18.10.2007, Winterthur, Switzerland

Amma’s tour started in Holland this year and now She is in Switzerland. The programs in both places are of an average size I would say. Both the Dutch and Swiss people are by nature calm and reserved but also very friendly and warm. During the break in between the morning and evening programs I went for a walk in the lovely forests around the hall here in Winterthur and every person I met along the way greeted me with a smile and a nod.  This reflects also in the way the people come to Amma. Today I was doing a helpers position in the line control and the people were so gentle and calm as they were approaching Amma that the position that sometimes can be a bit draining was almost soothing.  It is a real pleasure to watch Amma giving darshan to the people here. It seems as if Amma is brimming with love all the time. There are also a lot of children that Amma plays with.  I love it when Amma is playing with the babies and tries to “steal” one of them by claiming “Amma’s baby, Amma’s baby”. In Holland there was one little Indian Girl called Sudhamayi that stole the show by singing bhajans along with the swamis and even with Amma. Yes, she had her own microphone that was fully plugged into the sound system. She really got the audience laughing and drew so much attention from Amma.
The bhajans have been nice. Last night Amma sang Mata Rani and some of the people in the crowd couldn’t help themselves and started dancing with a blissful smile on their faces. It is uplifting that people in a far away place like Switzerland can get so excited about bhajans, archana and other forms of Hindu devotional practices. There is so much happiness and enthusiasm in the air as people cue for Amma’s darshan, browse through the bookstore, read about Amma’s mission, sing bhajans etc.
Many people come from Amma’s arms with tears in their eyes having miraculously unburdened their grief and heaviness of heart. What Amma is doing by travelling around the world and helping so many people that otherwise would not find solace anywhere is beyond words. Her power to heal and purify manifests itself with full force everyday on the tour and the beauty reflected on people’s faces testifies to this. Tomorrow is Devi Bhava here in Switzerland, and our brothers and sisters in Amritapuri can watch it through the webcast. Amma doesn’t forget to reach out to them also, now that technology allows it. Let’s hope that in the future all the ashramites can teleport themselves here.

Vishwanath