Some people are perpetual agitators. They agitate against
the government, against the police, against the corporate world, against the
religious orthodoxy, against the cultural norms. They stand against anything
that represents hierarchies and power structures, which they deem intrinsically
evil – not just corruptible, but innately corrupt.
The Bhagavad-gita (18.28) indicates that sarcastic and
stubborn people work in the mode of ignorance. This mode is characterized by
energy and even expertise in destruction. But those working thus are poor at
construction and pathetic at maintenance.
If such people somehow tap public discontent with the status
quo and gain power, they soon find themselves agenda-less and rudder-less, for
they have defined themselves by what they stand against, not what they stand
for.
Even if they claim to stand for some positive cause, they
often end up perpetuating the same exploitative power structure they had
agitated against. Thus, for example, communists promised class-less equality
for all, but ended up arrogating privilege for themselves while the majority
remained in scarcity. In their “equal” social structure, some people were more
equal than others.
Real positive vision rises from spiritual wisdom. The
Bhagavad-gita (04.02) recommends saintly kings who are seers spiritually and
rulers materially. Such kings find their fulfillment beyond this world in
service to the Absolute Truth, Krishna. That fulfillment enables them to use
worldly resources without being enamored by the associated glamor and power.
They are eminently capable of the leadership that reconciles reform with
maintenance, balances innovation with preservation and uses power without being
used by power. They stand for the principle of service – service to the whole
of which we all are parts, and service to all the parts in relation with the
whole.
Such holistically inspired leaders can bring about tangible
and sustainable improvement, individually and collectively.
No comments:
Post a Comment