-
Tokyo to Miyagi Prefecture
For more than 10 years, the Japanese student volunteer organization IVUSA has been sending groups of students to India to participate in Embracing the World’s housing projects for the homeless and for disaster refugees. These students participated in projects to build homes for tsunami refugees in both Kerala and Tamil Nadu after the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. And in 2010, after devastating floods in Karnataka, they helped to build homes for people whose islands had been entirely submerged by flood waters. Many of the volunteers have made several trips to India for this purpose. Viveka Koichi Kanematsu has been Embracing…
-
The Fullness of Life
Some people become devotees because of a strong devotional connection that gets built between them and their Guru or God. Some become spiritual in their beliefs and ideals because of the elevated words of wisdom and knowledge that they find in sacred texts or hear from their Guru. A smaller number have the rare Grace of combining both: devotion (purity of heart) and knowledge (clarity of mind)… For this to happen, interaction and sharing life events with a living Guru who embodies the practical aspects of both devotion and knowledge, is essential. Two beautiful events that took place in the…
-
Visit to a tribal village in Papua New Guinea
March 4, Ikundi, Papua New Guinea Eastern Highlands The second leg of Br. Shantamrita Chaitanya’s Melanesian tour was deep in the eastern highlands of Papua New Guinea. In a historic visit to the remote village of Ikundi, Shantamrita’s plane was the second ever to land on an airstrip that locals have been building by hand since 1984. Dressed in full ritual regale, the people of Ikundi welcomed the visitors in celebratory style. According to their tradition, young men carried Shantamrita and guests into the village, as this was the first formal visit from people from the outside world. In…
-
In Ammas world, there are many dimensions
It doesn’t matter whether the three dimensions are length, breadth and width as some say, or matter, time and space. We can discern the emergence of the fifth dimension, in the bigger world of Amma. It is so, now in Pune, at the end of program of Mar 2 and 3. In Pune, the cultural capital of Maharashtra, it is 4.30 AM. Though Amma has just given darshan to the last person in the queue, and the curtain is about to be drawn, the hall is still magically full. With Her face and the whole demeanor radiating stunning beauty and…
-
Krishna’s cows in Amritapuri!
A bright morning here in Amritapuri: the new miniature indigenous cows that the ashram got recently from the Kerala Agriculture University were moved to their new separate cowshed close to Amma’s room… Very cute animals, especially their rabbit-style ears continuously moving to capture the various sounds around them! They are from two endangered breeds of cows that once were a common household milk producing animal in Kerala and other parts of India: The Vechoor Cow (vechur cow)and the Kasargod Dwarf. They are supposed to be the breeds that Krishna once played with and made so dear to his heart… They…
-
Volunteers distribute food and water in Sendai
14 March 2011 Embracing the World has sent its first group of local volunteers from our Japan Center to Sendai—the major city nearest the epicenter of the earthquake, and hit hard by both the quake (Japan’s worst-ever) and the subsequent tsunami. At Amma’s request, the ETW representatives went to Sendai in order to study the situation on the ground and also to distribute food and water for the refugees. We set out for Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture on 13 March, within 3 days of the disaster. Because all the highways going north are completely locked down for military and authorized use…
-
Laughing with the Universe
I remember a point in my life when I was about 20 when I realized that the laughter and innocent joy so often present through my youth was appearing less and less in my life. It seems like those days of magic and unlimited possibilities were far behind me. I remember with sadness that I had to accept this ‘adult’ life and this is what it would be like from now on. But I had not yet met Amma! Amma has shown me that this simple joy is not lost but is ever present. It is like there is beautiful…
-
Amma is a phenomena
During the program in Ahmedabad, the Additional Chief Secretary Government of Gujarat, RM Patel took a few minutes to share his thoughts about Amma. “I have been working 33 years in government service. I heard about Amma five years ago. My new born granddaughter had a serious heart problem and the doctors told that the best place to get treatment for her would be the AIMS hospital in Cochin. I spent one week in Cochin during which my granddaughter had two successful surgeries. During this time I visited the Amritapuri ashram. So, this is how I learned about Amma. I…
-
Q174: Unsolved questions?
Question 174: “How many unsolved questions do you have in your life? With time, are they decreasing or increasing? Why?” Please make your answer clear and brief (maximum 5 or 6 lines).
