Out of the four problems of material existence, namely the food problem, the shelter problem, the fear problem and the mating problem, the fear problem gives us more trouble than the others. (SB 1.11.3 purport)

If we analyze eating, sleeping, and mating, all these activities occur at specific times and places. We structure our lives around fulfilling these needs with regularity. However, the problem of fear troubles us far more than the others. Fear can arise at anytime and occurs without warning. Life in the material world is filled with problems, and fear remains constant because the timing and nature of these problems are unpredictable. We do not know when the next “life quake” will strike, leaving us perpetually anxious.

Another notable aspect of fear is its all-encompassing nature. Much of our existence is driven by fear. There is fear about whether we will have food for the next meal. Fear persists even while we sleep; If not why do we close our doors when we go to sleep?. Fear also permeates our relationships. Why do we constantly seek reassurance from our partners, asking if they still love us? This stems from insecurity—the fear that their love might fade or that they might leave us. This fear goes deeper, tied to a loss of identity and self-worth if our partner leaves us. Thus, fear infiltrates even the act of mating.

Mundane existence is itself a kind of fear because in all mundane bodies the effects of birth, death, old age and disease always keep a living being compact in fear. In the mundane world, there is always the influence of time, which changes things from one stage to another, and the living entity, originally being avikāra, or unchangeable, suffers a great deal on account of changes due to the influence of time

This pervasive fear makes every one of us insecure. We constantly seek acceptance, acknowledgment, and appreciation. We strive to find security and comfort, but the root problem lies in our uncomfortable situation—we have turned away from Krishna. By doing so, we have placed ourselves in a completely insecure position in this world. Now, we desperately cling to whatever semblance of acceptance, acknowledgement and appreciation we can find, trying to fill the void created by our separation from Him.

Therefore, In the material world there is always anxiety or fearfulness in the hearts of all living entities, but the Lord, being Himself the supreme fearless, also awards the same quality of fearlessness to His pure devotees. .

All fear is dispelled the moment we hear the sound of the Lord, represented by His holy name. Countless individuals in the past have been purified through the knowledge of the Lord and the transcendental sound, as propagated by Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in the following sixteen words:

We can take advantage of these sounds and be free from all threatening problems of the fear of material existence.