The leadership sutra

Devdutt Pattanaik’s The leadership Sutra is about Durga. The power to dominate is one of the most dominant power in the human species. We all derive power from different somethings. For some knowledge may be their power, their Durga. For others it may be money. Even situations offer us Durga, our power.

In the very words of the author, ‘Power is a critical tool that affects the implementation of any idea. Any attempt to restrain it with rules results in domestication and resentment, and fails to to energize the organization. Leaders often equate themselves with lions, and indulge their desire to dominate when in fact, the point of leadership is to be secure enough to outgrow the lion within us, and enable and empower those around us.’

This book is derived from the author’s another book Business Sutra. It offers wonderful mythological tales, which the author is adept at telling. It contains some unheard stories as well, like that of Kaursha who tries to imitate Krishna. I liked the concept of voluntary and involuntary domestication in the book. The book underlines the fact that there is nothing fair or unfair in the nature. Nature just the nature – the prakriti.

Every mythological tale in the book is accompanied by a modern day case study, which explores the human quest for significance, the power of rules to rob people of self-esteem and the need for stability even at the cost of freedom. The writer with his interpretations of the ancient texts and the illustrations doesn’t disappoint. He tries to connect the past and the present and tells that human beings behave in the same manner at all times.