He will ride the horse making even the animal look more majestic than an unicorn. He will unsheath the sword which will be at the perfect angle to the sun to reflect a trapezoidal aura at its tip. He will take the worst of the punishment met out by his enemies; but his face will not twitch, neither for a frown, nor for a contemptuous smile. His eyes will speak - of his love for his family, nation and community - of his crying heart for a wounded friend - of his playful nature when he lets the neighbor’s son win the stick battle - of his unflinching empathy to the hundreds he leads and fights for their cause - of the emotional conflicts going in his dark heart.
Who is he? He is the MAN, the perfect embodiment of the male spirit. He is the hero in Gladiator, Braveheart, Last Samurai, Batman, Life is Beautiful, Lakshya, Castaway, Beautiful Mind. He is the one who will make the male audience realize that suddenly they are feeling a prick in their eyes and they need an excuse to steal a moment to bring the fingers to wipe their eyes off a saline liquid.
What does it take to become the Man? Have you ever felt the burning desire to know the answer to this question? Have you broken down when you saw those movies? Have you sat alone or gone on a walk after reading "To Kill A Mocking Bird", "One Who Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest", "The Godfather"? Have you wanted to become the Arthurs, the Ashokas, and the Hectors of the world?
Boys grow up. They look up to their father. They look up to comic book heroes. They look up to their sport idol. Some of them grow up to idolize a legendary figure from history. Some have their Hercules and Achilles in war heroes, others in corporate world, and others still in academia. Boys grow up. They become man - still craving to become the Man.
If you are a guy reading this and unmarried, ask yourself - have you ever thought about your son. How would you want to see him grow up? Probably some two decades of history will flash before your eyes - of all your successes, of all your defeats, of all that could have been, of all that which should not have been. Does the junior appear to be the perfect candidate to grow up into the Man? If yes, do you still have the answer to the question - What does it take to become the Man?
Who is he? He is the MAN, the perfect embodiment of the male spirit. He is the hero in Gladiator, Braveheart, Last Samurai, Batman, Life is Beautiful, Lakshya, Castaway, Beautiful Mind. He is the one who will make the male audience realize that suddenly they are feeling a prick in their eyes and they need an excuse to steal a moment to bring the fingers to wipe their eyes off a saline liquid.
What does it take to become the Man? Have you ever felt the burning desire to know the answer to this question? Have you broken down when you saw those movies? Have you sat alone or gone on a walk after reading "To Kill A Mocking Bird", "One Who Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest", "The Godfather"? Have you wanted to become the Arthurs, the Ashokas, and the Hectors of the world?
Boys grow up. They look up to their father. They look up to comic book heroes. They look up to their sport idol. Some of them grow up to idolize a legendary figure from history. Some have their Hercules and Achilles in war heroes, others in corporate world, and others still in academia. Boys grow up. They become man - still craving to become the Man.
If you are a guy reading this and unmarried, ask yourself - have you ever thought about your son. How would you want to see him grow up? Probably some two decades of history will flash before your eyes - of all your successes, of all your defeats, of all that could have been, of all that which should not have been. Does the junior appear to be the perfect candidate to grow up into the Man? If yes, do you still have the answer to the question - What does it take to become the Man?
10 comments:
feminists will rip you apart on this one :)
apart from that looking upto someone and trying to tread the path already trodden is but human nature. But why do you look upto to someone? What makes the icons iconic?
I believe it is the belief in themselves that we all want in ourselves; the conviction in the path chosen that we would want to have. None are without their shares of graces or blemishes; yet for one to believe in oneself and on the task in hand is a rarity.
If you can recognize 'The Man',try looking at the common denominator amongst all the examples....It's the PASSION for whatever they do. This is the passion which gets reflected in his eyes & deeds.
This passion takes the form of love,empathy, tolerence, resolution & number of character traits which are so obvious in 'The Man'.
Dare to differ???
Really nice post.
You da man!
Nice post. I agree with Anon above. It is passion that defines some of the best things in life. It instills confidence and belief before embarking on a task, hope during it, and contentment and happiness after.
If you can look back at your life and feel that you would not change most of it, then you've kind of been the man.
Thought provoking post.
Couldn't resist commenting even though I don't meet the specifications for commentators - male only!
The post made me think of Rudyard Kipling's poem "If".
Passion .. thats it and thats all ;-)
good un :o)
You are a man when:
1.You are being insulted and you know you can beat the other person to pulp without any retribution, you still don't do it because it's too low for you.
2.You are being burnt at stake for it but you still say "Earth goes around the Sun"
I think this one really works...
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!
Another excellent piece of work.. Insightful and awesome...
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