Miseries - Sanskrit

Courtesy: Sri.K.V.Anantha narayanan
सेवा सुखानां व्यसनं धनानां
याञ्चा गुरूणां कुनृपः प्रजानाम्।
प्रनष्टशीलश्च सुतः कुलानां
मूलावघातः कठिनः कुठारः॥१०१॥
बल्लालदेवस्य भोजप्रभन्धात्
sevā sukhānāṁ vyasanaṁ dhanānāṁ
yāñcā gurūṇām kunṛpaḥ prajānāṁ|
pranaṣṭaśīlaśca sutaḥ kulānāṁ
mūlāvaghātaḥ kaṭhinaḥ kuṭhāraḥ||101||
ballāladevasya bhojaprabhandhāt

A quote from Bhojaprabhanadam.. 
about the worst situations in life that can arise to anyone.. 
situation that could thoroughly and completely upset their very existence -- 
They are enumerated here

The most humiliating situations which could verily be like the fall of the blade of a sharp axe cutting into the primary roots of one's life are:-

1. For one who is used to a comfortable existence in life, service under a boss who is a real taskmaster and who is overbearing..

2. For the accumulated wealth of a person, tendency to spend money on evil things like gambling, hooch and other immoral activities.

3. For a person with self-respect, when he faces a situation where he has to beg or crib for something.
4. For a set of law-abiding citizens , the existence of a cruel and despotic monarch.

5. For a reputed and respectable family, the activities of a son who has lost his character.

A boss who is a taskmaster can be the cause of anxiety and sense of insecurity for any servant. 
This does not mean that the boss can always afford to be lenient. 
Normally the employees never obey a kind boss...it is the dharma of Kaliyuga. Only the cracking of the whip could do the trick . 
But there should be sufficient good sense on the part of the boss to understand that the situation is not ever comfortable for one who finds himself at the biting end of the whip.

Funny are the ways of riches..
People toil hard to earn, they apply fair means or foul in the process...but all the money can vanish into thin air if one is under the control of evil habits.

For an aristocrat, if he loses his wealth and influence and is forced to a condition where he has to beg for something, it is worse than death for him.

A bad king or his modern avatars can ruin a civil society or the nation as a whole.
We have seen many sons right from Duryodhana onward to the heirs apparent we encounter at present who have ensured or are effectively overseeing the downfall of their family and clan through their own misdeeds.