The organisational environment in the 21st century is marked by an increasing disconnect between corporate goals and ethical behaviour, resulting in a massive crisis of trust and leadership. The classical leadership theories that emphasise short-term performance and profit-oriented goals tend to lack the moral courage needed to do real governance. The research paper's approach is exploratory and qualitative, with interpretative hermeneutics used to derive management implications for the application of ancient Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), namely, the Bhagavad Gita and the Ramayana. The results point to the fact that sound leadership can be based on the aspect of Nishkama Karma (selfless action as the duty), on Samatvam (emotional equanimity) and on the aspect of Lokasangraha (doing this in the interest of the welfare of the society). Instead of focusing on the outside compliance, this paradigm takes an internal ethical compass that lies in the idea of Dharma (righteous duty). This paper finds that a Dharma-based paradigm is a strong answer to the contemporary governance shortcomings, which promotes the long-term organisational sustainability and social acceptability. These classic principles combined will enable leaders to go beyond transactional management and establish organisations that are ethically sound and strategically productive.