In the third paddati of Subhasita Nivi, Vedanta Desika talks about people whose company we should avoid, said M.K. Srinivasan in a discourse. Wicked people often come across as good people because of their pretences. We could even mistake a wicked man for a yogi, says Desika, and goes on to explain how. Yogis do not worry over family matters because they are thinking of God all the time. The wicked too do not think of their families, because they do not care about their families. There are people who do not heed the good advice that their friends give them. They even attack people who have good intentions. They have no deep attachment towards anyone. Nor do they have any respect for elders.
Some wicked men pretend to be friends with us. They never lose their temper. They may even spend money generously on others. But they are only putting on an act. They are as dangerous as a sword aimed at one. We should not trust such people. A man may belong to an excellent lineage. But he may not treat good people rightly. He may not stay away from undesirable people either. A river that flows down from a mountain fills up pits with soil and sometimes creates hollows in its path. Likewise, these people stoop to make friends with the wicked and cause the downfall of friends. There are people who have acquired wealth through wrong means. When criticised by their enemies, they attack everyone indiscriminately. Even virtuous people are not spared by them. There are people who appear in the robes of a saint, but there is nothing saintly about them. Unprincipled people quarrel with others for no reason at all. What is the difference between such people and monkeys, which fight amongst themselves without reason?
