Thousands gathered in the San Francisco Bay Area with joyful anticipation to welcome Amma for her five-day visit to Oakland, California. She was accorded a grand public reception at the Oakland Marriot City Center. As if from the other side of the world, the festivities included a traditional Kerala panchavadyam of drumming and music.
Amma led meditation alongside prayers for world peace and harmony on each day. The events included a three-day spiritual retreat in which people could spend more time with her and ask about how to move forward in today’s world.
“Amma is the shining example of living a life centered in love,” said Brahmachari Satvamrita Chaitanya as he shared an inspiring talk about what he has learned in his many years with Amma. For him, it means it is love that is the foundation of a true spiritual life—both the path and the goal.
“It is this path of transformation that Amma is offering to all of us. It is the path of finding our own true selves through the mission of uplifting the world around us. Through this process we purify our minds, expand our perspective, and begin to allow ourselves to become instruments of the divine will.”
The retreat featured cultural performances by participants to share their stories. Devotees with the local MA Center in San Ramon conducted a play about how they stayed connected during COVID-19. Their efforts included the launch of Food From Home, a pickup and delivery project for meals made with love. They also showed how they held spiritual gatherings through online video to support each other over those long, difficult years.
Then, of course, came the traditional celebration of joyful dances to express gratitude to Amma. A Punjabi Bhangra performance especially stole hearts, even that of Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri, Amma’s most senior disciple. He responded by singing the Punjabi bhajan Mata Rani Ne Kripa Barsayi – “The Queen of the Universe has Showered Her Grace”.
“For the truly enlightened–the ancient sages whose teachings form the Upanishads, the unfathomable Mahatmas like Amma–this world indeed is one all-pervasive divinity,” shared Brahmachari Sachinmayamrita Chaitanya in an address to the gathering.
“They clearly see that, like the dreams we have each night, this cosmos–each of its infinite cycles–arises in them, is sustained in them and ultimately resolves back into them alone–into the one True Self, the ātmā.”
Amma’s next tour stop is Los Angeles, California.
Find out more – us.amma.org/tour
