On God Complexes and Long Work Days

There's zilch special or shocking about Modi's latest declaration.

About a month before Narendra Modi told News 18 he was convinced god had sent him, he was an “instrument” and that his “energy was not biological”, Russian President Vladimir Putin compared himself to Jesus.

“Do you remember how Jesus came to Galilee and saw the fishermen beside the Sea of Galilee?One was catching fish, another was fixing his net. And He said to them: ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men, fishers of human souls.’ They became his evangelists, his students. This was very important at a time when world religions were developing … but it is no less current now, when we must defend our traditional values, our culture, our traditions and our history. This is very important for the future of the country.”

You can read more here: Vladimir Putin compares himself to Jesus in mission to uphold 'traditional values’

Why just Putin? There are dozens of examples of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s God complex. In fact, the next stage is when the authoritarian leader’s ‘parivar’ starts talking about him in the same hushed tones. One of his lawmakers once said about Erdogan: “When we are told about the President, it feels like we are being told about Allah.” I guess god had enough and decided Erodgan’s party would lose the local elections held in April.

Even Hitler believed that he was an instrument of nature to liberate Germany. Dictator Idi Amin said God instructed him to ensure 50,000 Asian residents of Uganda leave ASAP. There are hundreds of similar examples if you care to look.

You can start with my favourite ‘knowledge sharing platform’ that has all the answers before the questions around present-day issues even occur to us. Don’t believe me? Try it.

Here are some Quora questions on leaders and god:

Is Narendra Modi an incarnation of God? (predates Modi’s declaration of course).

Did God send Vladimir Putin to Earth to punish Americans for their unforgivable sins against humanity?

Did God send Jesus down to Earth again in the form of Donald Trump to punish liberals for their sins?

Is Erdogan the Antichrist?

To the cousin who sent me the Modi video with the question: “Not some deep fake?” I’d like to emphasise—There is absolutely nothing shocking about an narcissistic authoritarian believing he is an avatar of god.

And why just leaders? The world is full of loonies who believe they are special. Wikipedia has an entire page dedicated to: List of people claimed to be Jesus

As for working 24/7, most heads of state work such hours. I point you to an article about Chinese President Xi Jinping who eats breakfast before dawn and finds “joy in exhaustion”.

Read it here: Given glimpse into Xi Jinping’s daily life, China goes gaga

A friend on Instagram asked me the following question after seeing the viral video: “What kind of God is one, who sends Modi to increase inequality, increase polarisation, increase unemployment, increase distrust among his fellow citizens?”

Now that’s a question that doesn’t have any easy answers.