Amritananda mayi- is she divine...i dont think so

The high and mighty, poor and rich, young and old are lining up in Kochi for a gentle hug, a soothing word and a tender kiss.

The hope of an embrace from 'hugging saint' Mata Amritanandamayi has the coastal Kerala city bursting at the seams.

Domestic and international airlines are fully booked for a week; foreigners have landed in chartered flights; special trains are ferrying devotees; and hotels are fully packed as more than half a million followers of Amma have come to the city, which has a population of less than a million.

What brings people like President A P J Abdul Kalam, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Reliance chief Mukesh Ambani, Sycamore founder Gururaj Deshpande, US Senator Larry Pressler and actress Linda Evans to Amma?

"It is her hug," says French filmmaker Jan Kounen. Kounen should know, for he and long-time friend and French producer Manuel de la Roche are busy at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium -- the venue of the four-day birthday celebrations of Amma -- shooting for a film, Another Reality.

"Her hug has fascinated me. I am exploring how a simple woman from Kerala has become a world saint through her gentle touch. You know, through her hug she connects us to the spiritual world," Kounen added.

Like him, hundreds of thousands of devotees silently queue up as Amma comes to one of the many specially arranged podiums to meet people.

In the last three decades, Amritanandamayi, born in the coastal village of Parayakadavu in Kollam, has hugged more than 30 million people.

A Los Angeles Times journalist once asked Amma: "Why do you hug people?" She replied: "This question is like asking the river, 'why are you flowing.'"

Evan Jones, a physiotherapist from the United States, says she fell in love with Amma because "her gentle touch electrified me".

"The biggest thing about Amma is that she does not have a religion. Her religion is that of love and compassion. Her spiritual empire is love and service," Jones says.

Agrees Beverley Noia, an American who was professor of comparative religion at a New Mexico university. The idea of god always perplexed her. One day, she met Amma during one of her US visits. "I saw in Amma a real mother. I found that she is the answer to universal motherhood," says Noia who abandoned her job and joined Amma's ashram in Kollam eight years ago.

Noia says Amma has proved that religions and languages are no barriers for spiritual fulfilment and human service.

In 1993, Amma addressed Parliament of World Religions in Chicago; in 1995, she spoke at the Interfaith Celebrations at the Cathedral of St John the Divine, New York; in August 2000, she addressed the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders at the UN General Assembly; and in October 2002, she spoke at the UN World Conference of Women's Religious and Spiritual Leaders in Geneva.

"All these addresses were in vernacular Malayalam. But people understand the power of love, though she talks in Malayalam," says Jones.

What will Amma say when she addresses the CEOs and business leaders who have come from all over the world? One of her close aides says Amma will teach them the fine of art of combining business with social service and spiritual energy.

One of Amritanandamayi's aides says that in the last three decades, she "has built up a spiritual and service empire that include educational, charity and medical institutions across India and abroad".

Today, at the age of 50, Amritanandamayi heads huge projects --estimated to be worth Rs 1,500 crore -- to help the sick and poor across the country. The ardent CEO followers of Amma will definitely take note.

Really i dont believe that she is something divine...she is hiding so many things.She was a prostitute in her earlier life.The inside of asram is a mystery for all.Her wealth is not audited.When she goes to foriegn countries and coming back without security check her articles are going.Some people acuuse this as kidneys, narcotics and gold is transacted behind this divine face.

i want to tell only one this, she is an ordinary woman, audit her transactions sources of money... divinity should not be at the expence of national security.

Pinarayi vijayan - goone leader

Vijayan (Well known as Pinarayi Vijayan) is a communist politician(eventhough he is a capitalist) and a former minister of Kerala . Currently he is the Secretary of the Kerala State Committee ofCommunist party of India Marxist (CPIM)

He was born on 21 March 1944 in Pinarayi inKannur district. He is married to Kamala and has two children, Veena an engineering graduate and Vivek currently doing MBA in UK.

Political career

Pinarayi Vijayan entered politics through student union activities and eventually joined the Communist Party in 1964. He was the President and Secretary of the Kerala Student's Federation (KSF) and also served as the President of Kerala State Youth Federation (KSYF). During that period, when communists in Kerala were organising the political activities from different hide-outs, Pinarayi Vijayan was imprisoned for one and half years. Late he was elected the President of the Kerala State co-operative Bank. 1970 witnessed his entry in to theKerala Legislative Assembly. He was re-elected in 1977, 1991 and 1996. He was the Minister for Electric power and Co-operatives in the E.K.Nayanar ministry from 1996 to 1998(He has done lavalin scamof 98 crores at that time). In 1998 he became the Party State Secretary. He was elected to the Polit Bureau of CPI(M) in 2002.

Positions held

• He was detained during Emergency in Jail where he endured police brutalities.
• Was the State President and Secretary of Kerala Student's Federation and President of Kerala State Youth Federation (KSYF).
• Served as President of Kerala State Co-operative Bank
• Elected toKerala Legislative assembly in 1970,1977,1991 and 1996.
• Served as Cabinet Minister in Kerala Government between 1996 and 1998
• Secretary of the Kerala State Committee of the CPI(M) since1998
• Member of the Polit Bureau from 2002 to still Continuing

Controversies

• The SNC Lavlin Scam in Kerala is a major allegation that rocked Kerala politics .The controller auditor general of india report said that the deal Vijayan had struck as electricity minister in 1998 with Lavalin, a Canadian firm, for the repair of three generators, was a huge fraud and had cost the state exchequer a staggering Rs 3.76 billion. On 16th January 2007, Kerala High Court ordered a CBI enquiry into the SNC Lavalin case.CBI found pinarayi vijayan as guilty.
  

• His Political opponents are making allegation about the places where his children gets admitted. His daughter Veena is an Engineering graduate in Amrutha Institute of Technology, managed by Amritananda mayi(Marxists accuse her as a prostitute and the money she is making illegal means) and son Vivek, MBA graduate from a B-School in UK(Pinarayi and Sudjhakaran the useless cooperative minister tells Vivek got scholarship.A person didnt have third class mark got scholarship... is Malayalis are fools???) The opponents claiming that this not suppose to happen from the leader of a party which holds strong policies of opposing self financing colleges, as well as holding public accusation aboutAmritananda mayi and their alleged wealth.
  

• On february 16,2007 the air port security in Chennai Airport recovered five bullets from Vijayan's baggage. The Chennai airport security had let him off after receiving a faxed copy of his license.
  

• The Editors Guild of India strongly condemned the threats issued to K. Gopalakrishnan, Editor, mathrubhumi daily Malayalam. The threats of retaliation and punishment issued by CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan to the Mathrubhumi newspaper are a direct affront to the freedom of the press. The Guild demanded an immediate end to the intimidatory tactics against mathrubhumi and called upon the Government of Kerala to ensure that there is full protection to Gopalakrishnan and journalists of Mathrubhumi.
  

• The stand-off between the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) and the catholic church in Kerala took another nasty turn with CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan demanding that the church withdraw a controversial pastoral letter issued recently.The letter had recommended a "liberation struggle" on the lines of the one in the 1950s to liberate the education sector in Kerala from state control.

• Pinarayi got involved in a controversy as the head organising committee of the Nayanar Memorial football tournament receiving money from Pharis aboobaker , a criminal and binami of Pinarayi vijayan, Accused in National kidney foundation scam in singapore described by the Chief Minister as a "Hated Figure".
  
• There is a rumor that Srimati teacher is the keep of Pinarayi vijayan and ministership is as his gift to her.

Pinarayi Vijayan is a goone leader from Kannur.he emerged into marxist party as unquestionable figure because of his force(if anybody questions he will make silent it like Deepika daily,Achuthanandan...). he is not having any culture(In Kottayam he shouted at Comrades ...it is not Usha Uthup Ganamela...) and shows the quality of his background...what is in blood will not go away with money or fame no...His transaction in swiss account is monitored by Interpoll.There is another rumor that he is having alleged nexus with mumbai gangs of Davood Ibrahim(read this with his affiliation with Madani, Pharis aboobaker..)