"Fear is a tyrant and a despot, more terrible than the rack, more potent than the snake." So wrote Edgar Wallace in his 1918 crime novel "The Clue of the Twisted Candle". And boy, was he right!

Fear is our most primal emotion, and it is natural human instinct to be wary of the unknown. The unexplained continues to fascinate one and all, while at the same time petrifies. Like a specter in the darkness, like a hazy figure on a misty midnight, the unknown draws us to its vortex and arouses antithetical emotions deep within us. - both trepidation and awe.

We fear that which is beyond our control. We fear that which is unexplained to us. We fear that which is unheard of and unspoken of. It is the absence that plays on our psyche, the anonymity that slowly gnaws upon our insides, the darkness that casts its shadow upon our very being. That is fear.

The key to conquering the primordial emotion that fear is lies in acceptance. Accept that which is unknown, and the battle is already won.

"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."

Join us at IMI on the 4th and 5th of March, 2006 - as we embark on a quest to vanquish the mammoth monster that lurks in the corner of every heart - Fear of the Unknown

"No exorciser harm thee!
Nor no witchcraft charm thee!
Ghost unlaid forbear thee!
Nothing ill come near thee!
Quiet consummation have;
And renowned be thy grave!"