<p>Devotees hugged by Amritanandamayi (aka “hugging saint”, “Amma” and “Mother”) will acknowledge what a heavenly, blissful and divinely beautiful feeling it really is.<br /><br /></p>.<p> By Amma’s indescribable and indefinable divine hug, one feels rejuvenated and spiritually purified. Just as taking a bath cleanses the body physically, Amma’s hug cleanses the mind, psyche and perceptions of a person in a very tangible way. In fact, Amma hugs thousands of people a day so much so that theologians have begun to wonder how she does it, since for ordinary human beings like us, even hugging a few people wholeheartedly is nothing short of exhausting.<br /><br />Amma’s face shines with an aura and luminosity of its own. Saintly persons are known to have transparent light-emanating visages and Amma is no exception. She attracts people th-e way a magnet attracts nails or a flower attracts butterflies. It is heartening to note that Amma is so great that no one is denied her all-powerful, refre-shening and energising hugs. She does not discriminate on the grounds of designation, pr-ofession, religion, caste, race, colour or gender. <br /><br />Thus, after Amma had hugged such dignitaries as former President Abdul Kalam, former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she then has hugged lepers, those afflicted by AIDS and others with incurable dise-ases, unmitigated poverty and other socially ostracised conditions.<br /><br />Amma’s uniqueness stems from the fact that, like a true goddess or saint, she has no mental reservations against any group or ‘ism’. Amma was born to a Malayali Hindu fisherman and his wife, yet she professes no rancour, ire, grudge or angst against persons of other religions and faiths. <br />Her “religion” is a uni-que brand of spirituality coupl-ed with love, compassion and humanism. Hope <br />eternal spri-ngs forth from her benevolent, compassionate and beautiful heart, soul and mind. <br /><br />Amma’s teachings are simple and evoc-ative and even simple layperso-ns can follow and imbibe them. Her teachings are based on humanism since Amma does not believe in complicated rituals worded in bombastic language.<br /><br />Instead, Amma strives to make the world a better place to live in via her magnanimous social work projects. Thus, she provides relief and housing for displaced persons affected by natural calamities such as tsunamis, earthquakes, droughts, floods. Being basically an austere and spiritually attuned woman, she has few materialistic needs of her own and hence works for others tirelessly. Amma’s contribution to education is immense, as she has started a successful engineering college and a high school, Amrita Vidyalam. Thus, along with Amma’s darshans and prayer meetings, her contribution to humanity is immense and intense.<br /><br />As a sadguru, Amma helps elevating others spiritually from their slavish dependence on objects of enjoyment. She does not know the meaning of pettiness, hitting back or retaliating, but gives, gives and goes on giving. By following Amma’s teachings, a person of any faith can become a better, an ameliorated and a more spiritually charged human being.<br /></p>
<p>Devotees hugged by Amritanandamayi (aka “hugging saint”, “Amma” and “Mother”) will acknowledge what a heavenly, blissful and divinely beautiful feeling it really is.<br /><br /></p>.<p> By Amma’s indescribable and indefinable divine hug, one feels rejuvenated and spiritually purified. Just as taking a bath cleanses the body physically, Amma’s hug cleanses the mind, psyche and perceptions of a person in a very tangible way. In fact, Amma hugs thousands of people a day so much so that theologians have begun to wonder how she does it, since for ordinary human beings like us, even hugging a few people wholeheartedly is nothing short of exhausting.<br /><br />Amma’s face shines with an aura and luminosity of its own. Saintly persons are known to have transparent light-emanating visages and Amma is no exception. She attracts people th-e way a magnet attracts nails or a flower attracts butterflies. It is heartening to note that Amma is so great that no one is denied her all-powerful, refre-shening and energising hugs. She does not discriminate on the grounds of designation, pr-ofession, religion, caste, race, colour or gender. <br /><br />Thus, after Amma had hugged such dignitaries as former President Abdul Kalam, former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she then has hugged lepers, those afflicted by AIDS and others with incurable dise-ases, unmitigated poverty and other socially ostracised conditions.<br /><br />Amma’s uniqueness stems from the fact that, like a true goddess or saint, she has no mental reservations against any group or ‘ism’. Amma was born to a Malayali Hindu fisherman and his wife, yet she professes no rancour, ire, grudge or angst against persons of other religions and faiths. <br />Her “religion” is a uni-que brand of spirituality coupl-ed with love, compassion and humanism. Hope <br />eternal spri-ngs forth from her benevolent, compassionate and beautiful heart, soul and mind. <br /><br />Amma’s teachings are simple and evoc-ative and even simple layperso-ns can follow and imbibe them. Her teachings are based on humanism since Amma does not believe in complicated rituals worded in bombastic language.<br /><br />Instead, Amma strives to make the world a better place to live in via her magnanimous social work projects. Thus, she provides relief and housing for displaced persons affected by natural calamities such as tsunamis, earthquakes, droughts, floods. Being basically an austere and spiritually attuned woman, she has few materialistic needs of her own and hence works for others tirelessly. Amma’s contribution to education is immense, as she has started a successful engineering college and a high school, Amrita Vidyalam. Thus, along with Amma’s darshans and prayer meetings, her contribution to humanity is immense and intense.<br /><br />As a sadguru, Amma helps elevating others spiritually from their slavish dependence on objects of enjoyment. She does not know the meaning of pettiness, hitting back or retaliating, but gives, gives and goes on giving. By following Amma’s teachings, a person of any faith can become a better, an ameliorated and a more spiritually charged human being.<br /></p>
