Ammachi in Bangalore

[Guest guest]

A couple of items from today's Times of India, as

Ammachi's south Indian tour rolls on.

 

Jai Ma!

 

Keval

===============================

Amma gives a hug and some lessons

 

 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ MONDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2002

11:19:09 PM ]

 

BANGALORE : Her warm hug has been acclaimed world over

for its soothing effect. The halo of love around her

belies her simplicity. In a troubled world, she is not

just a human being, but a guiding light to many.

 

The devotion she commands cuts across religions and

draws people from other countries. And for the

troubled soul it is her whisper that comforts.

 

Satguru Mata Amritanandamayi Devi was in Bangalore on

Monday to participate in the public reception held at

the newly constructed ashram at Jnanabharati II stage,

Ullala Road. The ashram comprises of a Brahmasthanam

temple, a school, a prayer hall and accommodation

facilities for devotees.

 

Mata's talk in Malayalam was translated to Kannada for

the benefit of hundreds of devotees who made their way

to the dais through untarred roads sans footwear.

 

``Life is not just a series of celebrations. Remember,

even good people go through difficult times. True

devotion is in trying to be good to others,'' was her

message for the audience who waited patiently for

hours to get a darshan of the Devi in white. A sizable

section of the audience consisted of foreigners in

white and her own staff in orange attire.

 

The lady who had earlier addressed the UN assembly

with a talk on Hinduism says it is difficult to change

situations, ``but easier to change our own mindsets.''

The husky voice behind the spiritual talk peppers the

need for values in life with anecdotes. Like some

people in quake-stricken Gujarat who told her, ``God

took away from us what he had earlier given.'' She

asked people fraught with problems to learn from these

people who had lost their relatives and houses in the

earthquake, to first count the blessings one has.

 

The function was attended by union minister of state

for railways O.Rajagopal and vice-chancellor of

Bangalore University K.Siddappa. Mata will be in

Davangere on January 19.

 

*******************

 

Get connected to your inner being

 

 

ALLEN J MENDONCA & NAYARE ALI

 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ MONDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2002

8:35:17 PM ]

 

"Go ahead celebrate Valentine's Day and all the other

days of the calendar. But celebration acquires true

meaning only when you spend part of the money on the

poor and the dispossessed. Even ten rupees can mean a

miracle to someone in need," says Sri Sri Mata

Amritanandamayi.

 

There in the ornate splendour of The Leela Palace, a

guest of chairman Captain Nair, Amma spent a whole day

meeting and blessing her devotees.

 

There's a grace, a joie de vivre, the physicality of

her hugging the seekers, making them feel comfortable,

even wanted.

 

In an exclusive interview, the ever smiling spiritual

leader who is based in Amritapuri, Kerala declared

that there was no secret to her boundless energy. "I'm

connected with the eternal source of power. I'm not

like a battery. For my energy stems from love. Search

your heart and you'll discover love."

 

"We spend too much time loving the temporal. Take the

farmer who claims he loves the cow. He does so as long

as it gives milk. But the moment it dries up, he sells

it to the butcher."

 

Amritanandamayi, fondly called `amma' does not believe

one can practise detachment. "That is a choice. One

looks in the mirror and sees one's image. I see

everyone in myself. One does not have to become

detached from the world to be of service to society."

 

Ask her about enlightenment and she says, "A candle

needs to be lit. The sun is lit from within. To each

his own. One must understand the nature of the world.

Take fire crackers. If one is suddenly confronted with

the sound and light, one is startled. But if one is

prepared, it becomes a delightful game, a joy to the

senses."

 

"Looking for meaning in life is like learning music.

Some are gifted and can sing or play music from the

time they are little children. Others can be taught.

Only a few become famous. It is the trying that

matters."

 

"Look at those flowers," she says pointing to the

arrangement on the table. "Together they are

beautiful, their fragrance sweet. Isolate them and

there's another kind of beauty. Alone, together, no

matter in which context, we possess the innate

capacity to radiate warmth and joy."

 

For that, one requires peace. "You can try and sleep

in a posh air-conditioned room and find sleep eluding

you. You need that sleeping pill. Those at peace can

sleep anywhere. There are people who commit suicide in

air-conditioned rooms."

 

Amma presides over a vast spiritual and social

organisation that runs scores of educational

institutions, hospitals, clinics and food distribution

centres across the globe. "A drop of water cannot be a

river. It is the joining together of countless drops

that creates the flow. The real flow of life lies in

unity. In the oneness that arises out of love," she

says.

 

"There is only one Atman. It is all-pervading. When we

are broad-minded we can merge with it...Without

wasting a single moment serve others and help the

destitute. Without expecting anything from others,

serve them."

 

For it is in giving that we receive.

 

 

 

 

 

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