“Never forget what you
are, for surely the world will not. Make
it your strength. Then it can never be
your weakness. Armor yourself in it, and
it will never be used to hurt you.” Tyrion
Lannister, a character in Game of Thrones gives this counsel
to Jon, another character, who is a bastard.
 |
| Tyrion Lannister |
Lannister is a dwarf and
all dwarfs are bastards according to his experience. “All dwarfs are bastards in their father’s
eyes,” he says. No man likes to admit
that he has sired a dwarf. It is better
to cast aspersions on his wife. Since his mother died giving birth to him, he
could not ask her who his real father was, says Lannister sardonically. He goes on to say that “All dwarfs may be
bastards, yet not all bastards need be dwarfs.”
Jon is a bastard. But he has great qualities which make him
better than many other people. It is
only the fact that he is a bastard that deters him from discovering his own greatness. As long as he keeps fighting that fact he is
going to remain just there: fighting an unalterable fact. Come on, Jon, you are a bastard, admit it,
let the whole world call you that, the world will, the world has no better
sense, the world loves to poke your wound, rub salt on it and then watch you
writhe in pain. That’s what Lannister is
saying without saying it. Jon
understands. He understands that he
doesn’t have to be apologetic for being a bastard. How can that be his fault anyway?
The world loves to put on
your head other people’s faults. You are
a girl, let us say. You happen to be
walking along the road a little late in the evening. You are raped. Then it becomes your fault. Why did you walk on the road so late in the
evening when you know, or should have known, that a woman’s place is home at
such hours? Why did you wear such a
dress that drew the attention of the boys?
Don’t you know that boys are boys?
Being poor is a crime
too. You don’t have a right to choose
your food if you are poor. Your children
may die in the hospital if you are poor.
Belonging to certain religions can be a crime too. Anything can be a crime, in fact, depending
on which side you are.
The biggest criminals may
be perceived as the greatest heroes.
Depends on which side they are.
So what do you do? Forget that you are a bastard. And just be the bastard.
Jon understood what
Lannister was saying. For a moment
Tyrion Lannister the dwarf stood tall as a king before Jon the bastard.
Very strong message. Loved the way you related it to present day situations.
ReplyDeleteThat is the reason I don't shy away from calling myself a loser and a fool. The world, irrespectively, will always regard me as such. I have come to accept it and hence there isn't any shame to it. Now, I can do whatever I want and say whatever I feel like. What is liberation if not accepting and embracing the adjectives. As if they mattered anyway.
ReplyDeleteI belong to the same species :) But some people still accuse me of arrogance. Maybe that's also part of the loser that I am! The best thing is, as you've said, adjectives don't matter any more.
DeleteThis is such a powerful message, explained so beautifully. Thanks for the post, Sir :)
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure, Purba.
DeletePerhaps it is right. Many of the problems in life could just end when we realize what we are or who we are. All the troubles in life arises due to pride. But once we realize what we are, pride melts away.
ReplyDelete