There are two types of people in this world—the
self-making type and the history-making type. The
aim of those who are self-making is to serve
themselves, whereas history-making people seek to
serve humanity as a whole.
The attention of a self-making person revolves
around himself. He hovers around those areas
where his own self-interest is likely to be served;
where there is no profit to be gained for himself, he
does not care to venture. His heart flutters with
excitement when he is set to make some gain, but if
there is nothing to be gained, no excitement is
aroused within him. Personal gain is uppermost in
his mind; he will sacrifice everything in order to
achieve it. He abides neither by promise nor by
principle. Free of the influence of both moral
exigencies and the needs of humanity, he can put
everything aside in pursuit of his own ends. All
other considerations fade into insignificance as he
relentlessly seeks to fulfill his selfish desires.
A history-making person is quite different.
Emerging from his own shell, he lives not for
himself but for a higher purpose. What matters to
him is principle, not profit. He cares not whether he
himself wins or loses; what is of importance to him
is that his ideal should be served. It is as if he has
detached himself from his own person and pinned
his flag to the needs of humanity as a whole.
In order to become a history-making person there is
one thing that has to be done: one has to stop being
self-making. As soon as a person effaces himself, he
becomes capable of building for the future of
humanity. Such a person lays personal grievances
to one side. As his own self-interest and ambitions
evaporate before his eyes, he shows no reaction, as
if all this were not happening to him at all.
It is people such as these who are destined to forge
human history. They are the ones who, of their own
free will, are concerned about the rest of humanity;
they have no rights to be safeguarded; they have
only responsibilities, which they discharge
whatever the cost to themselves.
--Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
( Ref - The Moral Vision)
