On June 1^st I drove down to Castro Valley, California to see my beloved Guru Ammachi, who is popularly known as the “hugging saint” from India. During the drive, I was feeling distraught and overwhelmed by the on-going grief over the earthguy who I long for but cannot be with… so when I went up to Amma for the first darshan (her embrace), I gave her a letter in which I asked for her help in releasing the attachment and finding acceptance and peace. So many transformational things happened during that week with Amma, and I will write about them in a series of blog articles. In today’s article I’m focusing on why I look so happy in this photo taken of me on that sacred land at Amma’s ashram.

Each evening there was a program with a talk, bhajans (devotional songs), and a guided meditation. The first evening, one of Amma’s devotees gave the talk. He said that in India everything is considered to be God: all of Nature is seen as Divine, so plants and trees are worshipped at sunrise and even the buildings are seen as God. He explained that Indian culture is based on the principle that the Creator and the creation are not two. Then he said – and this is what really touched my heart – that rather than being in love with just one person out of seven billion persons, Amma is in love with the entire Universe: past, present, and future. The fullness of Amma’s Love is what makes her Shine. He then said that when we get fed up with the current state of our minds, then we start trying to transform ourselves and be like Amma.

That talk affected me so deeply that the next day I felt my smile rising again, and I felt so happy to be smiling so much at all of the beautiful beings around me. In this photo I see that Amma’s shine was radiating through me, transforming the grief into joy.

I bow down to Ammachi, with Gratitude for all of her blessings. 

May all beings know Peace and Happiness. 

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Happy Teja in Amma’s Field by Teja Shankara.