Vedic Leadership: Theory and Practice of Operating from Natural Law

Abstract

Vedic leadership is an inclusive and holistic approach that engages the wholeness of Being and totality of knowledge for mistake-free action. Ideally, Vedic leadership leads to a more sustainable and joyful world. This can be achieved by complete and total self-knowledge, through development of one’s own consciousness, and making wise decisions naturally and effortlessly in accordance with the laws of nature. Ultimately, Vedic leadership flows from the totality of all the laws of nature. These laws of nature, which can be accessed in the consciousness of every being, provide an unchanging framework for a stress-free and sustainable path to perfect leadership. Leading from Natural Law enhances a leader’s capacity for integrating diverse stakeholders, perspectives, knowledge, and skills, to achieve a holistic and inclusive vision and effortless success. This chapter presents several key natural law principles along with associated Vedic principles. Vedic principle of Vasudha-eva-kutumbakam means whole world is a one big single family; hence we should live with harmony, caring and sharing. We then present a rich real-life case study of Vedic leadership, where a values-driven transformative leader employed creative strategies and holistic techniques to boost performance and accomplish internal change while maintaining respect and dignity of all the people involved in the organization. Practicing Vedic leadership helped him build from scratch an award-winning sustainable and growing organization, under extraordinary challenges. The implications for leadership research and practice are presented.