A Pilgrim's Guide to Amma

A Pilgrim's Guide to Amma 

Is a Field Handbook for the How and Why

Of Being with Mata Amritanandamayi 

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INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this website is to provide a guide for those wishing to experience the spiritual fountain of love, light and compassion known as Amma (Mata Amritanandamayi).  One can gain so much more from a first visit and also from following visits by understanding a few things.  Primarily we will focus on why we would want to see Amma, how we can benefit from seeing Amma and how to drink from her fountain endless wisdom, love and compassion. Later on in this site, there is a section showing her many charities, awards and a discussion of her divine powers.  In the end are a number of tips for getting the most out of visiting her.

WHAT DOES AMMA TEACH

The core of Amma’s teaching is that the purpose of our human birth is to merge in the Self.  This is the non-dual, all-encompassing, universal Self described in the Vedas as the Atman or Brahman.  In the Bible it is the I AM THAT I AM. To do this she says the practice of love and devotion for God (bhakti) is best for the majority of people in this age.  She says repeatedly that silent meditation is like gold and has also given us a technique to practice called the IAM Meditation.  Amma gives mantras freely to those who ask but only on the last night of a program.  She advises us to say the mantra internally as much as possible because it is very powerful.

Amma offers much advice on reducing and eliminating the ego or the sense of “I” and “mine.”  She has a saying, “To become a hero, you must first become a zero.”  The ego, or self with a little “s”, is what is preventing us from progressing toward Self-realization or God realization (these terms come to the same end). 

She advises watching the mind in order to reduce and then stop altogether our negative thinking.  Negative thoughts and actions are like ants that eat the sugar of our spiritual practice.  Thus we practice but make no progress because the negative thoughts dissipate any accumulated spiritual energy. 

Amma also strongly encourages the cultivation of compassion and advises us to serve the poor, homeless and afflicted.  She has a saying that we remove the stain of “I” with the soap of “you.” 

Amma encourages us to take our spiritual practice seriously while not taking the world so seriously. Here is a nice quote from Amma:

"Life should become one big, hearty laugh ~ that is religion. That's spirituality. That is real prayer. God is the innocent smile that blossoms from within." ~ Amma

She also says the childlike innocence deep within us is God.

Amma means “mother.”  Her name, Mata Amritanandamayi means ‘Mother of Immortal Bliss.”

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AMMA HAS SOMETHING FOR YOU

Amma has something for everyone!  In the shallow parts of the River of Love that is Amma, there is a delightful journey into a world few of us have experienced.  We can listen to talks on the practical spiritual issues of leading a happy life.  We can sing bhajans (devotional songs) with Amma and soar into the rarified atmosphere of cosmic bliss.  And there is the wonderful hug Amma dispenses which fills us with the incomparable sweetness of divine love. 

As we wade out into the deeper waters, we begin to study Amma’s path and get a Mantra from Amma.  Even this little bit of reciprocal effort on our part will bring untold blessings into our life in terms of our own personal happiness and the wellbeing of the world we inhabit. 

If we care to venture out into the deepest part of the river that is Amma, she can take us to the ocean of liberation itself.  That is liberation from suffering and the seemingly endless rounds of births and deaths known as Samsara.  Amma will be a repository of boundless unbridled bliss carrying us into the winds of eternity.  As such, Amma will be our very own limitless pure Self that is now appearing to us, as Amma, to awaken us from our dream.

In all of human history it would be difficult to find anyone who has contributed more to humanity than  Amma.  Her love is of cosmic proportions and beyond anything we can understand.  What is visible to us is the boundless display of her love-soaked Divine Theater that has changed the lives of millions of people. 

Her charity to the poor and the suffering is on a scale with Mother Theresa.  This immense charitable outpouring is from a cute little Indian woman who never made it past the fourth grade and without the benefit and underpinning of a huge religious organization. 

She has healed untold thousands of people of every imaginable affliction.  Amma produced these startling accomplishments starting from absolute zero having been born into a very poor family in southern India.  And with all this, she still found the time, or should we say the love, to hug 34 million people one person at a time!

The reader is invited to watch a fascinating and deeply moving docudrama that explores the early formative years of Amma’s life.  The title is River of Love.  At the time of this writing, the film is available on YouTube.  Search for “River of Love Mata” or click this link to watch it now:

Amma River of Love

Another biographical DVD showing Amma in recent years is called Darshan the Embrace.  A documentary has also been made about Amma's many charitable activities. The title of this is Embracing the World. Darshan the Embrace is available on Netflix or can be purchased along with River of Love and Embracing the World at the Amma bookstore www.theammshop.org/books

Embracing the World can be watched on YouTube

Another great documentary released in 2016 by a famous independent film maker is The Science of Compassion. It is 48 minutes long and free on YouTube.

It is also recommended to the reader to purchase a copy of Amma’s biography from the same bookstore www.theammshop.org/books 

There are two very helpful Amma websites:  www.amma.org and www.amritapuri.org.  The first one is maintained out of the USA headquarters ashram and the second one originates from Amma’s main ashram in Kerala, India.

ABC News visits Amma at her ashram in Kerala, India - 7 minute clip

 

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AMMA IS A DOOR

On a personal level, for each of us as individuals, Amma is a door to lasting happiness.  However, this statement creates many questions and considerations.  Why do we need a door?  A door from what to where?  What is happiness?  Are we not already happy? 

Amma’s spiritual name, Mata Amritanandamayi, means Mother of Immortal Bliss.  Amma, as a doorway to the everlasting bliss of merging in the Self / God, is the focus of this book.  There are two conditions that must be present for us to find Amma to be a useful doorway.  The first is we must desire such a doorway.  The second is to have faith or to know that Amma is that doorway.  In this writing, and by Amma’s grace, we will attempt to explore and satisfy both of those conditions.

If we are interested in spirituality now, it means we have been practicing spirituality in past lives.  The Brahma Sutra tells us that if we are born with an inclination to spirituality and spiritual practice then we maybe have a couple of incarnations left.  If we are really intent on it, this could be our last.  Others will not be interested no matter how clear the message.  In the following quote from Jesus, this idea is presented:

“The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop--thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown." Mark 4:14-20, NIV

This theme also appears in the Tao Te Ching:

Higher people hear of the Tao
They diligently practice it
Average people hear of the Tao
They sometimes keep it and sometimes lose it
Lower people hear of the Tao
They laugh loudly at it
If they do not laugh, it would not be the Tao

Amma is the Divine Mother appearing to us.  She has come as the body and mind of a short Indian lady offering us carte blanche liberation from suffering and, the flip side of that coin, immortal bliss.  This is a very rare and wondrous occurrence!

In the past there have been beings who could do this but we had to make a long journey to find them; perhaps in a cave in the Himalayas.  Amma travels the world bringing her liberating hug to us.  Further, these reclusive liberators would rarely comply with those who requested liberation or even give help of any kind. 

When Amma was asked why she gave anyone a mantra who wanted it, she replied it was because she is our mother and she does this out of love like a mother would.  What a rare blessing is the incarnation of the Divine Mother!

Amma is traveling to us offering liberation from samsara which is the seemingly endless rounds of births and deaths and attendant suffering.  Samsara is a prison.  We should be able to choose whether or not we want to incarnate as well as when and where.  Currently we have no choice in this matter.  Eventually we reach a point that we grow weary of samsara.  We want out.

Amma’s presence is something like the practice of Jubilee in ancient Judaism.  According to this ancient custom, which occurred every 50 years, prisoners would be released, slaves would be freed and debts would be cancelled.  The recipient of these mercies didn’t have to do anything to deserve this mercy.  They only needed for Jubilee to occur. 

Amma is like this on a cosmic scale.  She is able and willing to grant eternal freedom and bliss to anyone without their having done anything in particular to earn it.  Well, that’s not exactly right but close. 

What is required of us is to understand that we need to be liberated and also that Amma is a powerful incarnation of God and fully capable of liberating us by simply willing it so.  Here’s the catch:  we have to be able to recognize the opportunity.  Even though Amma can grant us liberation, we will not avail ourselves of the opportunity if we are not capable of recognizing it.

A few years ago, one of Amma’s swamis commented, “There are really very few devotees.”  Many people come to see Amma and for a variety of reasons and with varying intensity.  For most, the experience is a pleasant few days spent in a spiritual wonderland singing bhajans, listening to talks on spirituality, eating great vegetarian food, chatting with interesting people and, of course, getting a hug from Amma. This is all well and good and a perfectly wonderful endeavor.  Some come to the river with a cup, some a bucket and some take off their clothes and dive in.  All are equally welcome and equally important. 

Swamiji’s point is that few people go home and try to do what Amma advises.  Few are interested in changing themselves.  The reason for this is few are aware of their suffering or are aware of the bliss that is available.  So there is no motivation.  We have neither the stick of wanting to be rid of suffering nor the carrot of wanting bliss.

Some Mahatmas (Self-realized or God realized souls) are like boats that can ferry their followers across the ocean of samsara.  Amma is an ocean liner and can take thousands with her. It is like a cosmic Jubilee. 

 

RUN WITH RESTLESS HASTE

Beautiful hugging Mother
Your children run with restless haste
Into your deep and cooling silence
As though fleeing from a burning forest

Each are like brightly colored balloons
Escaping from the clenched fist of birth and death
Escaping once and for all
The hypnotic fascination of “me” and “mine”

Frayed and worn from eons of searching
This life has become a corpse
And is now only fodder
For your all-consuming love

From the book Soft Moon Shining

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HELP - I WANT OFF THE MERRY-GO-ROUND!

We need a door because we are stuck in a hellish world created by our own minds and the minds of those around us (with rare exceptions).  We need a way out of the boredom, anger, jealousy, envy, fear, hatred, anxiety, loneliness, grief, pride, sorrow and pain.  For most of us, our days are at best a dull, gray, monochrome existence punctuated with mind numbing TV shows, coffee, and booze.  In this vast expanse of boring gray, we see a landscape littered with sorrowful calamities.

When we die we say goodbye to everyone we love.   If we are lucky a few good things occur once in a while.  Look at the news.  Do we see mostly happiness or suffering in the world?  If we had a balance scale with all the world’s happiness on one side and all the world’s sorrow on the other, would it be evenly balanced?  If the reader would like a dose of beautifully poetic tell-it-like-it-is disillusionment with the world, read sixteen-year-old Rama’s despondency after becoming aware of the futility of the world in the beginning of the book Yoga Vasishtra.  Sri Vasishtra was Rama’s guru.

Many will protest this view claiming it to be morose and depressing.  The words for the inability to see or consider something unpleasant are cognitive dissonance.  We are unwilling to look at this unpleasant circumstance because we harbor the belief that our own happiness is just around the corner in the next relationship, purchase at the mall, intoxication from substances, increase in money supply, new house, travel to far places or other similar titillations.  We think we are happy because we are expecting to be happy and not because we are happy.  And so we work hard trying to scratch the itch.  We are certain that the playthings of the world are soon to make us happy if we can just get more of them.

Even if we are able to abandon our attachments to worldly toys, there still remains a heaviness – a subtle darkness.  We carry the burden of our ego – the I-thought – the sense of being separate from everyone and everything.  The ego is always fearful and anxious and this is a tremendous weight.  We have become so accustomed to this that we don’t notice it. 

Every person who carries an ego suffers from a core feeling that something is not quite right.  This expresses itself in various ways such as feeling we are somehow lacking, not worthy, incompetent, wretched, dull, shameful or guilty. 

These feelings have become so deeply imbedded in our habitual mind that we are not conscious of them until we investigate and who wants to investigate a sewer?  Thus, for most people, this weight accompanies us to the grave.  It is never investigated.  We spend the sum of our lives attempting to alleviate these ill feelings and in ways that are often very destructive to our own self and those around us.

It’s as if we have been carrying a 200 pound sack of stones on our back for so long we have forgotten that it’s there.  It’s like living in a house which is very unclean.  The dishes are piled in the sink, boxes and sacks of trash fill the rooms so that there are only narrow pathways left.  Dust, dirt and cobwebs inhabit every surface and every crevice.  There is a foul odor that permeates our house but we are so accustomed to it we can’t smell it – only visitors and our in-laws notice.  Our house has been like this for so long that we believe it to be normal and think nothing of it. 

We would never know any differently if we were never able to experience our house as being clean and tidy.  A group of concerned friends and neighbors might show up one weekend and clean our house inside and out.  Such a thing will not happen with the ego.  No one is going to clean it for us.  It is not possible for us to experience the mind of someone who is without ego and so we never experience the beauty, love, cleanliness and freedom of pure, egoless being.

Occasionally, one of us may be blessed to have a momentary experience of what it is like to be without an ego.  There is a lightness and a freedom that is more intoxicatingly blissful than anything we can imagine!  We experience a sparkling clean house and there is no more 200 pound sack of rocks on our back.  Our spirit rises into the stratosphere of effortless being.  We are stunned and astonished at how beautiful everything has become. 

Then, all too soon, the experience of being free goes away and the demons of a heavy, dark, self-centered existence reassert themselves.  From this experience of lightness we may be inspired to embark on the task of permanently removing the burden of the ego from our minds.  Around Amma, people have these experiences.

Unfortunately few have had this experience of freedom and lightness and therefore few will be interested in taking any action.  In fact, most people will think the notion of ditching the ego is scary and dangerous.  Most feel their ego is something valuable and are quite attached to it.  So these people will not consider giving up anything even though the ego is the cause of all the horrible hellish states of mind we experience.  Such a strange thing to see! 

This is the first obstacle to being happy.  Unless we realize that we are unhappy, we will not make any effort to climb out of the hole.

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THE QUANDARY

It is very difficult to understand and appreciate our quandary.  If we knew we were in a burning house, we would be motivated to run from it.  This is precisely our predicament now but we don’t know the house is on fire.  We are in the sleep of Maya (illusion) and so we are unaware.  Everything seems so “normal.” 

Unfortunately, suffering is now so constant and all pervasive that we think it is normal.  One fourth of all persons in the USA are now taking some form of prescription drug to find relief from tension, anxiety, depression and stress.  Many more have these problems but are not taking drugs for it.

It’s even worse than this.  We are all suffering from the disease of samsara.  This is the seemingly endless round of births and deaths spanning millions of years whose constant companion is suffering.  Samsara.  This suffering of separation has been going on for eons.  It is a tall order to get rid of something that has inhabited our psyche for millions of years and through countless incarnations.  The tentacles of this disease have grown deeply entrenched and they are sucking all the inherent happiness out of us.

The Tibetan Wheel of Samsara - Time (Kala) relentlessly devours everyone and everything:

Tibetan Wheel of Samsara

If we are still not convinced of this suffering here are a few quotes to help.

“Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.”  Henry David Thoreau

Buddha gave us the first of the Four Noble Truths:

"Now this, monks, is the Noble Truth of suffering:  Birth is suffering, aging is suffering, death is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, & despair are suffering; association with the unbeloved is suffering; separation from the loved is suffering; not getting what is wanted is suffering. In short, the five clinging-aggregates are suffering."

“To have God in us is a struggle in the beginning, but if we persist, it will lead us to everlasting bliss and happiness. All struggles will end. To embrace the world is easy and things go smoothly in the beginning, but this will culminate in never-ending sorrow and suffering. We are free to choose one or the other.”  Amma, Awaken Children, vol. 4

“People exploit each other. The father and the mother become a burden when they are old and weak, and they are sent to an old age home. Children love their parents when they are dependent on them for their food, clothing and shelter. Once they become independent the love disappears. In its place come conflicts and arguments. Children, this is the situation in the world. This is how human beings live, depending on others, exploiting them for their own gratification, and finally destroying them once their needs are met. That is the nature of the world.”  Amma, Awaken Children, vol. 4

“Life is full of misery, loneliness and suffering – and it’s all over much too soon”   Woody Allen

“'Meaningless! Meaningless!' says the Teacher.  'Utterly meaningless!   Everything is meaningless.'   What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?"  Ecclesiastes 1:1

“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering.  Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is.”  Thich Naht Hahn

“Physical comforts cannot subdue mental suffering, and if we look closely, we can see that those who have many possessions are not necessarily happy.  In fact, being wealthy often brings more anxiety.”  Dalai Lama

“If we could read the secret history of our enemies we should find in each man’s life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.”  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“Suffering is permanent, obscure and dark, and shares the nature of infinity.”  William Wordsworth

"Due to ignorance, the materialistic person does not know anything about his real self-interest, the auspicious path in life. He is simply bound to material enjoyment by lusty desires, and all his plans are made for this purpose. For temporary sense gratification, such a person creates a society of envy, and due to this mentality, he plunges into the ocean of suffering. Such a foolish person does not even know about this." Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.5.16

"In order to realize the Atman (Self), the mind has to dissolve.  As long as there is a mind, you will be dominated by the ego.   People point their finger at insane people and call them 'crazy.' But they don't know that they themselves are actually crazy, as well. Whoever has a mind is mad, because the mind is madness.  In the case of a person who is insane, it is clearly manifested and therefore you can see it.  Whereas, in your case, it is not so clearly manifested and therefore not as obvious. But the madness is there, because the mind is there.”   Amma – Awaken Children vol 7

“In the dream of the planet it is normal for humans to suffer, to live in fear, and to create emotional dramas.  The outside dream is not a pleasant dream; it is a dream of violence, a dream of fear, a dream of war, a dream of injustice.  The personal dream of humans will vary, but globally it is mostly a nightmare.  If we look at human society we see a place so difficult to live in because it is ruled by fear.  Throughout the world we see human suffering, anger, revenge, addictions, violence in the street, and tremendous injustice.  It may exist at different levels in different countries around the world, but fear is controlling the outside dream.”  The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz in the chapter Domestication and the Dream of the Planet.

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MAYA

There is a circumstance that blinds us thus rendering us unable to see that we are suffering / not-happy.  In Sanskrit this word is Maya.  Maya hides the true nature of the world from us.  The mind has two powers – it can hide something from view and it can make something seem to be different than what it is.  In other words, there is a veiling power and a projecting power. 

A commonly used example to illustrate this is the rope on the trail at dusk.  We come across the rope laying on the trail and, in the dimming twilight, the mind veils the recognition of the rope as a rope.  Then it projects the concept of a snake because we had been a little concerned about stepping on a sleepy rattlesnake because of the cool weather.  So the harmless rope scares the fruity out of us. 

Pretend we are 20 years old and in a nightclub at 1:58 in the morning.  The lights are very low except for special colored lighting and a band is playing our favorite music.  We’ve had a few drinks and we are getting on with a person of the opposite sex who is absolutely beautiful.  Everything is wonderful and intoxicating.  Then the clock strikes 2:00 AM, the band stops and the bright lights go on. 

Now things don’t look so good.  We see rips in the carpet and stains on the wall.  The person of the opposite sex now appears less than beautiful.  In fact they look downright scary and their voice has an annoying grate that was not noticeable when accompanied by the roar of the guitars.  And tomorrow we will have a bad headache!  This is Maya.  Maya fools us into thinking something is wonderful or good when the truth is we have wandered into the back of a truck loaded with pigs headed to the slaughter house. 

This is happening to all of us now.  We imagine that this world is going to make us happy if we can just get enough pleasure and find a way to stay comfortable.  Pleasure is not bad in itself but it is not going to give us any deep or lasting happiness.  God made pleasure and that’s good but let’s call a rope a rope.  Pleasure is not bliss or happiness and it won’t take us there.

When most of us say we are happy, what we really mean is that we expect to be happy at some time in the future.  We have developed very strong habits of associating things of the world (ice cream, sex, movies, food, gossiping, intoxicants, controlling others, etc.) with pleasure and thus with happiness. 

This has been going on for countless lifetimes and so it is very deep and pervasive in our subconscious.  The problem with these pleasures is the happiness soon goes away.  Because of Maya, we fail to notice this impermanent aspect of pleasure.  We go right on thinking that getting more of these delights is going to ring our bell.  But the bell never rings and we never catch on. 

Increasingly obsessive and compulsive, we are driven uncontrollably to purchase more and more “pleasure” in the market place of fools.  We don’t see that pleasure and happiness are not the same thing.  These pleasure / habit associations in our mind are absolutely legion and span numberless lifetimes. 

Maya convinces us that everything is wonderful and projects a mental fabrication that all is going quite well just like our 20 year old in the night club.  Maya veils the truth of the matter not allowing us to see the abject failure of our mode of operation and then projects a beautiful picture onto the carnage. This is how Maya works and we have to see through this in order to appreciate the gravity of our predicament.  It is so important to see this.  Here is an interesting quote by Amma:

"The Master is not a pain giver, he is a pain killer. His intention is not to give you temporary relief, but permanent relief - forever. But for some reason people want to keep their pain. Even though supreme bliss is our nature, it seems that in their present mental state, people enjoy their pain, as if it has become a natural part of them.

 "A palm reader was reading someone's hand and he predicted, 'Until the age of fifty you will experience a lot of sorrow and suffering in your life. You will be in constant mental pain and agony.' 'And after the age of fifty?' asked the customer. The palm reader said coolly, 'After the age of fifty it will become your nature.

“There was tremendous laughter and even Mother joined in. She continued, "It seems that human nature has almost become like this. People are in pain, and they have almost become identified with it. So much so, that they are not even aware of it, nor do they really want to get out of it."  Awaken Children  vol 7

We will want to stop the hypnotic drone in our minds that clamors for more pleasure, more pleasure and even more pleasure.  Pleasure will never take away the emptiness we feel.  It will never assuage the feeling that something is lacking; that we are bad or stupid or unloved; that we are somehow undesirable; that we are eternally incompetent.  

It is essential that we become disillusioned with the world.  If we don’t, we will never look for an alternative and thus we will not be able to see the opportunity that is Amma.

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AMMA THE INCARNATION

This portion of this websie is to examine Amma’s life and teachings and see if there is any merit in considering her to be an incarnation of the Divine.  If it’s true and we are also desirous of spiritual progress, then her presence is very rare and of immense value to us.

In the epic the Ramayana, Rama’s brother Lakshman comments that they have been blessed to see so many great sages during the period of their exile in the forest.  Rama expands on Lakshman’s observation:

“Rama:  These men of mystic powers live far from the world.  They perform penance in this wilderness.  They don’t exhibit their powers in cities or towns.  They are very rare beings.  We benefit even by their mere presence. 

“Sita:  How does their mere presence benefit us?

Rama:  Sita, just as from merely sitting in the sun its warmth enters our bodies.  Similarly, being in their physical presence the inner light of their spiritual knowledge, their subtly of emotion, permeates our inner core.   Without many words they speak profound truths.  To reap full benefit of their wisdom we must keep open the doors and windows of our mind and reside at their feet.  If we go to them with all the humility of a beggar, and lay open our minds in receptive calm, the pearls garnered by their penance will be given to you without your striving.  Lakshman, only rare fortune gives one such opportunities.  Even the sight of such great sages is rarely gained.”

In the following quote from Amma, she further underscores this truth:

“Spiritual progress that cannot be had through pilgrimages and austerities can be gained in the presence of mahatmas.  We may be able to perform austerities for many years.  But the presence of mahatmas is much harder to come by.  That is why, if we get a chance to be in their presence, we should never throw it away.  The benefits that cannot be gained even after performing austerities for 10 years can be gained from just one darshan or one touch of a mahatma.  However, we should approach them without arrogance, but with humility and faith.  Only then can we benefit from their presence. “    - Amma, Awaken Children

It should be noted at this point that Amma does not claim to be God or even anything other than a normal human being.  We will see from our investigation that she is anything but normal.  This is what she says about making claims to being Divine.

“Questioner:  Amma, do you claim anything?

Amma:  Claim what?

Q:  That you are an incarnation of the Divine Mother or a fully Self-realized Master and so forth.

A:  Does the president or prime minister of any country keep on announcing, “Do you know who I am?  I am the president/prime minister,” wherever he or she goes?  No.  They are what they are.  Even to claim that you are an Avatar or are Self-realized involves ego.  In fact, if somebody claims that they are an Incarnation, a Perfect Soul, that in itself is proof they are not.

Perfect Masters have no such claims.  They always set an example to the world by being humble.  Remember, Self-realization doesn’t make you special.  It makes you humble.

In order to claim that you are something, you neither have to be Self-realized nor do you need any special skill.  The only thing that you need is a big ego, false pride.  That is what a Perfect Master doesn’t have.”   From the book  From Amma’s Heart

Amma says that Mahatmas (Self-realized persons) are empty like space.  In other words, the ego has ceased to function in them as a controlling factor.  The “I” is gone.  If this is enlightenment, then there is no one left to be enlightened or to whom enlightenment occurred.  The words “I am enlightened” are an oxymoron.  Thus an enlightened person would not be able say, “I am enlightened.”

Amma typically responds to suggestions that she is an avatar or a self-realized soul by dismissing it and laughing about it.  Here are examples from the Awaken Children books:

“Brahmacharin (monk): (With joy) Now it is clear. Now I understand that Mother is an Avatar.

Amma: (Laughing and rejoicing) No, no...your Mother is not an Avatar but a good-for-nothing crazy girl.”

And

“She laughed and replied, "To this crazy one? Shiva! Mother is mad, a nut!"

And

“Mother: Children, what does Mother know? Mother is crazy. She would simply say some crazy things. Siva! Siva! Children, accept what you think is correct.”

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The Mantra

Getting a mantra from Amma is most desirable.  She gives mantras only on the last night of a program - the night we call Devi Bhava (mood or energy of the Divine Mother). The picture below shows a person using beads (mala) to aid in getting concentration while saying a mantra. Use of a mala is not required and one can say a mantra at any time. It is sometimes useful to develop mantra habits such as always saying the mantra while showering or to resolve to say the mantra while driving to work from street A to street D. A mala can be used while sitting in a still position just as one would do to meditate.

When Amma gives a mantra it is very different and much more powerful than getting a mantra out of a book.  She imparts a special spiritual force that is specifically for you.  A spiritual bond will be established between you and her.  At that time she also removes some of our karma to facilitate our spiritual progress.  To follow is an explanation of the Mantra by Amma.

“A doctor:  Is initiation (giving of the mantra) necessary? Can't perfection be attained without that?

“Mother:  Partial perfection can be attained. In Kashmir, apples will grow abundantly. They can grow in our village also, but will not bear that much fruit. There will not be much flavor either. They should be grown very carefully. Guru's presence is the favorable circumstance. If there is no Guru, one should be very careful. There are possibilities of falling. God's Presence cannot be felt without purity of heart.

“The purpose of initiation is mental purity. Milk will spoil in a dirty vessel. First the vessel should be cleaned. Only then can milk be poured into it. Besides that, initiation will also help awaken the inner divine power. The mantra which is of the nature of power enters the heart of the disciple from within the Guru, a knower of Brahman. Just as water is used for external cleanliness, internal purity is gained through initiation. When a spark of fire is blown upon and ignites, it becomes a great power.

“There is a natural way of making yogurt by adding a little buttermilk to warm milk. If this is kept still for a day, it will turn into yogurt. In a similar manner, initiation transmits a portion of the Guru's power to the disciple. It will enable the disciple to develop the power fully if he works on it sincerely and applies self-effort. Great power can also be created if mantras are chanted repeatedly.”   Amma, Awaken Children vol 1

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Listening To Amma Sing

In the evenings during Amma’s programs, she leads the singing of bhajans or devotional songs.  It is a very powerful experience. 

 

About this phenomenon Amma says:

"When great souls sing, they radiate tremendous amounts of energy. They can make people forget about the world and worldly bondages. Their mere presence will fill people's hearts with love and devotion for God. Peace and tranquility will take the place of restlessness and other negative tendencies. Concentration will come spontaneously. It becomes effortless. Even if people do not put forth any conscious attempt to acquire any spiritual energy, they will get it from that presence. For example, suppose we visit a place where perfume is manufactured. Even if we simply walk around without doing anything, we can still smell the fragrance on our body when we return home. In the same way, a Mahatma's (great soul) presence transmits spiritual energy to those who come to visit him."   - Amma, Awaken Children vol 3

The author has a very close friend, let’s call her Marty, who was listening to the singing of bhajans at an Amma program.  At times the bhajans can become very fast paced and furious with the passion for the Divine.  Many will be clapping and some dancing. 

Marty suddenly became possessed of a desire for silence and stillness.  No sooner did the thought occur than Marty saw a ray of light shoot out of Amma’s heart and hit her in the chest.  Immediately she left her body and drifted toward the top of the very large hotel conference room. 

There she experienced extreme peace as though she were floating in the middle of a very still ocean in the middle of the night.  She also saw a rain of continuous golden light falling from the ceiling of the entire conference room blessing all those in attendance.  

Marty was not a sensitive person in terms of having visions, seeing auras and the like.  Yet Amma’s grace fulfilled her wish and made it very visible to her.  It is important to notice the part about the rain of golden light which falls on everyone in the room.  Simple sitting in Amma’s presence is a blessing to anyone and everyone.

 

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IAM Meditation

Created by Amma out of her deep resolve for spiritual advancement, this practice, when done with dedication, will bring integration into every aspect of our lives – an encompassing wholeness and unity of body, mind, intellect and heart.   The technique is simple and short and easily practiced by anyone.  It is a powerful and profound way to find our real center thereby experiencing peace and true joy in life.

The IAM Meditation (Integrated Amrita Meditation Technique) is taught free of charge by volunteers who have been trained in teaching the technique.  It is given during Amma’s tour stops and also throughout the year at many locations.  IAM Meditation utilizes energizing yogic postures followed by meditation which includes breath, sound and visualization.

The meditation has been taught to many thousands of individuals throughout the world and in organizations such as the Indian Navy, Paramilitary and Army; Genetech, USA; Whole Foods Corporation; Juvenile Detention Center, Santa Fe, NM; and the State University of New York.

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AMMA AND DIVINE FORMS

Amma is able to become any form of the Divine by simply willing it to be so.  The following is an account of this.

“Although established in the ultimate state of God-Realisation, the Mother performed additional sadhana (spiritual practice) to demonstrate that all the different forms of gods and goddesses are facets of the same non-dual Reality. Having attained perfect control over the mind, she found that she could identify herself with any aspect of the Divine which she chose by her own will.

Mother has narrated various experiences which she had while performing these sadhanas:  ‘At the end of sadhana one day, I felt that a large canine tooth was coming out of my mouth. Simultaneously, I heard a terrific humming sound. I perceived the form of Devi with large canine teeth, a long protruding tongue, thick black curly hair, reddish bulging eyes and dark blue in colour (the form of the goddess Kali).  I thought, ‘Quick! Escape! Devi is coming to kill me!’ I was about to run away. Suddenly I realised that I myself am Devi.  The humming sound also was being produced by me.

The next moment I found that I was holding Devi’s veena (the form of the goddess Saraswati). I had Her crown on my head and I was wearing the Mother’s nose ring. After a couple of minutes I thought, ‘What is this? How have I become Devi? Maybe this is a trick played by the Divine Mother to obstruct my sadhana.’

So I thought, ’Let me meditate on Siva and see what happens,’ but the moment I began meditating on Lord Siva’s form, I became Him, matted hair, snakes on my neck and coiled on my upper arms. I thought, ‘Maybe Siva is also testing me,’ so I stopped meditating on His form.

Now I fixed my heart and soul on Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles. Immediately my being changed to that of Ganesha, an elephant’s face with a long trunk, a pair of tusks with one half broken, and so on. Whichever form of god or goddess I contemplated, I became.

Then I heard a voice from within, ‘You are not different from them. They have all merged in you long ago. Then why should you call all these gods and goddesses?” 

Thenceforth, the Holy Mother’s meditation on God with form naturally subsided. The all-pervasive sacred syllable ‘OM’ sprang forth from within Her, and Her whole being was forever merged in That.” 

Even then, to set an example, she would sit and meditate. When asked about this, the Holy Mother explained, “During meditation, Mother approaches all the children, especially those who are intensely thinking of Mother or those who are suffering.”   From A Biography of Mata Amritanandamayi

There was a point that the Divine Mother of the Universe merged in Amma.  To follow is an excerpt from A Biography of Mata Amritanandamayi describing this.

“Her voice became choked. Her breathing stopped completely.  Sudhamani (Amma) fell unconscious. The Will of the Mother designates the moment.  The Divine Enchantress of the Universe, the Omniscient, the Omnipresent, the Omnipotent Being, the Ancient, Primal Creatrix, the Divine Mother, appeared before Sudhamani in a living form dazzling like a thousand suns.

Sudhamani’s heart overflowed in a tidal wave of unspeakable love and bliss.  The Divine Mother benignly smiled, and, becoming a Pure Effulgence, merged in Sudhamani."

“The divine event is best described in Sudhamani’s own composition, Ananda Veethi or The Path of Bliss, in which she has tried to make intelligible that mystical union which is beyond words :

Ananda Veethi

“Once upon a time, my soul was dancing
In delight through the Path of Bliss.
At that time, all the inner foes such as
Attraction and aversion ran away, hiding
Themselves in the innermost recesses of my mind.
Forgetting myself, I merged in a golden dream
Which arose within me. As noble aspirations
Clearly manifested themselves in my mind,
The Divine Mother, with bright, gentle hands,
Caressed my head. With bowed head, I told
Mother that my life is dedicated to Her.

Smiling, She became a Divine Effulgence
And merged in me. My mind blossomed,
Bathed in the many-hued Light of Divinity
And the events of millions of years gone by
Rose up within me. Thenceforth,
Seeing nothing as separate from my own Self
A single Unity, and merging in the Divine Mother,
I renounced all sense of enjoyment.

Mother told me to ask the people
To fulfil their human birth.
Therefore, I proclaim to the whole world
The sublime Truth that She uttered,
“Oh man, merge in your Self!”

Thousands and thousands of yogis
Have taken birth in India and
Lived the principles visualized by the
Great Sages of the unknown past.
To remove the sorrow of humanity,
How many naked truths there are!

Today I tremble with bliss
Recollecting Mother’s words,
“Oh my darling, come to Me,
Leaving all other works.
You are always Mine.”

O Pure Consciousness,
O Embodiment of Truth,
I will heed Your words.
O Mother, why are You late in coming?
Why did You give this birth?
I know nothing, O Mother,
Please forgive my mistakes.”

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AMMA’S DIVINE POWERS

Amma does not like to discuss or dwell on the occurrence of miracles.  She states that siddhis (powers) are like excreta.  They are not something to which we should give much importance.  As previously stated, an unenlightened human can manifest powers.  In that case it is usually one or two powers.  Amma has displayed a wide range of these powers.  The list below is but a small sample of the thousands of miracles that occur around Amma daily.

Knowing The Minds of Others

There are countless episodes of Amma reading a person’s mind.  This has happened to the author many times.  On one occasion, a woman from Czechoslovakia was seeing Amma for the very first time.  Upon her approach to Amma, Amma began singing a Czechoslovakian lullaby in the language of Czechoslovakian which had been sung by the woman’s mother when the woman was a child.

Levitation

In Awaken Children book 4 there is a description of Amma becoming the goddess Kali and levitating off the floor while sitting cross-legged.  This she did for a holy man who was desirous of having the darshan of the goddess.

Death and Resurrection of Her Own Body

There is an instance of this described in the biography.  Amma’s father demanded that the Divine Mother give his daughter back to him.  Amma replied that if she did, he would get only a corpse.  Her father continued to insist and at that point Amma instantly fell over - stone dead.  There was no pulse and no breathing.  After some time rigor mortis set in. 

There were many people witnessing this and there arose a great tumult of wailing, crying and grief.  At the end of 8 hours, Amma’s father was overcome with remorse and prayed sincerely through his tears to the Divine Mother that She restore Amma to life.  He promised never to interfere again.  At that point Amma’s body began to show signs of life and she fully recovered.  She had been dead for 8 hours and was as stiff as a board with rigor mortis.

Materialization

There is an instance in which a very young Amma put her finger in a pitcher of water in the presence of a thousand or more persons and turned the water into pudding.  It was then distributed to all the people gathered and the pitcher remained full the entire time.  Described in Amma’s biography.

Bi-location

This is the appearance of two flesh and blood Amma bodies in two places simultaneously.  There are many descriptions of this in the Awaken Children books and the biography.  In these she will appear and perform physical actions, maybe moving things or physically touch or caress an individual.  Then when the recipient is next in front of Amma she will make a comment indicating her full awareness of the event.

Talking to Subtle Beings

In the biography, Amma was taking sewing lessons at a nearby Catholic Church.  She describes sitting in the adjacent cemetery and conversing with the departed souls.  She would enquire into their wellbeing and console them. 

In 1987, during Amma’s first visit to the USA, she was to give a program in Santa Fe.  The morning after her first night there, she mentioned to her hosts that she had been up all night giving darshan to the most unusual beings.  She then proceeded to describe them.  Her hosts produced a picture book of Kachinas (deities of local Native American Indians) and Amma verified those were the beings to whom she had been giving darshan.

Perfume Smell

Many followers of Amma have experienced the scent of rose and sandalwood that Amma wears.  This can occur at anytime, anywhere and the fragrance will be quite strong.  The author has experienced this on a number of occasions as have many followers of Amma.

Fire Balls

On at least two occasions, Amma created large moving fire balls to disperse crowds of hostile non-believers.  This is described in Amma’s biography.

Healing

Amma’s healing events are very numerous.  The author once gave a woman a ride to a program and she recounted that she had ovarian cancer.  There was a tumor as big as a baseball in her abdomen and it was physically palpable by pressing with finger tips.  It had once been removed surgically but had grown back.  At the suggestion of a friend, the woman spent a weekend with Amma.  The following Monday at her doctor’s appointment, no trace of the tumor could be found.

One morning the author was ready to do morning meditations but his back between the shoulder blades was out and in so much pain he questioned that he could sit on the floor for any length of time.  After settling in and closing his eyes, suddenly, and quite without any thought of this, Amma appeared in his mind’s eye and said, “Son, does your back hurt?  Here, let Amma fix it for you.”  She then reached over his shoulder and placed her palm on his back between the shoulder blades.  The pain disappeared completely at that point and did not return.  There are many thousands of stories like this among devotees.

Raising People from the Dead

There are two instances of this in the biography.  In one of them, a young girl with asthma died of an attack at the hospital.  Pronounced dead by the doctors, the grandmother took the girl to Amma’s temple and laid her on Amma’s seat wailing with grief all the time.  Amma, who was at a nearby house doing a puja ceremony, suddenly became very restless and left immediately for the temple.  When she got there she put the girl’s body on her lap and meditated until the girl started to move and come back to life.  In another instance a girl who was fated to die by poisonous snake bite was brought back to life by Amma.

Predicting the Future

There are numerous instances described in the back of the biography in which Amma warned individuals about pending calamities then gave them a formula to overcome it.  For example, she warned one family of a pending death which could be transferred to a domestic animal if the formula were observed.  In this case, the family dog got into a fight with a cobra and both died as a result.  The family member was spared.

Dispensing Divine Births

There are a number of instances described in the biography in which a couple that was unable to conceive, were gifted a child by Amma.  In one of these episodes, the woman was hugely pregnant after 16 months and doctors could still not see any baby – only a smoky mass.  At a certain point Amma told them to go to the hospital and a healthy baby was born by caesarian section.  Amma says about these events that she goes into meditation and a power is transferred from her to the childless woman.

Going Without Sleep

Amma normally sleeps about an hour a day.  Even then she is aware of everything that is going on about her.  This is called the Fourth State or Turiya.  The three normal states are waking, dreaming and deep sleep.  When one attains Turiya, consciousness remains unbroken through all the other three states.  One of Amma’s senior swamis once told the author he had seen her go seven days without any sleep.  It is common for her to go several days with no sleep.

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Hugging

To date it is estimated that Amma has hugged 34 million people!  It is almost meaningless to make such a statement because we can’t conceive of 34 million people.  We know it’s a lot but that’s about it.  One has to watch Amma do this in order to begin to appreciate the magnitude of it. 

In the USA she starts hugging at 10 am and continues until maybe 3 or 4 pm.  Then she starts hugging at around 10 pm (after a program of talks and singing bhajans) and will finish at maybe 4 am.  Then it starts again the next day.  In between cities there is usually a day with no hugging.  In the USA this goes non-stop from late May until late July. 

In Europe the crowds are larger than the USA.  In India it is common for 10 or 20 thousand people to line up each day for a hug!  On many occasions, Amma has hugged for 14 to 16 hours straight and on a few occasions she has hugged for 24 hours without stopping.  Imagine hugging for 24 hours without ever using the bathroom. 

When Amma hugs, she closes her eyes and concentrates deep with our psyche.  She heals and purifies past wounds even going back multiple lifetimes.  Swami Amritaswarupananda (one of Amma’s senior swamis) has this to say about Amma’s hugs:

“Amma's darshan is a healing process, a wonderful divine healing process. Her touch heals the wounds caused by a painful past. Her presence purifies, uplifts, and carries us toward our true Self. Amma is purity embodied. Thus all those who come in contact with Her are transformed and cleansed. In some cases this purification can be seen, while at other times, it is subtle.

How many of Amma's devotees are familiar with the seemingly innocent hug that transforms lives, and with the look that causes hearts to melt. Whether you are aware of it or not, whether or not you feel worthy, this purification happens. Just as an iron piece is magnetized when it is rubbed constantly by a powerful magnet, an ordinary soul is transformed into a spiritual being through the constant contact and companionship of a Mahatma like Amma.”  Awaken Children, vol. 7

The Divine energy that pours out of Amma is quite spectacular.  The word most commonly used to describe this energy is Shakti (primordial energy as the first emanation from the formless Absolute – there has never been a time that there was no Shakti – it is without beginning or end).  Most anyone can feel Amma’s immense unconditional love and boundless compassion.  Many people, when they are close to Amma, feel an actual heat on the chest and face.  Many report that after a hug their bodies feel like they are vibrating in a most pleasant way.  Still others are smitten with bliss and it is all they can do to make it to a chair and sit until the experience passes. 

The author has a close personal friend who left his body while being hugged.  When it was time to get up, he could only get back into his upper body leaving his legs immobile.  Attendants picked him up and set him on the side by Amma until he regained full control.  Another very close friend goes into a breathless state every time she is hugged by Amma. 

Most people comment after their first hug that they felt Amma loved them more than their own mother.  One feels very accepted and loved in Amma’s presence.  

Along with these hugs, Amma has given out many thousands of spiritual experiences.  This alone is quite astonishing. 

Ramakrishna died of throat cancer in his 50s.  He stated that the cancer was the result of giving spiritual experiences to some people.  He did not pass them out freely like Amma nor did he have even a small fraction of the crowds.  He might have 20 people in his room on a good night.  Ramakrishna commented that when he gave a spiritual experience, he had to take on some of the person’s karma.  According to him, this resulted in throat cancer.  How powerful is Amma who has given many thousands of spiritual experiences!

Jesus asks in the Bible who had touched him in a crowd:

“And Jesus said, "Who is the one who touched Me?" And while they were all denying it, Peter said, "Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You." But Jesus said, "Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me."   Luke 8:46

For this reason most saints won’t touch people.  However, Amma is beyond a saint.  She is an avatar – an incarnation of God.  She can hug 34 million people and pass out spiritual experiences like candy by the hundreds of thousands and suffer no ill effect!  This is a further indication of Amma’s limitless divine power. 

Amma’s hugging so many people for so many long hours, endlessly day after day is a very visible indication that Amma is not a normal human being.  We have to ponder what would motivate someone to do this?  Most of us would quit after an hour.  In two hours our arms would hurt from raising them so many times.   We would be raw inside from listening to so many sad stories and tales of woe told to us by those seeking relief from their miseries. 

Why would someone do this day after day for so many hours for over 30 years?  Amma says it’s because of love and that she is a river whose nature it is to flow.  She is truly the Amazon River of Divine love!  We can’t possibly understand the enormity of such a love.  Yet we see the visible proof before our very eyes.

No one passes a collection plate.  No letters are received in the mail asking for donations.  Most of the programs are free except for a few stops in the USA in which the cost of the “retreat” days is little more than the cost of the hotel and food.  For programs in the rest of the world, everything is totally free.  Amma gives mantras for free. 

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SPIRITUAL PATH

The biography of Amma, available at www.theammashop.org/books provides a wonderful description of Amma’s spiritual practices.  She was born Self-realized and went through a period of intense practices to create a yogic body that could withstand the extremely large amount of spiritual current that would flow through it for the blessing of the world.  In the spot at the center of the top of her head, there is a soft spot just like a baby would have – the fontanel.  There is a circular area in which there is no skull bone.  It is the author’s conjecture that this is to allow a large flow of spiritual light through the top of the head. 

She did all this without the benefit of a guru and at a very young age.  While still a teenager she was in possession of great yogic powers.  This is largely unheard of even in the ancient scriptures. To follow is a picture of young Amma meditating. 

To briefly summarize, she started composing songs to God and principally to Krishna when she was 5 or 6.  Through her teenage years she was doing intense spiritual practices which including singing and dancing to Krishna and meditating for hours on end. 

During this time her mother was ill and very cruel to Amma often beating her for the smallest of infractions such as not washing a dish thoroughly.  After another year or so, Amma began living entirely outdoors in a hole she had dug in the sandy beach by her parent’s home.  Animals would bring food to her otherwise she ate leaves. 

The Divine Mother merged in her and told Amma that her life was not just for experiencing bliss but for relieving the suffering of humanity.  After that she began her mission. 

For a number of years Amma would go into states of extreme spiritual intoxication.  This could be triggered by hearing a devotional song or any other spiritually suggestive occurrence.  When Amma entered these moods, the brahmacharins (monks) around her were told by Amma to do certain chants and sing certain songs in an attempt to coax her back to our world.  Otherwise, Amma warned them, there was a possibility she might not come back. The picture below is a young Amma in a state of samadhi or great bliss.

These divine moods occurred frequently as Amma struggled to keep her mind on the earthly plane.  While we struggle to have even one experience of Samadhi, she struggled to stay out of Samadhi so as to remain in service to the world.  The contrast is stark and a testimony to Amma’s spiritual magnitude.  In her later years she managed to get some control of this.  Here is an example of an exalted spiritual mood.

“Totally transported to a world unknown to those of gross intellect, the Mother burst into an uproarious laugh. It became louder and continued unabated. Half an hour passed as the laugh of uncontrollable and overflowing supreme bliss continued.  All the family members gathered around the Holy Mother. The Mother's sisters started crying and Mother Damayanti (Amma’s mother) also cried calling the Divine Mother. Owing to their spiritual ignorance they thought that the Holy Mother was going to lose Her mental balance. It took a long time for the Mother to come down to the normal state. Afterwards, it seemed as though She was struggling to keep Her mind down. Her eyes went up and got fixed at the point between the eyebrows.”   Awaken Children vol 1

Here is another example. 

“The evening bhajan started as usual at six-thirty. The singing reached its peak as the Holy Mother sang,

O Beautiful One, please come,
O Consort of Purandara (Lord Siva), please come,
O Auspicious One, please come...

O Giver of radiance,
Thou art the All in all of those
Who consider Thee as their dear relation...

O Mother, please remain as the spring of my inspiration...

Becoming intoxicated with God-love and, standing up, the Mother began dancing ecstatically. The brahmacharins went on singing with overflowing devotion. From the temple veranda the Mother moved towards the coconut trees in the front yard. When She reached the coconut trees She danced round and round completely lost to this world. She was showing a divine gesture (mudra) with Her right hand which was slightly raised. A beaming smile lit Her face which was clear even in the dim light. This ecstatic mood had gone on for more than half an hour and it seemed as though there would be no end to it. Some sat nearby and others at a distance watching the Mother. Some of the brahmacharins made a chain by holding hands to protect Mother from hitting the coconut trees. Eventually Sugunanandan (Amma’s father), because of his usual fear that his daughter would leave Her body soon if this state persisted for a long time, appeared on the scene. Without asking anybody's permission, he carried Her into the hut and laid Her on a cot. Mother was totally lost to this world and Her body now seemed like a corpse. Sugunanandan later related, "The little one's body was so light in weight that it felt like I was lifting a basketful of flowers, but Her face was glowing like the rising sun."  Swami Amritaswarupananda, Awaken Children, vol. 1

Who can understand where Amma goes during these times?  How can we comprehend a being who experiences the entire universe as a tiny bubble.

“From that day onwards I could see nothing as different from my own Formless Self wherein the entire universe exists as a tiny bubble...”  Amma – Mata Amritanandamayi – A Biography

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AMMA’S CHARITIES

“Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”  Jesus,  Matthew 7:20, NIV

From a very young age, Amma would care for the stricken, the poor, the elderly and the sick.  Many times her parents beat her for giving away food and family items.  Her family was also poor and her father made a living by fishing.  Nothing would stop her.  This thread of compassion has continued unbroken to this day.  Amma says her religion is love. 

Compassion is love in action and Amma encourages all of us to follow in her footsteps.  Such selfless service also helps us to drop the heaviness, pain and suffering of our own ego.   For this reason and for the purpose of uplifting the world and relieving the suffering of humanity, Amma continuously encourages all of us to engage in charitable activities. 

With this end in mind, Amma issued a request to all local satsang groups to begin serving others on a regular basis.  Thus the Amma’s Kitchen project was formed with satsang groups taking it upon themselves to feed the poor and homeless in their respective cities. 

It is dumbfounding to consider all of Amma’s charities.  It is double dumbfounding to consider that all this has been put in place by a woman with only a fourth grade education.  This inspiring story of love and compassion is well represented in Amma’s biography.

Amma’s charities are run by volunteers and Amma’s disciples.   There are no paid executives making money.

It should be noted that she herself lives a life of austerity occupying a very small space of only a few hundred square feet at her ashram.  She wears only the plainest white clothes and has virtually no personal possessions other than a few items like an ink pen and a hairbrush.  When flying she insists on riding in the economy seats.

There is an excellent documentary about Amma’s many charities called Embracing the World.  At the time of this writing, it could be viewed for free on YouTube.

Helping Women

Vocational Training for 100,000 Women

To equip economically vulnerable women with the skills and means to set up cottage industries, more than 6,000 self-groups for women across India and 1,000 groups in the nearby Andaman Islands have been established.

Microcredit Loans Get Them Started

So far, ETW has helped 3,500 of these groups receive microcredit loans -- benefitting more than 60,000 families.

Life & Accident Insurance to Protect their Family's Future

Every member of the self-help groups has been enrolled in a plan with the Life Insurance Corporation of India. As part of the agreement, the insurance company also provides scholarships to 15% of the policyholder's children. Each year, these scholarships will rotate, so every family can benefit.
Training for 100,000 Home Nurses

Education

100,000 scholarships for children from desperately impoverished agricultural communities and those affected by AIDS

Special schools for the hearing-impaired and mentally challenged

Award winning literacy and vocational training for adults from India's poorest tribal communities, offering over 100 courses ranging from candle making to computer science

Free vocational training for 500 teenagers in 11 trades with an 80% graduation rate

A secondary school with 3,500 students, the largest school in the Indian State of Kerala

Disaster Relief

A mobile telemedicine unit the size of a large bus takes sophisticated medical service to disaster stricken areas.

$1 Million: Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan, 2011

$10.7 million: Karnataka / Andhra Pradesh Floods, 2009

Food, clothing, bedding and blankets distributed

Medical care for 500+ people per day

$465,000: Bihar Floods, 2008

Medical team in place for two months, treating 50,000

Thousands of tents, blankets and tarpaulins distributed

$1 Million: Hurricane Katrina, 2005

$46 Million: Indian Ocean Tsunami, 2004

Building Homes

Building not just 100,000 homes for the homeless but whole communities complete with town halls, roads, wells, electricity, sewage systems and clean drinking water

More than 1,600 families relocated from slums into new apartments

6,200 new homes for victims of the Indian Ocean Tsunami

2,000 new homes for flood victims in Raichur

1,200 new homes for victims of the Gujarat Earthquake in 2009

Care Homes for Children

Kerala, India

Running an orphanage for 500 children for the last 20 years, where the children consistently win awards in music, sports and dance.  More than 1 in 3 go on to earn college degrees

Kenya, Africa

In April 2011, during Amma’s visit to Nairobi, the Vice-President of the Republic of Kenya opened the Amrita Watoto Boma Care Home for Children. Initially, the children’s home will accommodate 50 children. Two other projects were also inaugurated:

A Vocational Training Centre, equipped with 35 computers to serve the nearby slum settlement, and

A Drinking Water Distribution Project will provide daily, clean drinking water

Fighting Hunger

Feeding more than 10 million people a year in India

Amma feeds 10 million people

Distributing uncooked rice, milk and other staples to deeply impoverished communities

Providing six million free meals and 185 tons of uncooked rice in the first six months after the 2006 Indian Ocean Tsunami

Serving more than 100,000 meals every year to the homeless and hungry internationally

Feeding more than 75,000 people every year in 40 cities throughout North America

Healthcare

More than $60 Million in free medical care since 1998

5.5 Million patients treated - 2 Million patients treated for free

AIMS Hospitals: 1,450 beds with an attached medical college with a 400 bed facility, offering free or subsidized care

A Mobile Telemedicine Unit, the size of a city bus, bringing sophisticated medical care to remote areas

More than 100 free medical drives in remote, impoverished areas. When necessary, patients go to the hospital for free.

Disaster relief by Amma

25 bed hospital near a remote hilltop temple provides for the hundreds of thousands who make the pilgrimage every year

Medical dispensary in Mumbai

HIV/AIDS care center, open daily,  providing anti-retroviral drugs and care services

Free cataract surgeries: 726 patients in 2010

Pain and Palliative Home Care: 75,000 impoverished, terminally ill patients treated annually -- all free of charge

Monthly Pensions for 50,000 Widows, the Disabled & Victims of Poverty

Recognizing that due to a loss or injury, people in the developing world can easily be consigned to a lifetime of hardship, these pensions don't expire - they are for life. Ultimately, 100,000 men, women and children will receive monthly pensions.

Care homes for the Elderly

They come for refuge or to spend their final years in a tranquil spiritual ambiance. These four care homes also hold community functions & cultural programs.

Sponsored Weddings for the Poor

In India, marriage is essential for the stability of the entire family. For decades, Amma has sponsored weddings, providing all the items necessary for a traditional service.

Hospital Visits and Meals on Wheels

Volunteers throughout the works visit hospitals, nursing homes and the elderly and in firm in their own homes.

Green Initiatives

In Kerala, India, three medicinal plant gardens conserve coastal, midland and forest ecosystems and provide employment for local women.

In France, Amma’s volunteers built a walk-in bee sanctuary that offers the educational experience of living with bees.

In Europe, Greenfriends is using organic cultivation methods and developing seed banks to preserve local, ancient and/or endangered seeds.

In the USA, Embracing the World has launched a tree sponsorship program with the goal of reforesting 80 acres of land with 40,000 pine trees.

In India, volunteers are using non-recyclable hard plastic packing straps to weave bed bases for metal-framed foldaway beds for disaster survivors.

Amma Fiji’s Green Friends picked up hundreds of plastic bags and bottles, pieces of foam, and even some tires. Around 60 bags of garbage was picked up on two beaches along the Suva Sea Wall.

Green Shores project is planning on planting 300,000 casuarina saplings in total on the Alappad Panchayat peninsula.

Public Health

The Amala Bharatam Campaign has the potential to have a powerful impact on India’s public health goals. Lack of sanitation is the world’s leading cause of infection. It aims to improve public health and restore India’s physical beauty. By cleaning India’s public spaces, promoting health through hygiene, sorting garbage, recycling, and properly disposing of waste, awareness of this campaign has reached millions.

More than 1,000 clean-up drives have been undertaken on the fourth Sunday of each month, which has been designated as Clean Sunday. Through ABC, volunteers are cleaning public areas, constructing public toilets and spreading awareness in schools regarding the proper way to dispose of trash. Handkerchiefs have been distributed to more than one million school children. Teaching them to use them instead of spitting on the ground.

Research for a Better World

Researchers at Amrita University deployed the world’s first wireless sensor network system for landslide detection in Munnar, Kerala. Warning of an impending landslide, it allows for early evacuation and disaster management.

SAVE program has developed educational applications using multimedia, virtual reality and haptic technologies to simulate real-life situations and provide portable, cost-effective, scalable and vocational education.

MoVE (Mobile Vocational Education), utilizes vehicles powered by solar energy to provide vocational education for sustainable development in diverse areas, including India’s remote tribal communities.

Amma’s Center for Nanosciences is conducting research into cancer, infectious diseases and tissue engineering.

In 2011, A-VIEW (Amrita Virtual Interactive E-learning World) won the Jury Award for Best Innovation in Open and Distance Learning at the World Education Summit in New Delhi.

Over 27,000 students in rural schools are using the India’s first computer-aided adaptive assessment and learning program CREATE (Centre for Research in Advanced Technologies for Education).

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OTHERS RECOGNIZING AMMA

Rome, Italy 2014:  Pope Francis invited Amma to participate in a gathering of world religious leaders to discuss what can be done to stop human slavery and trafficking.  There were 15 religious leaders present including the Pope and all signed a proclamation opposing this travesty.

Amma with the Pope

Kerala, 2013: Amma receives the first-ever Vishwaretna Puraskar (Gem of the World Award), bestowed by the Hindu Parliament.

Shanghai, 2012: Amma addresses the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in Shanghai. Amma was the only spiritual/religious leader invited to the conference.

New York, 2010: Amma receives an honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from the State University of New York at Buffalo.

New Delhi, 2009: Amma inaugurates the Vivekananda International Foundation.

Jaipur, 2008: Amma is a keynote speaker at the Summit of the Global Peace Initiative of Women.

Paris, 2007: Amma is awarded the Prix Cinéma Vérité for her humanitarian activities and work for peace at the Cinema Verite Film Festival.

New York, 2006: Amma receives the James Parks Morton Interfaith Award in New York.

Pune, 2006: Amma receives the Philosopher Saint Sri Jnaneswara World Peace Prize.

London, 2005: Amma receives the Mahavir Mahatma Award.

Kochi, 2005: Amma receives Centenary Legendary Award of the Rotary Club International.

Barcelona, 2004: Amma delivers a keynote address at the 2004 Parliament of the World’s Religions.

Geneva, 2002: Amma is the keynote speaker at the Global Peace Initiative of Women Religious & Spiritual Leaders at the UN, Geneva.

USA, 2002: Amma receives Karma Yogi of the Year Award from Yoga Journal.

Geneva, 2002: The World Movement for Nonviolence confers upon Amma the Gandhi-King Award for Non-violence at the UN in Geneva.

New York, 2000: Amma is a keynote speaker at the Millennium World Peace Summit, UN General Assembly. In the picture below, Dr. Jane Goodall is presenting the award.

Chicago, 1998: Amma receives the Care & Share International. Humanitarian of the
Year Award.

New York, 1995: Amma addresses the Interfaith Celebrations at the 50th anniversary of the UN.

Chicago, 1993: Amma addresses the Parliament of the World’s Religions’ 100th Anniversary, where is she named President of the Hindu Faith.

USA, 1993: Amma receives the Hindu Renaissance Award from Hinduism Today.
It should be noted that Amma embraces all religions.  When asked what is her own religion she says that it is love.

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TIPS FOR SEEING AMMA

In this section we will discuss a number of points that are worthy of our consideration if we are to get the most out of our visit with Amma and also after we return home.

Tune In

It is very useful, especially if you have never seen Amma, to read her teachings in the Awaken Children books, read her biography and watch these three DVDs about her:

River of Love – a docudrama about Amma’s early years.

Embracing the World – documentary regarding Amma’s many charities and her all-embracing compassion.

Darshan the Embrace – a documentary about Amma’s later life.

The more we can know about Amma, the better will be our experience with her.  These are all available at www.theammashop.org.  The first two DVDs are available for free on YouTube at the time of this writing.

If one has previously seen Amma, it is still useful to watch these DVDs, read Amma’s words, and spend time becoming more aware of her prior to going to see her.  This tunes our spiritual radio to station K-AMMA so that we can receive maximum benefit when in her presence.  Her magnificent love will be loud and clear!

No Fear

It is normal to have some anxiety or fear when approaching Amma for the first time.  The author can categorically promise that when the hug comes, all fear will vanish.  The common feeling is that Amma loves us more than our own birth mother. We feel her unconditional love and we know she accepts us and loves us no matter what we have done in the past.

Stay As Long As You Can

It is difficult to discover Amma as the fountain of Divine Love that she is by going to just one program, getting one hug and then going home.  As we sit in Amma’s presence we are purified and clarified by her Shakti (Divine Energy).  We will then be able to ascend to the ecstatic heights that are the Amma experience.  From that vantage point, our view of Amma will deepen and expand greatly.  Our experience of the Divine in general will be magnified.

Stuff Comes Up

Many people experience past emotional pain rising up from their subconscious when they are in the intense Shakti (Divine Energy) of Amma.  This Shakti is like a stick that stirs up mud laying at the bottom of our psyche.  The key to this is in surrendering it all to Amma.  Be aware of it and ask Amma to take it.  Keep giving it to her.  Then it will be gone.  If this occurs, plough through it.  Don’t let it stop you.  The blessing of having this “stuff” come up for redemption, healing and purification is of immense value to us.

Not Worthy

Feelings of unworthiness are also quite common.  After a hug or two we will suddenly have the feeling that we are not worthy of Amma’s presence.  Don’t believe this.  Amma has addressed this issue specifically and reminds us that the past is a cancelled check.  She also says that if we were all perfect she would not have needed to come to this world.

The author knows a couple who went to see Amma for the first time in Santa Fe.  Let’s call them Marvin and Sally.  After a couple of hugs, Marvin was bitten with the not-worthy syndrome and decided he would not go up for any more hugs because, as he put it, he did not want to soil the Holy Mother’s presence with his miserable wretched self. 

However, Sally was not having any of this and so she went for a hug without her partner.  At the hug, Amma gave Sally two chocolate candy kisses.  Normally, Amma gives each person one chocolate candy kiss.  Sitting down by Marvin, Sally exclaimed, “See Marvin!  Amma thinks you should have gotten a hug.  She gave me two chocolates!” 

Marvin still could not overcome his self-loathing and would not believe what Sally was suggesting.  At the end of the program, an isle formed for Amma to walk down as she exited the tent.  Marvin was on the inside edge of this isle on his knees as Amma approached.  Coming to Marvin, she stopped, bent over, looked at him squarely and holding up two fingers said, “Two chocolates!”

Maya the Obstructer

Perhaps this is the most important item to understand.  It is being listed after the previous considerations because Maya often uses these other avenues to obstruct one’s ability to see Amma. We recall that when Buddha resolved to sit under the Bodhi Tree until he attained enlightenment, Mara the Tempter (Maya) presented him with powerful temptations hoping to persuade the Buddha to stop.

The truth that Amma is conveying to us is that we are all the one Self and that we should merge in that.  This Self is that about us which is aware.  We are that awareness itself.  In our minds there is a fictitious personality that we mistakenly consider to be our self.  It is identified with the body and the mind and it is through this identification that it is able to continue its charade.  This illusory appearance of “I” and “mine” is Maya.  We will call it “ego” for short.

Most everyone in the world suffers from this illusion or Maya.  In the absolute sense this is all the play of the Divine Mother and it is also Her play that some of us begin to awaken from this illusory dream.  The ego is, in a sense, real only because we grant it reality.  The actual true reality that is awareness (our true nature) illumines the mind and the ego.  Awareness is the air that fills the balloon called ego thus granting the ego the appearance of reality.

The egos of all the humans on earth are joined at a subconscious level in what Carl Jung called the Collective Unconscious.  Each ego is feeding and granting reality to every other ego by way of this inner connection.  We see this inner connectivity illustrated in the 100th monkey experiment.  A group of scientists taught monkeys on an island in the Pacific to wash their food. 

By the time they had taught 100 monkeys to do this all the other monkeys began to do the same.  Even monkeys on nearby islands who had no contact at all with the scientists began doing this.  This ability of animals to learn from the experience of other animals via inner connectivity was further verified through extensive experimentation by biologist Dr. Rupert Sheldrake, PhD.  Theoretical physicist David Bohm and Sheldrake published a dialogue in 1982 in which they compared Bohm's "Implicate Order" to Sheldrake's hypothesis. At a deep level we are all connected and we affect each other.

The pooling of all the human egos in the Collective Unconscious endeavors to maintain the illusion of the ego.  It is intelligent and will vigorously strive to prevent each of us from discarding our own ego and thus realizing the truth regarding who or what we really are. 

Most people like their ego and don’t want to get rid of it.  They don’t want to wake up from the illusion that it is somehow our friend (the ego is not our amigo).  This exerts considerable force to counteract any persons who might be sending signals to the contrary into the Collective Unconscious.  So Maya maintains the illusion.  For those of us interested in stepping out of the matrix, this is important to understand. 

Amma represents the opposite of Maya.  She is the dissolution of the ego.  Thus, the collective ego will conspire by all possible means to prevent Amma from waking us up.

Maya uses many tricks to deceive us.  Words do not exist to express the subtlety and cunning of Maya.  For example we make plans to go see Amma.  After some time, we are possessed by an obsessive thought that we can’t really afford this.  If we ignore this and go anyway, the thought will deflate and we will be scratching our heads amazed that our minds had made such an issue of it. 

If “stuff” comes up from the quickening of Amma’s Shakti, Maya will try to capitalize on this and convince us that all this is only making us miserable and that we should flee for our lives. 

If we harbor feelings of unworthiness, Maya will amplify this and attempt to convince us that we should stay away from Amma. 

The author has, on numerous occasions through the years, convinced a friend to go see Amma only to have the trip scuttled.  For example, one of the friend’s long lost relatives, who has not been seen in 20 years, will call to say they are going to be in town on the exact weekend the friend was to spend with Amma.  It is uncanny how this happens!

Maya has also, from the very beginning, worked to oppose Amma directly.  Maya does this by influencing the minds of others.  In the biography we read the description of Amma’s early days and the relentless attacks by the Rationalists (a local group of atheists and non-believers who organized themselves to obstruct and oppose Amma). 

They would loiter outside on the street cajoling and threatening others who wished to see Amma.  Wherever Amma went, they would yell vulgar insults from across the street and throw stones at her.  There were numerous attempts to kill her described in the biography. 

Even as recently as a few years ago, someone rushed the stage where Amma was having a program waving a knife.  A devotee tackled the man and was himself stabbed but not fatally. 

Forewarned is forearmed.  Be very watchful for Maya.  Maya doesn’t want you to see Amma because Amma means waking up.

Spend as much time as possible in the hall

When we go see Amma for the first time or after a year of not seeing her, our consciousness becomes dense and dull.  It is our good fortune that simply sitting in Amma’s presence will begin to heat up our thick dark tarry psyche and as that happens our minds become more subtle.  However, once we tune in to the vibration of universal love, it can become very physical.  We may weep without understanding why and it is a joyous weeping.  We may often be surprised that we are crying and wonder what is the source of these tears.  This is common in Amma’s presence. 

Often we will feel a pleasant warmth on our face and chest as we face Amma and this is intensified the closer we are to her.  Her energy becomes very palpable.  Think of ourselves as a pot of water and she is the fire on the stove.  We must leave the water on the stove a sufficient amount of time for it to heat up and begin to steam.  If we keep pulling it off the stove (various distractions) the heating will not occur.  So try to spend as much time as possible in the hall.  This experience is very light, joyous and over flowing with love.

Sit as Close to Amma as Possible

Get to the hall about an hour early and sit up close.  Amma’s Shakti is more palpable the closer you are to her physically.  If it is your first time to see Amma, there will be space reserved up front for you. 

Try to Surrender

Getting the most out of our hug and visit with Amma is a factor of surrender.  When we go for a hug, Amma will pull our head onto her right shoulder.  It is best if we can just relax and let go completely of everything, trusting Amma to do what needs to be done for our wellbeing.  We become a ragdoll - a corpse – with no remaining will of our own.  Our ability to do this, in large part, is facilitated by having some semblance of innocence.  While this is not so easy to do because we have become “grownups” we can usually do this for the minute we are in Amma’s arms.  It helps to visualize ourselves as a 6 year old child.  Try to remember what it felt like to be a child.  This allows an openness to occur in us and that’s all Amma needs to help us.

Concentrate on Amma

If we have two tuning forks of the same note (for example the musical note of A or 440 cycles per second) we can make one of the tuning forks begin to vibrate and emit a tone simply by bringing the other vibrating tuning fork into its proximity.  We are the silent tuning fork and Amma is the eternally vibrating tuning fork.  Being in her presence will transmit profound cosmic vibrations to us even if we do not feel it at the time.  We will begin to vibrate with Amma.  There are several things we can do to enhance this effect. 

Try to mediate on Amma.  Just watch her intently.  We will notice that she is always in a state of bliss.  Meditating on the form, the face, the movements and the voice of a Perfect Master is very purifying and liberating.  Her profound spiritual vibrations will affect us.  When she gives a talk in the evening program, meditate on the sound of her voice even though she is speaking in Malayalam.  When she is talking, it is not necessary to understand what she says – we just listen with our ears and your heart.  

Every tiny thing a Mahatma does will impact us in a very positive way.  It is an extremely rare opportunity to sit in the presence of such a Master. 

Avoid Distractions

There is some amount of time that Amma is not in the hall.  Remember we are trying to heat up our pot of water.  Even though the fire (Amma) is not present for these few hours, we should leave the lid on our pot to retain as much heat as possible.  This means eliminating distractions that absorb our attention and thereby dissipate our spiritual heat. 

Try to avoid watching TV, excessive talking or reading newspapers.  Read spiritual books instead.  If this is not possible, try to keep the mind on Amma or God or any experiences we may have had.  Try to see God everywhere and in everything as we walk around.  Try to see God in everyone we meet.  Take a nature walk.  In this way we can be mobile but not dissipate our energy.  There is a time and a season to all things.  The time we are with Amma should be for that. 

Bowing to Amma

It is common to see people bow to Amma.  In the east, it is traditional to bow to teachers, elders and so on.  This is not because Amma wants anyone to bow down to her.  Also you will notice when she comes into the hall, she will bow down to everyone as well.  Although Amma comes from a Hindu tradition, she does not consider herself to be Hindu.  When asked what her religion is, she says it is Love. 

It Can Fade

Even if we have cosmic experiences in Amma’s presence, we will forget as the year goes by.  It is quite amazing how this can happen.  When the program is over we will be experiencing such a spiritual high.  Six months later we can only remember that we had a good time.  We are unable to feel our spiritual experiences.  We remember something about them but the intensity is not there. 

One reason for this is that we have nothing in our everyday lives that corresponds to the states of spiritual elevation in Amma’s presence.  It is so unique.  In addition, the density and insensitivity of our psyche returns with time.  This can be held at bay somewhat if we try to do spiritual practices at home especially working with whatever experiences Amma has given us.  Nonetheless, when we go back to see Amma the next year we will be amazed when we are re-ignited.  We will be amazed that we could have gotten so far from the spiritual space we were in when we left Amma. 

Keep It Going

Amma teaches by giving us direct experiences.  We take these home and meditate on them.  Each day try to remember the experience and what it felt like.  Over time, as we water the seeds Amma planted, our mind will become expansive and our hearts will be filled with love and bliss.

It is also good to read and reread the dialogue books about Amma such as the Awaken Children books.  In addition, books written by Amma’s close disciples are very inspiring.  Doing this allows us to maintain our connection with Amma.
The most potent means of maintaining connection is saying our mantra.

What to Wear

Out of respect for the Indian culture, modest dress is recommended. For example: tank tops, shorts, tight leggings and short skirts are not recommended. Casual is fine.  Blue jeans, T-shirts – no problem. 

Take Refuge in Amma

The following is from the book Talks, volume 3 by Swami Paramatmananda, one of Amma’s senior swamis.

“We’ve taken refuge in a satguru (Self-realized soul), in Amma, a person who’s one with Brahman.  She says that anyone who makes that connection is looked after for eternity.  That’s the connection that we have to make, just one time.  Take refuge in Amma.  Then for all eternity, for all your future births, until you merge into your Self, Amma will be looking after you.  You don’t have to pray again and again, ‘O Amma, Amma please save me.  Did you hear me last time?  Just in case you didn’t hear me last time, I’m asking you this time again.  Shall I say it louder?  I cried only five minutes last time, I’ll cry ten minutes just in case.’  You don’t have to do that.  One time, just turn to Amma in your heart, one time say, ‘Amma, please save me, I take refuge in your.’  She’ll save you.  No doubt.  She’s given that assurance.

“Just like Lord Rama in Ramayana.  When Vibhishana, the brother of Rama’s own enemy Ravana, came and took refuge in Rama, Rama said, ‘This is My promise, that anybody who takes refuge in Me even once, from then onward he’s Mine, and I’ll look after him forever.’  So we need not concern ourselves about our life and death, the sufferings that we’re going to have to go through.  It’s all Amma’s Prasad (gift from the Divine).  We should accept it as such.  The painful things are prasad, the pleasant things also are prasad. 

"Krishna liberated a whole group of kings.  They were suffering; they were going to be offered in a human sacrifice.  He liberated them and said to them, ‘Now you consider everything that happens to you in the future as My prasad.  Your death is My prasad, your sufferings are My prasad, your pleasures are My prasad.  Everything is my prasad.  That’s what you should think.  You do your sadhana (spiritual practice) and consider your life as My prasad, My gift.’  So try to hold onto that thought even if the place is shaking or whatever may happen, accept it all as Amma’s prasad."

Love and hugs to you dear reader!

MOTHER HEAVEN WORLD

Carefree Divine Mother
What is this Mother heaven world
Where brilliant swirling lights
Sing In the open space
Of your all-enfolding Mother being?

Your children are delirious
From the aroma
Of your floating drifting
Clouds of love!

We are like lambs
Rolling in a spring meadow
Filled with fragrant flowers
And bees collecting
Your honey bliss
All bursting with the fire
Of galaxies gone mad
In the unbridled joy
Of celestial devotion!

Where intoxicating droning OMs
Are a bed of eternities
For your tinkling ankle bells
Of endless bliss bliss bliss!

What is this mesmerizing beauty?
Where flowers bow to you
And rivers flow to you
And your light plays
In the hearts of all beings
And even the Prince of Ecstasy
Is helplessly carried away
On your soaring swan
Of Divine Mother love

Victory to Amma!

Victory to the Divine Mother of the Universe!

 

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All rights reserved.  No part of this website may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by and means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews and articles.

Disclaimer:  The author and publisher accept no legal responsibility for any actions that you may choose to take relating to matters contained on this website.  This website is provided with the understanding that you accept responsibility for your well-being and the healing of your body, mind, and soul.  Names and identifying details of some people and their stories have been changed to protect confidentiality.

The opinions expressed in the website are that of the author alone. This website is not a part of Amma's organization nor affiliated in any way.

We pray for the grace and love of Amma and the Divine Mother to enter the heart of every reader.  Thank you Amma!  Thank you Amma!  Thank you Amma!

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