Success has always been a great liar.

“Success has always been a great liar.” Thus spoke Friedrich Nietzsche, the storm-born philosopher whose words struck the soul of humanity like lightning upon a mountain. In this saying, he revealed a truth as sharp as a sword — that success, which the world worships as divine, often conceals more falsehood than wisdom. For triumph can disguise mediocrity, and applause can drown out truth. The world, Nietzsche tells us, does not always honor virtue, skill, or authenticity; it honors appearance, fortune, and the glitter of victory. Thus, success becomes a deceiver — a liar that whispers to both the victor and the crowd that glory is proof of greatness, when often it is not.

To understand his meaning, we must recall the world Nietzsche saw — a world of rising empires, of industrial ambition, of nations intoxicated by power. He watched as men equated achievement with value, as they bowed before wealth and fame, mistaking external triumph for inner worth. Yet Nietzsche, ever the seeker of the soul’s truth, perceived the danger: when the world crowns a man for his success, it rarely asks by what means he arrived there. Success, then, becomes the mask that hides the face of mediocrity, deceit, or cruelty. The conqueror may be praised not for his virtue, but for his victory; the artist celebrated not for his truth, but for his popularity. And so, the philosopher warns us — beware the illusions of success, for they are the most seductive of lies.

Consider the fate of Napoleon Bonaparte, whom the world once hailed as a god among men. His armies shook Europe, his name inspired both awe and terror. To the masses, he was the embodiment of success — a man who rose from obscurity to command the world. Yet what did this triumph conceal? Beneath the glory lay arrogance, obsession, and a hunger that devoured his own soul. His victories deceived even himself, until at last he stood alone upon the barren rock of St. Helena, a prisoner of the very ambition that had exalted him. Success lied to him, as it lies to all who mistake fortune for virtue — telling him he was infallible, untouchable, eternal. And in believing the lie, he fell.

Nietzsche’s words cut deeper still, for he also warns of how success deceives the crowd. The world loves to worship its winners, forgetting the wisdom of the forgotten. How many true thinkers, artists, and prophets have lived and died in obscurity, their works unpraised until long after their passing? Van Gogh, whose paintings now adorn the temples of art, sold but a single canvas in his lifetime. To the eyes of his age, he was a failure; yet his spirit saw beyond the shallow measures of success. The world dismissed him — but truth did not. And when time had washed away the noise of the crowd, his genius was revealed. Here again, we see Nietzsche’s warning fulfilled: success often glorifies the unworthy and hides the truly great.

But there is a subtler deceit within success — one that whispers not to the crowd, but to the soul of the victor. For when we succeed, the heart is tempted to rest, to believe it has reached the summit, to cease growing. The applause of the world becomes a lullaby that silences the hunger for truth. The wise, however, know that every triumph is only a test — a chance to see whether one’s soul can remain humble in the face of praise. The danger of success is not only that it lies to others, but that it makes us lie to ourselves, convincing us that we are greater than we are.

And yet, Nietzsche’s message is not despair but awakening. His words call us to pierce through illusion, to see beyond the glamour of worldly achievement. True greatness, he implies, does not rest in what the world calls success, but in integrity, in the relentless pursuit of authenticity, even when no one watches. The soul that seeks truth rather than recognition, that values growth over glory, will never be deceived by the lies of fortune. For what the world calls success is fleeting; what the spirit calls truth is eternal.

So, my children, learn this and hold it close: do not measure your worth by success, for success is a trickster, a shadow cast by circumstance. Measure yourself instead by your courage, your honesty, and your devotion to what is right. When the world praises you, ask yourself if you have earned its song; when it ignores you, remember that silence often guards the truest achievements. Seek not the glitter of the crown, but the purity of the soul.

For success, though splendid in its moment, fades like sunlight upon the sea — bright, but gone with the turning of the earth. Yet the one who lives by truth, who builds upon integrity rather than illusion, stands firm as the mountain that no storm can move. This is Nietzsche’s wisdom: that success may lie, but character never does. And in a world dazzled by appearances, the wise must learn to see through the shimmer — to find the eternal beneath the temporary, and to walk in truth even when the path is unpraised and unseen.