MONDAY MUSINGS SEASON 2 - EPISODE 262
Fourteen Leadership Flaws
20th May 2024
Fourteen defects a leader should avoid are:
Atheism, falsehood, anger, carelessness, procrastination, disregard of the wise, laziness, gratification of five senses, autocratic decision making, taking counsel with those of perverted insight, failure to undertake the initiatives already decided, failure to keep secrets, failure to do auspicious acts (at the beginning of an undertaking), and rising from one's seat (indiscriminately) to receive all – Valmiki Ramayan 2.100.65, 66 & 67
Raja Bharthruhari’s story continues
The king who became a rishi
Raja Bharthruhari of Ujjain and Princess of the neighboring kingdom Pingala got married. So enthralled was Bharthruhari by his new and beautiful queen that he kept no secrets from her. The mighty King would not even drink a glass of water without her permission.
The warmth of his affection, instead of amusing his wife, annoyed her. His steadfast loyalty wearied her, his absolute commitment gave her headaches, and his touch made her shiver. Of course, smitten by her charm, Bharthruhari perceived nothing wrong.
Pingala had begun lavishing all the passion of her soul upon the King’s bodyguard now assigned for her security and the King was unaware of the affair.
Bharthruhari’s younger brother, Prince Vikramaditya soon found out about the unhealthy relationship between the queen and her bodyguard. Vikramaditya was learned and worldly-wise. He thought his brother would break down if he comes to know of the betrayal. Hence, Vikramaditya took it upon himself to reassign the dubious bodyguard elsewhere and place a trusted replacement to guard the queen.
Pingala did not take it lying down. She stormed into the royal assembly and alleged that Vikramaditya had done so with sly intentions on the queen. She demanded that Vikramaditya be expelled, from the kingdom. Nobody in the King’s cabinet believed the queen’s allegations, unfortunately the King believed her. He accepted her demand and extradited his brother. Vikramaditya did not challenge the royal decree and left the court and kingdom quietly.
After a couple of days, an old Brahman came to the court and offered an apple to the king. “This is no ordinary apple. It has been blessed by the goddess Kali herself and anyone who consumes this will enjoy a long and romantic life.” said the Brahmin.
Bharthruhari gave him a sizeable gift and offered the special apple to his queen instead of eating it himself. Pingala charmingly responded in a whisper, “Eat it yourself, my love, for what is life and what is youth without the presence of those we love?” Bharthruhari, whose heart melted by these charming words, departed, having explained that the fruit would serve for one person only.
Soon, the queen summoned her secret lover and passed on the apple to him. Her lover was having an affair with the maid of honor to the queen. He slipped away the apple to her. The maid was an ambitious and determined girl. She decided to gift it to the King himself in exchange for some reward, or position or both. Thus, the apple went through a circle and was returned back to the King.
Unpleasantly surprised, Bharthruhari took the apple in his hands and looked at it with tears in his eyes. He realized that it was the same fruit which he offered to his beloved queen. He felt betrayed. He was shattered to realize that his queen was having an affair with her bodyguard. He was filled with remorse when he realized that his brother acted on his interest, but he punished him instead of rewarding him.
That was not all. Bharthruhari also understood the sorry state of affairs in his country which was thriving before his marriage to Pingala. His sense of betrayal almost doubled when he realized how he had failed his subjects. He realized he did not discharge his duties as a responsible leader.
He meted out justice to all the culprits, put his house in order and located his brother, in whom he found a worthy successor. After having placed Vikramaditya on the throne, Bharthruhari relinquished his material possessions and desires before retiring to the woods.
Bharthruhari never stepped back into the palace even though he began to be revered as ‘Rajaguru’.
Two works of Bharthruhari are regarded as classics in Vedic literature, namely: Neeti Shataka (100 verses on morality) and Vairagya Shataka (100 verses on renunciation). Sringara Shataka, which is believed to be written by him during his days with Pingala, is another work; it is compared to Kamasutra of Vatsayana.
What is autocratic leadership?
Autocratic leadership is a leadership style where the leader assumes full control and authority over decision-making without seeking input or consensus from the subordinates. This style is often likened to a dictatorship, where the leader’s decisions are swift and binding.
Autocratic leadership could be beneficial for certain situations but overall brings down morale and collaboration. Disadvantages of autocratic leadership are:
Low employee morale: The authoritative nature of autocratic leadership often leads to low employee morale and motivation. Team members may feel undervalued and unimportant when their opinions and ideas are consistently disregarded.
Innovative suppression: Autocratic leaders’ dominant control can hinder innovation and creativity within the organization. Employees may be reluctant to propose new ideas or take risks, fearing the leader’s disapproval.
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POSITIVE NEWS PAGE
I liked this news item from whatever I read recently.
Excerpts from the interview given by the youngest candidates champion and World Chess Championship contender, Gukesh D., to India Today.
When the interviewer asked the question “What was the moment when you felt you could clinch the Candidates?”
Gukesh’s reply “Funnily, it was the seventh-round loss. I was obviously upset after the loss, but after that, I had a rest day. When I woke up, I felt in my absolute best shape, full of energy and positivity. Maybe the painful loss gave me the extra energy and motivation, I needed. I was fully fired up and thought if I just continued playing the right way. I had every chance of winning the tournament”.
Is it possible that a failure could give positivity and motivation? Yes, if the loss has given the motivation to Gukesh to clinch the candidates championship, failures can give motivation to you and me.
Answer to another question in that interview is also even more interesting:
“Before the tournament began, Magnus Carlsen had said he would be shocked if ‘Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, Vidit or Abasov’ win. Did that noise affect you?”
“I came to know about that a couple of days before the Candidates and honestly, I did not really care much about it. I think he gave an honest opinion and obviously, I was not one of the favorites. There were far more experienced players but deep down I always knew that if I managed to stay calm and focused, I had every chance to win”
Other’s opinion about you does not matter. Your belief on you matters the most.
Great positivity and maturity at such an young age? This trait has possibly taken him to such great heights.
“You can’t let your failures define you. You have to let your failures teach you.” ― Barack Obama
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Conceived, compiled and posted by Jaganathan T (www.authorjaganathan.com) as a weekly newsletter MONDAY MUSINGS in LinkedIn. Subscribe, read every monday, Like, Share, Comment and #SpreadPositivity.