occasion of the funeral service of His Holiness Sri Swami Sahajananda,
spiritual head of Divine Life Society of South Africa
11 December 2007
My humble prostrations to the Great Soul, Sri Swami Sahajananda, who has
entered the heavenly abode of God. To all devotees and members of the Divine
Life Society, I am indeed saddened to give this message on this occasion. As
Premier of the province of KwaZulu-Natal, I want to express deep condolences
from the President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki and all
government leaders.
Today the Divine Life Society of South Africa has lost its most saintly and
noble leader who has sacrificed his life for the upliftment of the poor and
disadvantaged. He has shown what one non-governmental organisation has done to
enrich the lives of millions of people in our country. H.H. Sri Swami
Sahajananda's abiding philanthropy and concern for the underprivileged,
children in particular, irrespective of their cast, colour or creed, is deeply
appreciated. His works spans over 58 years of serving and working with the
poorest of the poor.
Some two years ago, I had the good fortune of meeting Swamiji in person.
What touched me was the humility of such a saintly person. He never asked me
anything but said how I can serve you and the people. He immediately set up a
framework to work with my office through the co-operation of Ishwar Ramlutchman
and Pradeep Ramlall who supported Swamiji. Project after project speaks volumes
of this great soul who guided the work meticulously.
The Divine Life Society has been involved in the building of innumerable
schools and other projects. By its independent programmes it has relieved the
provincial government of considerable expense and effort, to be expended
elsewhere. It is in recognition of their valuable and trustworthy commitment to
the development of the disadvantaged that I agreed to a partnership to
accelerate service delivery. I could not believe that such a rare and
extraordinary human being could exist, who was so selfless and humble. I was
captivated by his magnetic personality and on occasions when he had meetings or
visited the ashram or the Sivananda Ghat, he would always be so respectful and
listened to whatever I said. He never said no to any of my suggestions. Today I
am witness to the following:
* The improvement of infrastructure so that learners can learn under
conditions which accord with their human dignity. Thousands of classrooms have
been built in the deep rural areas.
* The creation of a number of skills training centres for the rural people
called peace centres has helped to promote poverty alleviation through its
multifarious use such as sewing, handicrafts and so on, amongst the poorest of
the poor.
* The building of clinics and other facilities such as housing for the poor
has alleviated the suffering of the rural people even during the apartheid
era.
It is fitting and appropriate to outline these key contributions. Swamiji
was equally concerned with the decline in social and other evils that have
invaded our society. Swamiji through his compassion and dedication to the
moral, educational and spiritual upliftment of communities brought about a
renaissance in South Africa and as government we are appreciative of Swami
Sahajananda's contribution to building hope and peace amongst our poorest of
communities.
As a true hero of South Africa, he interacted with all race groups and
religious communities for the promotion of peace and development. Having
himself been affected by poverty at an early age, he saw to it that education
was the key weapon to eradicating poverty. He told me how his divine master
forced him to come back to South Africa and start this mission. His master knew
that he had to play an important role in developing our country. He fostered
interfaith co-operation with the Nazareth Baptist Church by building indoor
baptismal pools. He did the work of God and was a beacon of light when there
was little hope for a better future for the poor.
Some weeks ago, the KwaZulu-Natal provincial Cabinet honoured Swamiji with a
special Humanitarian Award. Little did we realise that his life was being
recalled by God. I saw it fit to honour Swamiji during his lifetime during the
celebrations in Richards Bay with the provincial humanitarian award and to me
it was a privilege to have interacted with such a great soul. I pray that our
society will continue to do the noble work to honour the legacy that Swamiji
has left behind. He was a gentle giant and compassionate soul and his life was
filled with the blessing from God to realise purpose on earth. We all will miss
Swamiji but I know that he will be guiding us from the heavenly regions as he
was a messiah and messenger from God alone.
Thank you.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
11 December 2007
