The advantage of hindsight is that we all know what should not have been done. And as our screens flash images of shamed ministers, sportsmen, actors, executives and businessmen caught with their hand in the till, we look at them with the gift of 20/20 vision. Bowlers in bed with bookies, ministers hand-in-glove withcorrupt nephews and companies hoodwinking regulators - there has been no dearth of wrongdoing on display. As the audience we ask incredulously: Why did they walk into a trap that was laid in plain sight? Greed, desperation, lust - was it any and all of the above?
It is not that simple. Myth tells us that the human mind is a labyrinth and navigating our way through it is complex and difficult. The consequences of our choices are never as clear as they appear until after we have made them.In the Ramayana, for instance, Ravana was undone by the thought of possessing his rival's wife. He was otherwise a good king, a proficient musician and a devout Shiva worshipper. He could have been a hero. But he lost his head and therefore, his kingdom. Sita, held up as the epitome of an ideal wife, fell to temptation too. Her desire to possess the golden deer sent Rama into the forest and into the trap laid by Ravana. If she had looked the other way, we may have read a different epic. Or, if Sreesanth had tucked his rectitude instead of a towel into his waistband, TV channels would have to hunt for new grist.
Temptation is a demon. In Greek myth he is the insufferable son of Ate, goddess of savage derangement. "Perverse Temptation, the overmastering child of designing Destruction, drives men on; and every remedy is futile" (Orestia by Aeschylus, Translated by Herbert Weir Smith). Buddhists know him as Mara, the demon who tempted Buddha. And in Indian myth, temptation takes various forms, snaring sages, kings and queens. Enticement fells the divine and the mortal and though his intentions are never hidden, resisting him is one of the most difficult tests of heroism. In Homer's Iliad, Paris was one of his most famous victims when he gave in to his desire for Helen.
Interestingly, Temptation often works through his hand-maidens - the sirens in Homer's Odyssey and apsaras in Indian mythology. Mara unsuccessfully deployed his daughters (Desire, Pining and Lust) to tempt Buddha who, because he could summon up the power to counter temptation, emerged as a hero and a god. Not everyone can. Menaka, for example, was despatched by Indra to disrupt Vishwamitra'spenance and foil his plans of becoming a Bramharishi. Eventually, the two fell in love, had a daughter and Vishwamitra earned his title.
Malign forces were a part of all cultures. Myths helped men cope with such influences. In the Mahabharata, Pandu lost his life and Kunti her first-born to temptation, albeit in different ways. It is also possible that these stories were meant to propagate a way of life that was different from what was practised earlier. Heroes differ from ordinary people in the way they deal with temptation which can be in the form of lust, greed, aggression and even hunger for power. Importantly, there is no concept of sin attached to temptation in mythology. The association was perhaps made later when organised religion replaced informal systems of faith, a la the snake and the apple.
Poet, author and anthropologist Andrew Lang says: "Myth is so ancient, so complex, so full of elements, that it is vain labour to seek a cause for every phenomenon." All myths reveal one truth: temptation is a common human affliction. Supermen can see through this wily demon; but mostly Temptation gets what he wants.
It is not that simple. Myth tells us that the human mind is a labyrinth and navigating our way through it is complex and difficult. The consequences of our choices are never as clear as they appear until after we have made them.In the Ramayana, for instance, Ravana was undone by the thought of possessing his rival's wife. He was otherwise a good king, a proficient musician and a devout Shiva worshipper. He could have been a hero. But he lost his head and therefore, his kingdom. Sita, held up as the epitome of an ideal wife, fell to temptation too. Her desire to possess the golden deer sent Rama into the forest and into the trap laid by Ravana. If she had looked the other way, we may have read a different epic. Or, if Sreesanth had tucked his rectitude instead of a towel into his waistband, TV channels would have to hunt for new grist.
Temptation is a demon. In Greek myth he is the insufferable son of Ate, goddess of savage derangement. "Perverse Temptation, the overmastering child of designing Destruction, drives men on; and every remedy is futile" (Orestia by Aeschylus, Translated by Herbert Weir Smith). Buddhists know him as Mara, the demon who tempted Buddha. And in Indian myth, temptation takes various forms, snaring sages, kings and queens. Enticement fells the divine and the mortal and though his intentions are never hidden, resisting him is one of the most difficult tests of heroism. In Homer's Iliad, Paris was one of his most famous victims when he gave in to his desire for Helen.
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Temptation and his mother Ate play havoc with the mind, forcing decisions that destroy lives and deny potential heroes their due glory. In the Iliad, Agamemnon, leader of the Greek troops, blamed Ate for the bitter battle with his greatest warrior, Achilles. A similar demon in Indian myth is Kali (of Kali-yug fame) who is notorious for destroying the power of heroes and gods to do the right thing.
Interestingly, Temptation often works through his hand-maidens - the sirens in Homer's Odyssey and apsaras in Indian mythology. Mara unsuccessfully deployed his daughters (Desire, Pining and Lust) to tempt Buddha who, because he could summon up the power to counter temptation, emerged as a hero and a god. Not everyone can. Menaka, for example, was despatched by Indra to disrupt Vishwamitra'spenance and foil his plans of becoming a Bramharishi. Eventually, the two fell in love, had a daughter and Vishwamitra earned his title.
Malign forces were a part of all cultures. Myths helped men cope with such influences. In the Mahabharata, Pandu lost his life and Kunti her first-born to temptation, albeit in different ways. It is also possible that these stories were meant to propagate a way of life that was different from what was practised earlier. Heroes differ from ordinary people in the way they deal with temptation which can be in the form of lust, greed, aggression and even hunger for power. Importantly, there is no concept of sin attached to temptation in mythology. The association was perhaps made later when organised religion replaced informal systems of faith, a la the snake and the apple.
Poet, author and anthropologist Andrew Lang says: "Myth is so ancient, so complex, so full of elements, that it is vain labour to seek a cause for every phenomenon." All myths reveal one truth: temptation is a common human affliction. Supermen can see through this wily demon; but mostly Temptation gets what he wants.