By Artika Shah
From businessreviewindia

Gen.H. Norman Schwarzkopf once said, “Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy.” The good leaders are not born by birth but they are to be made. To become an effective leader, one must have the desire and will power. The good leaders develop through a never ending process of education, training, self-study and experience. Well to become an effective leader, one must also know what leadership is. India is a land of spiritual leaders and gurus. These leaders and gurus are god’s greatest gifts to mankind and their lives have been a saga of compassion and love. They promote peace, love, brotherhood, humanity, and meditation in the world. Besides, they also inculcate humanitarian values to people in India and the rest of the world.

What makes for a spiritual leader?

Spiritual leadership is all about how well you present yourself. It is also about how you live. Let’s take a look at some characteristics for a good spiritual leader.

1. Courage: Spiritual leader musk know what is right in the sight of the Lord despite what his or her followers say. To be a good spiritual leader, one must be strong as leader and also trust the voice within you.

2. Boldness: Boldness is another characteristic to be a good spiritual leader. It means to be confident of what you speak and talk. It also relates to one’s personality. A bold personality comes in your speech and when you have the confidence that what you are saying is from the Lord.

3. Spirituality: The spiritual leader must be spiritual. Spirituality means the kind of relationship you share with god. A good spiritual leader is that who teaches his flock how to seek god for themselves.

4. Dependability: A spiritual leader must be dependable. He must be capable to handle his own affairs and that of others as well.

5. Humility: Another trait of a spiritual leader is humility. It comes from the acknowledgement that all talents and abilities that you have are gifts from the Lord. Humility also means that you recognize your strengths and your weaknesses and not be afraid to reveal them in front of your flock.

Glance at some of the India’s spiritual leaders

Shri Sathya Sai baba: Shri Sathya Sai baba was an iconic figure for over five decades. He was born in Puttapathi on November 23rd 1926. When he turned 14, Shri Sathya Sai started singing Vedic hymns and Sanskrit verses. His motto in life was to inspire people to follow the path of truth, good behavior, love, serenity and non-violence. He constructed an Ashram in Puttaparthy that came to be known as Prasanthi Nilayam. There are millions of his followers in the world that includes famous national and international personalities.

Baba Ramdev: In 1965, Baba Ramdev was born with an original name of Ram Kishan Yadav in Alipur. He is a spiritual young leader of India and is also well-known yoga teacher. With the means of television, he has taken yoga everywhere and his CDs of yoga are famous worldwide. Baba Ramdev has also claimed to cure diseases like Cancer and AIDS with yoga.

Mother Teresa: Mother Teresa was born on August 26, 1910 in Ottoman Empire. She was an Albanian Roman Catholic and was a famous humanitarian who started the Missionary of Charities. Most of her life, she spent in taking care of the poor, sick and needy people all over the world. At the time of her death in 1998, the missionary of charities was in operation in over 100 countries including hospices, orphanages, homes and schools.

Osho Rajneesh: Osho Rajneesh is the most renowned and most controversial spiritual leader of his times born on December 11, 1931. He was known as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh during the 1970s and 1980s. Later, he changed his name to Osho. Osho was also the founder of Osho movement, a controversial spiritual and philosophical movement.

Shri Sri Ravi Shankar: Shri Sri Ravi Shankar was born in 1956 in the southern part of India. He is a famous spiritual leader of India credited with being the initiator of a foundation known as the Art of Living Foundation. His aim in life is to teach people cope with stress of everyday life and be at peace with themselves. He is also the founder of charitable organizations like international association for human values.

Bharat Thakur: Bharat Thakur is also one of the spiritual masters of India who has secured international recognition. He is the founder of artistic yoga and also has many meditation workshops to his credit. He also conducts yoga training-sessions for individuals and groups along with corporate yoga workshops throughout the world. Bharat Thakur has also opened yoga centres in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Moscow, Bangalore and Dubai.

While spiritual leadership involves many of the same principles as general leadership, spiritual leadership has certain distinctive qualities that must be practiced if spiritual leaders are to be successful.