PLAYING GOD

I am no psychologist... but a few years of observing human behavior, albeit sporadically, lead me to believe that human nature is compulsively dominating and yearns to be all-powerful... and thereby fails miserably in existing. This nature has an ancient origin... from way back when the sacred texts were written. Maybe much before writing was invented... when people used word-of-mouth to pass on their mental and spiritual legacies. The Bible, in the chapter of Genesis, says God created man in his own form. Similar connotations exist in all the other religions. The Hindu faith advocates in some sense that the mother and father are god-like… no doubt due to the role they play in giving life. And it’s in this long forgotten, but oft heard about era when the concept of God was born, that the deep-down aspiration in every human being to be God-like found root.

There’s a school of thought, which advocates that man created the concept of God as a pillar from which to gain strength in times of need. If this thought were to be followed through and analyzed with a not-so-powerful microscope, it becomes evident that it was the creator’s inherent desire to be all-powerful that drove him to say that God created man in his own form. Whether it was a mere desire or a gripping need to do so, I will leave to speculation…. There’s not evidence available to study the man, as far as I am concerned.

Over the years, people have defined greatness and Godness as per the times they lived in. Alexander was great because he braved a broken home to go out into uncharted territories, conquering all. Julius Caesar was great because he gave the government to the people and took care of them to a large extent. Akbar was great because he was a just ruler, lording it over his subjects with equanimity and compassion. If you are of the Aryan belief, Hitler was great because he tried to make his race superior to others. The list is long. But one thing all these people had in common: power over others… whether through fear or adoration. They played at being akin to God… as each interpreted it.

They’re not alone. Every field has given birth to greatness. This greatness may not be self-imposed, but the power to create and control has held sway over human rationality for time immemorial. Anyone with the power to create gives way to an overriding pride in his achievements. The sculptor believes him to be the god of stone carvings, the artist knows he wields complete power over his canvas and his brushes… and so on. This is true of doctors who cure the sick, software engineers who speak dumbfounding languages only specialized skills can decipher… or electronic ones, for that matter. It’s true of every profession… the journalist who condemns with words, or the judge who hands down a sentence to those he deems guilty (in America, as in some other communities, they let not one, but 12 people play God). The mechanic who gets a motor whirring or the goldsmith who delicately wrests the metal into thingummys that set aesthetic senses tingling. The cook who makes mouths water and the cobbler who allows feet to be protected are no less guilty of giving in to – let’s call it the “God Complex”.

And in this quest for greatness and Godness, man defeats the entire purpose of his existence. It was best summed up in someone’s analysis of the great comic book heroes of our times… and here I paraphrase that idea:
Clark Kent (Kal-El) of Krypton, who we commonly call Superman, is not a super hero like the others. He’s not different because he wears briefs over his trousers. He is different because he is one of the few born with his powers. Superman’s emblem of the “S” is etched onto his chest at birth. He is really superman. His alter-ego is that of Clark Kent: an appearance he takes on to blend in with the crowd. Clark is how Kal-El sees a normal human being – dreamy, clumsy, shy weak and cowardly. The other superheroes have gained superhuman powers only after spending time as normal folk. They need to distinguish themselves, show they are different. Hence the mask/hood, cape, costume and varied paraphernalia.
It all boils down to this. Greatness is delusional. All those who strive for greatness have already failed. Popoye is the only great person around. Not because he refuses to hide his dependence on spinach for strength, not because he can throw the big bad Bruno a mile away with a flick of his wrist. Because his belief is perfect: “I am what I am and that’s all that I am.”