Here is an impressive story which talks about the discipline of a Leader :
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HEAR THE UNHEARD
Back in the third century A.D., the King Tsao sent his son, Prince Tai to the temple to study under the great master pan Ku. Because prince Tai was to succeed his father as king, Pan Ku was to teach the boy the basics of being a good ruler. When the prince arrived at the temple, the master sent him alone to the Forest. After one year the prince was to return to the temple, to describe the sound of the forest.
When Prince Tai returned, the master asked the boy to describe all that he could hear. The Prince replied, "Master, I could hear the cuckoos sing, the leave rustle, the humming birds hum, the crickets chirp, the grass blow, the bees buss, and the wind whisper and holler." When the prince had finished the master told him to go back to the forest to listen to what more he could hear. The prince was puzzled by the master's request. Had he not discerned every sound already?
For days and nights on, the young prince sat alone in the forest listening. But he heard no sounds other than those he had already heard. Then one morning as the prince sat silently beneath the trees he started to discern faint sounds unlike those he had ever heard before. The more acutely he listened the clearer the sounds became. The feeling of enlightenment enveloped the boy. These must be the sounds the master wished me to discern. He reflected.
When Prince Tai returned to the temple the master asked him what more he had heard. "Master", responded the prince reverently "when I listened most closely I could hear the unheard -
the sound of flowers opening
the sound of the petal falling on the grass
the sound of the sun warming the ear and
the sound of the grass drinking the morning dew. "
The master nodded approvingly and remarked that Pan Ku has attained the necessary discipline to be a good ruler. For, only when a ruler has learned to listen closely to the people hearts, hearing their feelings uncommunicated, pains unexpressed and complaints not spoken of, can he hope to inspire confidence in his people, understand when something is wrong and meet the true needs of his citizens. The demise of states comes when leaders listen only to superficial works and do not penetrate deeply in the souls of the people to hear their true opinions feelings and desires.