It was a sacred day to express gratitude and reverence to all beings in creation—from the microscopic organisms that are essential for our Earth’s soil to the massive Sun who sustains our lives from 150 million kilometres away.
The arrival of Spring was celebrated in Amritapuri with Vishu Thaineetham, a project Amma began in 2015 to lead the planting of indigenous plants and trees. As part of Vishu, the Malayali New Year, it is a play on the words Vishu Kaineetam, a tradition where elders give money to family members as a blessing.
Amma graciously distributed saplings and seeds to children and members of AYUDH, our youth wing. It was a scene that inspired great hope as she kissed each smiling recipient. The AYUDH volunteers will continue sharing the young trees across their communities to support local ecosystems through strength and kindness.
This year’s saplings included an inspiring innovation. They were planted in coconut coir pots developed at Amrita University’s Technology Enabling Centre. The fibrous husk makes for a soft, flexible container that can be placed directly into the ground and then biodegrade.
In her address, Amma focused on how we remain at a critical juncture for our world’s survival. Love and respect for Mother Nature must be restored through actions based upon dharma, our inherent values. This can only be achieved when we surrender to the Divine, the essence within each soul.
Excerpts from Amma’s Message
Vishu is a symbol of the inseparable connection between humankind and nature and God.
Vishu is the essence of the spiritual teaching that it is God that manifests as both humankind and nature, and that nothing exists apart from God.
Religion, spirituality and the accompanying rituals and practices are intrinsically linked to the essence of an individual’s soul. One becomes a true believer of religion and God only when the light of the Self shines practically in your life through thought, speech and action, as love, compassion, forgiveness and patience.
When we celebrate Vishu, we must remember three things: dependence, independence and interdependence.
Wherever we are in the world, whatever field we may work in, and whatever we do, we will always have to depend on others. It is when we free ourselves from the grip of ego that we become truly independent.
We will then be able to welcome both good and bad with a smile. Along with that, we will come to realise the truth that “God and I are not separate entities,” and that we exist in mutual dependence on nature and all beings. This is the message that Vishu brings us.
The force that sustains the universe is selfless service. When human beings serve nature, nature responds in kind. When human beings serve animals and plants, they will serve us in turn.
This is the same attitude we must have when we are part of an organisation or a family. True happiness and peace in life can only be achieved when we live with mutual love, service and trust, built on a foundation of understanding one another.
Let us dedicate ourselves on this Vishu to show compassion to all living beings. May divine grace bless everyone to realise a world full of beauty, prosperity and happiness. Just like the Viṣukkaṇi—the auspicious, joyful items that are the first things we behold on this sacred day.
