Scare is not an emotion we feel only after watching a horror movie. As I see it, it can be projected in many diverse forms. We will here consider nervousness and horror under the wide term of scare.
So let us begin.
Nervousness. We often say, “mujhe darr lag raha hai” , out of anxiety and nervousness. We have butterflies in the stomach when awaiting something crucial. A board exam result? Yes, we are scared. Expecting a lab test report, waiting for a chance to present a speech before a large audience, or an upcoming interview, every time, even if only a bit, we will be nervous, we will be scared. This anxiety and fear we experience is evidence that whatever the thing is, it is important, that is why we experience anticipation of what lies ahead.
Horror. We again say, “mujhe darr lag raha hai”, but this time out of horror and terror. Now there aren’t any butterflies, rather there is something heavy at the bottom of the stomach. This generally happens after watching a horror movie. The thoughts linger in the mind, and we are scared. But considering more realistic and concrete situations, we are captured by terror when we cross path with something we have a phobia of, for example, dogs, closed spaces, insects etc. This can also happen when we realize the harsh struggles of other people, towns, cities through print and electronic media. Then too, in certain severe cases, we are horrified.
What can be done when we find ourselves in such situations? Well, nothing can be done about the situation. Neither can it be changed, nor avoided. We can surely do something about ourselves. Achieve self-control. This helps us keep calm and composed. No condition proves to be strong enough to move us from our position when we are in-charge of ourselves. All the emotions: anger, joy, sorrow, scare are normal; in fact, they are essential. But neither of them should be present in extreme quantities, then it can be harmful. In my opinion, there is one word for presence of these emotions in us. The same word applies to our state of being when the first statement gets fulfilled. The word is: BALANCE.