Seyril Schochen

Playwright, Matrimandir Worker, founder of Savitri House, Sri Aurobindo Learning Center, Advisor to International Yoga College and radiant being whose favorite line from "Savitri" was:

And laughter of the heart's sweetness and delight
Freed from the rude and tragic hold of Time,
And beauty and the rhythmic feet of the hours.

Marjorie Spalding lived on 88th Street and Park Avenue in New York City and had read Sri Aurobindo for years. It was through her that Seyril, who lived with her husband, Marty Rubin (who taught at NYU and pioneered the use of acupuncture in dentistry in the West) a couple of blocks away, found out about Sri Aurobindo and Mother and Auroville.

Catherine, Seyril, and MM Worker Camp fellow Alumni Roger and Jack. (view full size)

Unlike others who may have been content to read and observe from afar, Seyril picked up and went to live in Auroville, first at Matrimandir and later with her friend, Eleanor at Verite. Jack Alexander tells the charming story of her early days at the Worker's Camp greeting him in the morning with her radiant smile while brushing her teeth and saying,"Truoooth"!

While older in years, she was always younger in spirit, constantly putting forward her dream of an ocean going university of young people who would travel to Auroville by sea.

She was dramatic in nature and wrote a number of plays, some of which were read during the All USA Meetings. In her early years, she was included in an anthology of the best one-act plays of 1939 and her set designer for "The Moon Besieged" on Broadway was Ming Cho Lee, who went on to become one of America's most celebrated with a long career at Yale University. In our circle, it was her play about "Nishta", the daughter of President Woodrow Wilson, who came to live at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, that was the most popular.

She was a good friend of Glenn Olds, the interfaith minister at Cornell, advisor to Presidents Johnson and Nixon, who visited Auroville and went on to become the President of Kent State University. She also led a delegation to the UN to meet with Under Secretary General Robert Muller.

Seyril spent her last years living in Crestone, Colorado, where Maurice and Hanne Strong had founded a community linking many faith traditions. June Maher and Rod Hemsell were among those who were closely connected to her work in Colorado. June remembered that over the many years she knew her, she never heard Seyril speak ill of anyone.

Seyril was fortunate to have Suzanne handle her correspondence and outreach and Pavita to look after her during her last months when she was bedridden and on oxygen. The Sri Aurobindo Learning Center, which Seyril founded, will continue on its mission.

Even to the last, Seyril was full of enthusiasm and dedicated to the Matrimandir. It was her custom to send a birthday greeting informing the person that a donation was being made in their name to Matrimandir. Hopefully this tradition will be carried on in her memory.

Seyril passed while listening to Mother's "Prayers and Meditations". Part of her ashes will remain in the Baca and part will come to Auroville.

Seyril is survived by her son, Dr. Peter Rubin, as well as grandchildren and great-grandchildren.