Leading and Managing Voluntary Manpower in the light of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Farmans

1. Leading and Managing Voluntary Manpowerin the light of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Farmans Presented by Kamaluddin Ali Muhammad www.kamalzar.com

2. SERVICEUniversal Human Ethics

3. Some inspiring messages-1 • When you shift from a compulsion to survive toward a commitment to serve others, your life cannot help but explode into success. (Anonymous) • Happiness comes from devoting your life to helping others…the hand that gives is the hand that gathers, and giving begins the receiving process. (Anonymous)

4. Some inspiring messages-2 • Life is short. Do not forget about the most important things in life; living for other people and doing good for them. (Leo Tolstoy). • I expect to pass through this life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now, and not defer or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again. (William Penn)

5. Service in the ethics of Islam • Believers are brothers, so make peace between your brothers. (Quran, 49:10) • A Muslim is a brother to another Muslim (Hadith)

6. Some fundamental ethics of Islam • Brotherhood • Generosity • Kindness • Forgiveness • Sharing fortunes • Care for the needy, poor, sick, aged, weak.

7. TRADITION OF SERVICE IN OUR TARIQAH • "…many murids are finding it difficult to find the time as programmes are developing and becoming demanding. Murids have to find the time. The tradition of service is intrinsic to our Tariqah, it is intrinsic to Islam, it is a source of strength. Protect it, articulate it, strengthen it, give it sense of quality and recognition that it should have.“ (Aiglemont, 20-10-1993)

8. SERVICE IS A BLESSING Minnat mane ke khidmat-e-sultan hami kuni Minnat shanās azu ke ba khidmat guzāshtat (Sheikh Sa’di)

9. IMAM’S APPRECIATION-1 “Every time I visit my Jamat, there are murids who offer voluntary service, and there are those who I see with my eyes and there are those who I feel with heart.” (Dar-es-Salaam, 17th July 2002)

10. IMAM’S APPRECIATION-2 “And these workers I am aware of, they are everywhere, they are silent, they don't seek recognition and Imam does not necessarily give them worldly recognition. But they are very close to his heart, they are very deep in his recognition…and to those workers who are so close to me, so deep in my affection, so deep in my admiration, so deep in my respect, I give my best, my warmest and my most affectionate blessings.“ (Nairobi, 24-04-1992)

11. HIDDEN LEADERS "In a strange way I think of you as 'hidden leaders', 'hidden leaders'. In other words, those who know how to serve but seek nothing other than the happiness of serving and that in itself is leadership. I congratulate you.“ (Toronto, 27-04-1983)

12. MEANING OF SERVICE • Helping the Imamat, helping Allah • Personal satisfaction and happiness

13. IMAM’S EXPECTATIONS • Highest level of service, recognized globally • Providing strength to the Jamat • Service for the betterment of the institutions and the Jamat, not for the sake of service only

14. PURPOSE OF SERVICE “…you must ask yourselves 'how can I improve in my service? what are the things that my institution can do better which it is not doing?' This means that there is a premium on intelligent service, on competent service, not just service for the sake of service but service for the betterment of people and for the betterment of the institution.“ (Hyderabad, Sindh, Institution Mulaqat, 14-03-1989)

15. NATURE OF SERVICE • Value based / service based institutions • Servant leadership • The leader of the community is its servant (Hadith)

16. No compromise on ethics • The Prophet (s.a.s.) was known as Sādiq and Amīn before he was given the office of Prophesy • Be true to yourself • Example of seed - chief executive • Nurse and doctor.

17. How to encourage and sustain voluntary service-1 • Meritocracy • Encouragement; be generous in appreciation, be kind to the juniors. • Recognition • Delegate authority • Transparency (no intrigue, no politics, no bureaucracy) • Praise in public, discipline in private

18. How to encourage and sustain voluntary service-2 • Consultation, no power stronger than consultation • Team work (no bossing), “we” instead of “I”. The prophet’s example • Input of knowledge for growth • Do not suppress or hide credits of others • Avoid personal preferences and biases • Solve issues through ethics rather than through power and authority

19. CREATIVITY • Welcome ideas • Encourage ideas • Listen to ideas • No blinkers. • No MBA attitude (Mane Badhū Āvde i.e. I know everything)

20. ENCOURAGE IDEAS-1 “Bring forward your ideas. It is only a stupid person who does not listen to ideas. It means he is like a horse and I know something about horses, who live with blinkers like this and all they can see ahead of them is a little tiny dimension of light. No, that is not for our jamat – listen to ideas, develop ideas, create ideas and bring them forward for the service of the jamat.” (Hyderabad, Sindh, Institution Mulaqat, 14-03-1989)

21. ENCOURAGE IDEAS-2 “And as I said it is only the horse that has blinkers and he cannot see right and he cannot see left and he won't listen. It is only that sort of a horse that goes straight, straight, straight, straight, straight and it never looks for a new direction, a new idea, something creative. Let's not be a horse with blinkers. Let's be an open minded creative jamat that preameates intelligence, competence, creativity…” (Hyderabad, Sindh, Institution Mulaqat, 14-03-1989)

22. FACE OF THE IMAM • In a symbolic way the institutions are the face of the Imam towards the Jamat. • Many dissidents are not unhappy with the Imam or the faith but with the system or people.

23. REAL SOURCE OF STRENGTH • The real source of strength is inside • Seek help from Ibabat, dhikr, meditation, prayers, intuition, contemplation, reflection, silence, solitude, introspection. Attār ho Rumi ho Rāzi ho Ghazāli ho, Kuchh hāth nahin ātā be āh-e-sahar gāhi (Iqbal)

24. PERSONAL RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS • Personal search for enlightenment / practice of faith should not be sacrificed or compromised. • No service is a substitute for practice of faith. A laxity is normally observed • Concentrate on service at the time of service and fulfill personal religious obligations as soon as possible • Do not keep the volunteers away from Jamatkhana for a long time. Rotate them

25. NO DAMAGE TO FAMILY LIFE • Family life should not be allowed to damage for the sake of service. • Sacrifice with understanding: YES. Damage with emotionalism: NO. • No risk taking, example of light committee

26. ACCOUNTABILITY • Accountability is a must • No responsibility without answerability • Answerable to the Jamat, to the Imam, and to the conscience • Judicious use of Imam's resources. • Donations are also Imam’s resources, don’t take them lightly

27. Service with a smile • To the jamat be humble, polite, courteous, smiling • "If you meet a person without a smile, give him one of yours.” (Anonymous) • Servants of the Jamat, not policeman.

28. CHANGE AND GROWTH • Preparing second/third line of leadership. • Evolution and Change is natural for growth. Facilitate it where required, don't block it. • Look at the larger interest of the Jamat

29. CONCEPT OF CHANGE-1 “The notion of service is a notion which changes in time because the needs of the Jamat change, and, therefore, programmes and institutions must change accordingly and, in so far as possible, they must anticipate change. That is, they must seek to ease and anticipate and interpret the process of change” (Nairobi, 13-03-1997)

30. CONCEPT OF CHANGE-2 “Your institutions…are there to serve you well. Where that happens I am happy. Where that doesn't happen, I am unhappy. Where that doesn't happen, I will ensure change…because it is a part of life. Only Allah is perfect. There is no perfection otherwise…the notion of frozen institutions is one of the most dangerous things in society.“ (Kampala 10-03-1997)

31. Be prepared to accept criticism • Kuchh to log kahenge, logoṅ kā kām hae kehnā… • “The world will provide you with stones everyday. What you build out of it is your choice…wall, road or a bridge…you even choose to do nothing. At the end, world will know you by what you did with it.” (Anonymous)

32. MEANING OF AUTHORITY "…remember that authority has with it duty and the need to serve. There is no authority in my mind which is healthy if it is absolute and it does not take place within a philosophical and a social context. And, therefore, in your leadership to the jamat be considerate, be humble, be hard-working and share with the jamat their concerns and their needs, so that they come to you not out of duty and obligation but they come to you out of affection and respect and love and admiration.” (Gilgit 21-11-1987, meeting with leaders)

33. THANKS Special thanks to Mr. Amir Ali Kassam Ali (HRD, Itreb for Pakistan) for his help in preparing the presentation

34. THANK YOU