Why are some people so sly and devious?

 The answer to almost any “Why are some people like this?” question is that their nature has been shaped by the modes of nature that have become prominent in them. That nature develops through contact, contemplation, desire and action. We are influenced by what we encounter, but not necessarily all in the same way because we don't all begin with the same acquired nature.

Imagine a mob attacking someone. Some people join in, some stand and film it, some try to stop it, some call the police, and others get away as fast as they can. The situation is the same, but people respond differently according to the particular mixture of the modes that has become prominent in their nature. During our life, our nature can subtly change and so too will our responses.

So a possible scenario is that in one life a person sees another person being sly and devious, and thinks about how it might benefit them if they were. Next life they dabble a bit with being sly and devious, and like it. Soon it becomes a core element of their nature and they go at it.

Conversely if someone has zero interest in being sly and devious, they will not be affected by contact with it. But later in another birth they may be…just a little… and the process begins.

Sri Krishna explains that our conceptions are carried from one life to another.

The living entity in the material world carries his different conceptions of life from one body to another, as the air carries aromas. Thus he takes one kind of body and again quits it to take another. Bg 15.8

If anyone thinks they would never be sly or devious, they underestimate their desire to enjoy and control, and the influence of the modes of nature. Even Lord Indra showed a slightly devious side to him as demonstrated in his attempts to disrupt Maharaja Prithu’s one hundred Asvamedha sacrifice. He disguised himself as a false ascetic and stole the horse. So whatever we come across in life, it’s risky to think, “I could never be like that.” Maybe not in this birth, but who’s to say what we might be like after another 10,000 births?

Because an uncontrolled mind is always scanning everything every day for some benefit, Krishna tells Arjuna to protect himself from such influences.

O Dhananjaya, keep all abominable activities far distant by devotional service, and in that consciousness surrender unto the Lord. Those who want to enjoy the fruits of their work are misers. Bg. 2.49

Only when we are free from the influences of the modes of nature for good, by being fully Krishna conscious, can we safely say, “I would never do that.” The paradox is that those who are fully Krishna conscious are unlikely to say it, because they feel very small in the presence of the Lord’s material energy.

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