July 30, 01

Emergence of National Leadership

(by Mother’s Service Society)

• Leadership of men follows the same physical laws that determines how a heap of mud takes form and which handful is at the top.
• When land masses move, hollows as well as hills form. They follow strictly physical laws.
• Leadership formation strictly follows similar laws but they are not physical. They are social or social psychological laws.
• Maybe geologists know all the laws of land movement.
• They are determined by the density of mud, the force that shifts the existing formation and the resultant which forms a peak, when a peak is there.
• One can think of involved factors. The force of moving earth, the hollows it generates, the various mixtures of different matter of varying densities. Sometimes a stone is put on the top as a cap by a man or even the moving earth sees to it.
• It is noteworthy that the earth is level in most places.
• The collective creates leadership when it needs it. There is often no great virtue in this leadership as several people can serve that purpose. But all the several members belong to the same type.
• The one inescapable rule for leadership is strength that is authority.
• Generally, social leadership is assumed by outstanding men who represent the socially creative layer of the time.
• Military men, landed gentry, manufacturers, men of royal blood, those who carry the population with them have been traditionally chosen as national leaders.
• Within the class or party, again the same or similar rules hold good tempered by the emerging political systems of the time.
• The basic rules are easy to lay down. But they generally hold good only at the time of the birth of a new society.
• Later several combinations work.
• As one can earn money today in a modern state almost in a hundred different ways, one can do many things by various ways. So also, one can rise to leadership by the combination of various forces in various ways.
• But all methods will ultimately conform to one rule or confirm one rule. Whether it is a person, or a party or a sector of production or a religious group that comes to power, they do so by strength that is authority. Maybe the strength is his own or is supplied to him by other groups.
• What combinations exist at a given time in a nation (or in the world) and how they can combine is quite complex. Studying the past leadership and citing a pattern there that justifies itself may be an adequate beginning, as the past is there for us to know without assuming.
• All such themes are fit subjects for universities to sponsor.
• Sri Aurobindo has given the world the two broad outlines along which nations move and ages move in his two books “Ideal of Human Unity’ and “The Human Cycle.’
• Such a perspective is not there in the world. One who embarks on such a study must develop a perspective. We can borrow Sri Aurobindo’s perspective.
• His explanation that Nature tried to unite India so that she may become the Guru of the world and having failed in all her devices, she resorted to invasion one thousand years ago, is certainly not a perspective scholars can develop.
• We see the centers of civilisation moving from the Middle East to Greece to Rome to Europe and finally now to USA. Life and religion in the Middle East, mind in Greece, law and culture in Rome, science in Europe and technology in the USA are apparent on the surface. This is historically factual. Whether there a sequence here or inverse sequence at least has to be decided. If this is a sequence, the factors that actuated it must be seen.
• As this is not a unidimensional movement, we must discover all of Nature’s dimensions before we discover a law in this movement or a pattern.
• Maybe there is an abundance of historical facts. If one can see all of them under one vision, one must think of creating a perspective.
• For one who accepts the vision of Sri Aurobindo, much help can be had. But they are in lofty realms.
• As the USA has enough recorded facts, and the history of the 48 Presidents is on record, one can trace the growth of society, the economy and politics, endeavour to see the emerging patterns, and discover how far our Theory of Social Evolution helps.
• For anyone serious in this quest, the right place to start it is inside.
• If I have developed into an individual today, I can find out the lines along which my individuality has grown. The leadership I can offer the society may have this pattern. In one sense, this pattern will include in itself all patterns of leadership, with the difference in its height.
• Once the rules are discovered inside, it must be eminently possible to discover it outside.
• Broadly, the outer and inner factors are covered by several rules such as,
• Social leadership emerges from the productive sector.
• The more prominent that sector is, the more eminent the leader.
• Prior to production, self-defence mattered.
• In that period, only military leaders emerged as national leaders.

• Leaders of productivity formed a core around a leader who can defend the frontiers.
• Physical strength and physical courage mattered then.
• From then until now courage has mattered, but it is no longer the physical courage of the leader, but vital courage.
• Very feebly, mind plays a small part now in national leadership.
• Now mental courage is called for, but it is often social courage of the mind.
• Administration, party, public opinion, and the media have a great role to play, but the prime mover is the combination of the productive forces represented by sectors and the person who enjoys their support or one who emerges from there.
• This much we can speak about the main lines.
• The combinations being numerous and in their combined strength often any combination can excel, is what matters.
• A fertile field of exceptions can arise and even an actor can rise to eminence.
• These exceptions are governed by rules in their formation.
• History provides examples for almost all, if not all.
• History will be very helpful for studies, but will offer little help in future or in knowing the future.
• The inner is a whole which fully represents the outer.
• The inner can be studied in our daily events until we fully understand Life Response.
• That can yield the by-product of ‘Leadership Traits.’
• As each of them is labour-intensive, one has to choose.
• I have many insights, though partial, into the Indian situation, which I have stopped following for at least ten years.
• The Complete Act, Accomplishment, Life Response, raising the performance of an organisation several times, all can help form the right insight.

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