- Fr. Cedric Prakash SJ
Fr Cyril Desbruslais SJ is no more! He was called to his eternal reward last night (8 September 2025) in Pune. He was 84 years old and sixty years as a Jesuit. Fr Cyril however, is still ‘fully young, fully alive’, because he will continue to live in the hearts and minds of many forever!
Cyril leaves behind a legion of friends, admirers, well-wishers and students. In his pilgrimage on earth, he accompanied, mentored, guided, inspired thousands from all walks of life- very specially the youth. Tributes are flowing in from all over! From Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor to several others who were guided by him in their youth; from Jesuit companions to those who were his students once upon a time. There is a genuine outpouring of grief and at the same time, a sense of deep gratitude at the profound and positive impact, he has had on their lives!
In 2020, Fr Kuruvilla Pandikattu SJ (who was then a Professor of Philosophy at Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune), edited a memorable tome in honour of Fr Cyril Desbruslais’ 80th Birthday. The festschrift entitled ‘Fully Human and Fully Alive’, is an over five hundred pages ‘magnum opus’, a true labour of love, consisting of 36 articles written by Jesuit scholars and others, including some lay persons. The thumb-nail to the book says, “As Cyril Desbruslais approaches 80 years, his friends, colleagues and admirers have come together to reflect on his philosophy (understanding of God, human beings and world). The 36 articles in this volume, reflecting on the rich and varied experiences of human beings ‘fully alive,’ is a labour of love for Cyril.”
After I heard of Cyril’s going home. I began browsing through this amazing work – and I cannot help but resonate with all that is said in it, particularly on dear Cyril. I am one of the writers in this book; re-reading what I wrote about Cyril almost five years ago, brings back warm, loving and nostalgic memories of a human – who was my friend, mentor, guide, companion, brother and more. My article is titled ‘Fully Young! Fully Alive! The life and message of Cyril Desbruslais.’ It is more than relevant today, as we celebrate the life and times of Cyril!! Here is what I wrote:
“Cyril leaves behind a legion of friends, admirers, well-wishers and students. In his pilgrimage on earth, he accompanied, mentored, guided, inspired thousands from all walks of life- very specially the youth. Tributes are flowing in from all over! From Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor to several others who were guided by him in their youth; from Jesuit companions to those who were his students once upon a time. There is a genuine outpouring of grief and at the same time, a sense of deep gratitude at the profound and positive impact, he has had on their lives!”
For someone who first met Fr Cyril Desbruslais almost fifty years ago (late sixties and early seventies), there is one phrase I think which encapsulates this extraordinary human, that is “Fully young! Fully alive!!!” Cyril was a young Jesuit Scholastic at the time of our first meeting in an AICUF (All India Catholic University Federation) camp; over the years, my admiration for him has grown very particularly in the way he responded to the youth.
The XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops was held from 3-28 October 2018. At the conclusion of it, the Synod issued a path breaking Final Document on ‘Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment’. The document serves as an important charter of how the Church should be responding to the youth of today. A careful study of this Final Document, clearly shows how Cyril Desbruslais, has epitomised several key dimensions of it, long before it saw the light of day.
Cyril had many favourite songs/ hymns. One of those is, “The Impossible Dream (The Quest)”. It is a popular song composed by Mitch Leigh, with lyrics written by Joe Darion. The song is the most popular song from the 1965 Broadway musical Man of La Mancha and is also featured in the 1972 film of the same name starring Peter O’Toole.The complete song is first sung by Don Quixote as he stands vigil over his armor, in response to Aldonza (Dulcinea)’s question about what he means by “following the quest”. It is reprised partially three more times – the last by prisoners in a dungeon as Miguel de Cervantes and his manservant mount the drawbridge-like prison staircase to face trial by the Spanish Inquisition. Some years ago Cyril also put up a widely acclaimed drama on the same (of course, highly contextualized too).
Cyril lived this dream: a person who has given so much to many. Today, as we celebrate him, his life and times: we thank God for the gift of him to so many – and particularly to the youth! Cyril will always live in our hearts and lives: fully human, fully young, fully alive!
