Bhagavan and Leadership: The Power of Jnana (Knowledge) in Leadership

Explore the concept of Jnana (knowledge) in Bhagavan and  leadership and its profound impact on effective leadership. Discover how cultivating knowledge can lead to wisdom, insight, and transformative leadership.

The story so far….

Parasara Muni (father of Vyasa) explains the word “Bhagavan” in Vishnu Purana as –

Bhagah asya asti iti bhagavan – the one who has bhaga is called Bhagavan. Bhagavan is the one who has Bhaga, the six-fold virtues in absolute measure.

Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah sriyah jnanavairagyayoscaiva sannam bhaga itirana (Visnu-purana: 6.5.74)

Jnana is all-knowledge; vairagya – total dispassion; viryasya – the capacity to create, sustain and resolve; yasas  – absolute fame; Sri  – all wealth; and aisvarya  – overlordship.

In the context of an organisation, these six virtues can be related to that of a leader. The Introduction and Context of this topic were covered in the earlier two blogs. We discuss the 1st virtue here – Jnana (Knowledge).

Continued….

Jnana – Knowledge

To have all knowledge, jnana is to be free from all ignorance. In the philosophical context, “Jnana” is the knowledge of the self.

This is the most basic expectation in an organisation at the leadership level. It is a given that a leader will be an embodiment of knowledge – knowledge in the functional domain and expertise required to run the business.

At a leadership level, they are expected to be experts in their work domain; people down the hierarchy look up to a leader for reference, advice, and mentoring. They enjoy distinguished fame in their respective fraternity and are often sought for sound advice, opinion and presentation.

However, functional knowledge alone is not sufficient to be at the level of owning and managing the business. The knowledge requirements are much broader when it comes to running a business. It requires knowledge in the field of a wide array of subjects –

• People
• Clients
• Business
• Regulatory and economic
• Marketplace
• Economy
• Law
• Global developments etc.

A leadership position entails being a visionary, envisioning the future and taking decisions at present which will have a positive impact on the business in the future. This requires understanding the political, economic, social and technological environment. Moreover, there is a requirement for skills like problem-solving, decision making, conflict management, analytical thinking etc.

Hence, the term jnana – all knowledge, is a critical component. Such knowledge does not come by default. One must understand the need to accumulate such knowledge with the willingness and ability to grasp the concepts necessary to run a business.