Just because people dismiss those who point out problems by labeling them as the problem doesn’t eliminate the problems; it exacerbates them.
When we are faced with problems, denial is often a default response for many. We may ourselves be among such people, especially when we feel we already have enough problems to deal with and don’t want yet another. While it is true that some problems are small and get dealt with by the passage of time, this is not true for many, even most, problems. There are people who may draw our attention to these problems, and if we don’t pay attention, they may highlight the issues in public so that someone will take the necessary action to address the problem in time.
But if such people are dismissed as being the problem themselves, then the original problem is not eliminated; it is only worsened. Often, the problem doesn’t just remain but grows, festering until it may become unmanageable and even disruptively destructive.
In the Mahabharata, the wise minister Vidura repeatedly warned his brother, the blind king Dhritarashtra, and his nephew, the evil prince Duryodhana, about the dangerous antagonism and atrocities toward their cousins, the Pandavas. Vidura’s warnings became especially strong and strident when war between the two families seemed imminent and inevitable. Unfortunately, Duryodhana did not heed Vidura’s warnings. Instead, he labeled Vidura as a traitor and banished him from the royal assembly, considering his departure a good riddance. However, Duryodhana failed to recognize that the problem did not leave with Vidura’s departure. The true problem was Duryodhana’s own mentality, which ultimately led to a disastrous fratricidal war on Earth that wiped out almost the entire Kuru dynasty.
The Bhagavad Gita cautions against such an impudent mentality in 16.17 when it declares that such people, in their pride, pave the way to their own destruction.
Summary:
- When a new problem emerges while we are already burdened with many issues, denying the problem or wishing it away is understandable yet undesirable.
- We need those who bring problems to our attention, particularly those we may have neglected, intentionally or unintentionally.
- Dismissing people who highlight issues as being a problem themselves does not eliminate the problem; it only exacerbates it, paving the way to self-destruction.
Think it over:
- Recollect any incident when you, by default, tried to deny or downplay a problem that was actually serious.
- Recollect any incident when you labeled as problematic the people who highlighted issues and thereby ended up with a far worse problem.
- Recollect any incident when you paid heed to someone who pointed to a problem you had neglected and that saved you from a truckload of trouble.
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16.17 Self-complacent and always impudent, deluded by wealth and false prestige, they sometimes proudly perform sacrifices in name only, without following any rules or regulations.
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