Guest guest Posted July 20, 2005 Report Share Posted July 20, 2005 I am bummed out. Yesterday (Monday), Ammachi was in Noo Yawk to give darshan, perform a Puja, and take on her Devi Bhava. I was intending to go, and in preparation had been eating vegetarian for the last few days. I read somewhere that Amma said, "I love my Western devotees, but am upset that so many of them smell like meat-eaters." I figured a few days of careful eating would prevent my carnivorous stench :-) and help raise my consciousness. Monday afternoon I ordered a lunch of Chinese eggplant in garlic sauce, which I ate hungrily with lots of white rice. Then, about an hour before I was supposed to leave home, I was struck with an intestinal upset of explosive proportions! Ugh, was I a mess! Naturally, I cancelled my ride and stayed home near the bathroom. At home and depressed that I would miss this year's chance to see Amma, I surfed the Web and found an astrological Panchanga which informed me that Monday was an Ekadashi day, the eleventh night after the New Moon, observed as a fasting day by Vaishnavas. Not only had I NOT fasted, the foods I ate were all explicitly forbidden to eat on Ekadashi -- rice, garlic, and eggplant. I am not a Vaishnava, but it seemed strange that this breaking of dietary restrictions coincided with my toilet adventure. (A note said that Lord Brahma put a curse on all rice grains eaten on Ekadashi, that they would explode in the devotee's stomach.) Today I spoke to a couple of my Wiccan friends who did manage to get downtown to see Ammachi on Monday. Karen's darshan was particularly moving. When Amma hugged her and blessed a bracelet, she put it on Karen's wrist, saying in English, "from Mother to Daughter." At that moment, Karen says she got a vivid loving image of her own biological mother, dead for several years, and could smell her mother's perfume scent. Karen was concerned that I didn't have Amma's comforting hug, since my father had passed away less than a month ago. And it occurred to me -- don't some Hindus avoid performing Pujas or taking darshan of their Guru for a period (ranging from 11 days to a whole year) after the death of a parent? I intend to light a candle this Thursday to honor Ammachi, and celebrate Guru Purnima. For whatever reason, I was prevented from meeting my Guru this year, but I still keep her image cherished in my heart. Om amriteshvariye namaha -- Len/ Kalipadma __ Start your day with - make it your home page http://www./r/hs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2005 Report Share Posted July 20, 2005 Len, thanks for your very lovely writing and candid expressions of desire and appreciation of your shortcomings. I resonated with it and remembered many similar experiences in my own life. May Guru Purnima bring you closer to God. Henry On 7/20/05, Len Rosenberg <kalipadma108 wrote: > I am bummed out. Yesterday (Monday), Ammachi was in > Noo Yawk to give darshan, perform a Puja, and take on > her Devi Bhava. I was intending to go, and in > preparation had been eating vegetarian for the last > few days. I read somewhere that Amma said, "I love my > Western devotees, but am upset that so many of them > smell like meat-eaters." I figured a few days of > careful eating would prevent my carnivorous stench :-) > and help raise my consciousness. Monday afternoon I > ordered a lunch of Chinese eggplant in garlic sauce, > which I ate hungrily with lots of white rice. Then, > about an hour before I was supposed to leave home, I > was struck with an intestinal upset of explosive > proportions! Ugh, was I a mess! Naturally, I > cancelled my ride and stayed home near the bathroom. > > At home and depressed that I would miss this year's > chance to see Amma, I surfed the Web and found an > astrological Panchanga which informed me that Monday > was an Ekadashi day, the eleventh night after the New > Moon, observed as a fasting day by Vaishnavas. Not > only had I NOT fasted, the foods I ate were all > explicitly forbidden to eat on Ekadashi -- rice, > garlic, and eggplant. I am not a Vaishnava, but it > seemed strange that this breaking of dietary > restrictions coincided with my toilet adventure. (A > note said that Lord Brahma put a curse on all rice > grains eaten on Ekadashi, that they would explode in > the devotee's stomach.) > > Today I spoke to a couple of my Wiccan friends who did > manage to get downtown to see Ammachi on Monday. > Karen's darshan was particularly moving. When Amma > hugged her and blessed a bracelet, she put it on > Karen's wrist, saying in English, "from Mother to > Daughter." At that moment, Karen says she got a vivid > loving image of her own biological mother, dead for > several years, and could smell her mother's perfume > scent. > > Karen was concerned that I didn't have Amma's > comforting hug, since my father had passed away less > than a month ago. And it occurred to me -- don't some > Hindus avoid performing Pujas or taking darshan of > their Guru for a period (ranging from 11 days to a > whole year) after the death of a parent? > > I intend to light a candle this Thursday to honor > Ammachi, and celebrate Guru Purnima. For whatever > reason, I was prevented from meeting my Guru this > year, but I still keep her image cherished in my > heart. > > Om amriteshvariye namaha > > -- Len/ Kalipadma > > > > > > __ > Start your day with - make it your home page > http://www./r/hs > > > > http://www.geocities.com/aumganesh/ > Links > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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