Iniquities of Desperation for a Virtuous public image | A perspective

At times people find themselves entangled in a situation where their righteousness or obsession towards being Virtuous eventually boomerangs on them. I have seen a multitude of people with immaculate character and strong virtue who end up falling in the trap of keeping it spotless. I have witnessed this many a times for myself (not being a Narcissist here, it's just my amour propre). So where do we go wrong?

It all starts with building a sense of Self-worth. People, in general, do not give a lot of thought on thoughts, but those who do, try to make sense of what their thoughts do to their mind and character; and are wary of not letting a certain type of thoughts to creep in. Why, You ask? Well, we have always been told that mind your thoughts because thoughts manifest into actions. So, it might not be wrong to say that people build their self-worth based on their thoughts and actions.

All right! But, how is this related to that fancy title of this blog?

Most people are to varying degrees concerned with how other people perceive them, how good their public image is or how much does it match with their inner attitude and character. This is where the problem starts. Holding an opinion about someone or something is highly subjective. One can be liked or admired by some and at the same time abhorred by the others.

Some really good people tend to create a positive image to attract goodwill from society, perhaps to fuel their zeal to get better or to have some self-gratification. Nothing bad there. But, when it takes the shape of an obsession, it triggers a perpetual vicious cycle leading to loss of internal peace (ASHANTI ??) and at times, the goodwill of the people too. They start blocking all forms of criticism (even positive one), seeking validation becomes their new hobby and their desperation for getting recognized for how good they are, rather starts to work against them.

What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others. ~Confucius

Some lose their mind and crash to the bottom, but some try to comprehend what's happening to them. And that's when they realize the iniquities of desperation for a virtuous public image.