At the end of Devi Bhava, after the curtains came to a close, and everyone sat in reverential silence, having chanted the closing prayers, we waited for Amma’s reappearance – our one last glimpse of Her before She would leave the hall for the next city.

But it wasn’t true silence. From within the Temple, we could hear chants of ‘Amma Amma Amma!’ sounding as if it was coming out of some small speaker. Many people were puzzled and wondered what was going on. It actually was Amma’s children in Amritapuri shouting back to Her over a web cam that has become practically a staple of most tours. It is a wonderful moment for our dear brothers and sisters in Amritapuri, who won’t be seeing Amma in the physical form for another two months. The ‘chit-chat’ went on for about 5-10 minutes as we all sat and waited for Amma to come out.

When the curtains finally opened, Amma re-appeared, Her white sari glowing, Her face radiating. Someone in the crowd shouted out ‘Amma’ imitating Her children in Amritapuri and everyone else in the crowd joined in. Amma burst out laughing. She realized we had heard what was going on! Amma lovingly pointed to the computer screen being held by a devotee standing behind her, and told us that it was Her children in Amritapuri. At that moment, it didn’t matter where we were – whether it was India, Seattle, or anywhere. We were all connected – all Her children – all at Her feet.

Sri Pati
Seattle, 4 June 2007