And he lacked self awareness.
Slight correction. LKY was a great politician – one of the greatest of the century – a titan of a leader, but he was never a great man.
How could he be, when he was petty, small-minded, vindictive and ruthless in the way he went about destroying his opponents? It speaks of a puny heart, one that is devoid of compassion and empathy, and an extremely narcissistic existence that was centred on remaking the world around him in his image and his vision.
Mandela was a great man; that's why the general outpouring of grief and sadness worldwide at his death was genuine and spontaneous. And the admiration and love for the man (if not his legacy) the humbling acknowledgement that a mortal can embody a superhuman magnanimity of spirit, will last into posterity.