Forward on the path

3:00 p.m. Darshan ended. I have never seen such a crowd lining her path from the hall, through the lobby, to the elevators. The looks on the faces of the people after Amma went by were priceless. At the same time, in the hall, there was and still is a crowd around the bookstore tables. One of the items not brought was bhajan books, which I found out the first night when I was asked where they could get a copy after they saw my bhajan books. Last night they projected the words to ‘Where Can I Go’ in Portugese on the big screens (to applause)

One other difference Santiago and Rio is the food. I ate more wheat in Santiago than in the rest of the tour put together – it was really the only choice outside of the hotel breakfast since there was only a snack shop set up in Santiago. Here I could get wonderful soup and salad reminiscent of the ashram . There a few people from the kitchen staff here, using a small portion of an enormous kitchen here in the hotel, preparing food.

7:00 p.m. A local photographer just told me that somehow they managed to get the whole crowd into the hall for the atma puja – when I came in there was s a good sized group outside. I am in a corner of the hall near the back of the stage, with a view of not much besides all the volunteers (I counted about 75, I assume they are all going to help) who will be helping with the atma puja water. I can feel the expectant tension in the air.

Now, silence throughout the hall, as the puja is performed and Amma blesses the water.

Distribution of the water – the background music has started up, and the normal hubbub has returned (I think that is the first time I have ever written that word !). A Brazilian man just came up to me, saying he recognized me as my neighbor in the flats in Amritapuri last December when I was sick with fever and cellulitis, and asked how I was doing. Sweet.

Quiet again as Amma starts her talk. About half way through the talk, the puja water is fully distributed, and the crowd of volunteers is either seated or gone, and I can see Amma again. It is striking me – For over two months my life has been the tour, and after tonight I will move forward on the paths She has set in front of me. I thought I was sensing the crowd’s excitement, perhaps it is mine. I had hoped to get direction, but She has given me that and much more.

I am speechless.
Shambugh
3 Aug 2007, Rio, Brazil

3rd morning Rio

Yesterday was a little overwhelming here.

The first night darshan ended at 5:30 a.m .The second morning program was again packed, and She did not finish giving darshan until 6:15 p.m., a near record for world tours .

The bookstore sales are doing very well.
One of the odd-job sevas that I picked up was labeling CDs as they are duplicated. We made nearly 200 copies of CDs yesterday . They are selling fine with just hand lettered labels. That seva was very interesting and gave me more insight into Amma’s workings, and how She is forcing ever more progress - better attention to detail, better focus on a task, more mindfulness – (I tried to use the word sraddha but cannot seem to spell it right so I tried to say what I mean), on Her devotees (myself included – there are many lessons in the seemingly mindless task of writing a label on a CD).

Anyway, I was talking with the man who was making a new CD, Amma sings in Portugese. He was explaining the difficulties in making these CDs –to get songs in the local language as soon as possible, so each day he will re-make the CD, adding the songs She sings each night. He has had to do the same thing in 9 languages for some of the songs.

I have seen the photographer do the same sort of thing, spending hours editing a video of a pada puja to give a little extra for the customer. The effort to do this repetitively is not minor.

Amma issued directions that no one was to leave the hotel grounds after 3 p.m., apparently in response to two incidents of violence in the area of the hotel. Only a road separates the hotel grounds from the beach. It is really a pretty scene, I guess I will go beach walking after Devi bhava.

The Brazilians here in the hall seem noisier, more talkative and a little more pushy than the Chileans. Perhaps living under the oppressive government for so long had an effect on the people, or perhaps we are reaching a more affluent segment of the population here. The Chileans applauded the bhajans more, although after ‘Mata Rani’ last night the crowd cheered and applauded. I heard that when the Brazilians became aware that having small children could get them into special needs early darshan, some people called and had children brought – one child was used by more than one person. I have seen a lot of people using cell phones, and do not recall seeing that at all in Santiago.

Back to the bookstore. Remember I described some of the airport leelas – it was even worse than I described. Some of the devotees did not arrive until 1:30 in the afternoon. In the U.S. you can ship two personal bags, but in South America it is only one.

It is nearing 1 p.m., and there is still a good sized crowd.

Now that I have figured out how to use the Internet in the hall, I expect to give you a Devi bhava update.

Shambugh
2 Aug 2007, Rio

So beautiful Rio

So beautifull the program in Rio.
The best I have been to.
Beetween a wonderfull beach and gorgeous mountains.
Mild Temperature 20 degrees Celsius.
Birds singing on the trees. Sky blue without a cloud.
The hotel packed with people that stayed for hours patiently on line to get a token.
Fervorous singing.
Mother stayed for darshan till past 6 AM, we went to get some sleep, had a wonderfull breakfast by the swiming pool and there was Mother giving darshan again.
Smiling, happy.
It seems that wherever there is Mother´s children longing for Her
she will always be there for us.
People don´t stop to arrive.
Everybody working hard cause lots of people
Want to buy and bring something from Mother with them.
The food was fresh and delicious.
Lots of brasilians volunteers were helping.
Rio is the city where most of brasilian actors live and they are coming to meet Mother and also is the press.

Punyavati
2 Aug 2007, Rio

2nd day bhajans in Rio

Today the morning darshan lasted till 6:15 pm. Last night also, it seemed that many did not wait till end, yet, Mother finished darshan around 5:30 am or maybe it was near 6:00, did not look the exact time.

In tonight's bhajans Mother sang:

He gananayaka siddivinayaka

Sri Krishna saranam

If this is not the place (in Portuguese)

Mata rani

Om namah shivaya

Awaken Children (in English)

Jai Jai janani jai ho teri

At the beginning the people did not applaud after bhajans, but then they did it after If this is not the place and also Mata rani huge applauds, and again at the end after the last bhajan. Generally tonight there was more fervor during bhajans as last night. People really like them. One could see their yearning in the expression of their faces.Such beautiful expressions!

Yesterday night when Swamiji wanted to chant Om three times, expecting people to repeat it after him, the public started chanting and leading the Om chanting by their own. Tonight knowing this Swamiji chanted it with them together.

Ahalya

1 August 2007, Rio

Amma is big in Rio

At meditation, the seats in the hall were pretty much filled. But there was still a long line outside the hotel. Some of the tour staff people didn’t arrive until 9:45 this morning (the airport leelas), the Amma flight people did not get to the hotel until about 10 p.m. So, during the first hour, bookstall bags were being unpacked, more tables were being set up, and more people were flowing in. Now, 11:15, the hotel lobby areas are crammed, the hall has little standing room left, and there is still a line that goes outside the hotel.
Shambugh
July 31, 2007, Rio