To be different is to be condemned by the society. Do you agree? Who says so? Conventionality has always been undesirable.

Everyone wants a break from the monotony of life, a change, something out of the ordinary. If the world were inhabited by the clones of a single individual, we can very well imagine how 'exciting', 'challenging' and 'inspiring' life would be! The essence of continuity of life is difference. Today is different from tomorrow, America is different from India, I am different from others, and so is every one else. The social environs of today have an extremely tough competition. Outside, it's a simple case of the survival of the fittest, and the fittest is always a unique and a blessed individual. Though, difference and variation are usually desirable, but never in the adverse sense. To be different from others for something good is hailed, while the society resents difference brought about for a negative motive. Difference brought about in a constructive and benefiting manner is invariably praised, rather than condemned. Our celebrities. They are different from the rest of the individuals. We like them so much; we feel pride in calling ourselves their fans. We look up to them, we admire them. They are different because of their appearance, talent and lifestyle. They use their 'difference' to entertain us. So why would ever the need to condemn them ever arise? Great individuals in history such as M K Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas A. Edison, Isaac Newton. They were a class apart. Way different from the mainstream society. Different for a good. Different for catalyzing a positive change in the lives of other people, and we still remember them. We are still grateful to them. We still appreciate their efforts. Never do we condemn them. There is a cluster of people, apart from the masses. Different talents, different fields, but yet, they influence our lives. Politicians, authors, social reformers, religious teachers. Who are they? Different...Yes! They inspire us through their message, actions and the change they bring about, which we, the common folk cannot. They are special, they are different. They are praised and loved. What a religious teacher can, the doctor cant, and vice versa. Both of them are different, both of them are embraced. Difference not condemned is evident in democracies. Everyone has his/her own sets of beliefs, practices, opinions, likes and dislikes.

Difference and variation in such societies usually is a healthy symbol. One person could be a staunch supporter of an idea or a movement, while the very next person beside him might be the greatest opponent and critic. Yet, they co-exist peacefully, and respect their 'mutual' differences! An enlightened and a special person living in an educated and aware society is rarely condemned, but there might be instances where a 'different' and enlightened individual is condemned. Take the example of Copernicus. He was labeled as an iconoclast, convicted of heresy, and executed. Only because he was different. Our prophets, Jesus and Mohammed (P.B.U.H.) were different, but they lived in an ignorant and a hostile society. They were not just condemned, they were ridiculed and ostracized. Different which is more of harm to the society is widely condemned. Anyone on a collision course with the generally accepted norms and customs of a society, or anyone, who goes against the rites and traditions of a society, merely in the attempt to be different is condemned. This difference is not desirable, and the society is better off without that 'different' individual. Look at criminals and outlaws. Sure, they are different from the common folk but, what is the difference? They are scorned, hated and rejected by the society. Different if one wants to be whether in appearance or action is one's own concern. The society's reaction would be to the change the difference brings about. Imagine a man wearing a jersey in summers. Though he is different, but different for what? Just for the sake of being different? What good is he doing to the society and others? Society always reacts to a change. Difference is inevitable, but the society always resents and rejects a negative consequential difference, and hails a positive change. Difference yielding a positive result and outcome is not condemned in any normal society. One should be different; variation is required for the normal function, harmony and continuity of a society. For those who condemn difference (obviously, those who condemn a beneficial 'difference'), there is a popular saying: you laugh at me because I'm different, I laugh at you because you are all the same!