Servant
Leadership
So many people are suffering
for want of good leader
throughout the whole world.
Morning Talk -- April 25, 1977, Bombay
Leader means authority. His
instruction is followed, and
actually it happens. That is
leader.
December 16, 1973, Los Angeles
You can become perfect if you
follow a perfect leader.
That's all.
Morning Walk -- March 16, 1976, Mayapura
Although we are imperfect,
because we are following the perfect,
our proposition is perfect.
Morning Walk -- December 12, 1973, Los Angeles
Qualified leaders.
That is wanted.
Morning Walk -- January 7, 1974, Los Angeles
Leader means better qualified
man to lead others. That is
leader.
Morning Walk -- January 7, 1974, Los Angeles
A leader means one that if
someone follows him, he's
benefited.
Morning Walk -- July 9, 1974, Los Angeles
Roles of a leader
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Example
Support
Inspiration
Guidance
Training
Challenge
Action
EXAMPLE
Everyone is trying to keep his
position by hook and crook. How
he'll think of the people? How they
will be happy? He is thinking of his
own happiness.
Room Conversation with Dr. Theodore Kneupper -November 6, 1976, Vrndavana
Our business is to raise ourselves to
the highest status of life as preachers
of Krsna's message, and one should
behave himself rigidly, then he should
instruct others.
Letter to: Name withheld -- 17 December, 1972
Two things: Be himself exemplary,
then teach others to be exemplary.
Letter to: Name withheld -- 17 December, 1972
Only those who are above suspicion
can judge others. One must himself act
in such a way that he is always above
suspicion. Then he can judge, then he
can preach.
Letter to: Name withheld -- 17 December, 1972
One who is not following himself,
how he can instruct others?
Letter to: Name withheld -- 17 December, 1972
Yad yad acarati sresthas tat tad
evetaro janah [Bg. 3.21]. If the
srestha, the leader, is ideal, then
others will follow.
Room Conversation with Mr. Tombe (M.L.A.) -- December 25, 1976,
Bombay
If the leader is not ideal, if he is not
in the awareness of things, then
people will be misguided.
Room Conversation with Mr. Tombe (M.L.A.) -- December 25, 1976,
Bombay
Criteria

The four leaders of the human
society, namely the sannyasis, the
brahmana, the king and the public
leader, must be tested crucially by
their character and qualification.
Before one can be accepted as a
spiritual or material master of
society, he must be tested by the
above-mentioned criteria of
character. SB 1.17.41
Our leaders must be very good.
Conversation on Train to Allahabad -- January 11, 1977, India
We must have a solid foundation of
chanting and following the
regulative principles.
Then one is fit to lead others.
Letter to: Jagajivana: -- Vrindaban 6 September, 1974
He is leader. ... One who is
perfectly following ...
Room Conversation -- November 2, 1977, Vrndavana
Leader means one who has
become first-class disciple.
Room Conversation -- November 2, 1977, Vrndavana
To become leader is not very
difficult, provided one is
prepared to follow the
instructions of a bona fide guru.
Room Conversation -- November 2, 1977, Vrndavana
Real leader means who does not commit
mistake, who is not illusioned, who does not
cheat and who has no imperfect senses,
who has, or, other words, one who has got
perfect senses. So if you say, "How it is
possible for the conditioned soul?" "Yes, it is
possible if you follow the perfect."
Morning Walk -- December 12, 1973, Los Angeles
Tamala Krsna: Srila Prabhupada,
what are the qualifications of a
perfect leader?
Prabhupada: No mistake, no
illusion, no cheating, no
imperfection.
Morning Walk -- March 16, 1976, Mayapura
By becoming a servant of the
senses, one becomes a great
material hero, and by becoming
master of the senses, he becomes
a gosvami, or spiritual hero.
SB 4.25.25 P
In the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is
stated that when a woman comes
to serve you, you must be very
careful, especially for sannyasis
and brahmacaries.
Letter to: Name withheld -- 17 December, 1972
SUPPORT
Politics means planning for one's
own happiness. That is politics. So
in our society there should be no
diplomacy, no politics. Everyone
should be eager how to do good to
others. That is Vaisnava.
Morning Walk -- March 15, 1974, Vrndavana
Leader means he must... He's
always busy how to make you
happy, how to make without any
cares, anxiety.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.21 -- Hawaii, January 17, 1974
There must be some leader. But
why not the supreme leader, who
will never misguide you? He will
give you actual path of happiness.
Then you will become happy.
Bhagavad-gita 3.6-10 -- Los Angeles, December 23, 1968
Those who want to be leader of the
society, they should be ideal
persons, they should be Krsna
conscious person. Then the whole
world will be happy.
Bhagavad-gita 3.18-30 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1968
Supreme leader, perfect leader, without any
mistake, without any illusion, without any
cheating, and without any imperfection of
the senses. We have to take direction from
such a leader, then our life will be
successful.
Bhagavad-gita 4.9 -- Bombay, March 29, 1974
Everyone must be a real leader,
then people will be happy.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.15.29 -- Los Angeles, December 7, 1973
The only opportunity of becoming
happy is that you preach this Krsna
consciousness movement amongst the
people, so if the people become
educated in Krsna consciousness, and
if they decide that "We shall vote for
Krsna conscious leader," then there will
be happiness.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.3.19 -- Los Angeles, June 15, 1972
Everyone is trying to be happy. That
happiness is not possible, that peace is
not possible unless you have got a
leader or king like Bharata Maharaja,
after whose name this planet is called
Bharatavarsa, this Bharata Maharaja.
So we have to find out such leader.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.5.29 -- Vrndavana, November 16, 1976
We want to see everyone is happy.
That is our mission.
Interview -- July 20, 1972, Paris
Everyone will be happy if they take
to this movement. We want to see
that everyone is happy. That is our
mission.
Interview -- July 20, 1972, Paris
We don't want to exploit others.
Interview -- July 20, 1972, Paris
INSPIRATION
That is the business of leader: He
must be himself always
enthusiastic and inspire others to
be always enthusiastic. Then he is
real leader.
Letter to: Trai -- Bombay December 27, 1972
If under changing conditions I lose
my enthusiasm, if I cannot endure
the difficulties of my duty, therefore
I go away -- then how I can be
leader?
Letter to: Satsvarupa -- Vrindaban 5 November, 1972
Enthusiasm and patience, these
things required.
Letter to: Satsvarupa -- Vrindaban 5 November, 1972
GUIDANCE
Take the best, first-class, perfect
leader: Krsna. Then you'll be
happy. Otherwise it is not
possible.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.12.4 -- Bombay, April 15, 1976
Here is Krsna, the perfect
leader, and they're going this
side, that leader, that leader,
that leader. Why?
Morning Walk -- March 29, 1974, Bombay
We are following Krsna. He does not commit
mistake, He is not illusioned, His senses are
not imperfect, and He does not cheat.
Morning Walk -- December 12, 1973, Los Angeles
The perfect leader is there, His
instruction is there, in all fields
of life, any field of life. And
ultimately spiritual realization.
Morning Walk -- March 29, 1974, Bombay
If you learn from Krsna you
become perfect leader. But we
do not take Krsna's instruction.
We manufacture our own ideas.
Room Conversation with Mr. Tombe (M.L.A.) -- December 25, 1976, Bombay
If the society is led by real,
learned scholars, then it will be
nice.
Morning Walk -- January 7, 1974, Los Angeles
People will be happy when a trained
leader, whether a monarch or a
dictator, takes control of the
government and rules the people
according to the standard regulations of
the authorized scriptures.
SB 9.13.12 P
Now the Krsna consciousness
movement will provide them
with good leader if they take it
seriously.
Letter to: Bhagavan -- Bombay 14 November, 1975
The Westerners have good brains,
but they do not have any
good leader.
Letter to: Bhagavan -- Bombay 14 November, 1975
So far as being leader is concerned,
leader means spiritually not materially.
This you should understand
very clearly.
Letter to: Jagajivana: -- Vrindaban 6 September, 1974
If spiritual potency and strength is
there, then material intelligence will
automatically follow.
Letter to: Jagajivana: -- Vrindaban 6 September, 1974
For the most part, the ordinary citizens
of the society are innocent enough,
they simply require good leaders and
everything can be rectified.
Letter to: Amarendra -- Los Angeles 12 June, 1972
Because we are taking direction from
imperfect leaders, cheater leaders,
therefore we are meeting with so many
problems.
Bhagavad-gita 4.9 -- Bombay, March 29, 1974
According to Vedic civilization, the
brahmanas guide the ksatriyas how to rule.
So our position is to reform the politicians.
We are not going to compete with them, we
have no business, neither we have time. But
because people are suffering - we want
everyone to be happy - therefore we want to
reform these rascals. That is our goal.
Morning Walk -- December 8, 1973, Los Angeles
TRAINING
You have pointed out that you want to
train others to be leaders, because you
have observed there is at present not
very many qualified leaders.
That is good proposal.
Sudama -- Bombay 23 December, 1972
Find out some intelligent men from
schools, colleges, and being always
very tolerant try to convince them
gradually to utilize their intelligence and
education in the service of Krishna.
Sudama -- Bombay 23 December, 1972
CHALLENGE
Fresh Challenge

Our leaders shall be careful not to kill the spirit of
enthusiastic service, which is individual and
spontaneous and voluntary. They should try
always to generate some atmosphere of fresh
challenge to the devotees, so that they will agree
enthusiastically to rise and meet it. That is the
art of management: to draw out spontaneous
loving spirit of sacrificing some energy for
Krishna ... All of us should become expert
managers and preachers.
- Srila Prabhupada
ACTION
Simply ruling the land cannot solve
man's problems unless the leader has
spiritual capabilities. He must be like
Maharaja Yudhisthira, Pariksit
Maharaja or Ramacandra. Then all the
inhabitants of the land will be extremely
happy.
SB 6.14.10 P
It is our great responsibility to become very
serious in the matter of executing Krishna
consciousness, and if we are sincere and go
on expanding this movement all over the
world, gradually we shall induce the leaders
to accept our philosophy
more and more.
Letter to: Amarendra -- Los Angeles 12 June, 1972
Good leadership means you must
learn how to lead people.
Room Conversation with Mr. Tombe (M.L.A.) -- December 25, 1976,
Bombay
Why we select one leader? The leader
should be such a leader that he shall make
happy and prosperous persons who follow
him. That is the question
of leadership.
Bhagavad-gita 4.11 -- New York, July 27, 1966
They are not leader; they are jackals.
So jackals cannot anymore rule over.
That should be our propaganda. Not
only scientific, all political things, social
things, everything.
Morning Walk -- May 3, 1973, Los Angeles
They should be all kicked out. They
should be replaced by Krsna
consciousness. Then people will be
happy. This should be our program.
Morning Walk -- May 3, 1973, Los Angeles
Our, this propaganda means to
make people happy.
Morning Walk -- May 3, 1973, Los Angeles
Because God has favored them, so many
things. And this movement has been started
from America. I started this movement from
New York. So it should be taken very
seriously by the government.
Morning Walk -- December 11, 1973, Los Angeles
“You must find out a leader who is free
from these sinful activities. Then you
will be happy. And you also give up.
Otherwise, how you will be able to
select such a leader?" This should be
our real propaganda.
Morning Walk -- January 12, 1974, Los Angeles
Everyone should be expert. The leaders
must be expert and the worker must be
expert so that they may follow the instruction
of the leader. If the leader says something
and the workers, "Hm, I shall consider it,
later on," then how the leader will execute
his leadership? Both of them should be
cooperating and know that "We are all
working for Krsna."
Morning Walk -- March 14, 1974, Vrndavana
Sarve sukhino bhavantu. This is Vedic
civilization. "Let everyone be happy."
That is Vedic civilization. And the
demonic civilization, they're: "Let
everyone suffer; I become happy.“
Morning Walk -- March 15, 1974, Vrndavana
If he's planning something, that "I
shall be leader," "I shall be doing
something," that is not Vaisnavism.
Morning Walk -- March 15, 1974, Vrndavana
It is the duty of the leader, government,
father, teacher, gurus, to see that the
subordinates are very, very happy.
Press Conference -- April 18, 1974, Hyderabad
It is the duty of the leaders of the people and
the government to see that the citizens are
perfectly happy in their occupational duties
and they are advancing in spiritual
knowledge.
Press Conference -- April 18, 1974, Hyderabad
Everyone should be employed.
Everyone should be engaged in
some service. That should be
the policy of the government.
Room Conversation with Richard Webster, chairman,
Societa Filosofica Italiana -- May 24, 1974, Rome
Everyone should be happy,
without any anxiety. That is
good government.
Room Conversation with Richard Webster, chairman,
Societa Filosofica Italiana -- May 24, 1974, Rome
This Krsna consciousness movement should
be taken very seriously. It is the finishing
touch of American advancement of material
comforts. Then people will be very happy,
and America is already leader of the world.
They will be first-class leader. The world will
be benefited, and you will be benefited. And
my endeavor will be also successful.
Press Conference at Airport -- July 28, 1975, Dallas
It is very much favorable to our
advancement in spiritual life if we are
engaged in some service for Krishna
which is also pleasing to us to perform.
Letter to Saucarya, Vrindaban 23 October 1972
So if you have got some special talent
or experience you may discuss with
Jagadisa how to engage yourself in
that way. That is his duty as leader, to
give you good engagement.
Letter to: Saucarya -- Vrindaban 23 October, 1972
Real attitude of devotional service is,
whether I am here or there, whether I am
doing this or that, it doesn't matter, just give
me little prasada, little service, or if you
make me big leader, that's all right -- that is
devotee, satisfied to serve Krishna in any
circumstances of life.
Letter to: Satsvarupa -- Vrindaban 5 November, 1972
That enthusiastic mood is maintained
when everyone is always without fail
chanting 16 rounds daily, rising early for
mangala aratrika, reading books,
preaching - in this way, by observing
strictly the regulative principles of
devotional life, that enthusiasm or great
eagerness to have Krsna will come out.
Letter to: Trai -- Bombay December 27, 1972