Who can sing Ambe Jagadambe the Loudest?

The last bhajan this evening was ‘Ambe Jagadambe’. Two young girls who were sitting behind Amma – Gayamrita from Italy, and Meena from Whales, both 4-years old – were singing along. Towards the end, as the chorus began repeating ‘Ambe Jagadambe’, and the speed increased, the girls began shouting out the words, holding their cupped hands to their mouths trying to amplify the sound. They were both looking at each other – as if competing to see who was singing the loudest. At first they were doing this while sitting down, but soon they were up on their knees. The bhajan kept going – it didn’t seem to be ending just yet. The girls were now standing up right behind Amma, shouting ‘Ambe Jagadambe’ over and over again. There they were, in full view of the crowd, singing as loud as they could. There are a few adults who sit quietly on the side of the stage – singing along of course, some clapping their hands. One can be certain that a number of them wanted to join the two girls but couldn’t bring themselves to do so. Such is the innocence of children….

Sri Pati – USA

4 January 2007