‘Nourish to Flourish’: Chinmaya Mission spreads the vision of Sanatana Dharma in South Africa

|| te prāpnuvanti mām eva sarva-bhūta-hite ratāḥ || Bhagavad Gita 12.4
Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita, “They alone attain me who are absorbed in the welfare
of all beings!”
This very spirit of our Sanatana Dharma, to see Narayana in everyone around and serve all as
an extension of one’s own Self, has been the lifeline that presents our culture as a beacon of
light and hope the world over. One such spiritual organization, firmly rooted in our traditions,
kindling divinity in hearts across the globe, is the Chinmaya Mission – founded by Pujya
Gurudev H. H. Swami Chinmayananda in 1951, with the motto to provide “Maximum
Happiness, to maximum people, for maximum time’. The Chinmaya Mission has over 300
centres and a vast network of dedicated devotees, led by various Swamins and Brahmacharins
of the Mission, under the guidance of Pujya Swami Swaroopananda, the present Global Head.
In the past decade, the vision of Pujya Gurudev has made a glorious mark east of India, in
South Africa. Chinmaya Mission of South Africa, led by its spiritual in-charge, Swami
Abhedananda Sarasvati, has brought a revolution within the Hindu community of South Africa,
reigniting the cultural spark and spiritual flame within them, and reconnecting them to their
roots in Bharat. The Chinmaya Shivam Temple and main ashram, based in Durban, functions
as the heart of the Mission’s presence in the nation, which spans across 6 ashrams in 3 major
cities, Durban, Johannesburg, and Cape Town.

Vijayadashami, 12th October 2024, marked a historical moment for Chinmaya Mission South
Africa. This day saw the Grand Launch of ‘Nourish to Flourish’, the organization’s
magnanimous initiative to feed over 2000 underprivileged families and schoolchildren in South
Africa, every single day of the year, for free! The evening saw over 700 attendees from across
the city including underprivileged beneficiaries of the project, devotees, businessmen, media
persons, donors and key stakeholders, as well as a host of esteemed dignitaries. The Premier
(Chief Minister) of the KwaZulu-Natal Province and members of the central cabinet,
parliament, and other provincial departments strengthened the event with their support and
presence of Swami Abhedananda, Chinmaya Mission, and the Nourish to Flourish project. The
audience as well as thousands of online attendees from across the world were left overjoyed as
they witnessed the cutting of the ribbon and the Aarti of Devi Annapoorna, to inaugurate the
industrial kitchen that would serve as the akshaya-patra for the initiative. The kitchen is located
at ‘Chinmaya Annapoorna’, a redeveloped premises and the newest addition to the Mission’s
sacred spaces in the country. Starting on 13th October, the project has already fed over 5000
meals to children across 7 schools in the city of Durban.

Through the opening event, Chinmaya Mission became a platform uniting leaders across
political parties, organizations, racial and religious backgrounds, as they all came together in gratitude to the Divine and to the vision of Sanatana Dharma and the spiritual institutions that
abide in it.

Volunteers, beneficiaries, and officials associated with the project unanimously appreciated
Swami Abhedananda for initiating such a vision that is replete with shubha and lābha – sacred,
auspicious and benefitting each and every one who needs love, respect and care. Addressing
participants of the event, Swamiji candidly said, “When I was a child, my Gurudev Swami
Chinmayananda greatly loved and embraced me. That embrace only, I want to spread. Allow
me to make you our own.” In recognition of Swami Abhedananda’s service to humanity and
his contribution towards igniting the transformation of South African society over the last 18
years, he was conferred with the prestigious Sivananda Global Peace Award by the Premier Mr.
Thami Ntuli and Prince Ishwar Ramlutchman Mabheka Zulu.

Having served humanity in South Africa tirelessly for over 18 years and being the longest-
serving saint from Bharat in South Africa, Swami Abhedananda has made the Chinmaya

Mission’s ashram in Durban the only such learning centre in the nation that gives equal
importance to sevā, satsanga and sādhanā, established in the Vedas and scriptures. In the past
two decades, through uninterrupted daily satsangs, all the principal Upanishads, Bhagavad
Gita, Bhagavata Mahapurana, Valmiki and Tulasi Ramayana as well as portions from other
Puranas and Vedantic texts have been covered in immense detail, many of them more than
once. The 6 centres of the Mission are served by 6 Brahmacharins, who were once South
African Hindus and undertook a 2-year foundational study in Advaita Vedanta from Swami
Abhedananda and received dīksha in 2017, pledging their lives for the service of the Divine.
Indeed, Swami Abhedananda has brought a sacred revolution not only in the hearts of the Hindu
community but all others beyond in South Africa.