King Asoka-A Man of great Virtue

It is not often that kings and monarchs get their spots in lists of the most influential people who have ever lived. It takes great virtue and character to be named as one of the greatest persons to have ever lived. The lifestyles of kings make it almost impossible to be remembered among the masses as a person of great virtue. It is for this reason that not many a dictators or kings or monarchs find their place in these type of lists. But, one person who cannot be excluded from any type of a list which includes historical greats is the Indian king Asoka. He is one of the best known figures in Buddhist literatures. His gory past as a ruthless ruler who repeatedly went to wars and caused inexplicable damages to life and materials was recorded vividly. Further, his glorious life as a ruler who followed Buddhist principles was recorded in Buddhist literatures to show the greatness of the ruler. A ruler with such a huge kingdom in the mauryan dynasty following the path of non violence and at the same time protecting his nation is a really commendable thing which should naturally find its places in the history books!

Guglielmo Marconi-An Italian Fascist

There has to be a sense of revelation and greatness when we think about the technological advancements of the present century and the century before this. Just a handful of men have helped shape the entire history of present day path breaking technologies. One of the best inventions which has made the world what it is now is the mobile phone which works on the principle of wireless communication. The basic principle of wireless communication was made by Heinrich Hertz in the year 1888 and this evoked the interest of Guglielmo Marconi who tried to make possible wireless telegraph networks. He started his works in the year 1894 and was able to transmit waves and information wirelessly for a distance of over 2 miles. By the year 1901, he was able to transmit waves across the Atlantic Ocean and people’s thoughts that the earth’s curvature would make it impossible for waves to travel to great distances was shattered and thus a solid foundation was laid to the technology of wireless communications. Marconi made possible radio wave communication and this was the only means of keeping ships in contact with land in olden days. Further applications involving radio waves were made possible only by this great invention of this influential Italian scientist.

Karl Marx-The founder of Communism

If there is someone whom we have to thank for the ideas of communism, it would be none other than this great man Karl Marx who deserves to go into the history books for having managed to create an all new concept of revolution centered on communism. The basic idea of communism was abolition of the class society. Formation of a classless society was the dream of Karl Marx. The theories of Karl Marx created a stir in his birthplace Germany, from where he was banished for being a revolutionary and moved on to Belgium where he continued his revolutionary works on communism. In Belgium, he joined a secret society called as the “communism league” which carried out communist propaganda under covers. He was then banished from Belgium for being a revolutionist and was exiled to London where he spent the last years of his life authoring books and manifestos on communism. His most famous work “Das Capital” was a bible for communist parties who strive hard for a classless society without indiscriminate private ownership. Though he passed away almost 150 years back, his teachings still resonate in the chambers of communist halls making him one of the most revered figures in the communist circles helping shape several countries including China., Russia and Germany.

Ludwig van Beethoven-The musical God

Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the most famous figures in the world of music and there would be no musician without learning to play a piece from Beethoven’s classics. Beethoven was well known for his classic sonata which evokes responses from audiences throughout the world even to this day. An young prodigy, at the age of eleven and half, Beethoven was able to join a music troupe and by the age of twelve, he had published some music. His later years in music was hit badly by a deafness which threatened his whole musical career. The very purpose of his existence seemed to cease for this musical great. His productivity lessened during these meek years of his career when he found that his deafness was interfering a lot with his musical compositions, but nevertheless he was still able to compose awe inspiring music. His personal life was a great tragedy with him losing his mother at a relatively young age and staying away from home for long periods of time. His love life also took a beating with him not able to find true love in his life though his music were exhilarating with love and passion throughout. Our list of the greatest personalities gets its first musicians in the form of Beethoven!

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi-A man of Simplicity

If there was a title to be given out to a person for being the modern day Buddha, it would have to be given out to none other than Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. He was the most influential figure in the Indian sub continent during the first half of the twentieth century. He lead the freedom struggle in India through his policy of non violence which was well supported by a majority of the Indian people. His policies of Ahimsa and non- violence hold good even in the present day context. Albert Einstein famously quoted about Gandhi that it would be difficult to believe in the coming years that a person of this character and stature walked in flesh and blood among us right in our age. A lawyer by profession and education, Gandhiji’s first tryst with fight against discrimination and apartheid practices was seen when he was a practicing lawyer at South Africa. The difficulties faced by Blacks in South Africa made him think about fighting for the people. His policy of fighting through non- violence methods rooted deep from his family culture and values which was a very chaste and respectable one. With a stature of this kind and a respect of gargantuan magnitude, he easily finds a place among our list.

James Watt-A legendary Inventor

Modern day life and living of people hugely centers around fast transportation. The first mechanism for transportation was the invention of the wheel several centuries back. Later, the inventions of transportation mechanisms developed rapidly with each region of the world developing to transportation in one way or the other. In olden days, animals were domesticated and used for faster transportation. Later, with the improvement in science and technology, the development of transportation technologies improved greatly and with it, came machine power. The first machine was rather animal driven and was the horse cart or the bullock cart. Later came one of the most revolutionary inventions- the steam engine by James Watt. This great leap in technology made man take a big leap forward in his lifestyle. Transportation of man and material became very easy. Not us for transportation, but James watt was responsible for inventing engines which were capable of pumping out water from deep mines and he was also the inventor of a locomotive engine called as the two piston engine. He was responsible for changing the very outlook of man and the world towards transportation and this would clearly put him on this list being compiled to honor the all time greats who adorned the face of the planet.

Nicolaus Copernicus-A great Astronomer

Great men find resistance from all corners during the course of their great journey. The greatest journeys made have not been without their share of controversies or resistance. In fact, a journey or life of a famous personality does not become complete without the customary revolutions and a bad school of thought about the personality. When something contrary to popular belief is being done or said, there is sure to be great resistance about the same. It was a similar situation when Nicolaus Copernicus gave out his famous Theory that the sun was the center of the universe and the earth among other planets went round the sun. the heliocentric theory given out by Copernicus was revolutionary and path breaking at that point of time when developments in astronomy was still at its nascent stage. Nevertheless, it was a unrelenting passion to give out the truth in exact sciences that made Copernicus move away from the traditional barrier accepted by scores of people and give out his own theory which made him a villain in the religious circles. The fact that astronomy was just a part time hobby for him made his life even more curious. Taking into consideration the situations under which he made discoveries, he finds a good place as one of the greatest personalities ever.

Antony van Leeuwenhoek-A pioneer of Microbiology

Whoever said that only English speaking people could become scientists can eat their words. Antony van Leeuwenhoek, the best known figures in The Netherlands was a great in the field of biology and more specifically microscopic biology. It was he who discovered the bacteria, free living cells, protozoans and various other path breaking findings and achievements in the field of biology. The most interesting fact about Leeuwenhoek is that he did not receive any formal education from any school or university and came from a family of basket- makers and traders. And further more surprising is the fact that he does not know any languages other than his native Dutch. Even with this kind of a background, with an inquisitive and ever- enthusiastic mind set, Leeuwenhoek managed to build over 500 microscopes during his lifetime. His microscopes were nothing more than powerful magnifying glasses. But, at the point of time in which he lived, his microscopes were powerful enough to identify some of the most dangerous bacteria and protozoans which carried water borne diseases to man. According to Leeuwenhoek, he did not carry out scientific studies for fame or name, but rather did it in order to quench his thirst for science and knowledge.

Charles Darwin-The Father of Evolution

Charles Darwin is one of the best known figures in the field of natural biology. He is most remembered for his work on the natural selection and theories of evolution. According to Charles Darwin, the earth had a few ancestors who were the forefathers for all the present day species and living beings. These few ancestors were the first life organisms on earth and that this process of spreading out to a larger group from a few ancestors is called as evolution. Evolution is the basis of formation of new life on earth and sustenance of already existing life forms. According to Darwin, evolution was a slow, long and continuous process, in which survival of the fittest is the most essential and influential component. Struggle for survival would exist forever, till life forms existed on the planet. These theories of Darwin were controversial at that point of time and Darwin never spoke of the sociological implications of the findings which he did during the period 1831- 1836 while on a nature expedition around the world. He is supposed to have renounced the theory of evolution on his deathbed according to a nun who was at his side at his deathbed.

Aristotle-A Great Philosopher

Not just the present day personalities make a big difference to the day to day life of people in the world. Even people who lived almost 20 centuries back too still make a huge difference to the functioning of the world. Aristotle was one of these people who still make a difference to the world culture through his teachings. He was one of the greatest philosophers of all times and he is credited to have made Alexander the great the man he became in life. His teachings were so matured and documented perfectly by his disciple Plato. His recordings about octopus, cuttle fishes and crustaceans are so perfect and precise that it is literally impossible to have made these observations without performing dissections of these organisms. His contribution to science and philosophy of his age was far beyond his times and it went into the annals of history as one of the greatest and note worthy development while considering the collective development of technology in the human race. Had he lived eighteen centuries later in the age of Freud, he would have been the only competition to Freudian principles. Such were his findings and principles which were unquestioned for more than eighteen centuries.