BENE GESSERIT LITANY AGAINST FEAR

LITANY AGAINST FEAR
I must not fear.
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.

Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear - From Frank Herbert's Dune Book Series
© 1965 and 1984 Frank Herbert
Published by Putnam Pub Group
ISBN: 0399128964


The Litany Against Fear was an incantation spoken by by those who faced danger or fear during their everyday lives. It helped to focus their minds in times of peril.

I came across this incantation when I happened to be looking for motivation, inspiration and encouragement for my runs. Although it is not that I am afraid of my surroundings or the actual physical act of running when I am running, what I am afraid of are the thoughts that run through my head as I run ... thoughts such as, "I must look crazy," or "I'm running too slow." "Am I going to finish? How am I going to make it to the end?" Or how about this one, "I must be out of my mind to think that I could take this on!" And so forth and so on. It is my thought process that causes me to falter and slow down. I am my harshest critic, my own worst enemy. In reality, no one is really paying that much, if any attention to me.

Fear pushes what you want/desire away from you. What I found about the litany is that it calmed me. It allows me to refocus and reset my thinking. I believe that I am a strong individual spiritually, mentally, and physically. I believe that I have a mental toughness, a very strong will, and an unfaltering faith that many would envy, but there are times when I feel "weak," and once my negative thinking starts it's all downhill ... =[ It is at this time that I dig deep to find something to reset my brain/thinking. First I smile (even if it's a fake smile) then I start to tell myself positive things until I believe it. For I belive and know that I can do anything ... I just have to let go of the fear ...