Photos

Wikipedia says this about Baba Amte: "Murlidhar Devidas Amte (Marathi:बाबा आम्टे) (born December 26, 1914), or Baba Amte, as he is fondly known...(is) one of India's most revered social and moral leaders, Baba Amte has devoted his life to the care and rehabilitation of leprosy patients, even allowing his body to be used for experiments to grow leprosy germs. His community development project at Anandwan (Forest of Bliss) near Nagpur in Maharashtra, India, is recognised and respected around the world and has done much to dispel prejudice against leprosy victims."

I had the privilege of meeting this man on my visit to Nagpur. He was terribly ill at that time, on a respirator, he still is, yet his mental clarity was remarkable.

We visited Anandwan, the "Forest of Bliss", which has been expanded from a small sanctuary for leprosy patients to a mega-model of cooperative living in a sustainable environment. The Wikipedia article referred to above has more on this subject.

This photo was taken in the Leprosy Ward of a small charitable hospital in Anandwan.

Baba Amte lay on his humble bed in a semi-darkened room with one small window overlooking a garden. We gathered around the bed and he spoke to us gratefully about charities of others that made possible his dreams. I wish I were brave enough to take a photo of Baba Amte...the fact remains that I was not.