Photograph from Tibetan and Himalayan Healing. An Anthology for Anthony Aris
Anthony Aris, who passed away on 14 October, made two distinctive contributions to Tibetan and Himalayan studies.
The first contribution came in his capacity
as the founder of Serindia Publications which, over the last thirty years, has
become renowned for its beautifully produced volumes on a range of topics in
our field. Titles of special interest to Ladakh scholars include Roger
Goepper’s Alchi: Ladakh’s Hidden Buddhist
Sanctuary (1996). Among the many other Serindia volumes, the most notable
include Samten Karmay’s The Secret
Visions of the Fifth Dalai Lama (1998) and Tibetan Medical Paintings (1992), which displays as many as 8,400
individual images and inscriptions on 77 thangkas. All these publications
reflect Anthony’s care, attention to detail and personal enthusiasm.
His second contribution is less tangible,
more personal and perhaps more important. Anthony was richly endowed with the
gift of friendship. Often mischievous but never malicious, Anthony loved the
good things of life—above all good people and good company. His presence was in
itself a source of warmth and encouragement.
Anthony’s first introduction to the
Himalayan region came through his twin brother Michael, who in the 1960s became
the tutor to the future King of Bhutan, and was later well-known both as a
scholar of Tibet and Bhutan and as the endlessly supportive husband of Burmese leader
Aung San Suu Kyi. Near-identical in appearance, the two brothers differed in
character. To outward appearances, Michael often seemed serious, even austere.
Anthony, on the other hand, came across as much more relaxed, a spontaneous bon viveur, but with deep personal integrity.
After Michael’s death from cancer in 1999,
Anthony helped set up the Michael Aris Fund for Tibetan and Himalayan
Studies in his memory. The Fund’s contributions include an endowment for a
lectureship in Tibetan and Himalayan Studies at Oxford University. The Fund
also helped sponsor the 2001 IALS conference at Mansfield College in Oxford, and we are
grateful to him for that support.
Last year, Anthony was himself diagnosed
with cancer. When news of his illness became known, Charles Ramble and Ulrike
Roesler—the first two scholars to hold the Oxford lectureship—organised a
felicitation volume Tibetan and Himalayan
Healing. An Anthology for Anthony Aris (Kathmandu: Vajra, 2015). The hope was that the project would itself
serve as a source of encouragement and healing for Anthony. The book was
launched in March on Anthony’s birthday. It runs to 762 pages, with 60 articles
including at least four on Ladakh. The authors’ enthusiastic and rapid response
testifies to the breadth and depth of their esteem for Anthony.
Anthony is survived by his wife
Marie-Laure, two children, grandchildren and the widest circle of friends.
John Bray
