Through the eyes of a tyrant!

Do you know how it feels to be wicked? Many a time we have heard stories of wickedness and evilness and how in the end the good triumph over the evil. We all love a hero -- heroic action appeals to children and adults alike. All films and stories revolve around this concept of villain and hero. But have you thought what is the relevance or rather existence of a hero without a villain. Did any film click in the box office which only had a super hero and his girl-friend?:P

Are wicked men more successful?

All the big business magnets we see today did not become great by being righteous, pious, and honest or by being a strict moralist. The path to success will be overgrown and strewn with thorns. You need to tread your way out of obstacles to reach your goal. It is not easy to reach there by honesty. Cheating, corruption, bribing are all very common. Today’s great business brands arose out of corruption and selfishness. Sometimes there arises the need to take great risks to stand the chance of becoming successful. Only belief in yourself, attaining support of fellow men and the capability to project it out will bring you glory and success. That was how some became kings, some presidents, some statesmen, some bosses, so-on and so forth. They are great because of their will-power, capability, dedication, perseverance, hard work and thirst for power.

Why do men become evil?

Is it circumstances that make men evil? Most of the times lack of money and social neglect are the root causes for men to seek for power and position. Poverty , hardships faced , sacrifices due to lack of voice in society or money, compromises made in dignity and self-respect  make men realize the importance of money, and its power in this world. Rising prices of commodities, need and hunger for more luxuries are all beyond how much an ordinary man can afford. Again fortune favoured some and left others to doom, causing inequality among men. Some are born rich and others poor. People turn out thieves not because of their passion in stealing or murdering. Who would not wish their kids study in a good school or wish their wife lead a normal life without going to earn meagre wages, doing menial jobs, to support the family? Who would like discrimination based on caste, creed or colour. Fighting against them requires power. Most powerful politicians we see today had very humble beginnings. Scams and corruption have become very common nowadays.

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Great men are almost always bad men."
        -- Lord Acton

If we divide men into two sets namely good and bad. If I say that good people are selfless, they think more for the society than for their own betterment, and hence only good people should become leaders ruling our nation then I am entirely wrong because, a good selfless person once he attains power becomes corrupt and selfish. This has been proved n number of times in the past. You might disagree with me. Good men can never become good rulers no matter how much they try. A good ruler could have ruled well in a utopia, where the social, political, and economic evils afflicting humankind have been eradicated and the state functions for the good and happiness of all.  Neither such a state nor a ruler can exist. A ruler without selfishness cannot rule anywhere. A person becomes successful only when he climbs the ladder of success, dethroning the one in power. This is applicable everywhere, be it democracy or monarchy.

“An army of deer would be more formidable commanded by a lion, than an army of lions commanded by a stag.”

Is money really bad?

Money is the root cause for all evil but isn’t it important? Who would not want their kid to become successful and live a luxurious life, a better life than we could provide? World runs on bank notes, a man without money is poor financially, socially, and is treated no better than a beggar. People who have faced poverty and starvation would know what it means to be poor. Money is everything to them. Similarly are the ones who face neglect and discrimination because they do not have enough power or position. The world has become a tyrant’s world where money can buy anything and everything. Bribing and dowry are accepted evils in the society.

What is it to become a tyrant?

It is more difficult to be a tyrant than to be a noble. Think of the amount of tension, restlessness, thinking, mental agony, prick of conscience that a tyrant undergoes. A tyrant is ambitious and has the courage to fight. He is the master of his decisions .He makes strong decisions and stands by them even when the whole world stands against him. His decisions may be proved wrong but the inner strength and his command over his ruled remains live over centuries. He is never at peace. Thoughts of his ambitious mind do not let him rest or sleep. His only goal will be to become strong and powerful. He toils day and night to reach his goal.

As Bhagavad  Gita says: “The goal is important and not the path you take to attain it.”

Today’s world is marked by corruption. “Money, status and power –however all people may say these are-get you respect in life”-Chetan Bhagat in Revolution 2020.This is the present world. Today’s sacrifices add to your riches for tomorrow. What life offers you and what you expect out of it sometimes may be completely incomparable, but keeping on trying to attain your goal is important.

Tyrants make the world interesting .Lets start to look through the eyes of a wicked. You might say they are selfish and self centered. They think of their interests, do things that benefit them; but do they do it on purpose, do they? World is never without tyrants. Money blinds them; they learn the fact that money can buy anything in the world. There might have been incidents where they toiled hard just to make both ends meet. During their struggle they would have come across people who would have cheated them, rebuked them; they finally get what they want after hard work and toil, don’t they have the rights to do what they like.

How many villains are remembered and how many good men are noticed?

If you count the number of noble men and villains, the latter tops the list. This is because of their bravery and power over their subjects. Good men who are known to this day are very few because selfless service and fame do not go together.  A true selfless guy does not expect anything in return for his services.

Will your good actions be remembered?

We do a thousand good deeds and commit one mistake .Which would be remembered- ofcourse the mistake. Its human nature to take the good deeds for granted and remembers just the mistakes the other commits.

What good men earn and what evil men earn?

A good man has magnificence, stature, wisdom and virtue which will earn him love and reverence. He does service to the society and the society is obliged. He is selfless and do not care for himself or his family. He earns nothing but praise. Is that enough to live in this currency driven world? Whenever he is in need, will another generous man come to his rescue? A wicked man fights valiantly till his death. He has enough and wants more. He lives his life for materialistic things. But if I tell you worldly things are temporary, and that you should not live for them, then are you leading an austere life. Brahmachari (student), Grihasta (Householder) Vanaprasta (forest dweller or Hermit in semi retirement) Sannyasi (the renounced one in full retirement) are the four stages in life according to Hinduism. You do not stay as a sannyasi at all stages in life. As long as you live, live boldly and die bravely fighting your cause. People will respect your consistency and bravery even if you are a tyrant.

"As he was valiant, I honour him; but, as he was ambitious, I slew him". Brutus says this covering his act of murdering Caesar.

Goodness is different for different people. Without negative there is no importance for positive. Projecting a good image in public is not what life is about. Live your life your way. Make an impact on the world by being yourself; mark your time in history so that people remember you.

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Life is not about how good you live through the eyes of a million; its’ just about how you live, seen through your own pair of eyes.”Take risks: If you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise.”

Wickedness too is a virtue. Wickedness and goodness in right proportions are needed in an individual for his overall success in society.  A good person might have mercy, faith, integrity, humanity and religion, but he cannot be successful without compromising on something or hurting someone. To achieve greater heights there is always a need to be skilful, cunning, powerful, able and strong. One can break promises, commit crimes, and generally behave nastily for political advantage. If you are not wicked enough, then you might not be able to exist in this evil world. A ruler may come to power by crime but he never conceals his cruelty and never let it spoil his reputation. He will have a reputation for goodness even though it is false. “A virtuoso prince will not alienate the people he governs, but he will not let the need to be loved by them take precedence over the necessity of being feared by them.   In order to maintain his power, a prince must earn the loyalty of his subjects, and he can best do this by protecting them.  And any prince who shows himself to be strong enough to protect his subjects must also show himself to be strong enough to be feared by them.” says Machiavelli . He must have a mind disposed to adapt itself according to the wind, able to do good when he can but also do evil when he must.

Be a strong villain rather than a coward hero. It is the same as the rule of the forest. Better to live as king of beasts than as a lamb scared and weak.

“To reign is worth ambition though in Hell:
Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n." - poem Paradise Lost by John Milton.

-Sangs