Amma or Mata Amritanandamay - the fake Adi Shakti/Divine Mother/Shri Lalita Devi

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Mata Amritanandamayi: A Biography-A Critical Look PART 0 (MUST READ!)

 

I would like to bring to your kind attention the biography of Mata

Amritanadamayi written by swami Amritasvarupanada. This book was

published by: Mata Amritanadamayi Mission Trust, Amritapuri P.O.

Kollam, 690525, Kerala, India and printed by: Amrita Offset Printers,

Amritapuri. These companies are affiliated with Amma's spiritual

organization and stated as Mata Amritanadaayi Mission Trust,

Amritapuri, Kollam in the book. Unfortunately there is no ISBN, this

being the nature of many books printed in India. 1988 was the first

edition, 3000 copies are stated to be sold or made (i'm unsure). 1989

another 3000, 1992 - 2000 copies, 1993 - 3000, 1995 - 3000, 1996 -

6000, 1997 - 6000, 1998 - 3900, 1999 - 5000, 2000 - 5000, 2001 -

5000.

 

I'm not aware if this book is still around. I have read this book and

upon closer inspection have concluded some findings about amma which

I would like to pose to the readers. It is up to you to judge.

 

I am also aware of mayi's marketing technique which shows her

materializing water from milk. Apparently she is against doing

miracles and does this to show her powers, that was back when she was

still young. But the funny part is that she lets this marketing

gimmick to be done by allowing a 'remake documentary' of this

episode. Can she demonstrate this power today under scientific

scrutiny? Anyway, there's also another cheap gizmo which makes her to

be the hinted as the mother of the universe.

 

Both this can be seen at

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5od7Kk0OmNA

 

 

Indians deify people who help out or who have done good towards them.

This is a tendency in the people. Many also have revered siddhars and

souls who have realized god.

 

But many do not understand that realizing god/brahman is just a

state, it is not becoming a god or a superman.

 

Let us now see what is written in her biography.

 

a) Sudhmani aka ammachi's parents are said to be initially non

understanding of the divine child's spiritual fervour and said to

continously beat and torture the child.

 

But, in the autobiography though the above is presented there is

serious contradictions. For example, both of Sudhamani's parents are

said to be highly spiritual nature. In page 20, chapter 1: From life

itself, it is written -

 

" Many pious souls had been born in the Idamannel family. Sri

Velayudham was such a man. He was a very compassionate, truthful and

generous person, who firmly held the ideal of ahimsa. He would not

allow even a little rat to be killed. Velayudhan was married to

Srimathi Mathavi, a chaste and pious woman, whose habit was to get up

early in the morning before dawn in order to make flower garlands for

all the deities in the family shrine room.......

 

Sugunandan was their eldest sone of five children. Inspired by the

devotional atmosphere of his family, he became an ardent devotee of

lord krishna. When he was nine or ten years old, he began studying

Kathakali, a classical dance drama of Kerala, which depicts games and

playful diversion of gods and goddesses. While the actors present the

story through dance and mudras, singers narrate the story through

songs.

 

The character Sugunanadan most loved to portray was Sri Krishna. Once

during a Kathakali performance he became so identified with his role

of Krishna that he fell unconscious on the stage " .

 

From here we know that both Sudhamani's (future amritanandamayi)

paternal grandparents were pious, the grandpa would have been taken

in by gandhi's ahimsa preaching.

 

Sugunandan, Sudhamani's dad is also portrayed as pious. But there is

also a interesting twist here. Ramakrishna was a saint from bengal.

He was from the 19th century and his advent was much much earlier, he

was also quite popularized due to Vivekananda who sailed to the west

and opened up Hindu thought to the curious west. Ramakrishna's

biography is well known, it was recorded by many people, but the most

famous was by Mahendra gupta, also known as M. In it the child

Ramakrishna is said to be fond of theaterics, much like Sugunandan

also. In one of these, Ramakrishna becomes so absorbed with the role

of Shiva that he becomes unconscious. Here this unconsciousness to

the external environment is due to samadhi. The samadhi is

Ramakrishna's total absorption on Shiva. The crowd is said to be

overcome with awe and a feeling that Ramakrishna is Shiva himself.

Sugunandan also like Ramakrishna acts in one of this form of theatre

acting out puranas like Kathakali. Like Ramakrishna he also becomes

absorbed on Sri Krishna and becomes unconscious. It should be noted

that Sugunandan was also a child like Ramakrishna when this is said

to have occured.

 

However, the author stops short of calling Sugunanda's absorption

samathi and we also do not know how the crowd reacted to this. No

reason is given for sugunanda's unconsciousness, though this is said

to have occured due to becoming very identified with his role of Sri

Krishna.

 

It is not difficult to see that the child Sudhamani would have

learned this antics from her father and later on also portrays

herself to be Sri Krishna. However so unlike her father, she goes a

step further by saying she herself is the divine incarnation.

 

Let us now look at a description of her mother Damayananti. In page

21 of the same chapter:

 

" ....Damayananti came from a devout family, which performed religious

practices daily without fail. Her family even had its own temple.

From childhood, Damayananti had led a virtuos life. Her father,

Punyan, and mother, Karutta Kunya, were exemplary devotees of god.

The whole family atmospehre supported her in leading a religious

life. Damayanti was so pious that she was reverently called by the

villagers, 'pattathi amma', or the 'brahmana lady. As devotion to god

was her focus in life, she would observe various religious vows

almost every day of the weeek. She frequently undertook fasting and

would break her fast by drinking the water of tender coconuts which

mysteriously feel from the trees. "

 

So here too Damayananti, Sudhamani's mother and paternal grandparents

are portrayed as being very pious and spiritual. Damayananti, though

belonging to the fisher-caste clan, even earns the nickname -

brahmana lady due to this. The family even has their own temple.

 

As such it is not difficult to see that Sudhamani is exposed to

religion from very young.

 

Let us see Damayanti's reaction when Sudhamani was born, from page 23

of the same chapter:

 

" The babe had a beaming smile on her tiny face! The gaze of the

child penetrated Damayanti's innermost heart and was never

forgotten. "

 

From here we can know that the child has had such an impact on

Damayananti from the day she was born. It pierced her innermost heart

and was never forgotten - these are very emotional claims. She

definitely remembered this long enough to be passed on.

 

In fact both parents have had visions of gods and goddesses before

Sudhamani was born, just like Ramakrishna's parents too.

 

Page 22, Chapter 1:

 

" During her pregnancy, Damayanti began having strange visions.

Sometimes she had wonderful dreams of Lord Krishna; at other she

beheld the divine play of Lord Shiva and Devi, the Divine Mother. One

night Damayanti dreamt that a mysterious figure came to entrust her

with an idol of Sri Krishna cast in pure gold. Around the same time

Sugunandan had a dream of the divine mother. As he was a devotee of

Lord krishna, he was unable to understand why devi should suddenly

appear to him. Upon relating his story to damayanti, he found that

she had recently had may strange visions also.....

 

One night Damayanti had a wonderful dream that she had given birth to

Krishna, and he was lying on her lap drinking her breast milk. "

 

It is very rare that people dream of gods and goddesses during their

pregnancies and for their spouses to have likewise dream also. It is

surprising that Damayanti and Sugunandan couldn't draw a conclusion

that the child might be divine. Unlike Ramakrishna's parents,

Sudhamani's parents however become barbaric later on.

 

It is said that the child had a dark blue color, due to this, it is

said in page 24 (chapter 1):

 

" ....ironically, it was because of her blue-black complexion, that

Damayanti and the other family members would look upon the child with

great disdain. Their aversion for the dark child eventually led them

to treat her as the thankless servant of the family and relatives. "

 

The family is said to have consulted the doctors for this ailment of

dark skin when this child was born. Let us see what is written. In

page 23 & 24 of the chapter: " The parents were puzzled by the babe's

dark blue complexion and the fact that the child lay in padmasana

(lotus posture), holding her fingers in chinmudra (the mudra

symbolizing oneness with godhood). They feared this dark blue shade

might be a symptom of some strange disease and that the peculiar

posture might be due to abnormal bone structure. Various doctors were

consulted. The fear of bone abnormality was allayed when the doctors

confirmed that there was no such handicap. As for the skin color, it

could not be attributed to heredity, since both damayanti and

sugunanadan were light tan in skin tone. Hence the parents were

advised not to bathe the child for six months in the hope that the

mysterious ailment would disappear. "

 

This is quite strange that both parents were not aware of padmasana's

and chinmudra, being from quite a religious and spiritual background.

Moreover, if it was true that the baby was dark blue, how did the

parents didn't know of the color being associated with Krishna?

 

It also adds further doubt to the above story when doctors are

actually said to advise the parents to not bathe the child for six

months. I am not aware if this is the standard remedy practiced by

Keralite doctors for 'mysterious skin ailments'. In fact this is

dubious only. By not bathing the child might most probably get skin

diseases like rashes, fungal infections and maybe other bacterial

infecions also.

 

Moreover, Sugunandan and Damayanti are both from the fishermen-caste.

These people go out in the sun to catch fish. We know that via

evolution, humans exposed to hot sun will finally assume a dark skin

color. This is because melanin which gives the tan blocks out harmful

sunrays. As such, most of these clanspeople are bound to be brown or

black only. In fact, there are many Indians who are pitch black. This

is not a rarity.Damayanti's mom is known as Karutta Kunya which

translates to 'black child'. Please do not misunderstand my intention

as being color discriminatory. No, it is not my intention. Nature has

made melanin to block out sun's rays. In humans near the equator,

they have over a very large period of time acquire characteristics

which help them survive in their surroundings. This is basic

evolution. As such it is difficult to imagine Sugunanda's uproar

seeing his daughter's skin. There are many dark skinned woman in the

village also. Sugunandan, his wife, his elder son and some relatives

are portrayed as quite barbarous in their treatment of Sudhamani.

This is hard to believe for one who is entrenched in religious

virtue, has a wife of religious virtue, has family background of

religiousity and also attains samadhi while nine years old. It is

said that samadhi changes one's perception towards things

permanently. Yet Sugunandan has reverted (or portrayed) to become a

monster.

 

Let us look at further contradicitions in the book. In chapter 25 of

the same chapter, it is written;

" The parents gave the name Sudhamani, " Ambriosal Jewel " , to their

remarkable baby daughter. " This hardly depicts someone who hates the

blue black baby.

 

Let us now look at the barbarous treatment of Sudhamani as given in

the book: " At ten, Sudhamani was fored to abandon her schooling.

From early morning before dawn until late at night she labored....

(last paraghraph, page 37, chapter 2 - the divine servant)

 

......sudhamani toiled from three o'clock in the morning, as she set

to work cleaning the house, sweeping the compoung, fetching water,

cooking the food, tending the cows, milking them, washing the clothes

and scrubbing the cooking vessels. " (2nd paragraph, page 37, chapter

2).

 

.....when her crying continued, Sugunandan eventually lost his

patience and flung (the baby Sudhamani) on the cot. Page 28, chapter

1.

 

It is difficult to understand the reason for the parents stopping the

brilliant child Sudhamani compared to their other children. This is

illustrated in page 27 - chapter 1: " Her older classmates, including

her brother and sister, sometimes received harsh punishment from the

teacher for being unable to learn verses of poetry by heart.

Meanwhile, little Sudhamani, who was studying in the lower grade,

would melodiously sing the peoems and dance to the melody like a

delicate butterfly. all the teachers admired her and were amazed by

Kunju's (sudhamani) astonishing memory. She scored full marks in all

subjects and was ranked first in class, despite the fact that she was

often absent because of household responsibilities. "

 

In fact so harsh is the treatment that the child says the mother

treats her like a daughter-in-law and not a daughter. Traditionally

in some families, daughter-in-laws are maltreated for heavy dowry and

not bearing a male heir, this treatment passed on to generations just

like the 'ragging' tradition in the universities in the past.

 

Apart from this Sudhamani also claims many things which cannot be

observed now, nor which she has demonstrated. These include:

 

1) animals tendering her body during tapas, etc the garudas which

bring fish for her food.

 

2) miraculously lighting lamps without oil and with use of water.

 

3) changing water into milk.

 

4) giving endless supply of food from a small vessel, more like Jesus

Christ.

 

Apart from this Sudhamani has also caused griveous hurt to her cousin

by her own words. Let us look at the unfolding of events as it is

given. Subhagan is Sudhamani's cousin. He and another cousin are

irked with Sudhamani's claims of being god. Apart from them there are

also others. These have formed a commitee called 'Rationalist

movement' and 'commitee to stop blind beliefs'. We do not get any

account from this group, just swami amritasvarupananda's comments as

recorded in the book. As such a honest look of events cannot be had

in this book. However so Subhagan and his cousin one day will try to

scare Sudhamani and which will end disastrously for the cousin.

 

Page 144 - chapter 8- dazzling like a million suns: " One day,

subhagan and a few of his cousins called the Mother to a relative's

house under a false pretext. When she arrived, they locked her in a

room and one cousins began threatening her, sudenly pulling out a

knife which he had hidden in his clothing. Subhagan announced, " This

behavior of yours has gone too far! You are bound to spoil the family

name. Since you cannot stop mixing freely with all sorts of people

and persist in your sining and dancing, it is better you die. " He was

enraged to hear the Mother laugh and retort, " I am not afraid of

death.The body must meet its end sooner or later, but it is

impossible for you to kill the Self. Now that you are determined to

kill me, let me meditate a while, then you can kill me " . "

 

The last utterance of Sudhamani is similar to Shankara's (Athi

Shankaracarya) when he faces death at the hands of bandits. Seeing

Sudhamani's past in which she would have been exposed to much of

hindu literature, it is not difficult to assume how she would have

arrived to such a concoction of a story, passed on by the faithful

swami amrita, tsk!

 

What conspires later, (page 144, chapter 8): " ...though they verbally

threatened the holy mother (sudhamani), none of them was courageous

enough to do anything to her after hearing her bold reply and seeing

her unperturbed. Suddenly the cousin who had brandished the knife

jumped forward and pressed the kinfe against her chest as if to stab

her. But he could not make another move, as he was immediately

stricken by an excruciating pain in his own chest at the exact point

where he pressed the knife against Holy Mother's. He himself fell to

the floor in agony. Seeing this, the others in the room became filled

with dread. At this moment Damayanti arrived, having seen Sudhamani

leaving with Subhagan and his cousins. Hearing the uproar, she began

pounding on th door, shouting. When the door was opened, Damayanti

took the Holy Mother by the hand and led her home, taking the path by

the shore. On tbe way back, the Mother told Damayanti, " your people

dishonored me. This ocean is my mother as well. She will accept me

happily with outstretched arms. I am going to her lap " . Hearing this

Damayanti became mentally unbalanced and began screaming, " don't say

that, daughter! " ........succeeding in dissuading the Holy Mother, she

took her back to Idamannel. "

 

It is hard to imagine that for one who has claimed to cross the stage

of non-duality and attaining oneness with god (as stated throughout

the book), Sudhamani becomes angry at humiliation. This shows her

attachment to the body. She has not realized that which is not

destructible. It is false where she shouts she is not the body.

Actually, Shankara who said this thing after being confronted by the

bandits and saved by his disciple will not show any aversion to the

bandits. This is different to Sudhamnani's reaction. This is because

the cousin brother who dared to point the knife to her mysteriously

dies. Though his death is not known to us, let us read Sudhamani's

version via swami amrita. Page 145, Chapter 8: " The episode doesn't

end here. The cousin who had raised the knife against the Mother to

stab her was taken in pain to the hospital. Though provided with

excellent medical treatment, he finally died, continuously vomiting

blood. As his disease was in its acute stages, the Holy Mother

visited him in the hospital. She lovingly consoled him and fed him

with her own hands. He was deeply repentant toward her for his grave

mistake, and burst into tears experiencing her compassion and

forgiveness.

 

The holy mother had no enmity toward her cousin who had attempted to

murder her, nor had she made any resolve to avenge his evil act. He

simply suffered the fruit of his action. The Mother explained, " Just

as human beings have intense love for Mother, numerous subtle beings

love her as well. If somebody attempts to harm Mother, Mother does

not react. Mother faces such a person without any excitement and does

not even think any harmful thought regarding him who acts out of

ignorance. But these subtle beings get angry and take revenge. Do you

understand how this is? Suppose someone's mother is attacked by a

man. Do the children sit back indifferent? Even if their mother tries

to stop them, they find that man and take revenge. " - page 145,

chapter 8.

 

Now let us pause and think. What is Sudhamani implying here. First of

all she claims to not react. Yet she initially wanted to drown

herself due to humiliation. Then she talks about visiting the cousin

who is also repentant. She forgives him and he wallows due to her

compassionate and forgiving nature. So this means that he has

repented and deeply regrets his actions. So why does this man has to

suffer anyway? He has not caused any hurt to Sudhamani except for

threatening. For this has he got to die? Sudhamani cites karma or

divine retribution for this. But she does have weird ideas of how

karma works. She says that 'subtle beings' have exacted their

revenge. We do not know who these are nor does she elaborate. We are

to assume that these are divine beings. Even as a human being I will

not punish somebody who has repented as seriously as these subtle

beings have done, here I mean in the context of the act that the

cousin brother carried out against Sudhamani. On top of this she even

claims that this subtle beings are likened to the children which seek

out revenge if someone slights their mom, even if the mother tries to

stop them. Quite disturbing conclusions can be made from here. First

of all even though Sudhamani has forgiven, the subtle beings killed

her cousin. Is Sudhamani implying that she has no control over these

subtle beings? I mean if god forgives, it can even override karma.

Even companies overwrite bad debts. That is the true meaning of

forgiving, don't you think so? If I were to suffer my actions

regardless of being forgiven by god, what is the need of this? On top

of that, these subtle beings attacked him due to anger. This is

unbecoming of Sudhamani's subtle children whom she has no control of,

they even don't give a damn even though she has forgiven the cousin

and she was actually unhurt. Moreover the cousin repents and regrets

his actions.

 

Let me ask, if these 'subtle beings' were in fact true human beings

and Sudhamani also acknowledges likewise, what would have happened?

If I go and kill a guy who threatens my mom with a knife, but who

couldn't or didn't do any harm, and also who was eventually forgiven

by my mother, what do you think will happen to me? I will go behind

bars only. What will happen to my mother who claims the grand law of

karma, thus justifying my act? At the same time she also acts

forgiving by saying that she has no anger towards the killed man.

 

This whole episode and Sudhamani's response to it sounds like a big

drama only. Or is there any hidden truth? It also teaches false

paradoxes. She acts humane, forgiving etc. She quotes Karma. She lets

subtle beings kill someone who has repented and who she has forgiven,

quoting the divine dispensation of Karma. She also says these subtle

beings reacted out of anger and she has no control over them. Aren't

subtle beings supposed to have subtlety, I mean more forgiving than

human?

 

My dear readers, ponder on these truths for a while..I will get back

to you in my part two of my rendition of a critical look at mata

amritandamayi.

 

To be continued.

 

-Sashi

 

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