Our mythology, particularly the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, is replete with illustrations of characters plagued by hubris, hurtling towards their nemesis.
In a state of rage and conceit, determined to wreak vengeance on Rama and Lakshmana, Ravana abducts Sita and ends up paying a colossal price, losing both his life and kingdom. Similarly, the covetous Duryodhana, spurred by the evil designs of Shakuni, egged on by Dushasana, and abetted by Karna, is ultimately vanquished by the Pandavas in the battle of Kurukshetra.
An angry and arrogant mind becomes clouded and blurs an individual’s vision. Consequently, such a person behaves irrationally, often with calamitous consequences for himself and those around him.
“Pride is an independent, me-oriented spirit. It makes people arrogant, rude and hard to get along with. When our heart is prideful, we don’t give God the credit and we mistreat people, looking down on them and thinking we deserve what we have,” writes Joyce Meyer.
Is it possible to associate with individuals prone to filibustering and arrogance? The answer is an emphatic no, since there is no dialogue—only a monologue or a harangue by the self-conceited person. This drains our energy and creates situations we would rather avoid to preserve our peace of mind.
Why do human beings become angry and arrogant? Why do we lose our sanity? The mind, for a variety of reasons, becomes strained and unsettled. This often leads to actions that result in self-aggression and, ultimately, self-destruction.
The human mind assumes unnatural patterns and behaves in a volatile manner. A volcano of anger and arrogance erupts. Such individuals become veritable prisoners of their own image, one that is conceited and egotistical.
Such individuals are characterized by constant reaction and are unable to pause and respond to situations in a tranquil manner. In a state of anger and arrogance, their cognitive behaviour is overtaken by irrational thought processes. “I’m in trouble because I’m normal and slightly arrogant. A lot of people don’t like themselves and I happen to be totally in love with myself,” said Mike Tyson. He further added that he wished “to conquer people and their souls.”
Mike Tyson, who earned epithets such as Iron Mike, the Baddest Man on the Planet, and Kid Dynamite, was convicted of rape and marijuana-related offences and suffered from bipolar disorder. His family was abandoned by his father, Jimmy Kirkpatrick, and Tyson, nursing various grievances, dropped out of school. There was a burning inferno inside one of the most ferocious boxers the world has ever seen.
He had several brushes with the law. Tyson strongly felt that he was stigmatized by American society and that the United States was not built on principles of justice but on exploitation, slavery, and inequality.
He married three times, besides being involved in several dalliances and episodes of philandering. Following his conviction, he underwent a process of reformation, embraced Islam, and sought refuge in Allah. He channelled the raw energy of anger and arrogance into the boxing ring, where he achieved extraordinary success. His life is replete with dramatic twists and turns, full of extremes, yet he became the ‘Lord of the Ring’.
The mythological figures mentioned earlier, who were victims of anger and arrogance, bore bruised egos resulting from wounded feelings and emotions, alongside a deep sense of hurt and resentment. Ravana lusted after Sita and felt slighted that his sister Surpanakha had been humiliated and disfigured by Lakshmana. Karna bore throughout his life the stigma of being considered a Shudra, despite his extraordinary talents and abilities. Duryodhana remained perpetually immature, given to juvenile behaviour. Besides, he lived under the delusion that the powers of Hastinapur would never have agreed to his accession after his father Dhritarashtra relinquished the throne.
Feelings of hurt, victimhood, jealousy, and injury often metamorphose into deep-seated resentment and anger, leading to false bravado and arrogance.
Anger and arrogance eventually degenerate into negative thought patterns, paving the way for self-destruction under the strain of self-delusion.
However, there is a flip side. Some individuals have successfully deployed the emotions of anger and arrogance to become achievers.
“Anybody can become angry—that is easy. But to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose and in the right way—that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy,” wrote Aristotle.
Who does not remember the swagger of Vivian Richards or the ferocious pace of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson? Several politicians, industrialists, writers, artists, kings, and monarchs have channelled the energy of anger and arrogance into remarkable success and triumph.
“To be a tennis champion, you have to be inflexible, you have to be stubborn, you have to be arrogant, and you have to be selfish and self-absorbed. Kind of tunnel vision almost,” says Chris Evert.
Arrogance, therefore, is a double-edged sword. More often than not, it pushes individuals towards self-destruction because they lack the capacity for self-examination and self-discrimination, becoming victims of guilt and a persecution complex.
Chris Evert could see the light at the end of the tunnel and successfully channelled what she described as ‘arrogant’ energy. Can everyone do likewise?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ravi Valluri is Advisor, Krishnapatnam Railway Company Limited. He has authored both fiction and non-fiction work and is a faculty of the Art of Living. His latest work is Sita to Abhaya: Have Things Changed? He can be reached at valluri.ravi@gmail.com or WhatsApp at 9618564024.