The Superior Man: Beyond Good and Evil…

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Nietzsche espoused the idea that
the superior man was, by

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definition beyond good and evil,
and was therefore not bound by

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the rules of society.
This concept has led to a number

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of people into serious trouble.
Dostoevsky explored this idea in

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his novel Crime and Punishment,
in which the protagonist took

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the position that he could
disregard the rules that forbid

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theft and murder.
Eventually Raskolnikov broke

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down under the pressure and
essentially had to acknowledge

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that he was not the superior man
he had imagined.

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What he did not recognize was
that being beyond good and evil

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does not mean condoning,
supporting, or carrying out

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mayhem on others.
A similar interpretation led to

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Hitler and his cronies to
believe that they have the right

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to exterminate millions of
people, confiscate possessions,

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and wage a World War of
domination on others.

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It is a common misconception
that somehow one can acknowledge

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oneself as a superior man and
thereby flaunt all the rules

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established by reason and
disregard all questions of

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ethics or morality as
established within human

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society.
The arrogant spirit that

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underpins these manifestations
is not limited to the Hitlers

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and other dictatorial spirits of
the world, but also shows itself

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in every walk of life with
within the hearts of many who,

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by virtue of their wealth, their
social standing, their

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reputation, their educational or
career accomplishments, or

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simply because of the color of
their skin, or their gender or

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other superficial
characteristics, feel themselves

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to be superior to others, and
thereby in a position to

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dominate, control, and overpower
others, while at the same time

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granting themselves a freedom
that is in fact licensed to

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commit any number of heinous
acts.

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The mother writes, Quote 1 can
be free only by soaring to the

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heights high above human
passions.

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Only when one has achieved a
higher selfless freedom and done

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away with all desires and
impulses does one have the right

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to be free.
But neither should people who

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are very reasonable, very moral,
according to ordinary social

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laws, think themselves wise, for
their wisdom is an illusion and

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holds no profound truth.
One who would break the law must

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be above the law.
One who would ignore conventions

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must be above conventions.
One who would despise all rules

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must be above all rules, And the
motive of this liberation should

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never be a personal egoistic 1
the desire to satisfy an

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ambition, aggrandize one's
personality through a feeling of

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superiority out of contempt for
others, to set oneself above the

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herd and regard it with
condescension.

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Be on your guard when you feel
yourself superior and look down

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on others ironically, as if to
say I'm no longer made of such

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stuff, that's when you go off
the track and are in danger of

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falling into an abyss.
End Quote Reference Sri

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Aurobindo and the Mother Our
Many Selves.

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Practical Yogic Psychology,
Chapter 2, Planes and Parts of

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the Being, pages 44 to 45.