Whence Fear comes? A Few Notes about the Origin of Fear in Indian Thought

Abstract

The paper examines the Vedic sources of fear in ancient Indian thought. First, a connection to traditional Indian grammar (vyākaraṇa: Aṣṭādhyāyī 1,4,24-25) offers a plausible explanation for the origin of fear. Further hints for tracing the sources of fear are traced in some specific upaniṣad-s, namely Bṛhadāraṇyaka, Chāndogya, Taittirīya, with a possible reference to aesthetic context (Nāṭyaśāstra). Particular attention is dedicated to the commentary by the philosopher Śaṅkara to a pivotal passage from Bṛhadāraṇyaka-upaniṣad (1,4,2). Two types of fear are hypothesized: an empirical one and a metaphysical one, possibly in parallel with the gradation of soteriological knowledge, distinguished as inferior and superior (apara, para) in the vedantic milieu.

Keywords

• hinduism
• vedānta
• śaṅkara
• upaniṣad