The Call for Spiritual Leadership
(updated)
Summary

Mature devotees may not necessarily embody the same character traits or business expertise as the leaders of conventional organizations. Corporate executives, for example, often manage through the force of their strong wills and personalities. Likewise, conventional religious groups thrive on charismatic leaders who can generate cultic enthusiasm in others. Genuine practitioners, on the other hand, are qualified to guide sacred institutions by virtue of their practice and their understanding of the Spiritual principles that distinguish sacred organizations from secular groups. At the same time, our experience in the many decades demonstrates that more is required than strength of personality or conventional training to effectively manage the Communion and the Community. The necessary leadership, manifested either in single individuals or in a group of individuals, combines management expertise and mature Spiritual understanding, although the senior, guiding principle must he Spiritual.
Devotees need look no further than Heart Master Himself to see these qualities embodied. He has Demonstrated in countless ways over the many decades how a Spiritual leader must embody compassion in addition to right understanding. Beloved Da has said that a sign of a mature devotee is that he or she practices for the sake of others. This mood of self-giving and sacrifice not only helps others but it also inspires them to give of themselves. Again, no greater example of self-sacrifice and compassion has appeared in the lives of devotees than our Beloved Heart-Master. To do samyama on His life of Service is to witness an inconceivable and continuous act of Sacrifice and Giving. We need only align ourselves with His Transcendental Mood to he capable of serving each other.
In the following excerpt from a talk entitled “Sacred lnstitutions”, Heart-Master Da elaborates upon the necessity for mature leadership in the Communion.
HEART-MASTER DA: The Communion must be guided by senior practitioners who have an interest in preserving the Way because they practice it, and who can always temper the qualities egos introduce into sacred institutions. We need such people in our own institution. It is one thing to enhance the level of competence of management, but everything must also constantly be overseen and tempered by a senior group of practitioners. Otherwise, inevitably, without even knowing it, devotees make this and that little move, and then another one, and another one-and before you know it a whole attitude and policy are being generated that run contrary to this Way of life.
A sacred institution should be the responsibility of sacred practitioners, individuals of the highest type within their tradition. Such individuals should be the institution’s ultimate resort and conscience.
It is not merely that a practicing order should be in charge, but that the Communion is the responsibility of people who have practiced the great discipline and Realization of the Way. Wellhow can you guarantee that there are such people from generation to generation? Or that in the future this principle will actually be in effect? You cannot guarantee it. You can only serve the optimum development of such a circumstance and create a climate of selfcriticism, so that the Communion will deal with its own limitations in time.
If you yourself are committed to the Way of life of egotranscendence, then you must likewise, in your service to the Communion, make it operate in this ego-transcending manner. Do not let the Communion be an ego. You really cannot model an institution after the ego if its very members are devoted to the transcendence of the ego. Sacred institutions, therefore, must operate in a different fashion from worldly institutions. That they do not is a sign that they are not any different from worldly institutions. (]une 21, 1982)
The communion is now at a crossroads. In order for the institution and the Cornrnunity to rernain authentic while continuing to grow, devotees rnust step forward to assurne responsibility both for their individual practice and for the culture of practice as a whole. We can no longer afford to he irresponsible or unresponsive. Like the sons in the biblical parable, we have been given a Great lnheritance. Now we must discover the lawful way to accept it, to share it, and to preserve it.
The opportunity represented by the Way of the Heart in the face of the suffering of the world is immeasurably great and real. Each person whose heart has been touched by the Teaching Revelation of the True Heart-Master must rnake a choice in life as a result of this encounter with Truth. Let us not take for granted the great Gifts offered by Heart-Master Da. Let us not indulge in doubt of what has been Revealed to our hearts. Let us not fail to recognize the descent of Divine Grace occurring through the lncarnation of the Adept. Let us not turn frorn the Divine Lover who longs only for our ernbrace. May the Great Work continue through the Agency of devotees. May it flourish and prosper for all time.
The actual magazine article