If you haven't heard of Amma before, it's time you did! She's considered a living saint, recognized by the UN for her humanitarian efforts and featured in a piece on "60 Minutes". Although her base is in southern India, she travels the world hugging people and raising money for her humanitarian causes. She supports schools, hospitals, housing, etc. in India but also wherever in the world there's a need (most recently, Japan and Haiti). To date, she's hugged almost 30 million people and she's currently touring North America. She'll be in Chicago on June 28 and 29. She'll then head to the east coast and Canada. Information about the tour, Amma's humanitarian efforts and an online store are all on her site.
There's a great documentary about her called Darshan The Embrace (see the trailer here). "Darshan" comes from the Sanskrit word "to see" or "to glimpse". In Hinduism, the concept of darshana means seeing or being seen by a diety, a guru, a saint, a religious object or some such thing or person of a holy nature. It's a form of interaction that calls to the consciousness of the devotee.
Receiving a hug from Amma is a form of darshana that can be deeply healing.
You don't have to be Hindu or know anything about Hinduism to see Amma. They won't ask you for money so there's none of that discomfort. Her organization sets up in a hotel and there are booths selling clothing, books, herbs, beauty products, jewelry, food, etc. There are usually musicians playing or singing devotional music. Her devotees all wear white. Amma enters and the vibration in the room immediately changes in a palpable way. (I've experienced this twice. I was glad that some unknown person had their arms around my waist the first time because I felt "ungrounded" immediately. I feel like my nervous system can't quite handle the frequency and am always close to tears in her presence. It make me think of the film footage of the Beatles arriving in the US!) If you want a hug, her people will give you a number. Tell them if you've never seen her before because you'll have a shorter wait. Even though there are often many people and lots going on, my experience is that her organization is very well managed. Amma stays until the last person is hugged--even if it's all night long. Depending on the day or time you go, the wait can be as short as half an hour or as long as 8 hours. Even if you don't want a hug, just go and take it all in. At the most superficial level, it's a happening. Go shop, eat, hang out and watch the people. For those looking for deeper meaning, this can be a profoundly healing event.
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