Memories of Amma’s first USA Yatra 1987 – part 6
Crossing the country that winter was extremely cold, but every day I managed one video show and at least one decent meal. Sometimes a contact from the summer would arrange for me to show a video, other times I would simply walk into a bookstore and see who might want to watch Amma’s video. I was not fussy, Amma’s children were everywhere and She was my guiding light. Using the phone book, I would arrange to meet informally with members of different church denominations and spiritual centers to speak of Amma. Many decided to host an evening program in their churches or meeting halls free-of-charge after hearing about Amma. The Quakers, the Unitarians, the Vipassana Meditation Center, the Zen Center, the Theosophical Society, the Sufis, the Yoga Society, St.John the Divine in New York City, even Harvard University were all interested. The tour was shaping up, the details were coming into focus.
In the cities where I had made contacts the summer before, we would all meet to look for venues and come up with a publicity plan and start making lists. And constantly talking about the pre-tour. Everyone was already feeling the excitement building. We were getting to know each other by working together on a common goal, to bring Amma in our midst. Their innocent faith in doing this selfless service having never met Amma was blossoming and it was inspiring to watch. Their inner compass was steering them in Her direction. Clearly these were Amma’s children and it was with great anticipation that I looked forward to their first darshans.
How did the cities and towns get picked you might wonder. Imagine Amma blowing on a dandelion, the airborn seeds were the central cities where family and friends lived; scattered across the country these seeds germinated having been sprinkled with the water of Amma‘s video. Like tendrils growing from a central stem the other locations emerged. From the first video show in San Francisco came invitations to visit Mt. Shasta which in turn led me to Seattle. Then Santa Cruz. Taos, New Mexico was full of old friends and spiritual seekers eager to meet Amma as that was where I lived when I was blessed to first see Amma’s photo in 1983**. From there came Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and Lama Mountain. Sw. Paramatmanada’s mom, the late Phyllis Rosner was in Chicago, his first yoga teacher was in Madison, Wisconsin. My father was living in Boston. Two important American cities, New York & Washington DC, I felt Amma must do programs in. As there was no one in those two cites, I had to work from scratch.
Like that I zigged and zagged across the US. Always Amma was arranging connections between people and cities, all there was for me to do was see the thread and follow it. Families began offering to have Amma stay in their homes. Even after explaining it would not just be Amma, rather all ten of us, they were very welcoming without exception. Doors were opening everywhere. In this way, what had been a huge, impersonal country just two months before became an interconnected web of divine potential, a pattern was emerging.
– Kusuma
**Greg Vyasa McFarland of Santa Fe had visited Amma in 1982 and had filmed and photographed Amma at that time. It was these photos which sent me on a pilgrimage to go and meet Amma in 1983.