Question 56:
“Do you have a TV set in your living place? How much time do you spend watching TV per day? What kind of programs do you watch most?”
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To post your answer, click on ‘Add Comment’.
Please make your answer brief and clear.

I grew up with Catholic education in the village of Ciampino, located 20 km south of Rome, and throughout childhood and adolescence I fervently attended the activities of my parish. Today I moved away from all that and my family still is not aware of what has happened to me and cannot imagine what Amma means to me. And that this inner connection with the Mother has never, not even minimally affected my faith in God and in Jesus. On the contrary, it is reinforced every day. But how to explain to my family, who think I have been brainwashed? How do I defend myself from what they think of me? These thoughts go on in a vicious circle in my mind.

I met Amma the first time last October in Milan. And only a year ago before I met her, during a glance of her picture, which lasted a few seconds, I realized that She is the one I had been searching for. I felt immense confidence in her, as if I have finally found someone who tells me the truth and will not betray me. I immediately believed and continue to believe that everything She says is safe and pure. From that moment I wanted to be “adopted” by Amma, and started looking forward to the day she would come to Italy. As soon as I saw her in person, I started to cry for no reason and I could not stop. When I received her darshan I felt a gust of fresh air entered my body and a sensation of freedom from all fear at base. I returned from that meeting completely transformed on the inside. Since then, I see my daily difficulties from a different perspective, and all the prayers in my heart for help are answered, as small or big miracles. And thus began a journey to a different awareness…

A few days ago I had a wonderful gift of a dream.

In the dream, I was standing in the garden of my parents’ house, with a darshan ticket in my hands and waiting for my turn for darshan. Around the corner, I could see Amma giving darshan on the street to a group of people crowded around her. At one point, she left the people and moved towards me. The closer she came, the brighter her white sari shined and I the happier I felt. I was so happy that I exploded into an uncontrollable laughter, and then Amma turned to look at me. She stopped, looked at me and said in Italian, “You are always in my thoughts, there is not a moment when I am not thinking about you.” She continued, “Try to rest as you are tired.” And then she continued again, “What are you doing now in your spiritual life is not in conflict with the Catholic Church.”

At that moment I woke, with joy in my heart that accompanied me throughout the day. I have thought and rethought and doubted whether or not this waa but a joke of the mind or an important message of the Mother. Someone with whom I discussed this dream asked me, “But what did you feel in the dream?” And I said: “Immense joy that I have never experience in real life.” Then I realized that Amma wanted to help me, by giving answers to those questions that affected my mind, including the irrational fear of being abandoned, and the sense of guilt against the Church and my family.

Amma’s words give me confidence, sense of security and inner strength. It reminds me that I am not abandoned, but that the Universal Mother is always with me. And this is precisely the comfort that she give me since I started my spiritual practices. My fears gradually waned and I started seeing situations differently, with increased detachment.
–Silvia Nardi, Roma

Amritapuri Comes Back To Life
Amma finally returned from Australia after a long wait. The faces of the ashramites had been turning slightly sad as life in Amritapuri is just not the same without her. There hadn’t even been any webcasts from the last Devi Bhavas, so the contrast was even more evident when Amma lit the hearts and faces of everyone again. Don’t get me wrong, the time in the ashram when Amma is not here is well spent in seva, scriptural study and meditation, but the truth is, one can do these anywhere at any given time, whereas being in Amma’s presence is absolutely unique. Personally I had been doing fasting, chanting, seva etc., but there was some feeling of stagnancy within nevertheless. A feeling of futility persisted and I clearly felt that one can do spiritual practices, yet if grace is missing it all amounts to nothing or almost nothing. Of course it all somehow makes one more open to the possibility of grace, but grace alone determines the fruit. Once the presence of divine grace enters the heart, everything falls into place and the inner tamas is dispelled. And that is what happened the moment Amma came back.
Bhajans on the first night were especially blissful, as they usually are after a long break. Amma sang the following bhajans:
Daya Karo Ganesha
New Song
Jivitamennum
Virahatti Patarunnen
Vilvattal Arccittom
Uyiray Oliyay
Mata Bhavani
Today Amma is already giving public darshan despite having just returned from such a long tour.
Vishwanath

During the Singapore, Malaysia, Australia Tour, Amma held four Devi Bhavas - one in Singapore, and three in Australia (Melbourne, Gold Coast, and Sydney). Though Amma always remains the same - radiating Her divine love on everyone present -  each Devi Bhava had it’s own personality, so to say.

Despite the fact that I was seeing the color of Amma’s sari live, rather than via the Internet in Amritapuri, finding and giving a name to the actual colour was almost as difficult as when in Amritapuri! Anyone entering a sari shop in India will immediately realize that there are an infinite number of colors, hues, and shades available. Red is red for sure, but when it’s a shade between red and purple, it’s anyone’s guess.  And even live in person, the shade of Amma’s sari seems to shift depending on the viewing angle and lighting. So here are the best-guess names for what Amma wore during this tour.

In Singapore, Amma seemed to be wearing a tangerine-orange sari.

In Melbourne, Amma wore what was described by one devotee standing next to me as somewhere between magenta and fuscia.  I was thinking perhaps it was close to deep rose-red. Funny though - in Melbourne, where the programme was held at a racetrack, there were dozens of TV screens hanging from the ceiling - all showing Amma - and all in varying shades of ‘rose-red.’

In Gold Coast, Amma wore deep sky-blue - most like the blue in the east when the sun is setting to the west.

In Sydney, Amma wore a shade of purple. Lavender? Not sure. There were some “purple” flowers on Amma’s peetham - one matched the sari, but I never asked what type of flower it was.

Aside from the varying colours, both Singapore’s and Sydney’s Devi Bhavas held a few surprising moments. In Singapore, after the puja, right before Amma headed into the mandapam to get ready for darshan, it was announced that Amma would sing a few bhajans. So the instruments and microphones were brought up to the stage and the singers had to squeeze in few feet of space between the edge of the stage and the front of the mandapam. Amma started with “Om Namah Sivayah,” which went on for some time.  Most everyone thought there would be only one or two bhajans, but Amma went on to sing a total of six - ending with “Jai Jai Janani.”

There was also a very strict curfew in Singapore, as there was another event the next morning. As Devi Bhava was ending, the hall was literally cut in half - the floor to ceiling dividers were rolled out by the hall staff, squeezing everyone into the remaining space. When it came time for Amma to shower flower petals on everyone, there was no room for people to walk in front.  Amma first expected to see everyone moving from left to right as normal, but the only place people were moving was closer to the stage. She then laughed, and began walking from one side of the stage to the other, throwing petals on as many as She could reach.

In Sydney, originally, Amma’s flight back to India was going to be on the morning after DB was to end - giving Amma a well-deserved full day’s rest. Unexpectedly and to everyone’s surprise, Amma requested that the flight be changed to an earlier flight - and so it was. To 8 am the morning DB would end! To Amma, the extra day of rest would mean one more day being away from Her children in Amritapuri - many who hadn’t seen Her since early February when She left for the North Indian Tour.   Amma wanted to get back as soon as possible.

This meant that people had to rush back to their accommodations to get their luggage between the morning programme and Devi Bhava.  Then, everyone realized that an 8 am flight meant leaving the hall at 5 am to make it to the airport on time, as it was an international flight (fortunately, the airport was about 1/2 hour from the hall).  It also meant that Devi Bhava would have to end at around 4 am. And the bookstall and sound system would have to be broken down by this time and all the luggage ready to head out.

And so it was.  With Her grace,  Amma did finish darshan at fairly close to 5am - without having to rush and give quicker darshans.  Amma showered flower petals on everyone present, went inside the temple and all the closing prayers were said. After some time, Amma came out dressed in Her white sari, beamed at the adoring crowd, touched Her hands to Her heart several times… Was She saying She loved us? Was She saying that She resides in the inner recesses of our hearts and that it is only Her physical form that is leaving?  Both for sure, and much more.

Then Amma walked out of the hall, into the waiting car and off to the airport. Those flying with Amma followed soon after. The tour had come to an end. Amma would be in Amritapuri in less than 24 hours.

Sri Pati
In Transit

Amma’s Sydney programmes were held in the gymnasium of the Sydney Boy’s High School. At the end of Devi Bhava, around 6 am, after Amma had left for the airport, the hall was still bustling with activity. Everything from the rented sound-system and stage to the supplies for darshan, bookstall, flower-shop and other various departments had to be packed up and taken out of the hall. While a devotee brandishing a vacuum cleaned up the carpet covering the wooden floor, piles of filled boxes and supplies began to form in various corners of the hall.  They all had to be loaded into a rental truck to be taken to storage.  All this was being done by about 50 or so devotees who had remained behind to help. Tired, hungry, but filled with energy from the end of Devi Bhava, everyone contributed to the efforts.

Amidst all this bustle, in a room just off the main entrance to the gym and next to the tables where the snack shop had just been, about 20 high-school boys had arrived and were lifting weights as part of their morning routine before school. As the morning went on, the number of devotees remaining began to thin out, as many had to catch their own flights home or had other obligations. Looking at the huge piles of boxes awaiting loading into the truck, one devotee came up with an inspiring idea. Why not ask the students to help? Sure enough, he walked right into the gym and challenged the boys with an even better way to work out: “Why not give us a hand and get a real workout?” he asked. Within minutes, a troupe of about 30 or so boys trotted into the hall, formed a chain, and began passing boxes to one another from the hall to the truck just outside.

Before they began, one devotee told them briefly about Amma and the programmes that had just been held in the hall.  They were also told that their help was a form of selfless service.

The boys seemed to enjoy the task. Not one complained that they were being pulled away from their normal workout. They were laughing, joking, and just being boys.  Work that would have probably taken more than an hour wound up taking less than 20 minutes and the hall was soon empty.  Maybe it was the lingering energy from Devi Bhava, which had ended just over an hour before. Maybe it was their innocence.

In the end, the boys were rewarded with huge pieces of chocolate cake, which they happily devoured. Who knows though… for sure they were also rewarded on a much deeper level.

Ram
Sydney
17 April 2008

Question 55:

“For you, what is the ideal spiritual attitude towards the matters of the world: compassion, detachment or discrimination?”

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To post your answer, click on ‘Add Comment’.
Please, contemplate on the question first, and make your answer brief and clear.

On the occasion of ‘54 Questions Milestone’, and after posting the list of the questions 1 to 27, here is now the list of questions 28 to 54

Q28- What is the most significant change in you since meeting Amma?
Q29- How often do you watch a sunset? What is special about it?
Q30- What is faith? Would you like to share a living example of its manifestation in your life?
Q31- What does Christmas mean and symbolize for you?
Q32- Why are we lazy sometimes? What do you do to overcome laziness?
Q33- Do you wish to make a vow for the coming year? This is an invitation for you to make it here. You can either share what it is, or simply mention that you made one without saying it.
Q34- What makes flowers so special to look at, smell and admire? What is the secret behind a flower?
Q35- If you could be all alone with Amma for one whole hour, how would you wish to use this time?
Q36- What for you is the ideal devotional attitude? The gopis with Krishna or Hanuman serving Rama?
Q37- When was the last time you hurt someone through action or words, and succeeded in going back to apologize?
Q38- What is the main dharma in a human life? How do you practice this in your normal daily existence?
Q39- How often and for how long do you meditate? What stops you from meditating more?
Q40- Spirituality says ‘God hides within our hearts’. How do you understand this saying?
Q41- What for you is the deeper value of a vow of silence? For how long do you think that you could keep such a vow?
Q42- Would you like to compose and share a haiku or simply a 3/4 line poem for Amma?
Q43- What is your favorite number? why? What does it symbolize for you?
Q44- What is your favorite season of the year? Describe briefly the deeper feelings.
Q45- What for you is the most accurate description for the ego? Is it ’selfishness and egoism’? ‘Self importance’? or ‘Identification with (a wrong or limited identity)’? Something else?
Q46- Do you think that there is life similar to ours on another planet? If such a fact turns out to be true, how would that affect us?
Q47- Why do you get jealous? What would it take to go beyond it?
Q48- Why do we get bored? How could we go beyond boredom?
Q49- Do you think that God actively interferes in humans’ lives, or does He simply show us the right way and gives us the free-will to make our choices?
Q50- Do you think, or sometimes feel, that God maybe loves others more than you?
Q51- How many different smiles do you have?
Q52- Can you remember being a baby? Try to… and briefly share what you experience…
Q53- Who do you find more affinity with: poets, philosophers or scientists? Why?
Q54- Why do you actually read and answer the questions posted here? Do you think that you have spiritually benefited from this section?