Leadership Perfected: Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the Making of Leaders

Sheikh Muhammad Imdad Hussain Pirzada

THE NEED FOR LEADERSHIP

Every institution, nation, enterprise and community requires capable leadership. Without it, even worthy ambitions can remain little more than unfulfilled hopes. A true leader does more than guide people towards an objective: a true leader develops those who follow and prepares them to lead in turn. As the American author Tom Peters observed, “True leaders don’t create followers; they create more leaders.”

Leadership is therefore essential not only to the advancement of a developing society or institution, but also to the continued flourishing of one that is already established. Without competent and exemplary leadership, progress can falter and decline can begin.

Arnold J. Toynbee examined the rise and fall of twenty-six civilisations in the course of human history and concluded that they rose when they responded successfully to challenges under the leadership of creative minorities composed of elite leaders. Civilisations declined when their leaders stopped responding creatively, and civilisations then sank as they succumbed to nationalism, militarism and the tyranny of a despotic minority. Leadership, in this reading of history, is not a decorative office. It can determine whether a civilisation rises to meet its challenges, or collapses beneath them.

PRINCIPLES AND QUALITIES OF LEADERSHIP

John Maxwell, one of the best-known contemporary writers on leadership, argues that its essential principles remain constant: “Leadership is leadership, no matter where you go or what you do. Times change. Technology marches forward. Cultures differ from place to place. But leadership principles are unchanging and stand the test of time.” [The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership]

Stephen Covey likewise grounds effective leadership in enduring principles. He describes them as “inviolate principles” and “natural laws” within the human dimension: they are not invented by individuals or societies, and they do not shift with fashion or circumstance. [Principle-Centered Leadership]

Jim Collins once asked Covey how he had arrived at the ideas presented in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Covey replied: “I wrote the book, but the principles were known long before me. They are more like natural laws. All I did was put them together, to synthesize them for people.” [The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People]

A leader thinks wisely about the future. A leader’s vision perceives what others cannot yet see, discovers opportunities within difficulties, and makes complex problems and demanding objectives easier to understand. Leadership begins with the ability to see beyond the immediate moment and to help others believe that a different future is possible.

Maxwell expresses this relationship between the leader, the people and the vision in memorable terms: “The leader finds the dream and then the people. The people find the leader and then the dream. People don’t at first follow worthy causes. They follow worthy leaders who promote causes they can believe in. People buy into the leader first, then the leader’s vision.” [The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership]

LEADERSHIP AS RESPONSIBILITY

Leadership is not confined to rulers, executives or the heads of institutions. Every person carries some measure of responsibility. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: ‘Every one of you is a guardian, and every one of you will be questioned about those under your care.’ [Al-Bukhari]

The capacity for leadership is not distributed equally, nor can every person lead in every field. Alongside the qualities shared by all human beings, Allah has placed within each person particular abilities and potential. Recognising those abilities requires honest self-examination. As it has been said: “Whoever recognises himself has recognised his Lord.” The one who truly knows himself recognises both his own limitations and the power of his Lord.

When a person identifies a distinctive ability and devotes energy to cultivating it, he may become a capable leader within that field. Leadership thus begins with responsibility for the self: knowing one’s strengths, acknowledging one’s limitations, and developing the qualities through which one can serve others.

THE PROPHETIC STANDARD

Maxwell proposed 21 irrefutable laws of leadership, yet acknowledged in the introduction to his own book: “Despite the fact that we must do 21 things well to be excellent leaders, it is reality that none of us does all of them well. For example, I am average or below average in five of the laws—and I wrote the book.” [The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership]

His admission points to a familiar human reality. Different leaders embody different qualities to varying degrees, but rarely are all the qualities of leadership combined perfectly in one person. History nevertheless bears witness that, 14 centuries ago, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ embodied these qualities with an unparalleled completeness.

Today, colleges, universities, training institutes and digital media can teach leadership to thousands of people at once, yet only a limited number become leaders of lasting consequence. Fourteen centuries ago, Arabia possessed none of these modern institutions or means of mass communication. In only 23 years, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ transformed a dispersed, largely unlettered and tribal people into a community united by faith, knowledge and moral purpose. He did not merely gather followers. He honoured them as his Companions, nurtured their abilities and formed from among them thousands of leaders whose example continues to guide people today.

This was leadership not merely through instruction, but through formation: the cultivation of character, judgement, courage, responsibility and service. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ exemplified the principle that the finest leader is the one who enables others to rise.

THE INHERITANCE OF PROPHETIC LEADERSHIP

Allah established the succession of prophethood for the guidance of humankind. It began with the Prophet Adam and reached its completion with the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, after whom there is no prophet. Earlier prophets were sent to particular peoples and places, whereas the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was sent for every people and every age. His example therefore continues to illuminate every field of human life.

Ibn Abbas relates that, when the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was born, Ridwan, the gatekeeper of Paradise, proclaimed: “O Muhammad! Glad tidings for you. Allah has granted you all the knowledge (virtues, insight, discernment and understanding) that He bestowed individually upon the prophets. Your knowledge is therefore greater than theirs, and your heart is more courageous.” [Al-Mawahib al-Ladunniyyah]

Abu Dharr asked the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ how many prophets there had been, and he replied: “One hundred and twenty-four thousand.” [Al-Mustadrak] The Qur’an states: “And We sent each Messenger only to be obeyed by Allah’s permission.” [Al-Nisa’, 4:64] Every prophet was therefore the divinely guided leader of his people.

All prophets share the essence of prophethood, just as all people share the essence of humanity, although their individual ranks and qualities differ. The Qur’an declares that Allah granted some messengers distinction over others [Al-Baqarah, 2:253]. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ stands as the final prophet and the leader of them all. He said: “I am the leader of the Messengers—and I say this without boasting.” [Al-Darimi]

Allah bestowed particular virtues and qualities upon individual prophets and gathered those excellences in the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. If each of the 124,000 prophets possessed even one distinctive quality of leadership, their combined virtues would exceed one hundred thousand qualities. These qualities were gathered in the person of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, together with further excellences known fully to Allah alone.

LEADERSHIP AT THE PINNACLE OF HUMAN HISTORY

“The beauty of Joseph, the life-giving breath of Jesus, the radiant hand of Moses;

All excellences, gathered in their totality, are yours alone.” [Jalal al-Din Rumi (or) Saadi Shirazi]

The greater a leader’s influence, the more closely followers and opponents alike examine his life. No leader in human history has inspired a body of literature comparable to that written about the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ by Muslims and non-Muslims. Libraries and universities across the world preserve countless studies of his life, bearing witness to the depth and reach of his influence.

His public and private life has also been preserved with a comprehensiveness rarely found in the biographies of other leaders. Muhammad Shafi writes: “No one can rival the Muslims in the honour of having preserved every detail of the circumstances and events of their Prophet’s life with such comprehensiveness.” [Sayyid al-Wara] This record allows leadership to be studied not only through public declarations and moments of triumph, but also through conduct within the home, friendship, hardship, conflict, and ordinary daily life.

There is no genuine quality of leadership identified by later thinkers whose substance cannot be found within the prophetic biography. As changing circumstances reveal new dimensions of human need, readers continue to discover new dimensions in the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. David Margoliouth, an Oxford scholar of Arabic, wrote: “The biographers of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ form a long series which it is impossible to end, but in which it would be honourable to find a place.” [Muhammad and the Rise of Islam]

Many leaders have spoken words of wisdom and embodied some admirable qualities. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ did more: he united word and deed across the religious, social, political and personal dimensions of life. His example remains visible because both his public conduct and private character were preserved. More than 14 centuries later, over a quarter of the world’s population continues to regard him with profound love, devotion and a desire to follow his example.

His standing is also acknowledged beyond the Muslim tradition. The American writer, historian and philosopher Will Durant observed: “If we rated greatness by the influence of the great, we will say—Muhammad is the greatest of the great in history.” [Muhammad: 1001 Universal Appreciations]

The French writer and statesman Alphonse de Lamartine asked: “If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding results are the three criteria of human genius, who could dare to compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad?” He described the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ as philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, conqueror of ideas and restorer of rational beliefs, concluding: “As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask: is there any man greater than he?” [Muhammad: 1001 Universal Appreciations]

The American writer Michael Hart placed the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ first in his ranking of history’s most influential people. He explained: “He was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.” Hart noted that, from humble origins, he founded and promulgated one of the world’s great religions, became an immensely effective political leader, and left an influence that remained powerful and pervasive centuries after his death. [The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History]

ENDURING INFLUENCE AND THE SEARCH FOR WISDOM

In institutions of law such as Lincoln’s Inn in London and the Supreme Court in Washington, DC, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ has been recognised among the great lawgivers of history. Such recognition reflects the understanding that his legacy touches not only personal worship, but also governance, justice and public order.

---