New book reveals how to lead spiritually in ways big and small

The world is a pretty messy place these days: political unrest, a pandemic, global warming. It’s enough to make anyone wonder if there’s anything anyone can do to make it better. Well, spiritual teacher, entrepreneur, and yogi Daniel Aaron has the answer for that. He believes that each of us needs to be a leader, but not just any kind of leader, we need to be spiritual leaders. He opens his new book The Art of Spiritual Leadership by saying, “Activating your potential to become an extraordinary spiritual leader is the most practical, magical, and valuable step you can take right now. It is the key to manifesting what you most desire in your life.” “. life: meaning, impact, success, abundance, love and happiness.” I couldn’t agree more, and I’m delighted that Daniel is willing to share in these pages his journey of becoming a spiritual leader in his own life for that we may follow his example and become the same in ours.

So it’s no surprise that the book’s subtitle is “40 Laws to Transform Your Life (and the World)”. That statement makes it clear that changing the world has to start with changing ourselves. We cannot remove the speck from another person’s eye until we remove the log from our own so that we can see clearly. The Art of Spiritual Leadership is a blend of Daniel’s personal spiritual adventures and those of other spiritual leaders for the purpose of sharing their combined hard-earned wisdom. Those other leaders range from Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi to Bhagavan Das and Richard Alpert. The 40 Laws or Axioms of Spiritual Leadership are peppered throughout the book. Some of them are charmingly surprising, like the first “You’re amazing.” Who would you think would be top leadership? However, we have to believe in ourselves if we want to believe that we can make a difference in the world. Others are quite wise, like the thirty-sixth:

“Leadership is never a function of position and always one of responsibility and action.” In other words, true leaders are not concerned with being admired for being leaders, but rather with getting the job done and making a positive difference. Daniel describes a spiritual leader as someone who “fosters and promotes a fulfilling view of life, characterized by joy, vitality, freedom, expansion, and love.” Spiritual leaders may, but do not, exist in religions, politics, or business, but leaders in all of those areas really should be spiritual leaders. That will make the world a better place, and Daniel is about making the world a better place.

Mixed in with all this wisdom is a bit of madness: some tales of Daniel’s adventures and his occasional mistakes and what he learned along the way. They range from Daniel’s quest for spirituality at Humaniversity and dressing up as Braveheart to scuba diving and traveling. Throughout, they are filled with humor, tragedy, healing, wisdom, and redemption. In every experience, good and bad, Daniel has learned lessons that have helped him live a better life.

Beyond the stories, this book functions in many ways as a personal spiritual leadership retreat for readers. At the end of each chapter, Daniel provides exercises and activities for readers to get the most out of what they’ve read, depending on how much work they want to do. Basically, it’s like deciding how deep you want to dive into spiritual work. Consequently, he offers three levels to choose from: the Lazy River Rider, Snorkeler, or Deep Diver approach. The activities for each level are described at the end of each chapter. For example, Lazy River Riders can be encouraged to think about something, Snorkelers can be kept in a journal about it, and Deep Divers can be asked to take action.

One thing I really enjoyed about this book was the variety of experiences Daniel had. He has looked for meaning in many places. He tells work stories at psychic fairs in Spain and Portugal; attend Humaniversity, an institute for personal growth, in the Netherlands; teaching in Bali; and living at Omega, a rural retirement center in New York. His openness to diverse experiences and his search for meaning and wisdom is admirable. His many stories are not only an entertaining read, but are also always insightful and educational.

Perhaps most importantly, Daniel teaches us how to retrain much of our thinking. He has learned to turn off negative thoughts, or at least stop before saying anything negative. He has learned to look for the positive even in things that may seem less than desirable at first, and he is optimistic about our future, even envisioning a day for humanity where there will be no more war. He believes it can happen if we learn to be spiritual leaders who put the good of humanity before ourselves.

I encourage you to read The Art of Spiritual Leadership and discover how the advice it contains can transform you. I am sure you will find many spiritual laws and insights that will awaken you to a better understanding of yourself, the world, and the enhanced role you can play in it.