Once chosen, a leader reaches the summit from where reality appears different
The people have given their verdict. As the old proverb goes vox populi is vox dei — the voice of people is the voice of God. The populace is rightly referred to as Janta Janardan. In democracies, people are the supreme power. Well, this God has delivered. The leader now has to. There is a need to remain connected to the people. This often proves difficult as a leader once chosen is bound by a system that allows limited degrees of freedom and distances him from the very people who chose him. This happens because once chosen, a leader reaches the summit from where reality appears different.
What has to be doneIJ An old Chinese tale paraphrased below may help.
In ancient China, on top of Mount Ping stood a temple where the great master Hwan lived. One of his disciples was lao-li. For over 20 years, he studied and meditated under Hwan. Although lao-li was one of the brightest, he could not attain the enlightenment he was seeking. One morning, seeing a falling cherry, lao-li introspected: “I can no longer fight my destiny. like the cherry I must gracefully resign to my lot.” From that moment lao-li wanted to retreat down the mountain, giving up hope of enlightenment.
He went to inform Hwan about his decision. The master was deep in meditation. With great reverence, lao-li tried to tell his wish. “Enlightened one,” he said. But before he could continue, Hwan spoke, “Tomorrow, I will join you on your journey down the mountain.” The great master knew what lao-li wanted to say.
The next morning, before starting Hwan looked out into the vastness surrounding the mountain peak and asked, “lao-li, what do you seeIJ” “Master, I see the sun beginning to wake just below the horizon, meandering hills and mountains that go on for miles, and couched in the valley below, a lake and an old town.” The master smiled and then they took the first steps of their long descent.
Hours on end, as the sun crossed the sky, they pursued their journey, stopping only once as they approached the foot of the mountain. Again Hwan asked lao-li to tell him what he saw. “Great wise one, in the distance I see roosters as they run around barns, cows asleep in sprouting meadows, old ones basking in the late afternoon sun, and children romping by a brook.” The master, remaining silent, continued to walk until they reached the gate to the town. There the master gestured to lao-li to sit under an old tree. “What did you learn todayIJ” asked the master. Silence was lao-li’s response.
After a long silence, the master continued. “The road to enlightenment is like the journey down the mountain. One must realise that what is seen from the top is not what one sees at the bottom. Without this wisdom we negate all that we cannot view from our position and limit our capacity to grow and improve. This wisdom brings the awakening that what one sees alone is only partial. This wisdom opens our minds to improvement, knocks prejudices and broadens horizons. Remember, what you cannot see can be seen from a different part of the mountain.” The lesson had awakened lao-li — the view from the ground cannot be undermined.
The writer is a professor, Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (Jharkhand). He can be reached at ppathak.ism@gmail.com
