the convenience of them,with the permission of commenters, published. -DS]
****
Desh Subba, isn't this article saying fear of everything crashing down is fundamental in metamorphosis within people, economies and societies which has delivered every advance known to Humanity? I do not dispute that fear can be a huge motivation for most people, but this can go too far reaching a point where people no longer fear even death because they've had it up to here with fear, and of course many people find this extremely difficult to understand and frightening because such people appear out of control still living but with a totally different motivation. This is basically true. Nevertheless, it is people in this state of mind who have actually delivered the great advances in Humans and Society.
Without fearless Universalists like Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Gandhi, MLK, and Baron RAF Battle of Britain Air Marshall Lord Sir Hugh Tremenheere Dowding (who had a laugh claiming he never got the true recognition he deserved after WW2 whilst turning his attention to working with Walt Disney in the Fairy Investigation Society), there would likely be nothing to raise the endeavor of people from the barbarity of constant warfare of some sort or another.
World Religion was created and maintained by these people, and without tolerant liberal Religion as the first and arguably best form of Politics because it acts to unify despite what openly sectional politicians who brought it down say today, there really would be no universities, libraries, science, schools, industrial revolution, philosophy, politics, and comfort. Even an isolated Amazon tribe motivates its members through something greater than the struggle to keep alive, probably because that would be far too depressing and they'd all give up and die out. Even today in the seemingly secular West we still idolise Love and falling in Love as the highest motivation we could hope for even though being in Love confronts everyone with our collective desire to be Functioning Mad rather than still Mad but not Functioning so well. If the Sisyphus metaphor is correct here we have to madly embrace not being afraid in order to keep getting motivated to keep pushing the huge rock up the hill.
I guess I don't totally agree with the Fearmorphosis thesis, because in a Western mindset at least we desire to be fearlessly Mad and Free in order to get anything done.
In this respect we have been extremely successful so far, even if the Planet teeters on the edge of total destruction regularly these days. What Westerners say is Liberal Democracies that idolise Love and Freedom rarely if ever go to War with each other, so we are frantically trying to help everyone be as Mad as we are before the whole thing goes belly up!
The real huge gaping academic gap in the market for ideas, is a more comprehensive examination and appreciation of what Madness actually is and how it can metamorphosis into different things that we decide are not Madness whether for Good, Reason, or Utter Evil? We simply are not looking at the main drivers of real Progress in every way. Not whilst we're basically using pseudoscience to control it whenever it appears problematic regardless of whether this is true or not?
The element in the Fearmorphosis thesis covering different forms of scapegoating is relevant to how we treat pseudoscience mental health patients.
In my own case, there appears zero interest in whether the original reasons for scapegoating me had or have any basis in reality, as well as a grim determination to carry on scapegoating me regardless. The fact that only something like God Almighty can probably deliver me from this fate, and in fact is something I claim to know something about, only seems to motivate the scapegoating further and in and of itself the combination of the two is driving Political and Psychiatric change yet again!
****
In the above 30 min. video talk, I take listeners through what happened in my latest course I taught. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD2MMC3Kpdw
Course Title: "Understanding Fear and its Effects on Humanity" (2023)
|
Here is a panel of very progressive thinkers on the problems of world conflict today. If you get a change, this may be a worthwhile talk for you and others in grief and who are feeling somewhat hopeless with the rise of crisis and WWW-III lurking. -M. |
To see complete review go to: https://kcsunbeam.wordpress.com/2023/10/30/book-review-fearmorphosis/
Zaker Hussain
The article provides a critique of Dan Brown's novel "Origin" from the perspective of Fearism, a philosophical framework developed by Nepali thinker and writer Desh Subba. The article examines the novel's themes, characters, and the interplay between religion and science, offering an alternative perspective rooted in Fearism. Let's critically analyze the article:
Overview of the Novel: The article offers a concise summary of the novel "Origin," describing the main character, Edmond Kirsch, and the central conflict between religion and science. This provides readers with an understanding of the book's premise and its relevance to the critique.
Fearism Introduction: The article introduces Fearism as a philosophical concept developed by Desh Subba, which places fear as a primary driver of human behavior and society. This background sets the stage for the subsequent analysis.
Character Analysis: The article highlights that all characters in the novel are portrayed as fearful, with specific reference to Edmond Kirsch's reading of atheist authors Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. The fear-driven behavior of characters in the novel is an interesting point, but the article does not delve deeper into how fear influences their actions and decisions.
Religion vs. Science: The article asserts that the novel is a victory of science over religion, breaking the notion of God as a creator. It suggests that this perspective aligns with Fearism, but it doesn't provide an in-depth exploration of how the novel addresses this conflict. The relationship between science, religion, and fear could be explored more thoroughly.
Cultural and Philosophical References: The article references various philosophers and philosophical concepts, such as Friedrich Nietzsche and Albert Camus. While these references are interesting, the article could benefit from a more detailed examination of how these philosophies connect to the novel's themes and the Fearism framework.
Narrative Structure: The article discusses the novel's narrative structure, mentioning elements like mystery, conspiracy, and conflict. However, it doesn't delve deeply into the storytelling techniques used by Dan Brown to create suspense or how these elements relate to the theme of fear.
Cultural and Geographical Context: The article suggests that the novel's setting in Spain is suitable due to its Catholic and culturally unique background. It briefly touches on how different cultures shape individuals' perspectives, but a more comprehensive exploration of this aspect could add depth to the analysis.
Fearism and Creationism: The article claims that Fearism can be applied to understanding the novel's critique of creationism. While this connection is intriguing, it would be more informative if it explained how Fearism offers a unique perspective on this topic and how it differs from other philosophical approaches.
Writing Style: The article's writing style is generally clear and straightforward, but it could benefit from more detailed analysis, critical engagement with the novel's themes, and a more structured presentation of ideas.
Clarity of Argument: The article presents intriguing ideas but could be more coherent and organized in its argumentation. It often jumps between topics without fully developing each point.
In conclusion, the article offers a unique perspective on Dan Brown's novel "Origin" by applying the philosophy of Fearism. However, it could benefit from a more in-depth analysis of how the novel's themes and characters relate to fear, as well as a more structured and organized presentation of its arguments. Additionally, more comprehensive explanations of the philosophical concepts mentioned would make the analysis more informative and engaging.
By
Zaker Hussain
Senior Lecturer philosophy
School education department Jammu and kashmir
Dr. Stanislav Grof, Psychiatrist and theorist (psychonaut).
I have recently watched the film https://www.psychedelicassistedtherapysummit.com/thewayofthepsychonaut?kref=2YglctPiB1lF
of which documents Stan Grof's life and career. By the end of the film, it was clear to me, that I had found another basic human archetype of Fear Management System-8, in my integral theory of fear management systems. There have been 'saintly' type figurations I have put in the FMS-8 prior, but now it felt like Grof is a less saintly but authentic type (manifestation) of FMS-8, and a very potent impressive person and life.
For more information on his work you can look him up (e.g., on Wikipedia) but the above film (and book?) "Way of the Psychonaut" is a really good overview.
See Below, my latest simple model of fear management systems (FMSs) that I have been researching and publishing on for probably 15 years or so (e.g., see Fisher, 2010). This diagram shows an evolutionary/developmental arrangement of these FMSs and FMS-8 (Turquoise colored) is depicted (and is extremely rare).
Note: It would take a long post and lecture really to do justice to explain this visual model and the theory it represents.
Okay, just found this new book available (2023) later in Nov. A professor and historian, Robert Peckham, has perhaps written a very interesting book for the study of fear.
I have called the revisioning of history through the lens of fear (i.., a fearist perspective) the new FEARSTORY that humans need to come to terms with, as that is essential to deepening our understanding and revising our current fear management/education. I order the book by Peckham. And, I'll report my findings on the FM ning soon.
by Jun-ichi-Suzki, Hokkaido, Japan
Desh Subba is a Nepali-born writer and poet. His self-published book ①"Philosophy of Fearism" depicts fear as a major part of human life. According to him, life is guided and controlled by fear. And we humans are in the age of "FEARMORPHOSIS," which is a combination of "Sisyphus," "Metamorphosis," and "No Exit," and we are making the argument that in society and life various Sisyphuses are pushing a rock. Here again, human is Fear Sisyphus being watched by Panopticons.
②And he keeps writing that "Hell is other people concept is wrong because Hell is himself. Sartre contradicts himself, we can see contradiction between Existence Precedes Essence and Hell is other people."
Sartre's literary works that are relevant here include "The Wall'' which depicts the delusion of life as seen from the perspective of a person who is placed in a "death-limit situation'', "No Exit'' which depicts the hell of others, and "The Wall''. In "The Dead Without a Grave," he depicts a person dying after all attempts at justification are invalidated, and expresses the "vomiting nature" of existence through "vomiting."
Verification:
①"Philosophy of Fearism" depicts fear as a major part of human life. According to him, life is guided and controlled by fear.
This is the first time I've heard the phrase "philosophy of fear." I think this theory was built with a focus on the human "consciousness of fear." This "consciousness" is suitable for things that are "feared." In this case, the "fear" that exists in the outside world is being watched by Panopticons and Metamorphosis, right?
First, in existential philosophy, humans are "free''. "Consciousness" is "free" even if circumstances prevent it from being "free." It is impossible for our human "consciousness" to always be "fearful." The "consciousness'' of "fear'' exists as an "object'' of human consciousness in contrast to the "situation'' or "existence within the situation." "Fear'' does not "exist'' in "consciousness.'' The "consciousness of fear'' as a "concept'' "exists'' within humans, and through the act of manifesting it, we create an "image'' of it in the outside world, whether it be in the space in front of us through our eyes or outside the window even behind the eyelids for instance.
The fact that humans are free also means that they are trying to transcend their destiny and categories, which "depicts fear as a major part of human life. According to him, life is guided and controlled by fear."
As a matter of fact and as my experience, I do not live my life depending on something called "fear."
In my opinion, the philosophy of fear has its meaning in the real world of North Korea, where Kim Jong Il's dictatorship is in place. There, people are stripped of their humanity and their freedom of action and speech is severely restricted. It is precisely under such circumstances that resistance and revolutionary movements are necessary. I think we need "action'' to overcome the "philosophy of fear'' rather than just analysis. If a talented literary figure in North Korea were to write a literary novel based on the "philosophy of fear," they might be able to create a good work.
Additionally, the same situation applies to those who have been deprived of their freedom due to the killings and oppression of the people in the Tibetan Autonomous Region under China's effective rule.
Human beings always use their imagination in their daily lives. Imagination is also "consciousness." I previously talked about the difference between "self-deception" and "lies" and how humans use these two in their lives. And the important thing is that we spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping. This means that sleep resets your daily life. You could call it "oblivion." Also, I think you can understand the importance of dreaming because here again we use the "consciousness'' of "imagination.''
②"Hell is other people concept is wrong because Hell is himself. Sartre contradicts himself, we can see contradiction between Existence Precedes Essence and Hell is other people."
Well, let me disproof about "Hell is other people concept is wrong."
Just like myself, the "others" is also a "self-existence''. The "others'' is also an "existence'' whose "existence precedes essence.'' Sartre devotes one of his three books, "Being and Nothingness,'' to "exploring this "existence of the others'' .This is because the world is an aggregation of these "self-existence'', and elucidating the meaning of this human relationship is a feat that traditional "realists'' could not accomplish.
And the meaning of "Hell is other people'' is "Humans always judge their own worth, their existence, and the way their lives should be based on the eyes of others. Hell is the expression of the fact that you cannot escape forever from the gaze and the feeling of being measured by others."
There are such things as "Hell" that has become a reality and "Hell as a concept", so taking these into consideration, if I change the expression, "Hell is also other people'' .
In addition, in Christianity, there is also "Purgatory".
Well, in conclusion, Sartre's ontology is not contradictory. Thank you for reading through my attempt to defend Sartre's critique of existential philosophy.
[NB: This article is taken from Jean-Paul Sartre Facebook Group. With the permission of Jun-ichi-Suzuki it is re-published.]
A volume in the series: Studies in the Philosophy of Education. Editor(s): John E. Petrovic, The University of Alabama.
In Press 2023 and for sale: Information Age Publishing
The author, with over three decades of focused research on fear and fearlessness and 45 years as an emancipatory educator, argues that philosophy and philosophy of education have missed several great opportunities to help bring about theoretical and meta-perspectival clarity, wisdom, compassion, and practical ways to the sphere of fear management/education (FME) throughout history. FME is not simple, nor a luxury, it is complex. It’s foundational to good curriculum but it requires careful philosophical critique. This book embarks on a unique transdisciplinary understanding of The Fear Problematique and how it can be integrated as a pivotal contextual reference for assessing the ‘best’ way to go in Education today and tomorrow. Educational philosophy is examined and shown to have largely ‘missed the boat’ in terms of responding critically and ethically to the insidious demand of having to truly educate ourselves when we are so scared stiff. Such a state of growing chronic fear, of morphing types of fear, and a culture of fear, ought to be central in shaping a philosophy of fear(ism) for education. The book challenges all leaders, but especially philosophers and educators, to upgrade their own fear imaginary and fear education for the 21st century, a century of terror likely to grow in the cascading global crises.
CONTENTS
Preface.
CHAPTER 1: Introduction.
CHAPTER 2: Philosophy and a Fearturn.
CHAPTER 3: Education Philosophy 'Misses the Boat.'
CHAPTER 4: Fear(ism) as Philosophy: A Transformative Paradigm.
CHAPTER 5: Fear Management/Education for the 21st Century.
CHAPTER 6: Fearlessness as Educational Philosophy.
CHAPTER 7: Recommendations.
Glossary. References. Index.
Bert Pursoo, Cebu City
1. One of the endearing themes in many a book or treatise on philosophy is that there is no reality and that life itself as we know it is little more than an illusion- something with which I am yet to come to grips.
2. Desh Subba is a Nepali philosopher and founder of Trans Philosophism and Fearism – an approach that is linked more closely to Eastern than Western philosophy. In his most recent book, Fearmorphosis, the author appears to contribute somewhat to this concept of illusion himself as he believes that without conscious awareness, we neglect to see that we live in a mythical world, largely operating on a vision of segmenting and reductionism, focusing on the smallest particles (while, I imagine the more important issues are left basically untended, perhaps to take care of themselves). In his writings, the author claims to look at things with “two eyes” or perspectives on interpretation and critical analysis. From his “two eyes”, Subba looks at philosophy, language, morality, politics, economics, and the environment
3. The author argues that it is time to excavate and rewrite history, culture, morality, politics, literature, and philosophy through a systematic criticism of Sisyphus, the Panopticon, and the Scapegoat point of view. He criticizes people like Marx, Keynes and other philosophers for inadequately observing human behaviour and contexts. The message in Fearmorphosis is that Fear is the power of all power and that it is a terminator that disposes of all other emotions. Fearmorphosis is another book on the Philosophy of Fear. Basically, the book explores ideas and issues underlying the emotion of fear and how it affects our life in general, but with a non-Western approach. Subba delves into the different types of fear and employs metaphors and allegories effectively.
4. It is not clear how we can excavate or simply rewrite history, seeing how history is cumulative. Culture is not specifically defined; it tends to evolve over a period of time and subject to other socio-economic factors. Morality and ethics, politics, literature and philosophy are under constant revision already, so no major effort appears necessary apart from greater review and analysis.
5. At first glance, Fearmorphosis comes across as being overly nihilistic or maybe skeptical. The author contends and perhaps rightly so, that to reach the mountaintop, we are prepared to subdue, by whatever means, our competitors and enemies, and scapegoat innocent people. The result is that millions become refugees, hapless labourers and disabled by wars, beliefs, egos, needs, desires and the pursuit of happiness. In the end, we scapegoat ourselves as well as Nature.
6. According to Fearmorphosis, it’s all based on fear. Sisyphus as dramatized in the Korean futurist story deals with unexplainable events but with the main theme of preventing an all-destructive war. Fear of the unknown and the unexplained has always presented a major threat to our very consciousness, with a fear that is unmistakably poignant.
7. In the Panopticon, we get to look at the fear that all our actions may be under scrutiny, without our direct knowledge, but we instinctively know. We are suspicious and this generates a different but powerful fear that empowers us to come together and react irrationally, sometimes to our own detriment.
8. Subba considers scapegoating a consuming fear wherein we are consciously aware that we will be forced to assume the blame for the faults and weaknesses of others at our personal detriment. Could such a fear move us to commit immoral or even illegal acts that are likely to backfire on us?
9. In his reference to Das Kapital, Subba is primarily concerned with the efforts we as the worker bees are literally forced to put out while the benefits accrue only to the capitalist elites. It is true that he doesn’t think Communism is the answer yet does not openly support either democracy or capitalism.
9. Metamorphosis examines our evolution on a more personal basis. As we grow, we morph or move from one stage to another acquiring duties and responsibilities. There is here the inherent fear of our concern as to whether we will be able to take care of our family as is to be expected. Are we capable of doing and behaving in a manner that is necessary to maintain the required relationship with our classmates, our workmates, and our club members? How strong is such a fear?
10. While I acknowledge the importance of fear as a motivator, I don’t consider myself a fearist. I am more of a stoic with a general dollop of pragmatism. Nonetheless, the fear of being defeated pushes us to be sufficiently strong in order to repel any attacks from within or without. Fear, does, however, have its negative effects. Fear of failure, for example, can be responsible for remaining stationary, despite the possible benefits to advance. As Caesar told Calpurnia: Cowards die many times before their deaths, but the valiant never taste of death but once.
11. In Fearmorphosis, Subba comes across as something of a sceptical philosopher but also an iconoclast. He wants to impose, or so it seems to me, certain aspects of Eastern philosophy and/or mysticism into the realm of Western thinking, through a greater degree of critical analysis, to the extent of reviewing even our most cherished views from the ancient Greeks to Camus, Hume, Sartre, Descartes, Bacon, Locke, et al.. What lends power to Desh Subba’s writing is the fact that a lot of his observations derives from personal experience
09/10/2023
What you see above is some of the major points of which Marianne Williamson is running her presidential campaign 2024 (as Dem.) in terms of a Department of Children & Youth and her stated priority to be "mothers and children" in America, as extremely important foundations for a healthy society. I don't disagree. However, you may note that Williamson's platform is not listing that there should be a good quality "fear education" --nope, she is rather talking about all children getting "mindfulness training in schools"--and, this is very short-sighted, although it sounds good at first pass. Also, the caring interest in trauma is there. But truly MW has not thought deeply enough to see that at the base of the problem is a Fear Problem, a "culture of fear" which is the meta-context for all the things she wants to fix about mothering, child rearing and care, etc. Sorry, MW needs a fearanalyst (and educator) on her staff team really quickly.
I posted this 5 years ago, as one of my critiques of where Higher Education is going as a 'marketplace' where education and "looking good" are combined into a toothless cowardice of conformism--colorism, you name it! The fear of not fitting in is huge in the domain of higher education. I constructed this college very quickly from finding photos in higher education from one large booklet from one university and college website in the USA. This is the 'look' and this is the 'happy happy' face that is representing post-secondary education in this continent. Where is the disagreement, looks of discontent with the status quo, where is critical skepticism of the intellectual mind? Instead, the higher education institutions higher advertising firms who only know 'what sells' (apparently)-- and it is cute young women with big white teeth and smiles--as if we are selling a factory of dental assistants for the new generations to come. Really bad stuff going on here and so contradictory to the Diversity and Inclusion theme that runs through liberal higher education factories...but in the end they are marketing this subtle and not so subtle fear-based conformity to belong and be happy with. A fear of dissent!
