No Rust For Our Guru
24 July 2002, Guru Purnima at Amritapuri
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It took five minutes for Swamiji to perform the pada puja
for Amma on Guru Purnima. It took 10 minutes for him to chant
Amma's 108 Names and, handful-by-handful, to cover our Guru's
Feet in flower petals. Five minutes after that, all Mother's
swamis and swaminis had garlanded Her, and so had both of
Her parents — whom She then rose to embrace.
So it took basically 20 minutes for the rituals of Guru Purnima
to be accomplished.
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But the day had not ended. It was just beginning.
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From the chair where She sat for the rituals, Mother moved
forward to a low peetham near the front of the stage. There,
after prostrating to the thousands of people in attendance,
She delivered a satsang on the nature of the Guru. In that
talk, She spoke of lessons She had learned from her own mother,
Damayanti Amma. "Though she didn't have any spiritual
understanding, she was able to guide me," Amma said.
Damayanti Amma might give some strict directive, and Amma
would find a spiritual principle in it. For this reason, Amma
explained, She sometimes calls Damayanti Amma Her guru.
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One of Damayanti Amma's teachings, Amma said, was: "Never
say, 'This much work is enough.' Always say, 'Give me more
work.' So I used to pray to God to give me more of his work."
For the rest of Wednesday, the 24th of July, Guru Purnima,
Amma showed (as She has so many times before!) that She took
this lesson to heart.
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She worked.
After 10 minutes' guided meditation, She again stood, the
low peetham was exchanged for the darshan bench, and She sat
and began hugging.
Hugging is work? One remembers a reporter back in America,
who, hearing of "The Hugging Saint," said, "Hugging?
Who couldn't do that? Heck, I could hug people for a living…"
He changed his song after he watched Her.
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Amma doesn't just hug. She holds you close, and whispers
an endearment. She listens, as you ask a question, or pour
out an emotion. When you need advice, She gives it; when a
scolding is in order, She delivers it — and softens it
with laughter and another hug. Squirming babies are handed
to Her, and She holds them in one arm while drawing their
parents close with the other. She bows to let someone garland
Her, then removes the garland in time for the next person
to offer another flower mala. A heavy man is being helped
to rise after his darshan, and leans his weight on Her knee;
a child hurls herself against Amma's legs and demands a sweet;
a woman approaching on her knees inadvertently kneels on Amma's
Foot, and the next person, thrilled to be in the arms of the
Compassionate Mother, hugs Her with all his might; the next
person's cheek collides with Amma's right cheek — the
one with the perennial bruise. (About eight years ago when
this bruise began to develop, someone asked Amma about it.
Smiling and stroking it, She said, "Children's prema.
Children's love.")
Throughout, Amma smiles, scolds, comforts, jokes, advises,
laughs, cries… gives whatever response is suited to the
person in Her lap at the moment. And along with all this,
She is conferring with an AIMS Hospital official sitting to
Her right, beside the bench, and acknowledging the presence
of a devotee who has the privilege of handing Her prasad from
Her left side — a different devotee each minute-and-a-half.
She is listening to the live bhajans being sung, leading applause
for the little child who sings for Her, and hurling a handful
of sweets at the tabla player who has missed the beat. Her
ever-watchful eyes are attending to everything going on in
the hall: an elderly man has no place to sit comfortably,
and She calls a brahmachari to lead him to a chair; some people
are being told it is too late to join the queue and She sends
word to let them come to Her; a devotee from far away finds
no place to sit on the stage near Her, and She directs some
ashramites to move, making space for such visitors. All this,
and every few seconds a new person in Her lap.
This goes on until all who have come for Her darshan have
been hugged. On this Guru Purnima day, that meant 10 straight
hours. Evening bhajans were held while the hugging continued,
and at 9:00 the arati lamp was being waved in front of Mother,
still on the darshan cot, while She washed Her Hands before
feeding a child its first rice.
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Less than half an hour for the rites of honouring the Guru;
10 hours for the Guru to bless and serve Her children.
But never mind; Amma was getting Her Heart's desire. For
here is something else that She said in Her Guru Purnima satsang:
It is better to get worn out rather than rust away. This is
what Amma desires.
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