Amma, Mata Amritanandamayi Devi
Bharata Yatra 2004 Especially during Amma’s programs held in metropolitan areas, many curiosity seekers come to see what all the commotion is about. Among them are dozens of street children—kids from 12 to 2, in rags, with runny noses—many of who often wind up joining the darshan queue. When they come to Amma’s lap, they […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Monday, 15 March 2004 — Raj Bhavan, Jaipur, Rajasthan There are things that should not happen in this world, but they do: a child set on fire, a girl thrown down a well. Are there words to comfort someone who has survived such a thing? What do you say to a seven-year-old […]
Tuesday, 9 March — en route to Ahmedabad, Gujarat — Bharata Yatra 2004 When many people from affluent Western countries visit India for the first time, they are overwhelmed by the immensity of its poverty and the extent to which some of its people are suffering. They simply haven’t seen “villages” of families attempting to […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 8 March, 2004 — New Mumbai, Maharashtra Amma’s first visit to Surat found thousands coming to hear Her satsang, listen to Her bhajans and have Her darshan. In remembrance of the historic occasion, Smt. Snehalateben Chawan, the Honourable Municipal Mayor of Surat, and Member of Parliament Smt. Savitaben Sharada presented Amma with […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 4 March 2004 — New Mumbai, Maharashtra After a large program in Prabhadevi Mumbai that lasted until 9:00 a.m., Amma came to Her ashram in Nehrul, New Mumbai. Upon Her arrival, Amma walked through the large group of devotees who were still busy preparing the ashram for the two-day Brahmasthanam Festival that […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Saturday, 28 February 2004 — on the side of NH 9, on the way to Pune, Maharashtra When Amma opened the door to Her camper, it was clear She had recently been given an elaborate padapuja by the devotees of Hyderabad; the spot between Her eyebrows was caked with several layers of […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Saturday, 28 February 2004 — just off NH 9, on the way to Pune, Maharashtra The sun was gone. Amma and Her children were seated in the middle of a vast and arid plain. If it wasn’t for the occasional hum of a truck passing on the highway or the small group […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Tuesday, 24 February 2004 — On the road to Hyderabad There was a second stop for Amma and Her tour group on the long road from Davanagere to Hyderabad, and as many anticipated, this one was for tea and practicing bhajans. The sun had just set when Amma’s six buses pulled over […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Tuesday, 24 February 2004 — On the road to Hyderabad Roadside temples, small family farms, creeks just off the beaten path—traveling with Amma proves few stretches of Indian highway to be more than a stone’s throw from some secret beauty. So it was Tuesday when the six buses accompanying Amma on Her […]
Bharata Yatra 2004 Wednesday, 18 February 2004 — Mangalore, Karnataka Twenty-two hours sitting; 50,000 tokens issued—the numbers speak for themselves. “One more hour. She will finish it up in another hour.” Everywhere you turned, this is what you heard—in the bookstall, in the accommodation, on the stage itself. One first started hearing such speculations around […]