With the paranoid perception's "gaze of Sauron"-like specificity, the "spirit" of the matter becomes located in the limited object of perception, with all of its limitations and distortions that accompany that restricted perception.
But upon turning the gaze upon object after object, becoming acquainted with them intimately and how they connect with everything else, certain patterns begin to arise that are further and further generalized as more objects of perception are assimilated and which can eventually become cosmic in scope, and the provincial paranoid fixation is dissolved, leaving behind a navigable explanatory and anticipatory framework.
Well, in theory at least. If this latter phase sounds like the makings of straight-up conspiracy theory, that is because it often is. On the contrary, what can happen is that the provincial perceptions can be strung together and added up, and the object of paranoid fixation becomes ever more grand and malevolent in its all-encompassing power, and now the problem is much worse, because you've turned an anxious fixation into a potentially powerful and consuming worldview, expressed in the stereotypical wall-scrawlings and cork boards spider-webbed with networked post-its, photos, and red yarn.
Part of the difference of outcome lies in the simple art of relaxation. This is something that is also common to people living with OCD - and paranoia can often be read as a supercharging of OCD in a lot of cases - in that part of living with it consists in attempting to function alongside it and with it and then disengage with it when it ceases to be helpful or productive. One of the structural aspects of OCD is the tendency of the perception to hyperfixate, making it difficult to smoothly transition from one object of perception to the next.
The idea is that whether the fixation has to do with daily living and perceptual interest or a threatening object of fear, fixations can be quite useful for learning about various elements of reality to anticipate them and therefore harness them or navigate them or counter them in whatever way, but then too much fixation destroys the very ability to act. And this is true whether one is encountering a limited object in daily life or developing a worldview to live one's life.
Anyway, to put it more generally, any sort of hyper-concentration of something can lead to dysfunction. Matter needs space to extend in. Water needs air to move.
To use an extreme case, this principle can be illustrated in warfare, the effective exercise of the paranoid instinct par excellence, because the threatening objects of your perception are literally trying to kill you.
There was this unforgettable account I read of a Kurdish fighter dealing with ISIS - I can't remember where I read it unfortunately - where he talked about their terror tactics in combat. They would breach defenses by setting off explosions and rapidly drive up in vehicles amid suppressing fire, basically moving fast and hard and making a lot of noise, which would terrify and overwhelm defenders.
But the Kurdish fighter insisted: you just had to stay calm and concentrate. Choose a target, stick with that target, dispatch the target, and then move to the next one. Take one at a time; deal with the greatest priorities as they come, and with enough luck you won't become overwhelmed and live long enough to continue to be effective in combat, whittling down the opposition. And with more soldiers trained this way and functioning this way, the effectiveness of the fighting force is compounded, and the priorities are dealt with simultaneously and the enemy is grinded down.
You see this principle appear in military training across armies throughout history. It was certainly true of the Greek and Roman phalanxes: the formations were built for stability, grouping together soldiers trained to remain calm through all conditions, with veterans placed in strategic locations throughout the formation and the entire body of soldiers trained to work confidently together so as to maintain the formation's cohesion and strength, so as to stave off that dreadful appearance of the god of Phobos, which can fragment the protective shell of the phalanx and trigger a panicked rout, which was where the real disasters often happened.
But here it is important to point out: it is the paranoid fixation that develops and affords the calm. One fixates on the object of threat and trains to understand and anticipate it, to aim and shoot effectively, to properly hold a shield, or to thrust a spear, and all of that training produces a wealth of competence that can be drawn from and trusted when it counts. One fixates and prepares while it is productive to do so, and then let go and trust that the elements are in place and that the work has been done and one has done the best one can do with what one has. To continue to fixate on threat after threat in combat, to hold onto that fear and anticipation for all that is happening, eventually there is too much to fixate on; too much to account for and deal with. One becomes paralyzed and cannot act.
And hell, we sure took the circuitous route, but that's living in so many words. Focus on the priorities that matter, do the work that is needed, and then take a rest with the trust and satisfaction that that was enough, at least until it isn't. Living well is also dying well in longer timeframes.
That's what you can do anyway. What is happening in the world is another matter altogether.
