My New Leader, My True Leader

In the midst of this diverse array of people in the world, there are, as well as were a countless number of great leaders and great thinkers who set the foundation for the practices and ideas which we follow today, and you may be surprised at what you could discover about yourself through keeping an open mind and researching their different ideas and views. I have always considered it very important to remain open minded, even about the opinions which you think you are completely sure of and will never change, and this concept applies to every unique opinion we have. Furthermore, it is equally important to constantly do research, especially if you are currently dissatisfied with your life, or if you simply feel that you are missing something. As Sir Francis Bacon once said, "knowledge is power", and through all of the knowledge which we may obtain, there is much to be learned about ourselves.

More often than we take credit for, we come across a character in a movie, book or television show and think, "wow, I want to be just like them". Generally, we are easily motivated by an example set by another individual, even if they are fictional. I don't know about you, but when I watch a James Bond movie, or even a Rambo movie, I tend to forget that I am only a middle class college student who can't jog more than five miles, but more importantly, I feel pumped up and motivated about life. Why is this, though? Well, maybe I just wish I was James Bond, but then again, don't we all? Anyways, the point to be made here is that the actions of those who we look up to tend to rub off on us in the actions that we may take part in, and this is why it is incredibly important to remain aware that somebody probably looks up to you in a way, and your actions very easily reflect their own. Sure, you're not James Bond, but you're still important and looked up to. 

Personally, I have many people who inspire me, and help me in the journey of becoming the best possible individual I can be. As I said before, there are, and were plenty of great leaders whose ideas are just a google search away. Bruce Lee taught me determination, whereas George Washington taught me responsibility. However, one leader who just recently stood out to me unlike any other was Siddhartha Gautama or Gautama Buddha. Less than three weeks ago, I was typing a blog about what makes me come alive, and what came to mind at the time was the topic of religion. I have always enjoyed discussing religion, and have had many conversations with people about the topic, as well as done a little bit of research on various religions, and subsequently, came to the conclusion that I knew all that was necessary and that my search for a religion or belief which made logical sense to me was over, settling at Agnosticism. I have always remained open to the idea of discovering and following some other belief or religious affiliation, but had never done the necessary research to find what I was looking for. Upon completing this previous blog about religion, and what I believed, I found myself doing some more general research on religion, also due to a paper about religion I was completing for my Writing class, and stumbled upon a characteristic of Buddhism, which I previously did not know, and was fascinated by. Then another of the same nature, and so on, and so on, until I found myself lost in hours of readings of Buddhist practices and principles. It turns out that I, the guy who was ever so passionate about learning different religions did not know the first thing about the third most popular religion in the world. I read the teaching of the Buddha, as well as elaborations on them by other notable people, and how Buddhism has changed and manifested itself into the twenty-first Century, and was ecstatic about what I learned. I discovered a great deal about myself and have in just over two weeks drastically changed my internal self. Now, every day I immerse myself in a new book on Buddhism and study different principles of Buddhism, which I did not previously know. The teachings of the Buddha are guiding me to everything I have ever wanted from life, and truly aiding me through my journey. In fact, religion is not the only thing helping me discover myself in life right now. 

They say that college is the time for you to discover yourself, and whoever 'they' is was right about that. In the past two short months, I have made many changes to myself and set foot on the path to becoming the person who I ultimately want to become, as well as met incredible people and made lasting friendships. Through the Emerging Leaders program, which I am a part of, my classmates and I are truly fortunate to be exposed to all that we have, and I am truly grateful. Two people in particular who have stood out to me, and allowed me to not only see the value in myself, but have also allowed me to see the value in others are my Leadership professor, Alex Miller, and a good friend of mine, Tianee Harris. Seeing the good in these two, which before college, I had not seen in much of anybody has genuinely benefited me as a person. Now, I remember to "give an A" to everybody who I meet, remembering that there is good in all of us, as well as enough good in myself to give everybody I meet the chance that they deserve, as well as a respectful opinion in my mind. Furthermore, I am newly being guided by the teachings of the Buddha to gain a better appreciation of life, and more specifically importantly, an understanding of the life we live. 

Approximately 2500 years ago, in what is modern day Nepal, India, a prince was born. Prince Siddhartha, whose mother passed away shortly after his birth, lived a very secluded life, remaining only exposed to the finer things in life. He was married at sixteen, as the current traditions followed and was left unconcerned with any turmoil taking place outside of his royal walls. Things remained this way for the prince for almost thirty years of his life, ignorant of the negativity and suffering of the real world, until the prince's first true venture through the world outside of royal walls provoked his thought. He came across four sights, which were completely new to him. First, he saw an, old man, then a sick man and third, a corpse. Due to his life of seclusion, he had never seen any of these natural conditions before and when his chariot driver, Channa explained to the prince how all of these conditions are merely a part of life and that suffering is only natural, Siddhartha was deeply saddened. However, as he was about to give up hope, he came across the fourth sight. Finally, they came by an ascetic, who had devoted their life's work to finding the cause of human suffering and ending this. Siddhartha decided at this point to follow the example of the ascetic and lead a path similar to his. At the age of twenty-nine, the former prince left all that he had behind him to begin a journey of conquering the concept of suffering and ultimately, attaining enlightenment. 

For somebody who had lived a life of seclusion and royalty, Siddhartha had an impeccable sense of morality and a commitment towards solving something that he had not previously dealt with. He could have simply returned to his life of leisure and royalty, but he chose to take action towards what he knew was necessary and right. I am especially fond of this untaught morality which Siddhartha possessed. He journeyed these next six years in search of enlightenment, putting himself under the most brutal consequences, such as eating one grain of rice a day and meditating more all hours of the day, until one day while beginning to lose hope, a girl offered the starving Siddhartha a bowl of rice, and through this act of kindness, he realized that the conditions that he was putting himself under were unnecessary in attaining his goal. So, finally, after this realization, Siddhartha spent a night of meditating under what became know as "the Boddhi Tree", and attained his ultimate goal of enlightenment. 

Gautama Buddha was the embodiment of a leader. More than 2000 years after his death, he is one of the most influential figures in the world today. In some way, many of the styles of leadership which I have studied were displayed by the Buddha. The most eminent leadership practice of the Buddha was "The Way Things Are". Buddhism certainly characterizes this concept within the framework of our religion. This is expressed mainly through the four noble truths, which are the truth of suffering, the truth of the origin of suffering, the truth of the cessation of suffering, and the truth of the path leading to suffering, respectively. These truths explain that life is suffering and that is the way things are. It explains how to live with this and why not to worry about the sufferings of life.

As an emerging leader, much of what the Buddha taught can be applied to the leadership practices which I am learning. I have learned to be with the way things are, mainly, and through the noble eight-fold path, have picked up other leadership practices. This path teaches such things as maintaining a right view of others and nature, in order to better coexist with others, and right speech, such as maintaining truthful, uplifting and harmless communication. All of these things, which the Buddha taught help me become a better person and a better leader, and as I continue to practice these teaching of the Buddha, I will continue to grow and learn as a person, increasing my understanding of this vast and beautiful world with help from the teachings of Buddhism and the practices of twenty-first Century leadership.



Here is a video to watch, maybe even just for fun, which I found extremely motivational and inspirational in my journey to find the true meaning of life:

"Life is short, live it. Love is rare, grab it. Anger is bad, dump it. Fear is awful, face it. Memories are sweet, cherish it" -Unknown