amma celebrations on BBC world service NOW!!

[Guest guest]

For those who have access to malayalam dish TV Asianet,

there are two half hour segments of news reports on

Amritavarsham:

US EST. Friday 12:35PM ...10:05 PM Indian Standard Time.

US EST. Friday midnight 12:00 ....Sat. 9:30 AM in India.

 

Vijay

 

--- zanskari wrote:

> I'm listening to the bbc world service radio over the

> internet now-- they are talking about AMMA with rob

> sidon!!!

>

> website http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/, real audio

> stream at

> http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/ram/live_news.ram

>

 

 

 

 

The New with improved product search

 

[Guest guest]

--- zanskari wrote:

> I'm listening to the bbc world service radio over

> the internet now-- they are talking about AMMA with

> rob sidon!!!

>

> website http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/, real

> audio stream at

> http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/ram/live_news.ram

>

 

On the BBC South Asia news page:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3136524.stm

 

Devotees flock to hug Indian guru

 

Thousands of devotees are flocking to Cochin in

southern India for spiritual fulfilment in the arms of

India's "hugging saint".

The followers hope to add to the 30 million hugs given

out over 30 years by religious leader Mata

Amritanandamayi.

 

Ms Amritanandamayi - known to her followers as Amma -

began a four-day celebration on Wednesday to mark her

50th birthday on Saturday.

 

Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani is among

those attending in the southern state of Kerala.

 

Organisers believe that over the coming days 500,000

people will join the celebrations. Religious leaders

and businessmen from all over the world, including

Hotmail founder Sameer Bhatia, are scheduled to

attend.

 

Among those in the sports stadium on Wednesday was

Yolanda King, daughter of murdered civil rights leader

Martin Luther King Jnr.

 

"The most profound thing about her is she doesn't

preach from the platform of one religion. She touches

everybody. So Christians love her, Muslims love her,

everybody loves her," Ms King told the Associated

Press news agency.

 

Humble roots

 

Ms Amritanandamayi, whose name means "Mother of

Absolute Bliss" was born to a low caste family in a

southern Indian fishing community.

 

She refused school and then marriage, preferring to

meditate. She began hugging devotees at a young age.

 

In the 1980s Ms Amritanandamayi founded an ashram, or

spiritual home, to receive followers and dispense more

hugs.

 

In 1993 she served as president of the Centenary

Parliament of World Religions in Chicago and later

spoke at the United Nations.

 

Last year she was awarded the Gandhi-King Award for

Non-Violence.

 

Amma has helped found schools, hospices and hospitals

for the poor.

 

One American devotee, Rob Sidon, 43, said: "When she

embraces there is a sense of selflessness. She shares

what people really want: unconditional love."

 

 

Another American, Stephen Parr, said: "Peace comes

from living for others. Life is all about showing

love. Once she hugs, you know."

 

Planned activities include talks on conflict

resolution, religious discussions and, of course, lots

of hugs.

 

 

If you have a shortwave radio, BBC World Service can

still be heard in North America - try 5975 kHz, early

evenings - beamed to the Caribbean but well heard in

eastern North America. In 2001 BBC discontinued

shortwave transmissions to North America, claiming

that "everyone can listen on the internet", but

because of heavy demand, the quality of BBC's real

audio is often little better than the amritavarsham

webcast.

 

Keval

 

 

 

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