IN THE BEGINNING, there was fear.

A normal non-complex emotion for the human animal.

Whenever we confronted, or were confronted by something that overwhelmed us - like the impending threat of death in the form of plagues, wars and natural disasters - we felt fear.

As for any other animal, this emotion had a protective function. It allowed us to take notice of a danger and to retreat before it was too late.
But for us humans, there was an addition.
We remembered the source of the danger, and we protected ourselves better.

The whole of Civilization depended on our ability to not just foresee, but also forestall dangers.

Out of fear, We developed religion, and various belief systems... to comfort us...
Fear is old. .. and yet strong!

The oldest and strongest emotion known to man.

Over time, as we began to understand our own environment, and gain more control over it, our threats lessened.

But our fears didn't... rather, they increased in number.

We feared about a lot of things. Our status in the society. People liking us. Our fitting into a group. Our family. Our health. Even the aging process that we were undergoing.
This fear birthed worry, and anxiety.

Sometime in the 19th century, journalists and advertisers discovered that they made more profits when they framed stories based on fear. They could capture our attention.

They then moved our focus to new sources of fear.
The new crime wave. An environmental hazard. An epidemic. Our health.

So far, the sophistication of the media has given us the feeling that we are nothing but fragile creatures in an environment full of danger - EVEN THOUGH the world we live in now is relatively safer and more predictable than the one our ancestors knew.

WATCH OUT For My NEXT POST On HOW TO DEAL WITH YOUR FEARS........