Shepherd Leadership, A Leadership Style Marginalized in the Modern Era

By Agus Sudarmaji, Global Leadership Behavior Observer

Shepherd Leadership is the oldest leadership style in the world. Before the world was dominated by often-corrupt political leaders and exploitative corporate leaders, there were great leaders who came to humanity. They were the prophets and messengers sent by God to save humanity from their ignorance and from the oppression of tyrannical rulers like Nimrod and the pharaohs.

These prophets and messengers all used the same leadership style: the shepherd style. Their methods were identical because the knowledge they used was the same, originating from divine command. This means the oldest leadership in the world used the shepherd style.

Ironically, despite being the most effective, as it flawlessly achieved its mission, this style has been marginalized by the modern field of leadership studies. You can check any textbook on political, social, or corporate leadership, and you won’t find a single section that even mentions it, let alone discusses it in detail.

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There is a somewhat similar style, Servant Leadership, popularized in the 1970s by Robert K. Greenleaf in his book, The Servant as a Leader. This servant leadership style was more readily accepted by academics and practitioners because it emphasizes values like public service, integrity, social contribution, and, most importantly, humility. This style requires a leader to treat their subordinates as equals, respect them, and even grant them special privileges.

This servant leadership style immediately captivated many leaders because it was effective for quickly building their personal brands as popular figures. 

This is the key: it’s not far from personal interests and self-image. By acting like a servant who cares for those they serve, leaders are quickly accepted and begin to cement their influence in the minds of their followers. This happens not only in organizations but also online, where influencers use this style to attract more people’s sympathy.

Although they seem similar, the shepherd leadership style is different from the servant style. Both indeed attract human sympathy with the leaders’ humility and their efforts to make their followers happy and prosperous. 

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A leader with the shepherd style is much more resolute in presenting themselves as a role model in terms of values and morality, and they make a maximal effort to protect and care for their followers. On the other hand, the servant style emphasizes the practicality of being useful to their followers from various angles.

Modern Leadership Studies: A Secularistic Field

Shepherd leadership is likely not discussed in modern leadership references because of its religious nature. The secularistic world of modern leadership studies has little room for it. It can be assumed that the shepherd style has the potential to cause conflict between secular and religious followers of leadership studies. In secular communities, discussions about religious matters are avoided.

It’s also possible that religious matters are viewed as lacking or having no scientific value because they are heavily loaded with religious bias. To be considered scientific, something must be completely free from any religious tendencies.

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This assumption can actually be refuted because the shepherd leadership style, like other leadership styles, has its own scientific basis. This style meets at least six criteria of a scientific theory: it is logical-rational, factual and empirically provable, can be tested with a scientific method, has a predictive function, can be generalized across different situational contexts, and is consistent.

The Scent of Islamophobia

This can be seen as a confirmation of the discriminatory phenomenon of the modern scientific world toward things with a religious flavor. The term often used here is religious phobia, specifically Islamophobia. Traces of Islamophobia can be found in the world of science. For example, dhikr therapy (a form of remembrance of God in Islam) is considered unscientific despite being effective in treating various mental disorders.

The world of psychology is more accepting of psychotherapy techniques from the Western world, which are considered empirically tested. Dhikr therapy, even after passing various scientific and even experimental tests, remains marginalized from the scientific realm.

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Similarly, in the world of modern leadership studies, the shepherd leadership style is seen as having a strong biblical impression because it originates from Christian and Islamic religious traditions. Besides not being discussed scientifically, the style is also not recommended for application in the secularistic world. 

This is despite the fact that the style has proven to be the most effective, guiding humanity from age to age toward salvation from the oppression of worldly rulers. It has even been proven to destroy the power of these tyrannical rulers by replacing them with a non-oppressive leadership system.

The Origin of the Shepherd Leadership Concept

From an Islamic perspective, the origin of the shepherd leadership concept can be traced to the main references of Islamic teachings: the Qur’an and the Hadith. In a Hadith from ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar, the Prophet shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said:

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كُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ فَمَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ، فَالأَمِيرُ الَّذِي عَلَى النَّاسِ رَاعٍ وَهُوَ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْهُمْ، وَالرَّجُلُ رَاعٍ عَلَى أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ وَهُوَ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْهُمْ، وَالمَرْأَةُ رَاعِيَةٌ عَلَى بَيْتِ بَعْلِهَا وَوَلَدِهِ وَهِيَ مَسْئُولَةٌ عَنْهُمْ، وَالعَبْدُ رَاعٍ عَلَى مَالِ سَيِّدِهِ وَهُوَ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْهُ، أَلاَ فَكُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ

“Each of you is a shepherd and is responsible for his flock. The Amir (head of state) is a shepherd of the people, and he is responsible for them. A man is a shepherd over his family and is responsible for them. A woman is a shepherd over her husband’s household and his children, and she is responsible for them. A slave is a shepherd over his master’s property and is responsible for it. Indeed, each of you is a shepherd and is responsible for his flock.” (Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim)

It is clearly stated in this hadith that every human being is a Ro’in, or a leader. The original meaning of the word Ro’in is a shepherd, or one who cares for livestock. The implicit message is that everyone has a leadership role and duty that is an authentic human trust.

This trust does not discriminate by gender; both men and women are treated the same. It also does not discriminate by socio-familial status or position within the family, whether as a master or a subordinate. The obligation is inherent to the different statuses and positions.

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The plural form of the word Ro’in, Ro’uun, is found in the Qur’an, in Surah Al Mu’minun, verse 8: 

الَّذِيْنَ هُمْ لِاَمٰنٰتِهِمْ وَعَهْدِهِمْ رَاعُوْنَۙ ۝٨

“And they who are to their trusts and their promises maintainers.”

This verse is part of a series at the beginning of Surah Al Mu’minun that talks about the characteristics of believers, who are described as the most fortunate and successful people. The characteristic of believers concerning their trusts and promises is Ro’uun. This means they act to maintain them like a shepherd who is very caring, cautious, and responsible in maintaining their flock.

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In the book Al Mufrodat Ligharibil Qur’an, Imam Ar Raghib Al Asfahani states that Ro’uun is the act of herding animals by providing them food for their survival and protecting them from enemies (the interference of thieves/robbers or predator animals). 

The basis of the act of leading is a great sense of responsibility. A shepherd is not the owner of the flock. He only receives a trust from his master or the employer who hires him. 

At the end of his service, the shepherd will be asked or held accountable for the execution of his trust. A leader with the shepherd leadership style is afraid of failing to be accountable for their leadership. This is what distinguishes it from all other leadership styles often discussed in textbooks.

Learning Leadership by Shepherding

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In essence, all prophets and messengers were shepherds, as stated in the following hadith:

The prophet shallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam said,

مَا بَعَثَ اللَّهُ نَبِيًّا إِلَّا رَعَى الْغَنَمَ فَقَالَ أَصْحَابُهُ وَأَنْتَ فَقَالَ نَعَمْ كُنْتُ أَرْعَاهَا عَلَى قَرَارِيطَ لِأَهْلِ مَكَّةَ

“Allah did not send a prophet except that he used to herd goats.” His companions asked, “And you?” He said, “Yes, I used to herd them for the people of Mecca for a few cents.” (Narrated by Al-Bukhari) 

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Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala ordained the leadership journey of the prophets and messengers, including the Prophet Muhammad shallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam, to begin in childhood by herding goats. 

Goats are specifically mentioned because a goat shepherd typically has a calm, humble, and simple soul. This is different from horse and camel herders, who tend to be arrogant, as mentioned in the following hadith: 

The prophet shallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam said,

وَالفَخْرُ وَالخُيَلاَءُ فِي أَهْلِ الخَيْلِ وَالإِبِلِ، وَالفَدَّادِينَ أَهْلِ الوَبَرِ، وَالسَّكِينَةُ فِي أَهْلِ الغَنَمِ

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“Pride and arrogance are found among the owners of horses and camels, and the loud, coarse desert dwellers. As for tranquility, it is found among the owners of goats.” (Narrated by Bukhari, no. 3301, and Muslim, no. 52)

Herding goats is a complete physical and spiritual training to become a reliable leader. By becoming accustomed to performing all the detailed tasks of a goat herder, a prophet becomes skilled in managing various leadership duties. 

They protect their followers from various threats, ensure everyone is cared for and their needs are met, overcome various difficulties in the open fields, and bring all their goats home safely. [Shibgho]

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)