Love requires another person. Anger needs a trigger. Sadness needs a loss. Joy needs an event. Gratitude needs a benefactor.
By Josi Joseph, Psychologist, Group Editor +91 94468 48191
For many years, I have been observing human beings, counseling troubled minds, and quietly watching animals—including my own dog, Dior—move through their small worlds. One idea keeps returning to me with increasing force: fear is the only universal and permanent emotion shared by all living beings. Every other emotion, however intense or refined, appears and disappears according to relationships, contexts, and interpretations. Fear alone persists because fear arises directly from the fundamental uncertainty of life.
Every living being faces the same existential condition: not knowing what will happen in the next moment. This radical uncertainty is the ground from which fear emerges. A bird taking flight at a passing shadow, a dog lifting its head when the wind carries an unfamiliar sound, a human being worrying about the future—each is responding to the same basic condition. Life is unpredictable, and the organism knows, in its own way, that it is vulnerable within this unpredictability.
Even emotions we consider “basic” are not truly universal. Love requires another person. Anger needs a trigger. Sadness needs a loss. Joy needs an event. Gratitude needs a benefactor. Remove the external world and the complexity of relationships, and these emotions disappear. But fear does not. If I imagine a world where only one human being exists—with no relationships, no culture, no society—what would remain? Only the awareness of uncertainty, the knowledge of vulnerability, and the emotional echo of this condition: fear. It would be the first and last emotion available to such a solitary being.
When I extend this reflection to animals, I see the same structure. Some animals are naturally more cautious, others more relaxed. These differences mirror the human experience: the more an organism is exposed to uncertainty and survives it, the more it develops an inner balance and a reduced fear response. In human terms, I have long described this as congruence—self congruence, existential congruence, and social congruence. A congruent person perceives uncertainty clearly, accepts it honestly, and navigates it intelligently. Such a person still experiences fear, but in a transformed form: as awareness, vigilance, or clarity. Their fear does not vanish, because uncertainty cannot vanish, but its power diminishes.
What makes this insight particularly compelling for me is how it connects the biological, psychological, and philosophical dimensions of life. Evolutionarily, fear is the earliest survival response. Psychologically, it is the background tone of consciousness that arises from unpredictability. Philosophically, fear reveals the fundamental structure of existence: a living being is always incomplete, always moving, always responding to forces beyond its control. In my broader theory of the Law of Universal Singularity, I describe all motion—physical, emotional, spiritual—as the movement of existence toward equilibrium and self-realization. Fear is simply the emotional signature of this movement. It is the sign that we have not yet reached equilibrium, that we are still in motion, still exposed to the unknown.
No philosopher, biologist, or psychologist has articulated fear in this exact way: as the only emotion that remains when all relationships, contexts, and cognitive constructions are removed; as the universal emotional response to existential uncertainty; and as the common thread linking single-celled organisms, animals, and self-aware human beings. Many have discussed fear as a basic or primary emotion, but not as the permanent emotional foundation of life itself. The originality of this idea lies in the synthesis: bringing together survival biology, experiential psychology, and metaphysics within one logical line of reasoning.
This insight also reshapes my understanding of emotional evolution. Instead of viewing fear as a primitive flaw, I see it as the entry point to wisdom. Fear tells us that life is uncertain; this is not a weakness but a truth. Congruence does not eliminate fear but transforms it into a quieter, wiser companion. The more aligned I am with myself, with existence, and with others, the less fear disrupts me and the more it informs me. It becomes a signal rather than a threat.
Even when I watch Dior resting near me, seemingly peaceful, I know that a small movement, an unfamiliar sound, or a sudden absence would immediately activate in him the same ancient emotion that moves through every living creature. That tiny tremor of alertness is not just instinct—it is the universal response of life to the unknown.
To recognize fear as the only universal and permanent emotion is to understand something fundamental about existence. Fear is the emotional expression of uncertainty; uncertainty is the condition of life; therefore, fear is inseparable from life itself. All other emotions depend on specific circumstances and relationships, but fear emerges directly from the essence of being alive. In acknowledging this, I find a deeper respect for all living creatures and a clearer understanding of human psychological growth. Fear is not the enemy of happiness; it is the backdrop against which all happiness becomes meaningful.
This realization unifies biology, psychology, and philosophy into a single movement of thought: life begins with fear, grows by navigating fear, and finds maturity not by escaping fear but by achieving such congruence that fear becomes an integrated part of awareness rather than a tyrant of the mind. And perhaps, in this awareness, lies the beginning of true freedom.
Thank you for publishing the article.