51�Թ�

Hailed as a national hero and modeling himself on Ghandi’s ideals, he grew his Sarvodaya, or “Awakening of All,” movement from a presence in a handful of villages to operations in more than 5,000 of them a half-century later, digging wells, building schools, fixing roads, providing credit and more.

“Sarvodaya,” a term first used by Gandhi in India and inspired by the writings of the English critic and essayist John Ruskin, meant “the well-being of all,” especially the least fortunate, in Mr. Ariyaratne’s interpretation, as he explained in an essay in the anthology “The Sri Lanka Reader.”

In the midst of the war, in 2001, Barbara Crossette, a former foreign correspondent for The New York Times, wrote in the Buddhist magazine Tricycle, “Sarvodaya’s success has been small, and the carnage continues.”

Until six months ago, Dr. Kumar was the head of Sarvodaya Vidyalaya, the public school where Mr. Paswan studies.

Rishi Kumar, organic gardener and farmer, founder of Sarvodaya Farms and the Healing Gardens.