Category: AshramDiary
life at the Amritapuri ashram
-
a rakhi from washim
16 aug 2008, amritapuri the children from washim send a rakhi for amma with a letter saying that “you came to washim, showered your love in our depressed life. on that day, we took bath in the divine light and love. we still very much remember that moment in our minds. we are very grateful to you. please keep your eyes on us. we send you this bondage of love in the form of rakhi. please accept our love.” a brahmachari tied the rakhi to amma’s hand and she was happy. ~ dhyanamrita
-
The festival season
16 aug 2008, amritapuri the festival season has begun in amritapuri. actually it began two weeks ago when amma came back from the japan-usa tour. two days back, it was independence day. that night, after dinner, witnessed a lot of cultural programs. today is raksha bandan – the day sisters tie rakhi on the wrist of their brothers with a vow that they should protect them. sishya ties to their guru. today is also ‘avani avittam’ when the brahmins replace the old sacred thread with a new one. many were lining up in front of amma for the replacement of…
-
Silent teaching
13 aug 2008, Amritapuri i was there with amma by her side during darshan. one foreigner asked me to translate his question to amma. for the past 16 years this man has been coming to amma. he asked: “my discrimination and self-will are propelled by the ego, not by the will of the self or amma. how can i go deep in my sadhana?” he was standing behind me. amma smiled at him, gave such a look above my shoulders. her eyes were glowing with light. she just kept looking askance at him. it was so beautiful. the man waited…
-
Eco-Ashram
The other day I was struck by the opposites that can be found in the ashram; I struggled up to the 17th floor with my full bucket of washing, hand-scrubbed in dirty orange water resembling a shade of lucozade – ( I don’t know why the water has suddenly gone that colour), I fought my way through lines of wet washing slapping me in the face, to hang it in the hot breeze. In a corner on the roof were two students with what looked like a fan and electrical measuring devices. I asked them what they were doing. It…
-
No Barrier
Amma walked onto the stage hand in hand with one old lady who is a permanent resident in the ashram and with old age has become like a little child. It’s very sweet to watch her innocent approach towards Amma as she holds her hand and chats away about all kind of things without any kind of barrier between them. Amma was in a very sweet and playful mood tonight with love radiating from her every pore. She sang the following Bhajans: Manasa Chora Radha Krishna Prapanchamengum Kannilenkilum (Telugu) Kalindi Kalil Meri Jhoppiti Enu Madali Mano Buddhyahankara Amma Amma Taye 11.08.2008,…
-
Milk of Love
The Amritapuri Ashram cowshed is blessed with three cuddly calves. Yesterday, as one of the calves was contentedly sucking milk from his mother’s udders, he seemed cute and happy enough. What was more striking, though, was the mother cow’s intense eagerness to feed the milk to the calf – and her extreme restlessness when she could not do so. My mind traveled back a few years to around the time I had just started going to school. I hated milk. I mean, I really hated milk. My evening milk time was a daily ‘family get-together’ time. The ‘family’ truly ‘got…
-
The Servant of Lord Muruga
The Servant of Lord Muruga – Pithukuli Murugadas Tonight’s bhajans were something special in several ways. As Amma arrived on stage there was an elderly sagely looking man waiting for her there. Many might have been wondering who this person was. He was no other than the great bhakta, composer and singer Pithukuli Murugadas. For those who don’t know, he is a living legend in Tamil Nadu and beyond. He was born in 1920 as Balasubramaniam and showed great devotion towards God from a very young age onwards. When he was 15 years old he took part in some anti…
-
Beginning of the new season
The ashram is slowly filling with devotees from around the world. It still however fairly quiet and probably the crowd will double in the coming week. Also tomorrow and the day after the public darshan will most likely be very large. The bhajans are flowing again bringing upliftment and happiness to everyone gathered . The monsoon rains are still present cooling everything down significantly. In other words, a perfect beginning for a new season with Amma in Amritapuri. Tonight Amma sang as follows: Kuch Na Le Nin Ormakal Matram Kannane Kanan Ram Ram Bolo Chintakalkantyam Nirajanam New Song Om Namah…
-
Tuning back in
I returned to Amritapuri from Europe last night. At first it’s always a bit overwhelming to be back. The system goes into a slight shock since this place is something so different from other places in the world and parts of the mind and body don’t quite know how to react. The first sadhana that I did was to go to sleep in the dorm that’s in the temple, since Amritapuri is so holy that even while sleeping the vibrations enter deep into you. This then helps one to re-attune to the energy present here. Even in my sleep I…