We are the ones who will have to be greater than Mandela

You are greater than Mandela.

Our greatest strength as a people is when we are at our weakest.

Waking up in our humble homes to the news that the founding father of this nation, the great Nelson Mandela has passed on, we were not quite ready to believe that.

But over the years, ever since he was sentenced to life imprisonment for sedition in 1963, we have been haunted by the prospect of his death over and over again. We discovered and rediscovered that there is no one like him until — on the birthday of his political nemesis, Robert Sobukwe — he gave up the ghost.

There is nothing startling new in that Mandela is dead, I know. It is now a fact that President Gedleyihlekisa Zuma has announced it without his spokesperson, Mac Maharaj. Yet it is a stark fact that can be, and must be repeated for many days so long as there are some of us who refuse to believe that the man is dead.

In one way or another, the man may be dead but his spirit lives … in me, in you and in all of us.

We had to pass through this fire in our lifetime. Each of us must find out for himself that the death of Mandela is not for ever so long as there are caring and proud South African citizens, he cannot die. His spirit lives.

If he did not finish his business, that is, to translate the ideals and principles that are enshrined in the Freedom Charter and translated into the Constitution, then it is our patriotic duty to complete the mission. His failures and shortcomings, in that we have too much economic inequality and the land and its wealth is not yet shared among those who live and work in it, must be conquered. Or else, we will continue to perish.

I think it is natural that people should demand that a saint, of the calibre and stature of Mandela should not die but live for ever. But no matter how great he was, and how humble and insignificant we are, we are mere mortals and must die. The message of Mandela’s passing is that the man dies but his spirit lives … in all of us.

I do not think that there is any man or woman alive who can wrap up Mandela’s life neatly to say: Here lies a great son of Africa, a hero of all time for all humanity. But there are many who have and will try. I have a deep feeling that it will be a lie to say so. If a man’s spirit lives, how can he die, especially if he is Mandela?

Our weakness, our sorrow and grief at this hour has turned out to be our greatest strength. I did not think so when Robert Sobukwe, Steve Biko, Oliver Tambo, Chris Hani, Walter Sisulu or Joe Slovo died, when death claimed them too soon from us. When it happened, I don’t think we were ready to let them go, for they were the architects of the egalitarian society we so wanted. If we could raise them from the dead, we would. But having lost Mandela, I feel perhaps that we, actually, have raised them from the dead. We are reminded of all the things they wanted for this society to make it what it ought to be: non-racist, non-sexist, democratic, free and prosperous. I feel that we have gained more than we have lost with the passing away of Mandela.

In a purely spiritual sense, one that transcends political ideology or racial affiliation, I know that we are better off than we were when Mandela was alive or lying sick in his bed. But that is not the important thing. The important thing is that this international tragedy that has left the world poorer has brought all of us something priceless. We now have a wealth of spirit and vision that I believe we would not have possessed otherwise. When Mandela was alive, we took it for granted. I am sure that now that he has left us, we have to, at an individual level, ask ourselves: What have I done today to make South Africa, this world, a better place? What have you done? I am sure that we will not settle for anything less. This great nation must rise to be what it ought to be.

As for Mandela, no doubt that despite his 27 years of imprisonment, he enjoyed a full life that was soul nourishing, fulfilling and rewarding. We have been truly blessed to have had among us a man of his depth with a meaning and significance that is unsurpassed.

There is no easy formula to for happy living in South Africa. There is too much economic inequality, spatial division, prejudice and discrimination and lack of social solidarity. Anyone who says Mandela ran away from solving these problems after serving only one term is either joking or lying. Even highly gifted and inspirational as he was, he could not do that overnight or in five to 10 years. But he has left all the significant pointers for us to find our way. We have to find a recipe of our own, now. The man is dead but, thanks God, his spirit lives in all of us.

There is one simple thought I think he would like for us to keep in my mind, if I am correct. It is not a guarantee that we will get another Mandela for there can only be one. The thing he offered is what can help us prevent much catastrophe and self-destruction. Mandela wants us, now, to give up any bitterness, anger or resentment. What he has offered as his lasting legacy is that we must love another, learn to forgive quickly and be the individual bricks to build up the society we want to live in. When I think about Mandela, nothing else comes to mind but magnanimity of the spirit.

It is not that we have lost Mandela that counts but what he has left for us. There are far too many of us who waste powerful and influential positions pursuing posh cars, expensive clothes and fat bank balances when we should be using all our resources to build institutions that will take our nation forward. Let us not squander the precious sacrifice, time and courage Mandela has given us. Let us dedicate ourselves to creating the society he has laid a solid foundation for: equal, just and prosperous. This is the heavy task we can do now, from today because Mandela has left us.

If the story of Mandela is to have any meaning or value as we move into our future, it is only because each of us will have realised that we are greater than Nelson Mandela. His spirit is the most powerful force that stirs in our souls. We can make South Africa the most beautiful country in the world by uncompromisingly working and fighting for peace, justice, equality and brotherhood.

People have frequently marvelled at the things that Mandela could do. Well, perhaps he was a special one. But the thing that he will marvel to — with Sobukwe, Biko, Tambo, Sisulu, Hani and Slovo — is when we all, at an individual level, become agents of love, peace and happiness to create a better South Africa that will give the world a human face.

And we dare not fail for we will have failed ourselves!