Amma hugged me yesterday!
In the morning, Mr. Dalmia (also known as Puh-pa!, and my landlord) was excited that E and I were going to see Amma. He foretold that her bindi (the bright red colored dot she and many Indians wear on their foreheads) may sparkle; and, if I am lucky, she will whisper something in my ear in her native tongue. He told me a story of a relative that was healed of cancer by Amma’s grace.
We arrived at Amma’s ashram in Mysore at around 9:30 am. There must have been over a thousand people there. There was a very large tent with lots of seating, and a stage up front. Around the tent there were vendors, like at an outdoor festival. You get a time card when you arrive, which is exchanged for a hug token during satsang. “Satsang” means a gathering of true company.
When Amma entered the room, the energy instantly shifted. The same feeling that one gets at a favorite artist’s rock concert or a tense and exciting sporting event. She led the four-and-a-half-hour satsang, and then the hugging commenced. The satsang consisted of Amma-led chanting, singing, and a beautiful Divine Mother imagery meditation. During the chant, she would cry out the Divine Mother’s name, which sounded like, Am-ma! Am-ma! Am-ma! (with the accent on the second syllable the same way An-mei says Puh-pa!).
At one point during the satsang, I totally saw Amma’s bindi sparkle and I second-guessed what I had seen. Her bindi is just paint, so how could it sparkle like that?
Amma also gave a long speech which was translated into English via a large teleprompter. Her speech was poignant and in touch with current reality. She quoted Martin Luther King, Jr. and used metaphorical stories to convey her message.
The gist of her message is that we humans are not focusing enough on a spiritual education. We are living isolated lives, ruled by our egos, and we fail on a day-to-day basis to recognize the Divine unity at essence of all life on earth. The result is cultural and religious war, and the destruction of our planet. She advised we spend more effort and attention educating our youth about compassion and spirituality.
After the satsang, while we were waiting for our hug token number to be called, we walked around the site. There was free food for all participants, even though a hug from Amma costs nothing. We ate rice and soup and dahl with our hands. E had a blast doing that. Then we visited some of the vendors, who were selling Amma pictures and cds and mala beads.
A rudraksha mala caught my eye and E said, “mommy look at the beads!” and pointed to the same mala I was looking at.
I asked him, “do you want one?”
He said, “No, its for mommy. Its special.”
I bought it, of course, and some pictures of Amma. The day was spent keeping E entertained while we waited for our number. Not gonna lie, it was pretty tiring keeping him out of trouble for ten-plus hours. I tried to keep his attention and excitement by telling him that we were going to meet Amma. I explained that Amma is kind of like Santa Claus, and you can ask her for anything you want.
I said, "what are you going to ask Amma for?"
He replied matter of factly, "Presents." I got a little nervous that he would be disappointed when his presents did not instantly appear after meeting Amma.
I tried to mitigate the damage: "you might not get the presents you ask Amma for right away; they might come later or in a different way."
He stared at me blankly.
When it was our turn, we got in line to get a hug from Amma. While in line, I had the thought that I would be wearing my new mala when receiving Amma’s hug. Instantly, I thought of what E said: that the mala is special. A tear came to my eye.
When we got up to the stage, Amma’s followers were helping to regulate. Most of them are Westerners, interestingly. They took my bag and my glasses. It was surreal meeting her on stage, with the bright lights, and not being able to see a thing without my glasses.
E didn’t want a direct hug so Amma kissed him on the top of the head. I held him while I got my hug. Her handlers basically kind of push your head down into Amma’s bosom. She was talking to a woman to my left while I was getting my hug, and it seemed to be to my advantage because I got a super-long hug while she talked! At one point, I kind of lifted my head and Amma firmly pushed my head back into her bosom.
While down there, I whispered, “Kalidas, clear skin” into her voluptuousness. She whispered something into my right ear in another language. As we parted ways, she handed us two folded up napkins with something inside. I handed one to E.
He was ecstatic. "A present for me from Amma!"
"Yes!" I replied. I felt instant relief that my Santa Claus description of Amma held up muster to my two-year old. He opened it up and inside was a candy and some of the red bindi paint in a small baggy. He was very happy.
We walked down from the stage and I unwittingly started to cry, in a sort of half laughing/half crying sort of way, like when one is overjoyed.
E was totally energized by whatever just happened with Amma. All of a sudden, after being worn out and kind of cranky from a long day, he was going strong and running all around the grounds. We wandered over to another area of the site. It was dark out now and the area was decorated in green and blue strings of lights.
He shouted with joy, "Christmas lights, mommy!"
"Yes, Christmas lights!" I exclaimed back to him. Amma really is like Santa. I hope mommy's wishes are granted too.
It was 7:00pm by the time we got our hugs and there were many hundred people still waiting for theirs. After that, from what I could tell, the evening satsang was to start, with more hugs from Amma. I imagine Amma was hugging people until 3:00 or 4:00 AM.
That is amazing in itself; a fifty-something year old women spending 18+ hours hugging thousands of people while offering them all free food. She is the real deal - whether or not you believe in her grace, she is an amazing human being. She devotes her life to others, with a particular focus on orphaned children.
And I love her. I am downing the Amma kool-aid in large quantities. My landlords reminded me in the morning how lucky E and I are - that we were in Mysore at the right time and got to experience "darshan" (auspicious beholding of a saint) from Amma.
I could not agree more.
Check out my new and improved website: www.theyogalawyer.com
In the morning, Mr. Dalmia (also known as Puh-pa!, and my landlord) was excited that E and I were going to see Amma. He foretold that her bindi (the bright red colored dot she and many Indians wear on their foreheads) may sparkle; and, if I am lucky, she will whisper something in my ear in her native tongue. He told me a story of a relative that was healed of cancer by Amma’s grace.
We arrived at Amma’s ashram in Mysore at around 9:30 am. There must have been over a thousand people there. There was a very large tent with lots of seating, and a stage up front. Around the tent there were vendors, like at an outdoor festival. You get a time card when you arrive, which is exchanged for a hug token during satsang. “Satsang” means a gathering of true company.
When Amma entered the room, the energy instantly shifted. The same feeling that one gets at a favorite artist’s rock concert or a tense and exciting sporting event. She led the four-and-a-half-hour satsang, and then the hugging commenced. The satsang consisted of Amma-led chanting, singing, and a beautiful Divine Mother imagery meditation. During the chant, she would cry out the Divine Mother’s name, which sounded like, Am-ma! Am-ma! Am-ma! (with the accent on the second syllable the same way An-mei says Puh-pa!).
At one point during the satsang, I totally saw Amma’s bindi sparkle and I second-guessed what I had seen. Her bindi is just paint, so how could it sparkle like that?
Amma also gave a long speech which was translated into English via a large teleprompter. Her speech was poignant and in touch with current reality. She quoted Martin Luther King, Jr. and used metaphorical stories to convey her message.
The gist of her message is that we humans are not focusing enough on a spiritual education. We are living isolated lives, ruled by our egos, and we fail on a day-to-day basis to recognize the Divine unity at essence of all life on earth. The result is cultural and religious war, and the destruction of our planet. She advised we spend more effort and attention educating our youth about compassion and spirituality.
After the satsang, while we were waiting for our hug token number to be called, we walked around the site. There was free food for all participants, even though a hug from Amma costs nothing. We ate rice and soup and dahl with our hands. E had a blast doing that. Then we visited some of the vendors, who were selling Amma pictures and cds and mala beads.
A rudraksha mala caught my eye and E said, “mommy look at the beads!” and pointed to the same mala I was looking at.
I asked him, “do you want one?”
He said, “No, its for mommy. Its special.”
I bought it, of course, and some pictures of Amma. The day was spent keeping E entertained while we waited for our number. Not gonna lie, it was pretty tiring keeping him out of trouble for ten-plus hours. I tried to keep his attention and excitement by telling him that we were going to meet Amma. I explained that Amma is kind of like Santa Claus, and you can ask her for anything you want.
I said, "what are you going to ask Amma for?"
He replied matter of factly, "Presents." I got a little nervous that he would be disappointed when his presents did not instantly appear after meeting Amma.
I tried to mitigate the damage: "you might not get the presents you ask Amma for right away; they might come later or in a different way."
He stared at me blankly.
When it was our turn, we got in line to get a hug from Amma. While in line, I had the thought that I would be wearing my new mala when receiving Amma’s hug. Instantly, I thought of what E said: that the mala is special. A tear came to my eye.
When we got up to the stage, Amma’s followers were helping to regulate. Most of them are Westerners, interestingly. They took my bag and my glasses. It was surreal meeting her on stage, with the bright lights, and not being able to see a thing without my glasses.
E didn’t want a direct hug so Amma kissed him on the top of the head. I held him while I got my hug. Her handlers basically kind of push your head down into Amma’s bosom. She was talking to a woman to my left while I was getting my hug, and it seemed to be to my advantage because I got a super-long hug while she talked! At one point, I kind of lifted my head and Amma firmly pushed my head back into her bosom.
While down there, I whispered, “Kalidas, clear skin” into her voluptuousness. She whispered something into my right ear in another language. As we parted ways, she handed us two folded up napkins with something inside. I handed one to E.
He was ecstatic. "A present for me from Amma!"
"Yes!" I replied. I felt instant relief that my Santa Claus description of Amma held up muster to my two-year old. He opened it up and inside was a candy and some of the red bindi paint in a small baggy. He was very happy.
We walked down from the stage and I unwittingly started to cry, in a sort of half laughing/half crying sort of way, like when one is overjoyed.
E was totally energized by whatever just happened with Amma. All of a sudden, after being worn out and kind of cranky from a long day, he was going strong and running all around the grounds. We wandered over to another area of the site. It was dark out now and the area was decorated in green and blue strings of lights.
He shouted with joy, "Christmas lights, mommy!"
"Yes, Christmas lights!" I exclaimed back to him. Amma really is like Santa. I hope mommy's wishes are granted too.
It was 7:00pm by the time we got our hugs and there were many hundred people still waiting for theirs. After that, from what I could tell, the evening satsang was to start, with more hugs from Amma. I imagine Amma was hugging people until 3:00 or 4:00 AM.
That is amazing in itself; a fifty-something year old women spending 18+ hours hugging thousands of people while offering them all free food. She is the real deal - whether or not you believe in her grace, she is an amazing human being. She devotes her life to others, with a particular focus on orphaned children.
And I love her. I am downing the Amma kool-aid in large quantities. My landlords reminded me in the morning how lucky E and I are - that we were in Mysore at the right time and got to experience "darshan" (auspicious beholding of a saint) from Amma.
I could not agree more.
Check out my new and improved website: www.theyogalawyer.com
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