In memoriam - Mahalingam

On February 3rd, former Indian Independence fighter and Auroville’s oldest resident Mahalingam Sangukrishna left his body, at the age of 103. 

In the 1940s, Mahalingam had joined the Quit India Movement, staying at Nehru’s home in Allahabad for some weeks and also meeting Gandhiji. In 1945 he visited the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry for the darshan of Sri Aurobindo. Standing in the long queue and trying to catch a glimpse of Him, he suddenly felt His grace: Sri Aurobindo was looking at him and smiling.

From then onwards, until Sri Aurobindo’s passing in December 1950, Mahalingam regularly visited the Ashram for the darshan of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. In 1950 he permanently joined the Ashram. But Auroville attracted him. After The Mother’s passing in 1973, and for a period of almost 20 years, he visited Auroville regularly, teaching part-time Tamil in Udavi and Arulvazhi schools. In 1994 he joined Auroville, settling in Pitchandikulam Forest. He continued his Tamil teaching, now also at Transition school. Six years later he started translating into Tamil the Collected Works of the Mother, Sri Aurobindo’s Letters on Yoga and other works. The material was published in Vaigarai (Dawn), a well-read Tamil magazine published by the Ashram.

In his later years, Mahalingam lived in Fraternity community from where he often walked over to the nearby New Creation’s Sports Resource Centre to see the trainings and matches. It was in that location that Aurovilians came to honour and congratulate him on his 100th anniversary. A video of the occasion can be seen at . An interview by Lourdes Epinal can be seen at

Mahalingam’s uniquely humble presence and old-school devotion added a delicate, special quality to Auroville’s communal life. His remains were buried at the Auroville burial grounds on February 4th.