Amma's Omniscience

-Briefly excerpted from Swami Ramakrishnananda's book, " Racing along the razor's edge."

Sometimes Amma will tell me the details about a person who has just joined the darshan line for the first time. When that person came up for darshan, Amma would ask that person all the details about him-or herself, which Amma had already told me. This happened a few times.

Once when this had just happened, I asked Amma out of curiosity, “Why did you ask him all those details which you already knew?” To this, Amma replied that she had done that just to make him say a few words to her, so that he would feel some closeness with her. In this way, Amma makes us feel close to her, adding a more personal touch to the darshan. Because of this personal touch, remembering Amma’s smile, Her words, Her touch, etc., is a good meditation for all of us. As she binds us with her divine love, she inspires us to cultivate good qualities. Thus, Amma molds us into instruments that are fit to receive God’s grace.

Occasionally, when we tell Amma our sorrows, she sheds tears with us. This shows us that Amma is actually sharing our problems, and it means a great deal to us. If Amma didn’t show any emotions, she’d be like a robot; nobody would feel any connection or closeness with her. On the other hand when we see Amma showing such human emotions, we tend to forget her greatness and divinity.

In Australia, a five-year old boy went with his mother to see a person who was giving a spiritual program. That person gave the boy a nice big apple. A month later when the boy’s mother told him that they were going to meet an Indian saint called Amma, the boy immediately asked his mother, “Will Amma give me an apple like the other person did?” What could the mother say? She had not even met Amma. So she could only say, “I don’t know”.

They came to see Amma. After their darshan, they were walking away when Amma suddenly called the boy and handed him an apple. Many other children came to Amma that day, but Amma did not give any of them an apple. It was only to this boy she gave an apple. The boy was so happy. His mother shed tears of joy wondering how Amma could have known that her son had asked her about the apple.

When Swami Amritageetananda, one of Amma’s senior disciples, first met Amma, he wanted to join her ashram immediately; but Amma thought it would not be right as he was already enrolled in a Vedanta course at another ashram. She asked him to complete that course and then only seek permission to come to her ashram. Though he felt sad, Amma reassured him, and said he should write to her and she would reply.

When he returned to the ashram in Mumbai, he started writing letters to Amma. He sent seven letters altogether, but Amma did not write back.

Just before his course of study was to end, Swami Amritageetananda wrote to Amma again, telling her that his instructors had agreed that he could join Amma’s ashram after his course was completed. Still Amma didn’t reply. Because Amma never responded, he became convinced that she did not want him to join her ashram. Not only that, he felt as if he had to leave the spiritual path altogether after the Vedanta course, for he had already announced his intention to leave the ashram where he was enrolled. He decided to return home and look for a job. As soon as the thought of the impending worldly life entered his mind, he stopped all his spiritual practices. .

Three days later, he received a tiny letter. The small slip of paper was from Amma. It read, “Son, you have stopped your spiritual practices. Your mind is completely out of control. Resume your spiritual practices. Amma is with you”. He felt a rush of joy at the realization that Amma had been with him every step of the way. He resumed his spiritual practices, completed the course and then joined Amma’s ashram.

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