SOUTH AFRICA, January 13, 2026 (Rising sun Newspaper): The Cato Manor Hindu Temple in Bellair Road calls upon the sons and daughters of its once-vibrant community to return to the temple this year and carry the kavady, not only as an offering, but as a living tribute to the forebears who once walked these sacred grounds with devotion. Thanigasala Gurukkal, the spiritual head of the almost 100-year-old temple, popularly known as the First River Temple, said several decades ago, former residents of the Cato Manor area carried the kavady at the temple with faith and dignity, even as their homes and lives were torn apart under the harshness of the Group Areas Act. For many years after the residents of Cato Manor moved out, they returned to the temple each year to carry kavady. However, with time, most of the former residents passed away, and their descendants have not followed in the tradition of their forebears.
“I appeal to the descendants of former residents of Cato Manor to return to the temple to carry kavady, which is more than a ritual. It is a remembrance. It is the heartbeat of tradition echoing across generations. It is a way to honor those who came before us, whose sacrifices and prayers still linger in the walls of this temple that has stood for some many generations as a beacon of resilience and faith. By lifting the kavady, you lift the weight of memory, of family, of community. You ensure that the legacy of Cato Manor’s people – uprooted by apartheid but never forgotten – continues to live on. In every step, in every offering, the spirit of our forebears is respected, upheld, and carried forward into the future,” said Gurukkal, who was the first and longest-serving priest to be brought to South Africa from Sri Lanka at a time when India imposed cultural sanctions against South Africa in its opposition to racism.
https://risingsunnewspapers.co.za/320698/reviving-kavady-at-the-historical-cato-manor-hindu-temple/
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