WISDOM + JUSTICE = SOUND LEADERSHIP
Consider the strange tale of a wild pig living in the jungles of
Tripura. She lived happily with her
children. One day, while foraging through the jungle for food, she noticed a
weeping tiger cub behind a bush. Finding no trace of the cub’s
mother, she thought that the tigress might have been killed by
hunters. The mother pig immediately took pity on the cub and
thought, ‘How can I leave this orphan cub in such a condition? After
all, I am a mother. I shall take the cub with me and rear him up.’
The mother pig began to look after the cub, along with her own
children, as best as possible. Thus that tiger cub became a member
of the pig family. He and the piglets played together, ate together,
roamed together and slept together.
The days passed on and eventually the mother pig
died. The cub was, by then, a full-grown tiger and the piglets were
no longer little; they were big fat pigs. By nature, a tiger lives
on flesh, so a deep desire for eating flesh gradually developed in the tiger. He
was tempted to devour the pigs, but a direct attack could earn him a bad name
as they had grown up together. Therefore, he mapped out a subtle
plan.
One day, he said to one of the pigs, “Brother, last night I had a
dream. In my dream, I saw I was eating you up. As you
might imagine, it is a sin to dishonor a dream. Therefore, I have decided
to kill you and eat your flesh. I am ready to fulfill your last
desire, if there be any, before killing you.”
The terrified pig tried his best to make the tiger see that his
dream had nothing to do with reality. But the tiger was
adamant. By then, the pig realized it would be difficult to escape
from the clutches of the huge tiger. At last, the pig said, “If you
kill me, other pigs will defame you. I think it would be better if
three animals accept your argument before you kill me.”
The tiger agreed to the proposal. So first of all, they
went to a monkey and explained the entire story. The monkey
supported the tiger. Then, both of them met a hen who also supported
the tiger. The tiger was very delighted, but the pig was
understandably upset.
Finally, they took their case t0 a bat. After hearing
the claim of the tiger, the bat realized his intentions right
away. However, he disclosed nothing and only said, “It is a
complicated matter. I would ask you to go to the king for proper
judgment.” The bat informed them that he would appear in the king’s
court at the time of the hearing of their case.
Both the tiger and the pig appeared before the king in his court
and narrated the whole episode. The pig informed the king that a witness
would appear very soon. The king asked them to wait while he handled
other royal business. Suddenly, the bat fell from the ceiling of the
royal court on the ground and began to dance with joy. The king
warned the bat not to misbehave in the royal court. The bat begged
forgiveness for his behavior, saying “My lord, I fell asleep while waiting on
the ceiling of the court. At that time, I had a dream but I am
afraid to reveal it,” the bat said, trembling with fear. The king
told him, “Don’t worry, you can disclose your dream without fear.”
The bat said, “In my dream, I saw myself marrying the princess.” He
pleaded that the king would fulfill his dream by arranging a marriage to the
princess. The king became angry and warned the bat not to press for
such an absurd demand. “It is not proper to put forward a proposal on the basis
of a dream,” insisted the king. “A dream is a dream and has no
connection with reality.”
The bat seized the opportunity and asked, “Since that is true, how
could the tiger kill the pig and eat his flesh on the strength of his
dream?” The king accepted the bat’s arguments and rejected outright
the foolish proposal of the tiger. He also ordered the tiger and the
pig to live separately, thereafter, in the jungle.
Lesson learned. If you are a
leader in any capacity, it is of paramount importance that you develop a sharp
sense of discernment. Additionally, you must be always open to hear and
consider the viewpoints of others, recognizing that leaders do not possess a
monopoly on insight, understanding and wisdom. Finally, in every
deliberation and decision, you must be consciously fair and conscientiously
just.
The final words of King David summarize these truths so well:
II Samuel 23:1-3 (NKJV)
Now these are the
last words of David. Thus says David
the son of Jesse; thus says the man raised up on high,
the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel: “The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue. The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me: he who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.”
the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel: “The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue. The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me: he who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.”
In a word, wisdom
plus justice is an indispensable
prerequisite for sound leadership…always.
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