Asura: Tale Of The Vanquished

by Anand Neelakantan

“It’s pity that you and Brahma look down on love as a base emotion. Without love, without the king of emotions, nothing exists. There’s nothing more pure than the love of a mother for her baby. If one has not felt the painful need to be with one’s lover, if you do not feel the love for your own brothers, sisters, your father who made you, your mother who carried you in her womb and raised you with her blood and milk, for friends and those little cherished moments of togetherness, your wife for sharing your life with you and for your children for carrying your life forward, then is this life worth living? Is it not love for your country, tribe, language, religion, Gods, and so many other things, which may seem trivial but which are so preciously held in the bosom of men, that has led to so much bloodshed and war? People have died for love in the past and will continue to do so as long as the world exists. I shall always love the things I have told you about. But yes, I shall love myself above them all. Without me, nothing which is lovable has any meaning to me. I love because I exist and I exist because I love – I love myself. Ambition is the key to progress. Without ambition, the kings of Egypt would not be so busy building those pyramids right now. Without ambition, men would have remained hunters. There would not have been wheels, horsecarts or chariots, magnificent cities, temples and palaces, nor majestic sailing ships. Without ambition, we would not have had a Mahabal...