France

Maël Vidal was born and grew up in Auroville before going to France to pursue higher studies, where he received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in social anthropology.

Ricardo Martinez Delgado (New Creation) left his body on 26 July in Paris. He was 71. He will be remembered as a fine healer in kinesiology, joyfully serving the Spirit of Auroville.

Nadine Fabret passed away in France on 7 August 2025 at the age of 59. A valued member of the Sve Dame community and a unique spirit, she could be warmly social yet also deeply comfortable in her own company.

Tucked away in a small room at the back of Auroville’s Vanaville unit is Michel’s bookbinding sanctuary — a quiet space where hundreds of worn books have been given a new lease on life.

Basile Vignes passed away on 12 June in his house in France, in the presence of his partner Claudine, his son Simon, his stepdaughter Djénane and close friends.

On 17 May Dominique Parizot, an Aurovilian of French nationality, passed away in a hospital in Villenave d’Ornon, France, where he had gone to undergo medical treatment.

André, one of Auroville’s early architects, arrived in Auroville in 1968, aged 26. On the invitation of the Mother, he started working with Roger Anger, Auroville’s chief architect, and was his first draughtsman.

A few weeks ago a new biography of The Mother was published. The Mother: A Life of Sri Aurobindo’s Spiritual Collaborator is written by Peter Heehs, a reputed historian who has been a researcher in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Archives for over 50 years, writing biographies of Sri Aurobindo and publishing papers on related topics.

Daniel of Tanto (Daniel Emdin) left us suddenly on 4 March 2025, due to cardiac arrest. He was 77 years old. Daniel came to stay in Auroville in 1977, after having visited a few years earlier.

Jean-Claude Bieri passed away at his home in France, Pyrenees-Orientales, on 11 March. He was 79. He lived with his partner, Marie-Jo, and was the father of two daughters born in Auroville, Hebaragui and Mindelai.

Last December, there was a photographic exhibition in the Tibetan Pavilion which celebrated the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the second caravan in Auroville.

Aurodeva is an artist and art therapist born and raised in Auroville whose work displays a rich blend of creativity, introspection, and connection to his roots.

Born in Paris, Nathalie grew up surrounded by the evocative scents of her grandfather’s painting studio. At the age of seven, her life took a profound turn when her family moved to India, eventually settling in Auroville.

Richard Pierre Pérez, who passed away on 17 December, was born in southwestern France and spent much of his life in Paris with his partner Marie Christine.

Born in Istanbul, Cansu has always been driven by a desire to explore diverse cultures through travel and the study of philosophical and mystical texts, shaped by her upbringing in the Sufi tradition.

Jean-Luc Buro passed away on 13th November, while in Dharamsala for a film festival, reportedly due to heart failure. He was 70 years old. Originally from France, Jean-Luc lately lived in Surrender and was a cherished and active member of the community.

Maggi Lidchi-Grassi, an esteemed Friend of Auroville, passed away on the 30th of September 2024, in the early hours of the morning at her residence behind Fertile, at the age of 94.

Soham (Jacques C. H. Philippeau) passed away at his home in Transformation on 19th September, 2024, due to cancer. He was 73 years old. Soham spent some of his younger years in Corsica on an isolated goat farm, where it was hard to get even essential amenities.

Long-term Aurovilian Goupi (Jean-Pierre Bunel) peacefully passed away at Marika’s Home in the evening of Monday, June 24th. He had just turned 82 years old.

Sathiya, a second-generation Aurovilian, speaks about her upbringing and her unwavering commitment to Auroville's ethos despite external pressures.

Christel left her body on March 21st at the age of 55. For the past 30 years, in spite of her handicap which forced her to be in a wheelchair, she kept coming to Auroville and made it her second home.

Christian Feuillette has been Chairman of the Board of Auroville International (AVI) for the past four years, some of which were possibly the most challenging in AVI’s, as well as Auroville’s, history.

Jacqueline Lacoste, Roger Anger’s long term companion and collaborator, came to Auroville in 1970. In a sunlit moment at the Centre d’Art exhibition Roger Anger, l’artiste, she shares insights into Roger's identity, where the lines separating artist and architect dissolve, and reflects on the transformative influence of his spiritual encounter with The Mother.

“Once upon a time ..” is how we begin telling stories, and here’s mine. Once upon a time exactly 50 years ago, there was a report about Auroville shown on French television and, quite by accident, I turned on my TV that evening to that channel!

Maurice Monier passed away on April 13th in his flat in Citadines. His friends at Citadines wrote: “Maurice was born in Saint-Étienne, France, on June 18, 1938 and would have been 85 in June.

Aurovilian Gérard Arnaud passed away on Thursday, March 17 due to cardiac arrest. Gérard had started coming to Auroville about 10 years ago and had become Aurovilian in 2017.

Cristof Alward-Pitoëff, who met Mother in 1969, passed away in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram on 28 February. In the early years, Cristof stayed in Auroville for a short while after which he went to live in the Ashram for good and functioned as head of the French section of the Ashram Press, SAICE professor, translator and theatre director.

On 24 January Christian Edet passed away in his Promesse home at the age of 62. Born at Noumea, New Caledonia, Christian came at the age of 46 to Auroville in 2006 and was accepted as an Aurovilian in 2007.

In the early morning of Wednesday 18 May, Bhaga (Christiane Odile Gabriau) peacefully left her body at the age of 77 in her Luminosity flat.

Saraswati Helene Champaloux, an early Aurovilian, passed away on February 5th 2022 in France after a long struggle with cancer. She was 75 years old.

Born in Tunis, Tunisia, on the 4th October 1946, Bernard Borg moved in 1961 with his family to Marseille, in France, while he was still a young boy of 15.

At noon on Sunday 10 October, Gerard Carabin passed away in his room at Marika House due to issues related to Parkinson’s Disease. He was 73 years old.

On August 26th, Ananda (Jean-François R.L. Bertaux) left his body at Marika House at the age of 68, after coping with Parkinson’s disease for many years.

Long term Aurovilian Menaig passed away on March 26th at the intensive care unit of the Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences due to multiple organ failure leading to cardiac shock.

On February 4, Dany Foureau unexpectedly passed away due to sudden cardiac arrest in her room in the Mukti Complex near the AV Health Centre.

Long-term Aurovilian Hervé Millet left his body on August 19th at Marika Home at the age of 75, due to complications of cancer which he had been battling since several years.

Many years ago, in issue # 188 of September 2004, Auroville Today reported about the work of Hufreesh Dumasia Chopra, a young Auroville artist.

Boris Mabilat left his body in Paris on 12th. He was 45 years old. Boris came to Auroville in 1975 at age of 1 with his parents Samata and Cristo.

On the morning of 28 May, Myriam Françoise Marie Noelle Isaac left her body at the age of 76 due to cancer at her house in Sincerity, surrounded by her children.

Gérard Maréchal, one of Auroville’s early pioneers, left his body in his Sukhavati home on January 2nd due to a fall caused by a heart failure.

Paul Israel Berdah, better known as Paulo of Tanto, left his body at the age of 71 on December 2nd in a hospital in Paris where he had been treated for a cancer from which he suffered since early 2017.

In November this year, Aurovilian Dr. Mira Aster Patel, in recognition of “her invaluable contribution in developing Auroville”, was awarded the Auro Ratna award from the Overman Foundation in a ceremony in the Hall of Harmony of the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram.

Subir (Olivier Caracostea) passed away on 30 April of this year in Orleans (France) due to cancer. He was 68 years old. Subir had a Romanian grandfather and came from a family linked to the Theosophical Society in Paris.

It was 1985, and I had gone with my mother to seek admission in the Ashram school. Parudi, the Registrar, looked at me and said, “Mother had said that after the age of 14 we do not admit students because their mental formations are already made.”

Interestingly, when the French soldiers of the “Garde Républicaine” carried away the coffin bearing the mortal remains of Mrs. Simone Veil, the Holocaust survivor, they chanted a German song: Das Lied der Moorsoldaten.

One June 24th, Yolande Lemoine, one of Auroville’s strong supporters in the early days, left her body in Paris. Yolande had been a close friend and aide of Satprem and Sujata, and liaised the important contacts between J.R.D.

Louis Cohen, who first came to Auroville in 1971, is one of the original pioneers. He continues to be very active in the development of the town.