By Lakhram Bhagirat
Mothers are these tough shells filled with all kinds of warmth and quite often we take them for granted and because of their immense strength, we are taken aback when we see them collapse emotionally. But how does a mother find the strength to move on after one of her babies is snatched by the vile hands of death. How do we measure the level of grief she experiences or how do we even begin to console her?
It is a herculean task that many of us do not have the tools to address, because we have taken mothers for granted. For the mother of a teenaged pandit, she is yet to get that strength to accept the fact that her son is no longer coming home. She is living with the hope that one day she will wake up from this horrible nightmare and see her smiling baby boy there waiting for her. She is not alone in this suffering, as hundreds of people had been a part of the promising young man’s life, including those he had touched spiritually.
At the age of 19, full of life and promise, Gansham Lekhram of Zeelugt, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) lost his life following a tragic accident. During the wee hours of November 6, 2017, the teenaged pandit was heading back home in motor car PVV 648 when he suddenly veered across the roadway to the southern side of the road and hit a utility pole. He was forced to swerve to avoid hitting an intoxicated man who was swaying on the road.
His car was totalled and he suffered massive internal injuries causing him to be admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. He never regained consciousness and died one week later on November 15 around 13:30h, hooked up to a life support machine.
According to his family, he was returning home after dropping off some of his friends in Parika, EBE. His friends never knew that would have been the last time they would have seen him alive and well. Little did his mother know that her world was about to turn upside down, her heart crushed and life shattered. 
Gansham had become a pandit in November of 2012 when he was just 15 years old, a feat many do not accomplish until they are in their 20s. He was an inspirational person to the hundreds, if not thousands, of persons he came into contact with and always had a smile. He was a part of the second batch of students who completed the Sanatan Vaidic Dharma Pandits’ Sabha pandit training course.
The course lasted three years and included teachings in Sanskrit, performance of all poojas, death and after-death ceremonies, marriages, basic astrology and Hindu theology.
His mother, Dhanrajie Sankar, says her son was a gem and one she considered herself blessed to have given birth to. The single mother of two told me that the wounds of her son’s passing were still open and she did not think that they would ever close since the pain of losing a child is one that very few people understand. She manages her grief, according to her, very poorly and would break down ever so often.
“What me can tell you? My heart bleeding because is me only son and God take he. He wasn’t a bad boy and I don’t know why this happen and me heart ah hurt. Every day me does cry for me son and today (Thursday) is one year now and me nah know what to do,” she said amid tears.
After telling me how the hurt is immeasurable and breaking down, Sankar had no strength to go on any longer. The feeling of loss was one that was heavy as many of Gansham’s friends had gathered at her home as they tried to comfort her.
One of his friends, Ram Ramkellawan, told me that Gansham was more like a brother than a friend. He was their leader and because of his deep involvement in Hinduism he provided new perspectives to every situation. He taught them compassion and the importance of kindness. He taught them to be humble and was a true leader within their community and really wanted to make a difference.
He was so committed to making the lives of the residents of the community as well as the youths better that he decided to take up the mantle of leadership when he contested the 2016 Local Government Elections on the People’s Progressive Party/Civic’s slate. During an interview with Guyana Times prior to the 2016 LGE, Gansham said that the youths in Zeelugt are too involved in alcohol and drugs among other delinquent activities because of the lack of facilities to take up their time.
The community suffered a major loss when Gansham died and according to his hundreds of Facebook friends they too suffered. To this date the tributes to him keep pouring in among the prayers for his mother since she needs the strength to carry on without him. No one can fill that void for her and she longs for the day when she will be there with her baby boy. She prays daily for the soul of her baby boy. (Times Sunday Magazine)
