Blowing the Whistle, Chpt. 9: Amma, the Mother Saint – Hugging Away Your Personhood
2013 UPDATE ON THE AMMA STORY:
The article below was written by me some time back. Since then, a book has come out that does a far better job than anything I could ever say to reveal the truth about this guru.
The book is called “Holy Hell: A Memoir of Faith, Devotion, and Pure Madness” and was written by Gail Tredwell, formerly called Gayatri – the woman who for 20 years served as Amma’s closest personal attendant and chief female disciple.
In the book, Tredwell recounts her personal experience in the ashram, where she admits she was complicit in covering up all sorts of ashram secrets, in a misguided attempt to protect the guru’s misdeeds from public view (believing, as all guru cultists do, that the guru is God in human form and therefore exempt from human standards of right and wrong).
Tredwell’s riveting book recounts stories of donations intended for charity being converted into gold jewelry and hidden under the garments of Amma’s sanyasis (monks) as they passed through customs – then the gold being passed to Amma’s family to make them fabulously rich. Tredwell tells of being beaten, clawed, and bitten by Amma, who would succumb to fits of rage over small mistakes made by her attendants. Tredwell speaks of her discovery that, while claiming to be a lifelong celibate, Amma secretly had ongoing sexual affairs with several of her closest swamis (monks who have taken lifelong vows of celibacy). And she speaks of being raped herself, repeatedly, by one of these same swamis, and names him.
Tredwell was extensively quoted in an August 2012 “Rolling Stone” article on Amma regarding some of these allegations, although the book (and the worst of the allegations) only recently came out (now, in November, 2013, which is when I write this). “Rolling Stone” was able to corroborate the claim of physical abuse by Amma through the testimony of another one of Amma’s female attendants, who would not reveal her name except to the magazine.
Now, whether Tredwell’s searing expose makes a difference in bringing down this false spiritual empire depends very much on other victims boldly stepping forward and sharing their own stories. But the disciples are afraid of this guru, who, her biography alleges, has beings in the unseen who will retaliate against anyone who speaks out about the Divine Mother. This superstition makes it difficult for members struggling to break free from the cult to find the courage to speak the truth. Insiders report there is also genuine physical danger, for anyone living in India who speaks out.
If you who are reading this essay were or are one of Amma’s inner circle, I encourage you to do the right thing. Surely it is wrong to remain silent when thousands of trusting and innocent people not only give money to this organization, thinking it goes to help the poor and suffering, and – worse – trust their spiritual life to the guidance of a charlatan, often abandoning jobs, family, and loved ones and moving to India to live a life of poverty in Amma’s shadow … and more victims are drawn into her cult every day. Not to speak out about what you know is to be complicit.
When Sai Baba’s misdeeds became public, it wasn’t because of one disciple breaking the silence. It happened when multiple disciples came forward with their stories. It is easy to write off one whistleblower’s account as the remarks of a crazy person, or of a liar with a vendetta. But when multiple people step forward and attest to the same thing, that’s when the truth cannot be denied.
It happened with Sai Baba, and it happened with the Catholic Church regarding a great number of its priests. If only one victim of a priest’s assault had ever came forward, the allegation of rape would probably not have been believed. But when many people stepped forward, the verdict went down in the court of public opinion that sexual abuse by Catholic priests (SOME Catholic priests) is a reality.
If you know something, please do the right thing. Other people’s lives and happiness hang in the balance. The press will be giving interviews to Gail in the near future. If you have an experience to share, write to me at brontebaxter@yahoo.com, and I will contact Gail with your email address, and she can take it from there. The media will be asking for names of people who can confirm Gail’s allegations.
“Holy Hell” can be purchased through Amazon via this link. What follows below is the original article I wrote about Amma for this website, in 2008.
What do stuffed dolls have to do with enlightenment? Lots, if you’re into the cult of Amma, known also as Ammachi, Mata Amritanandamayi, and “the hugging saint.”
Amma’s devotees talk to dolls made in her image that are sold on Amma retreats. They tell the doll their problems, seek its comfort, and listen in their minds for its advice. Amma calls the devotees her children, and clucks syllables like baby talk into their ear in her trademark ritual of lining people up, watching them kneel before her, then embracing them.
She tells them she is their mother and that she hears their prayers. She says she’d no more charge them for her darshan (i.e., being in her presence) than a mother would charge an infant for breast milk. Yet insiders have estimated Amma rakes in upwards of 3 million dollars in a 7-week tour, through donations and sales of items like her toothbrush, fragments of a garment she has sat on, Amma dolls, Amma posters, and books by devotees extolling her divinity.
Devotees believe Amma is a living incarnation of the being they consider the supreme God: Kali in Hindu religion, who is depicted in Indian art wearing a necklace of bloody human skulls and a girdle of severed arms but who somehow translates to devotees as a loving maternal figure. Amma events consist of childlike lectures on Hindu doctrines, Amma blessing water which devotees then drink, hymn singing, worship ceremonies, and the hugs. At some events, Amma wears a two-foot-high sparkling crown.
Amma marries people on stage, gives babies their first taste of solid food, tells couples to break up or to stay together, and ordains some of the faithful to abandon their family and live as monks in her ashram. Amma teaches that love is all we need, and it is her divine love that will save us.
In Seattle a couple of months ago, she predicted nuclear war and that no child younger than 5 will live to adulthood after the year 2012. After spreading fear and despair through such prophecies, she announced that only meditation and self-effacing acts of charity can possibly mitigate the sentence for humanity. “Meditation” means mantra/obeisance meditation to the divine mother. Self-effacing charity means donations to her organization and service to her cause.
At public sessions, devotees chant hymns to Amma that grow in volume and frenetic intensity, gesticulating in unison with their arms in the shape of an arc, from their midsection up and out towards Amma, who sits on a dais in front of them. The words of the chant are “Aum Parashaktyai Namah.” That translates to “I bow down/ pay homage to the Supreme Mother of the Universe.” The arm gesture is body language for surrendering one’s soul to Kali in the form Amma, her living embodiment.
I am one of the moderators of the Ex-Amma Forum, a place where people who’ve left the Amma cult come together to help each other heal from their ordeal. The group is open to ex-followers, questioning devotees, concerned family and friends of devotees, and people seeking more information. I became involved with the forum when I watched a close friend of mine grow farther and farther away from the person he once was, the deeper he sank into Amma’s hypnotic embrace. On the forum, I’ve read hundreds of first-person accounts of what people experience with Amma, the side of her no one wants to talk about.
I’ve seen an email from her former joint-secretary alleging she cooks the books, that the money she gathers for charity doesn’t go to the charities she claims. I’ve read accounts by her former monks of the unexplained wealth of Amma’s family, how her charity hospitals won’t take the very poor because the poor don’t have money enough for treatment. I’ve read about“suicides” and unexplained deaths of ashram devotees. So many dead bodies have appeared in the waters outside the ashram that The Indian Express, New Delhi’s daily newspaper, printed an account of local citizens demanding a police investigation into the matter.
I’ve read of alleged organ selling and newspaper reports of beatings. I saw a video of Amma performing a puja (worship ceremony) to a portrait of Sai Baba, the guru who gives penis massages to his favorite boy disciples. I read a letter from a former Amma monk alleging he was told by an Indian holy man not to share what he knows about Amma if he values his safety.
Amma’s website sells pujas performed on behalf of the paying devotee for prices ranging from $30 to $250. We read there an explanation of what happens in Kali puja, which is performed “on Amma’s birthstar”:
“The puja is offered to a lamp representing the Goddess… The puja starts with a worship of the Guru… The central aspect of the puja is the symbolic offering of the five elements of creation to God. Our body is composed from these five elements… The puja symbolizes the surrender of the devotee to God… Each element is represented by a material symbol, such as flowers, or fire… These are offered at the foot of the lighted lamp. The desire of the devotee to offer his or her surrender is effected by these symbolic offerings. During the entire puja the temple resonates with the continuous chanting of the holy names of Kali.” (emphasis mine)
Amma’s PR is impeccable. She presents as “the hugging saint,” a portrait of sweetness and universal love, and the media promotes her unquestioningly as such. There has never been an investigation into her movement, the dead bodies, where the money goes, or what is really happening in her hospitals and orphanages in India.
In July, 2005, the United Nations awarded Amma with “Special U.N. Consultative Status,” according to her website. She is one of 25 core leaders in the United Nations Parliament of World Religions. Her website contains over a dozen pages extolling the humanitarian work of the U.N. One page compares the U.N.’s “Millenium Goals” with Amma’s goals, which are word-for-word identical. (Click here to view both documents.)
The ashram is among 30 Indian NGO’s to receive formal U.N. affiliation, according to Amma’s website. “This will provide opportunities for joint collaboration” between the U.N. and her organization, it goes on to state. Amma’s website openly extols the U.N. for its advances toward global government:
“The United Nations has been in the forefront of tackling problems as they take on an international dimension, providing the legal framework for regulating the use of the oceans, protecting the environment, regulating migrant labor, curbing drug trafficking and combating terrorism, to mention a few. This work continues today, with the United Nations providing input into the trend towards a greater centrality of international law ingoverning interaction across a wide spectrum of issues.” (emphasis mine)
Pulling all this together, what are we seeing here? Amma is a globalist, working intimately with the U.N. to bring about its agenda. That agenda is world regulation and control – a wolf that hides in the sheep’s clothing of humanitarian ideals. The U.N.’s aim is a global Orweillian state held in place by a world bank, a centrally controlled media, a world “peace-keeping unit” (world army), technological surveillance, and control of the world’s water, food, and other life-essential resources.
As one of the 25 core leaders in the U.N.’s religion parliament, Amma supports and promotes these “Big Brother” goals. For anyone wondering if the efforts by the global elite to create a New World Order have a spiritual component, Amma provides ample evidence.
My earlier articles in the “Blowing the Whistle on Enlightenment” series explain the real meaning of the kind of surrender that Amma and other Indian gurus promote among their followers. It is surrender of the personal self to the gods, whom Amma calls “the Lord.” Amma’s hugs, her relics, her blessed water and food, are ways of infusing her energy signature into the minds and bodies of those who visit her, be they devotees or unsuspecting guests. Not only her energy signature but, I submit, the energy signature of the astral entities who work through her, who call themselves gods, and who feed on the psyches of mankind.
Amma’s energy transfer helps devotees entrain with her vibration and meld their minds and souls with “the godhead.” In other words, it helps them become assimilated, or possessed by the same “cosmic” forces that possess and work through Amma. Gurus call such a change in consciousness “attaining enlightenment” or “liberation.” It’s a state of “ego death,” where one no longer functions as an independent individual but as a receptacle of “the Supreme Consciousness.” Translation: as a tentacle of the astral entities who live off human worship and suffering.
What makes Amma both so successful and so sinister is the loving image she hides behind. The media uses it to promote her far and wide. If it seems remarkable that no investigative reporting has been done, that no one from the mainstream media has questioned Amma’s PR, the mystery evaporates when we recall who the mainstream media is run by these days.
Large corporations have bought and own our press and television, and dictate the “news” that journalists are permitted to report. Behind those corporations, as behind our governments, lurk the privileged aristocracy, who control both news and world events by means of puppets who do their bidding. Our world leaders, the mainstream media, and “the saint” Amma work in tandem. That’s why the media and world leaders sing her praises.
Why do I single out Amma among the dozens of gurus I could write about? Because she is so popular, and so unquestioned. Even that guru-busting website, Guruphiliac, seems to miss the shadiness of Amma, voting her the “least bad” of the gurus. But Amma is one of the worst. Powerful and successful, she ropes in new recruits by the thousands on her yearly worldwide tours. Amma’s movement claims that the “saint” has hugged over 26-million people – people who often return as devotees, worshipping her godhood and donating to her coffers.
Amma’s brand of religion is a return to the infantile. She makes babies of grown men and women, giving them dolls to babble to and telling them she’s their mother. While speaking fine words about “the God within each of us,” her actions teach something different. Allowing people to pray to you, kneel to you, and worship you as God Incarnate is not the behavior of someone who wants people to recognize themselves as magnificent, powerful expressions of God.
Amma’s disciples get their power from hugs, dolls, mantra obeisance, and the group euphoria of retreats, not from the core of their own being. They’re conditioned to believe that their inner self is less than the glorious entity before them. They’re told, in fact, that their unique, individual personhood is nothing but a self-serving “ego” – flawed, proud, and devious, something to be destroyed before they can be happy. Every time they bow down to Amma and “the gods” who work through her, Amma’s devotees shut the door more tightly on the divinity within themselves.
It’s a tragedy, but we can stop it: by spreading this information far and wide. When enough people know the other side of Amma, her crown and power will topple. Just as the global government she promotes will crash down about itself when the public sees through the fairy tales.
“The emperor has no clothes.” Pass it on. Once the message ripples through the crowd, the game will be up, and the illusion will be over.
Bronte Baxter
© Bronte Baxter 2008
Anyone may republish this article on another website as long as they include the copyright and a back link to this site at www.brontebaxter.wordpress.com
jeremy said,
September 23, 2008 at 7:58 pm
What’s upsetting about this is that it seems like such a nice loving movement.
Doven said,
November 9, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Loving movements can tap into emotional addictions. Love is not what most humans think it is and anything that creates separation or hierarchy is NOT love but anti love with the design to harness it to co-create a reality that may not be in your best interests. ;-)
Stewart said,
February 2, 2010 at 4:53 am
I have been to the hugging saint and got my hugs. But what I really got was an awareness by observing both myself and the crowd. Human slaves collecting cash and zapping credit cards. I can honestly say I felt nothing. No warmth, no love, just that I had hugged the woman who has hugged 30 million people.
Now Bronte, seems that once two people join forces and start something, something else is born. A control organization will eventually grow out of the ‘successful’ ones. This will always be manipulated to serve the lords and gods.
Our power is surely being alone and free.
Sunil said,
May 1, 2010 at 12:17 pm
I’m from India and from the same state of kerala that Amma belongs too…you have hit the nail again by the brilliant article Bronte.
No body dares question her method in India, its so subtle, barely noticeable, only a trained person could see whats goes behind the facade of Amma.
You know how India is, every one is a follower of some cult or religion…99% of people here have lost there soul to some 1000 gods and goddess we have here. I don’t think there is any hope for people in India. Unless, people like you come forward and awaken us.
Most of the people here are soulless and i could see through them, they are taken over by higher evil beings that they call devas, devi, gods and goddess.
There are yogis, gurus and Ammas, in every nook and corner of India, ready to take the soul of anyone, who crosses there path. Please tell all your friends, to never come to India, its start with beautiful tourism and exotic cultural experience…then through yoga and then they take your soul away.
Thanks again.
george said,
January 6, 2014 at 8:49 am
Yes Sunil,
Spiritual knowledge is actually very easy to attain. But the secret is in the living.. the initiating of service to humanity – that is connection to the soul. The thing is this, Guru’s tell people what they want to hear, NOT what they need to hear – In other-words it is comfort that is actually sought not enlightenment. That is why so many spiritual people appear so checked out.
Anyone can sit in a tent all day and meditate and appear enlightened – not engaging with life. Facing responsibility of the self and the choices that design our life is an immense challenge and too much for many.
chiaradina said,
July 28, 2010 at 7:15 am
I totally agree with Stewart. It was the same with me when I was in Kerala at her Ashram.
Jefferson said,
August 10, 2010 at 2:36 am
Interesting resport on your experiences.
If you have not already read the book, the following information on sourcing the ‘Guru Papers’ may prove useful.
> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Guru-Papers-Masks-Authoritarian-Power/dp/1883319005
Jefferson said,
August 10, 2010 at 2:39 am
Interesting report on your experiences.
If you have not already read the book, the following information on sourcing the ‘Guru Papers’ may prove useful.
> http://www.amazon.co.uk/Guru-Papers-Masks-Authoritarian-Power/dp/1883319005
brontebaxter said,
October 15, 2010 at 10:06 am
Yes, that is an excellent book. I highly recommend it.
Bronte
Diana Trimble said,
October 15, 2010 at 5:41 am
Thank you for publishing this piece. I am completely in agreement with your rejection of the claims of this charlatan. I am on the verge of exposing a couple more right now but have to be careful cuz I live in the UK which has terrible libel laws that protect the guilty. But I do feel I can mention Amma by name, because her scam is (should be) well known by now. Anyway, thought you might enjoy my irreverant essay on frauds: Bullshit!
http://66witches.wordpress.com/2010/10/14/bullshit/
justdoit8 said,
July 24, 2011 at 7:07 pm
There’s a blog been created to counteract what Bronte has exposed called “Cult Of The Huggling Saint Exposed: A Closer Look At The Critics Of Amma – Ammachi – Mata Amritanandamayi Maa.”
This person or persons is rather p*ssed that Bronte has had the guts to tell it how it really is. I’ve read their little defense of such gurus and it holds no water. All they’ve really done is seek to ridicule those who see that there is a dark force leading world leaders and that ‘reptilians’ or ‘gods’ do indeed exists. Funny, how such people who blab on and on about seeking ‘enlightenment’ have to turn to ridicule to defend themselves.
These people believe in hugging dolls yet can’t get their head around the fact that dark multidimensional beings may indeed be controlling the game here?
Then they feel the need to ridicule Bronte for having a brain, for having integrity to see what’s in plain sight. And then feeling the need to ridicule David Icke.
Ha. I suggest they do some real research before feeling the need to ridicule David Icke and such people who’ve had the guts and bravery to expose how sick this world is. At least they don’t have their heads up their asses whilst the world goes to hell in a hand basket.
But ohhhh why listen to these ‘negative’, ‘fear-based’ people they say? Doesn’t do anything for ‘raising the vibration’ you say? Lol, all you people are programmed to spew such silly catch phrases such as ‘fear-based’, negativity, polarities, which are usually dripping with contempt and resentment by you folks who have allowed yourself to be part of the great muppet show whenever you want to marginalize or downplay any valid information about what’s happening here.
Additionally, I don’t find people such as David Icke or Bronte Baxter ‘negative’ at all. If anything they’re giving people real hope for our future. That we don’t need to bow down to anything. That we have the power to change the programming of this superholographic reality. That’s our destiny. If you’d bother to read and listen to what David Icke has to say you’ll find that he is nothing but positive and optimistic about our future. So is Bronte. But you didn’t do any work in bothering to find out.
I’d rather acknowledge when something is wrong in order that we can change it. But these people with their new age ultra positivist outlook have decided it’s easier and much less work not to look and not to confront what is obvious. But no worries, keep your head up your asses. When you do finally decide to wake up and smell the snakes you better hope that you have the freedom to move from A to B.
If you people would bother to do any real research, then ask yourself whyyyy so many people, from all around the world have seen these beings. How do you explain away as absurd the endless themes of `Serpent` and `Dragon` Gods in the ancient texts from all corners of our
planet? Or are you gonna say that these people were indeed primitive and knew no better? Well, this is from the same generation that erected the pyramids (or had help), which cannot be reconstructed today!
At very least Bronte Baxter has created a blog whereby others can reply and share their thoughts and feelings, you haven’t. There’s no reply program on your blog. Why? Because you don’t wanna hear it do ya? Your childish diatribe and ridicule against these people who speak out against the sickness of the world shows that you and your ability to think for yourself has in effect been NEUTRALIZED and all you have in your defense is mere personal attacks and this does nothing to credit yourselves or the hugging of dolls.
Bronte, well done. You’ve had the guts to do the right thing and expose what unfortunately so many people will laugh at. Leave them laugh. They’re in for a hell of a shock.
justdoit8 said,
July 24, 2011 at 7:23 pm
All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
All those that seek to ridicule what’s being exposed here do so at a knee-jerk reaction because you don’t want to face what inside you know is true. That something is very wrong. The fear doesn’t come from people like Bronte Baxter or David Icke, it comes from the thing inside you that doesn’t want it’s belief system challenged. Well give yourself a damn challenge for once!
Bronte did, David did, I did. It’s not easy. Just like a person who is ridding their system of dangerous drugs, you’ll have a few dark nights of the soul. But the clarity that comes after is well worth it. You’ll be able to see things in a new light. You’ll feel much more powerful and much more confident in your ability to make real change. So don’t be scared. Do it!
Sir Franklin said,
October 24, 2011 at 2:37 am
Bronte, you did a great job explaining what Amma is all about, but I would like to add my own realization. I too was drawn to her a few years back and upon my first meeting, felt nothing from her hug. I returned for Devi Bhava, out of the advice of one of her devotees and did the works-holy water, food, chant and hug. I was feeling great, but again didn’t feel anything from the hug, but was feeling good from something else–hmmm. I had mystical experiences from her and thought that she was the real deal. The mystical experience wasn’t anything I had conjured up myself, because I already had a guru- who is not in the physical form-and I wasn’t looking to worship or follow Amma, because I do not worship my own guru, but the spirit of God within and without. But, AMMA appeared to me in a vision (as you stated imprinting her vibrations while chanting in your ear, holy water, food ect.) a few times and the following year I returned to see her one last time in Devi Bhava. I was shocked that after receiving a hug, one of her workers ran after me and tried to give me a mantra initiation. I was shocked and declined it, to the surprise and apology of her worker. She should’ve known that I had a guru and was making rapid progress with him. The attempt to recruit me when I didn’t sign up for a mantra was a little alarming, but, I let it go. But over time, it was revealed to me, what and who AMMA is.
Although, I will agree with almost all your observations, I would like to add a little something. I do not think that she is your typical fake/charlatan that can be found in India and across the globe. She is a trickster entity that has its place in creation and evolution. Most people who follow her are those who are trapped in the clouds and not grounded in reality. Most of her followers are those who want to worship and want their sins/karma to be resolved primarily through an entity being as such she represents. They want the process of evolution and life to be all so motherly and sweet. They want the process of enlightenment to be all so motherly and sweet. They do not want to face their own life/self of hard work and self-realization, but want a guru or person to do most of the work for them. So, I can see how the Creator created the role for her to trick those who are delusional. And from what I hear it seems that once she gets you in, she shows her true self, which is reality. If you look at the documentary ‘Darshan: The Embrace,’ you won’t see a charlatan playing nice for the cameras, you will see the volatile entity, ‘Amma.’ You’ll also see that same entity giving her devotees a tough time, shattering their image of an all nice motherly figure.
I do believe many people in her organization are also being spun in her web, but by their own deceit/greed. Yes, they are probably using her prestige, money and powers for their own gain, but they are being tricked by the entity as well. People liken her to Kali and if you know the real cosmic Kali, then Amma would qualify as manifesting aspects of that entity. If one is drawn and follows that entity, then one is in for a lesson that often times is not easy. I personally can not classify her as good or bad, but a necessary lesson for those who are drawn and follow her. She will break your illusion and often-times its not pretty, but at least it is progress.
P.S.- I was being tested when drawn to her to see if I would follow the path/guru/guide that God has sent me or follow the path of illusion. Though I was pulled, I broke free and passed the test. I since have not had a vision or prompting from Amma, the lesson is over. The lesson has made me stronger and wiser. She will move on to others to see if they need to be broken. Although, I agree with your observation, I believe that God has a purpose for all. God is always in control and manifests a role if their is a need for it. Many people are still stuck in the dark ages, clinging to idolatry worship, instead of invoking that same entity within. If entities like Amma manifest, its to cause pain and discomfort on that path, so that people can find the true path back to within themselves.
ALICE said,
November 19, 2011 at 10:59 am
OMG, i wish i had read this before i took my two beautiful daughters to a SO CALLED SPECAIL DAY OUT, i spent 4 hours in the company of strange people, so glad my daughter said mum this is not making any sence please can we leave, we did, wish i could help others see, its oh so wrong, she a wrongin, i have lost my sister to this CULT, I MISS HER SO MUCH XXXXXXXXXXX
nestor said,
September 7, 2012 at 2:51 am
Majority of the Hindus have no time to read the verses of Bhagavad Gita, but ready to spend thousands of rupees, hard earned money, energy and time, at Ashrams and Spiritual centers of fake Babas and Mathas.All these godmen work on the basis of the gullibility of people… they only want power and money. These Godmens are falsely deviating people to reach the real God. These fraudulent Babas and Mathas never tell people to go and pray to the real God. They saying come to me, i can fullfill your dreams and worries.
Andy said,
September 12, 2012 at 10:31 am
Thanks for this informative piece. A real learning experience. I have a sister involved in this crap and this article certainly answers a few questions.
Sadly said sister has been the “Model” daughter to our elderly parents and I now understand why. Amma is in for an inheritance. Oh well, at the point of death only then will they realise that they have been fleeced.
me? Don’t mind I am not in their will. I’m just happy they brought me into this world and gave me an open mind to question things.
Edd hardy said,
October 26, 2012 at 6:23 pm
A hug is very much a personal and intimate act, it does not make any sense to hang around a load of unfamiliar people, be told where and how to wait, get a ‘ticket’ for a queue and then a hug from a lovely lady that has no idea who you are, where you come from and the reason you are there in the first place. If it does not make sense, it is nonsense…
New Year’s Eve at Amritrapuri « Travel-Stained said,
January 3, 2013 at 1:31 am
[...] The rest of the time, we were battling with the thousands (no exaggeration) of people fighting for meals in the food halls, or trying to get coffee at the cafe that seemed to open and close at random times of the day, or trying not to get indoctrinated into the cult of Amma. [...]
Kathy Criss said,
February 4, 2013 at 2:12 am
My 42 yr old dghtr has been brainwashed by a fake Amma (New Castle, PA)and is getting a passport and Amma is telling her to go to Australia where she has been playing lovey dovey w/some stranger. She is definitely not the dghtr and mother and soon to be ex wife of everyone who knows her. She does not waqnt to listen or talk with family. What can I do?????
brontebaxter said,
February 11, 2013 at 5:06 pm
You might want to join the yahoo groups “Ex-Amma Forum” and see what other people are saying who have loved ones in this cult:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ex-amma/
Bronte
Cheryl said,
February 11, 2013 at 5:45 am
I went to an Amma “retreat” with an open, curious and happy state of mind; talked to many “devotees;” and waited in line for “hugs.” (When I reached Amma, as she “hugged” me, she chatted with one of her handlers.) After that “retreat” I decided it was not something I wanted to spend my time on. While all religions may have some elements of a cult, based upon my experieces I believe that Amma and her handlers are dark forces preying upon weak people to scam them for money, and they try to separate and destroy relationships IF one person is a “devotee” and the other is not. If you are not a “devotee” then you are on the outside and viewed as unenlighted, if not stupid. “Amma” who is not a trained therapist, family counselor, etc., dictates what her “devotees” do. For example, she gives them new names. Additionally, she gives her “blessings” for her “devotees” or “followers” to have relationships with other “devotees,” even when a devotee is married or in a committed relationship. Her retreats are like pick up joints where they all talk jibberish about Amma, as they hand over their mastercards to people dressed in bedsheets. So if you go see “Amma”, you may want to beware.
Satyasiddhi said,
February 12, 2013 at 3:03 am
I am a member of an Amma satsang, and am increasingly disturbed by the oppression of questions, silencing of dissent by ex-communication, and bigotry under a cloak. The Amma center here refused ashram to a member because he is gay, and covered it up. If you show up more than once, you are pressured to start paying in. There is a great deal of pressure to buy books, pay for programs, donate for prayer puja, and pay to travel and see Amma. Everyone is rich in all the Amma centers I have visited, no poor folks to be seen, and I have visited 9 so far.
Whenever people leave ashram and have something critical to say, they pick the person apart in their absence, when they cannot speak for themselves. They actually have programs that teach you that anyone who criticizes is wrong, and they teach a condescending patronization as a response which they call, “empathic listening.” Meanwhile, no one listens to anything but what they like to hear. People are pushed out of groups all the time for saying the wrong thing.
An pretense of openness is maintained, but if you ask the wrong questions, you get immediately excluded. Huge money was spent on the center, yet almost no one stays in the ashram. They charge quite a bit for just about every program, and you must pay if you stay over even one night for a festival, yet the qualifications of the program leaders are often quite thin.
There is definitely a silent ban on anything but mindless devotion. Any rational interpretation of Hinduism is not welcome. Odd secrets are kept: Amma has no guru and is not really qualified as a guru without lineage desingation, but no one ever tells you that. The people who manage the ashrams and centers act like petty feudal lords. People are denied things without explanation.
richananda said,
February 16, 2013 at 11:44 am
Everyone here mostly seems to be westerners having doubts about following eastern paths (mostly the paths from India). The eastern paths have a long history and many branches of the Vedic path such as Bhakti (devotion), Karma yoga (good deeds), Jnana Yoga (Knowledge), Raja Yoga (meditation) etc. all have a value. Many westerners follow one of these paths or a combination of them with or without a guru. The eastern paths are not for everyone. Doing devotional chants or mediating with a mantra or holy sound or affirmation is also not for everyone. Some of these methods may seem too strange for the western mind.
Many believe the eastern practices are not appropriate for westerners or for modern times. Some believe no practices and/or teachers are necessary. That is okay. There is nothing wrong with that belief and many here seem to have that view. Some seem, however, disenchanted with the eastern methods and teachers.
Many new age methods also come from eastern methods and, to some extent, many are practicing a form of one of the yogas under a western teaching. There is nothing wrong with any of these methods. Each person will select a path or create his or her own path. This is freedom of choice. It is okay if you reject the eastern path, and it is also appropriate to allows other to follow these paths with or without a guru. There is nothing wrong with following eastern or western paths. Many will disagree with a particular path or believe their path is higher, faster or divinely inspired. But one has to be careful here not to be so fanatical. Many wars are based on this tribal consciousness thinking.
As far as gurus and organization, perhaps an independent consumer protection agency should be created to file complaints just like you would do for any other organization. But we should separate real complaints from preferences to teachings and teachers. In the same way files complaints against a vendors when the product or service is does not work and we may request a refund. There are laws of what is allow and many companies have policies for refund etc. And when there are disagreements beyond that, you may take it to the court system. But we don’t go to course because we jut do not prefer the product or believe another is better. Se simply move on to the vendor we choose. It is the Apple vs. PC issue some people have. Yes, you may hate Apple or the PC (some affiliate the PC with Microsoft since the software drives the machine), but it is just a preference. If you really want to get so worked up over Apple vs PC, that is your choice.
There are ways to complain and if it is just venting, these blogs are fine and extremely helpful for releasing. If you believe a consumer protection agency is needed outside of any other existing agency, then perhaps that is what you would do. As far as using the legal system, that should only be used for real cases of fraud and other crimes. There is generally no crime in following a eastern path or for meditating or chanting or doing any strange practice.
Many spiritual organizations charge money for their services. Some charge very little. Some charge a lot. I have not seen a comparison chart of the various groups. Those that offer retreats and other distant programs may charge for housing or a combination of housing and course fees. Is there something wrong with charging fees? Some believe everything should be free because it is spiritual. But those who work in the holistic and spiritual field are earning their living. They need to get compensated for their services. Now that is an entirely different topic and maybe beyond the scope of the topics here. Everyone has an economic and political philosophy. But all spiritual, holistic and religious organization needs funds to survive. The non-profit receive money from donors and charges fees for services. You can find some information online for firm that file form Check with the IRS http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits and other disclosure information websites. There certainly can be more trasparancy in non-profits. But individuals offering any service (have no obligations to make their financial records public unless they have a publicly held organization.
There is another issue that I notice is that many in the holistic and spiritual field have. That is a vow of poverty. This is called poverty consciousness. It is not healthy for most westerners. There is research on this and I encourage people to work on their poverty consciousness. Review the financial therapy literature and start with the works on money scripts by Rick Kahler and others. Again, in the content of the westerner, there has to be a balance lifestyle and each person needs to find their balance. There is just not one path that fits everyone.
If you want to experience some very deep confessions on how the economic world works, please start off with John Perkins book below. Then move to his most recent books. There is so much work to transform the corruption in this world. These books are a heavy read and may take some further study.
http://www.economichitman.com/
I wish everyone here well, no matter what path you choose, eastern, western, guru, no guru.
Whether believe or believer, we are all together on this planet and as one family must make this world work. It is all for God realization, Love and Service, and for my atheist friends, it is all for fun! Lighten up and enjoy. Move forward with your inner guru and the almighty divine everywhere present!
Om Namaste, Amen, Shalom, Allah, Jesus, Buddha, Peace, Joy, Light and Love!
brontebaxter said,
March 11, 2013 at 2:18 pm
Leo, I suggest you join the Ex-Amma forum (a Yahoo Groups discussion group intended primarily for ex-devotees and questioning devotees). You will get a lot more information there. One of the members is Gail Tredwell, who was Amma’s primary female disciple for 20 years before she defected due to all the abuse she saw and experienced. The Rolling Stone article on Amma last August (2012) included almost a whole page of allegations by Gail (formerly called “Gayatri”). This says something, as libel laws prevent the media from printing allegations they have not corroborated based on at least one or two other sources: meaning the magazine examined her allegations and found they held up. Gail is writing an expose book on Amma that is due to come out this summer. She says what she’s shared so far is only the tip of the iceberg.
Bronte
Leo said,
March 11, 2013 at 12:24 am
I don’t know what to believe. I know I don’t want to believe that Amma is a fake, I did find out about her at a very low low time in my life, the lowest ever infact. I read the stories of her childhood abuse and her young Christ like spirit to feed the hungry in the poor village she grew up in. I read how she licked leprosy and healed it with her immense fearless love. How she travels missed upon miles without stopping on bumping dirt roads through India just to hug people. Being someone who suffers from lack of love, appreciation, and (self) acceptance, I still find myself drawn to the idea of this woman who loves so unconditionally.
I do recognize in myself my severe lack of wanting to believe that the holy woman I have always held her to be, may in fact be a trickster, well, Kali is the destruction of ignorance. There is an American woman that goes by the name Ram, aka JD Knight, I believe, her book, the white book, is filled with Devine truths, but she is said to be highly neglectful and abusive to her followers, who also now have support groups.
One of the reasons that I was so drawn to Amma was my awareness of Illuminati takeover, I have been a listener of David Icke for several years, even seeing him in the u.s. So for me, she was an image and connection to my faith to the devine Christ feminine, loving, compassion for all amidst the darkness surrounding us.
I do know that there are allusionists from both sides of polarity, yes, to bring in the shift, not the nwo one world order, but the shift where government, system, media, mind control, aggression, suffering, neglect, malnutrition, stress, abuse, and victimization all end and harmony restores. perhaps there’s bits of truth in all of it. Maybe Amma is of lineage where she is destined to be a false god for the sake of bringing true godliness within us all. This is somewhat of what I’ve heard Jd Knight say as well, but she, personally, just looks like she’s had severe difficulty with the energy she’s been communicating with.
I pray for peace for all, may Amma’ truth be revealed.
Madhuyogini said,
March 14, 2013 at 12:01 pm
Leo, this is how the awakening begins. It is painful, but in the end you will feel more freedom. I was hurt, angry, and embarrassed when I finally woke up to who Amma was. Gail’s testimony was really the breaking point, I realized that Amma was a liar and a scam.
I also felt divine forces around her, and agree with a poster above, that perhaps it is God’s will that a being like her exist to take all the people who want illusion under her wing.
God is within you, everything you need you already have. It is your journey. Someone who helped me regain myself again is a alternative researcher named Michael Tsarion. You can view his video, Architects of Control for free on youtube:
I don’t necessarily believe everything he says, but what I really like is that he says what very few people say: Forget the guru, big daddy, outside influences. Go within yourself to find out what is true for you in your experience. Although I think some people are treating him like a guru, I really hope that it does not turn into another guru worship wank.
My 2 cents, for what it’s worth.
Madhuyogini said,
March 14, 2013 at 12:07 pm
Leo,
I did not read the part that you follow David Icke, so a lot of this video might seem repetitive.
Anyway, since you are aware on this level, consider what Bronte said about Amma joining forces with the UN. This should be a red flag for you.
Sowmiya Krishnaswamy said,
April 5, 2013 at 1:35 pm
Amrita Institute of Management fire a professor for writing a ethica case. Read the book: Conteporary Philosphy by J. donald Somasundaram
Sowmiya
Deborah said,
April 23, 2013 at 4:14 am
I attended an Amma retreat and it seemed like a money making scam and a vehicle for males and females to lose their moral and ethical boundaries. Amma encourages devotees to do whatever makes them happy, including shacking up with another devotee for a few days on “retreat” behind your wife/husband/significant other’s back under the pretense that they are drawing closer to Amma. More significantly, it has all the indicia of a cult, including separation from loving family members. It’s unfortunate that the government cannot shut it down.
Florence Polkington said,
April 29, 2013 at 2:51 pm
I call her “Scamma!” after taking a backwater cruise that promised to be 6 hours long, the reality, (more like double that,) as the sun was setting our only alternative, we were pulled up to her ashram to stay for the night. Outside a huge western union money transfer billboard, on an ‘island’ and no escape. White clad western zombies approached us speaking in monotone to welcome us to the ashram.
We were taken to the 12th floor in an escalator, to pay $20 each for a matress on the floor, in a shared room with two others-($60 a room times about 10 rooms for each floor!). (Back then I could get a hotel for a week on that,) nevertheless the price included, ‘dinner’ (which consisted of watery lentil and rice slop (western priced decent meals could be bought for extra in the canteen) ..and of course a hug in the morning. I thought ‘dammit, Im being screwed here, Ive paid for a hug, ….I WANT A HUG! ” The evening as I bedded down there were two israeli girls with the dolls tapes books etc…I never laughed so much in my travels in India-here they were telling me how Amma had changed their lives….I felt sad for them as well, as it became evident Amma preys on people who had lack of mothering, tapping into the primal need to have mother attachment, yet so many abused neglected children become adults…and she fullfills the need…for a price. ANYWAY,…we had to line up for a couple of hours to get the hugging ticket the night before, then wait again the same amount of time off stage in the morning to get a hug…meanwhile the anticipation is building possibly affecting alpha beta waves in the brain…I was non reactionary, in fact annoyed to have to have waited so long…The hug lasted about 1 second before she pushed me off of her…and rattled some gibberish in my ear and gave me a bag of lollies…afterwards my israeli roommates were estatic..”did you FEEL IT?” feel what? the vibrational energy from her chest..”YEAH!!” all that was, Im convinced was one of those demtel weight loss belts for the morbidly obese they flog off at 3am on the infomercial programmes. It made me laugh all the more. I went I saw I got the hug. nothing but,…. Amma the scamma! those poor lost souls thinking they are getting something else….
Karen said,
May 2, 2013 at 10:35 am
I have a family member who has not left her bed in 14 years because Amma has asked her to make this sacrifice. This woman has someone come in, take care of her meals, and empty her jugs which she uses as a bathroom. She believes (I think) that lying prone allows 3 women in India to use her energy! By the way, the family member lives in the states and has never been to India.
Megan Oliver said,
July 15, 2013 at 11:24 am
This absolutely sickens me. To think that a person that caims they are all about love, would ask someone to throw their life away lying in a bed endlessly!? It’s cruel and manipulative, I’m so sorry for you and for your family to have suffered this.
susanna said,
December 2, 2013 at 4:42 am
Well, there are also many people around any spiritual organisation or gathering who are not mentally healthy. They are living their own imaginational world. Many say “Jesus says, Amma says, Mohammad said ” even when they did not say anything at all. Often all illusions fall away in the presence of consious people, the whole point is awaken to your own true one and only, all there is, Self. Sorry to say, but your family member is sick, nothing to do with Amma….for sure. It is okay to question and even critisize but that is already biggest ignorance I have ever heard.
Lara winter said,
May 20, 2013 at 8:59 pm
My ex husband joined this bizarre cult, and Amma married him, and when his new wife got cancer Amma told her not to accept medical treatment and surprise surprise she died leaving behind 2 young sons. He seemed to think this was fine and I couldn’t help thinking that he was totally brainwashed
Cheryl said,
May 26, 2013 at 1:18 am
I have seen first hand how Amma rips families apart. The government should investigate its finances and shut it down.
Jeanne said,
May 28, 2013 at 1:12 am
I agree. The same way Jim Jones and others needed to be investigated. I personally cannot find any kind of public disclosure of records, such as a 401 non-profit report. Is this because her organization originates in India? I think if it’s operating anywhere here, then it should be held to the same scrutiny that all of our non-profits are subject to.
Jeanne said,
May 27, 2013 at 11:42 pm
I went with a new, visiting friend to the Seattle morning public session last Friday (May 24th). I had never even heard of Amma before. My experience was just like Stewart’s: I didn’t feel ANY authentic feelings and energy of love. I was asked to do “selfless service” for an hour and watch a jewelry table. I was instructed to not take my eyes off of the peoples’ hands for any reason. I was so grateful when someone else came along to take my spot! I realize people do steal, but I do not feel the need to assume everyone is a suspect, let alone hover over them like a guard. When my friend introduced me to several people, many of them reminded me of the looney tunes cartoons where they get hit over the head and have “pinwheels” in their eyes: Ooooh, Amma….. I am not sorry I went, though. I have always known that there are cults out there, but I have never been up close and personal to witness how it actually all goes down! I can cross that off my bucket list now. Thankfully I am a strong and spiritually grounded woman or I may have gotten sucked into it, too. I am extremely sensitive, and what I felt was a lot of people searching for their “purpose” and “who they are” and being misled. It makes me feel sick to my stomach to see people bow down and worship another human being. I told my friend over coffee that I do not believe that this woman has any more “God” in her than me, him, or the girl who just made my latte does. I will not speak of the financial aspect of this organization because I have not done the research to know what I’m talking about. Even without the details of that, and just one day of milling about the event, it wasn’t rocket science to see what’s going on there. I also got into the darshan line and got a hug. My friend asked me later: “wow, was it life-changing?” Honestly, I didn’t feel anything except the people who yanked me away after a half a minute or so (and I do not like being grabbed in that manner by people:p). I have a wonderful support/social network and get hugs daily from the people in my life – those are life-changing, those are where I feel the love flow in. I do not wish to hear this woman compared to Mother Theresa, either, it just makes me feel sick. I will end with this: if you are reading these accounts and unsure how you feel, please remember that we all have the same intrinsic worth and divinity inside of us no matter what – that includes YOU! :)))))))
Amy said,
May 30, 2013 at 12:54 am
Ok, crazy question…but are there two women traveling and acting as Amma? She is in Minneapolis yesterday and today as listed on one website, karunamayi.org……..and yet another website http://amma.org/meeting-amma/north-america has her as being on the west coast! The pictures of the woman on the two sites even look a little different – yet similar, two different birth years are listed, the names she goes by are different on the two sites… What the heck is going on here? Which is Ammas actual website, and who is this other Amma?
brontebaxter said,
May 30, 2013 at 9:56 pm
“Amma” means “mother” in Hindi. As far as I know, there is one other popular guru called Amma. She’s married to some guru guy, and they teach a questionable technique that involves laying hands on a person’s head and calling down a “blessing” in a foreign language – yeah, right. Translation: giving your permission for a foreign entity to come in and manipulate your life and your consciousness and feed off your energy.
But that’s not the Amma my article was written about. It’s the other one, who also feeds on souls but who is more famous, on account of her hugs. Such a great gimmick, giving away hugs! Guaranteed to make an energy thief seem benevolent.
Amma is just her nickname. Her official name is Mata Amritanandamayi, and Amma.org is her official cult website.
Bronte
Brian Reed said,
June 2, 2013 at 1:03 pm
Everyone here sees what they want to see, for better or worse. Traditionally guru’s never taught en-mass. Doing so under any business organization non-prof. or otherwise means pursuing money. Ammachi deals with thousands of people everyday and after all of this imagine how she feels having absorbed so much suffering. She like all of us is consciousness in a body, and she is fully aware of her divine reality. All students have to face the obstruction of separation, thinking they must become like their guru to become enlightened when in reality they only need to pay attention. I asked Ammachi for a mantra, she said, “You already have one.” She would not get in the way of my guru. Everyone who thinks that guru’s have to be perfect according to some false stereotype are in for a big surprise….All saints, even Jesus, Buddha, Ram, Krishna, Mohammad, Moses, etc. have human bodies and are just like us except they are clouded by the, “I” ego which itself is not evil but is colored by your karma. It is only your impure vision that sees things clouded including your own divinity and casts doubts because you think the guru is separate from you because you see a body in front of you. There is nothing that is not yourself, The point of awareness you are contains everything and a real guru teaches you to look within., Guru worship is misunderstood, it is not about externals and all these deva’s and devata’s although real do control you because you do not listen to them. They are saying, “Wake up!” until you do you are at their mercy. Not everything is as it seems. The polarity of help vs. harm comes out of yourself. If you go to her for dependency, that is what you get until you wake up. Connecting to your inner divinity helps Amma and any real saint reach more people, Those that need dolls are simply at an earlier stage in development and should not be mocked, it is what they need. Almost all of you here miss the mark. Go your own way, it is okay, who are you? What are you? Where are you? WHo is seeing? Who is perceiving? What is it? Her teachings are timeless the only difference is having to deal with millions of followers. Corruption is rampant in any corporation as long as concrete and money is involved, this does not mean the teacher is not real. If connect to her internally, you will not fall for all of this crap and instead help her because she helps so many, not out of selfish motivations for your own gain. Don’t expect the guru to be perfect, if you do you are falling into your own trap of self-blame and shame. Look deeper than surface appearances, look deeply into your heart. If you know who you are you will know how to connect with her in a healthy way. Her job is to bring her bliss to everyone, your job is to see how it works in your life or not. If you don’t want it go somewhere else. There are many false teachers and Ammachi and the furthest from that. Many of her followers and organization are puppets of their own making. All have some ignorance and she deals with everyone on every level en-mass. Once you pick apart everything it is reduced to ashes, this is true for all teachers except for those who do not have ashrams.
brontebaxter said,
June 2, 2013 at 11:21 pm
I normally don’t allow devotees of Amma to post their diatribes on my website, but I’ve allowed the one above because it represents the mentality of many cult followers, and as such, is useful for my readers who don’t understand cult mentality to see. Brian’s post is full of the rationalizations that buttress this woman’s divinity in his own mind and that are responsible for maintaining her empire.
Since posting this article on my blog several years ago, much more has come out about this so-called “saint.” In August 2012, Rolling Stone printed an article that included a long interview with Gail Tredwell (“Gayatri”), Amma’s former lead female disciple for 20 years. Tredwell has exposed Amma for physically abusing her closest female disciples (flying into rages in which she claws and bites them, even knocking them to the floor), using donations to make her family rich, asking lead disciples – when speaking to Amma’s crowds – to tell stories of miracles that were fabricated events … and that’s only some of it. Even worse stuff has been done, that will all come out in a book Tredwell is writing.
People who want to know more can join the ex-amma forum so as to examine the posts archives, where Tredwell and others have posted numerous messages with some of their firsthand experiences.
Bronte Baxter
Thanks for spreading this critically important info, Bronte! I had similar experiences during my time at Puttaparthi with sathya sai baba. After losing faith, due