Issue Nº301 – In Memoriam

Danapalan, father of Aurovilians Kanniappan, Nagappan and Arumugam passed away on July 27th. He was in his eighties. Danapalan gave his land to Auroville and has been working for Auroville from the early days, starting with the Matrimandir Nursery where he was driving the first bullock cart of Auroville bringing compost from Pondicherry. In 1983, he started working with Bhavana for the Bliss garden. From there he got into afforestation, a work that he continued as watchman till 2013. While his children joined Auroville, Danapalan continued to live in Kottakarai, dedicating his life to building Auroville.

Rakesh Tiwari, who joined Auroville in 2002, passed away on July 17th. His sudden death was due to a heart related medical condition. He was 40 years old.

Rakesh has worked at Needam Guest House, the Matrimandir, and at Aurofuture (the earlier name of L’avenir d’Auroville). In 2008, he left Auroville and moved to Nice in France, where he lived with his wife Violaine. From there they worked in various developing countries in South America and, more recently, in Sudan in an effort to improve the quality of life of people living in remote areas. They were contemplating moving back to Auroville and raise their as yet unborn child there.

Jagran (Maurizio d’Angelo) passed away at AUM hospital on May 26th, 2014, in the presence of his son Sid and daughter Alice.

He was 71 years old. Jagran had joined Auroville in 2009, but shortly after met with a stroke. He had also been suffering from cancer. Following a fall, he underwent a hip replacement. But Jagran, a model of life-affirming resilience, never succumbed to depression and maintained his openhearted and upbeat personality. His body was cremated at the Farewell Burial and Cremation Grounds at Adventure community.

Aurovilian of the first hour, Toshi (Santosh) Malik, wife of late Prem Malik, left her body on June 20th after a year’s illness in New Delhi. She was 86 years old.

Prem and Toshi had been living in Auroville since its inauguration in 1968. Their joy of being here, their total engagement in this adventure, and their work as pioneers was known to all. After Prem passed away in 1999, Toshi continued her work at the Visitors’ Centre and in Bharat Nivas.

In June this year, while visiting family in New Delhi, she was admitted to the hospital due to stomach ailments. She left the hospital soon, and was recuperating at her sister’s house in Delhi where she told Aster, “I am always walking around in Auroville. I want to be there. Take me back with you....”

A silent gathering to remember Toshi took place under the Matrimandir Banyan Tree on July 11th. Auroville salutes them with love and deep gratitude for the many long years they have so wholeheartedly given to the Mother’s Dream, the city of Auroville.