On Monday, November 24, Amma's fall tour of the world started on the last leg of its journey with the first day of darshan at San Ramon. Morning darshan ushered numerous newcomers into Amma's welcoming arms.

Mahatmas (Self-realized souls) are omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent. They abide in a state of constant union with the universe. Even a blade of grass does not move without the Mahatma's being aware of it because the Mahatma is totally one with the Supreme

Consciousness that pervades all creation. Thus it is that when the heart calls in earnest prayer, the Mahatma responds, the universe responds; God responds. In Amma's presence, we get to see this flow of energy over and over again, and almost every person has a story to narrate of response to sincere prayer and the flow of Amma's grace into their lives.

It was midday and darshan was midway through, when a couple wheeled in their disabled son for darshan. At 18, an age when fledglings stretch out their wings and explore life on their own, Justin found himself bound to a life on a wheelchair as a result of a motor vehicle accident which left him with severe brain damage. As his family struggled to cope with the shattered pieces of the life they knew, prayer became an important part of their existence. As Justin's mother puts it, "Little did we know that that half a world away, a small yet omniscient woman heard our prayers and was already sending help."

Justin had been in a coma for a few months with little hope of recovery when many surprisingly coincidental events led his family to seek refuge in Amma. Soon, Justin emerged out of the coma and other medical complications to be reunited with his family who have been bringing him to see Amma ever since.

On this Monday morning, the family had come to pay their respects to Mother and seek her blessings. As Justin was being wheeled into Amma's presence, Amma noticed him from afar and kept stealing sweet glances at him, trying to catch his eye. When he came close, Amma stroked his arms. A new medication that Justin had been taking recently had produced dramatic improvements, and for the very first time, he could say a few words to Amma. "Om Namah Shivaya!" Justin announced brightly, much to Amma's delight!

As Amma gathered him up in Her arms for darshan, he put his left arm around Amma, drawing Her close to him as well, and for a moment, mother and son hugged each other in a mutual embrace. "Pray, Prayâ€¦" Amma told him. Like a river that had overflowed and broken its banks, the long and loving darshan seemed to touch every onlooker, leaving them with tears in their eyes.

Justin's slow recovery may not have been the complete cure that his parents had hoped for when they first came to Amma. But being with Amma has made them surrender and accept his condition as a learning tool in their spiritual progress. Says his mother acceptingly, "Our son has blessed us by shooting us through a canon of agony on to the spiritual path." It is through such living examples of surrender and acceptance that Amma shows us how to live every moment of our life as a spiritual practice, living in a simple acceptance of whatever it brings.