The Lessons Of Cyrus In Homer's Odyssey '

587 Words3 Pages

“But with man the rule is converse: men unite against none so readily as against those whom they see attempting to rule over them.” Men do not follow one man easily. They always find something wrong about the ruler or the party ruling. Cyrus the Great proved this statement wrong. He won the obedience from thousands of people. People who never set eyes on him still believed him the most capable leader. The Medes and Hyrcanians accepted his rule and Cyrus conquered many other nations. Cyrus’s leadership skills came from the lessons he learned as a boy. He was taught not to be capable of wickedness or shameful conduct. Cyrus naturally thought of others before himself and always had good sportsmanship, wanting to improve as much as he could. Cyrus learned the lessons that made him an amazing leader from his father and from his own mind. In Persia Cyrus’s father, Cambyses, taught him to be incapable of setting his heart on any wickedness or shameful conduct. The masters in Persia instructed the boys not to accuse others unfairly, lie. The book Cyropaedia states, “punished. Nor does he escape who is found to have accused one of his fellows unfairly.” Any boy that is found to have lied about …show more content…

When Cyrus was given gifts, he always went and gave them to others because he already had plenty of things. “he had dishes of meat and game set before his grandson…Cyrus took first one dish and then another and gave them to the attendants who stood about his grandfather,” (Cyropaedia, 6). This quote is from the Cyropaedia when Cyrus’s grandfather gave him multiple plates of meats and Cyrus gives them to attendants who had taught him a lesson or helped him in some way. “He heaped gifts on all his comrades, sharing with them what Astyages had given to himself;” (Cyropaedia, 14) Cyrus gave all the gifts given to him by his grandfather to his friends on his departure from Media. Many people benefited from Cyrus’s gifts to