| Amma in the Australian Media |
New articles added going back to 1995!
If you know of other articles that have been published on Amma in the Australian press, please send details to: admin@ammaaustralia.org.au We will try to get permission to share the article online and send to the archives at Amritapuri. |
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"Spreading the word of love and peace"
The Gold Coast Bulletin - Friday, 16 April 2004
“The essence of motherhood is not restricted to women who have given birth…..it is an attitude of the mind, it is love, and that love is the very breath of life,” she says. Full article (PDF) >> |
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"Hugs for true believers" by Annika Priest
The Sunday Times PERTH - 4 April 2004
"In a time of terrorism, disease, national disasters and skepticism, it seems that all people want is a good old-fashioned hug from a modern-day fairy godmother." Full article (PDF)>> |
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"India's Peace Saint"
NOVA Magazine - March 2004
"Amma’s message, urging people irrespective of race or religion, to overcome their differences and work constantly towards peace has never been more poignant nor desperately needed." Full article >> |
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"Interview with Swami Ramakrishnananda"
Living NOW Magazine - April 2003
Q: How do we reach a state of peace?
"Have total faith in Supreme Being & that everything is happening according to His will – God’s will prevails. Help others, love others, be kind to others – leave the rest to God." Full article>> |
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"SARS clips guru's wings"
Moorabbin Leader - 29 April 2003
Indian spiritual leader Sri Mata Amritanandamayi has cancelled her planned visit to Moorabbin due to the SARS outbreak. Known as Amma, she is considered a saint in her home country. Full article (PDF) |
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"Leader just loves to hug"
Moorabbin Leader - 22 April 2003
She has hugged people as an expression of her love for the past 30 years and never turns anyone away, refusing to leave a session until she has received everyone who wants her blessing. Full article (PDF) |
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"World of Hugs"
West Australian Weekend Extra, 29 March 2003
"A simple hug may not seem much of an answer to a world of bombs and guns but Sri Mata Amritanandamayi’s hugs must be the loving equivalent of a cruise missile, judging by the effect she has on people." Full article >> |
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"Thousands line up to hug Indian holy woman"
The Age - 8 April 2002
Humanity lives for love, she said, and life is for love. Only by sharing love can we awaken or can our awareness level grow. Asked if she ever tires of hugging, Ammachi said that in more than 30 years of hugging, she has never cancelled a program because where there is love there is no exhaustion. Full article (PDF) |
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"12 million hugs but Mother never gets sore arms"
Sydney Morning Herald - 11 April 2000
Like the Queen’s wave, her signature blessing is known as a kind of shorthand. Surrounded by about 100 devotees, all dressed in white, she would offer a child-like gaze, some light touches on the arms and back and then a feathery embrace. Full article (PDF) |
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"How I got Ammachi's hug"
Moorabbin Standard - 1 Dec 1998
“By giving ’Darshan’ she is taking darkness from the heart and replacing it with the seed of love, which will sprout in its own time”, she said. Full article (PDF) |
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"Holy mother of hugs embraces Australia"
The Age - 25 Nov 1998
Human beings love to be hugged, but, sadly, not everybody has somebody who wants to hold them. If you are in that awkward position, get off to the Moorabbin Town Hall tonight, because Mata Amritanandamayi (the holy mother) will be there, waiting to embrace you. Full article (PDF) |
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"The mother of all hugs embraces Sydney's love"
The Sunday Telegraph - 24 Nov 1998
“Just like the body needs food, the soul needs love to grow,” she said when she arrived from a retreat on the gold Coast to the open arms of followers yesterday. Full article (PDF) |
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"Hug guru spreads message of love"
The Gold Coast Bulletin - 23 Nov 1998
It was very nice. You can’t really describe it,” said Mr Taylor. “It brings some people to tears. I’m more a sympathetic supporter, rather than a follower. And there is no hard sell her, no pressure to by anything.”
Mr Taylor said Australians were fortunate there were only a few hundred people present yesterday rather than the 10,000 to 20,000 people who visit her in India. Full article (PDF) |
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"The mother of all hugs embraces Sydney's love"
The Sunday Telegraph - 24 Nov 1998
“Just like the body needs food, the soul needs love to grow,” she said when she arrived from a retreat on the gold Coast to the open arms of followers yesterday. Full article (PDF) |
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"Hug guru spreads message of love"
The Gold Coast Bulletin - 23 Nov 1998
Her message, which she has been delivering for the past 12 years on tours around the world, is to bring love and compassion into the lives of everyone. In India she is compared to the late Mother Teresa and claims to have cured people of terminal illnesses during the 12 million hugs, kisses and talks she has shared with people. Full article (PDF) |
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"Hindu lady of 11 million hugs ready for her next embrace"
The Sydney Morning Herald - 23 Nov 1998
“She greets and hugs each person as if they were her own child. She feels there is a tremendous need for these maternal qualities. She is one of the most amazing human beings on the planet.” Full article (PDF) |
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"In good spirits"
The Age, 'Weekend' - 14 Nov 1998
In the East she is widely recognized for her humanitarian projects. But in the West she is know only as “the Saint with the healing hug”. Her record for physical embraces is between 50,000 and 100,000 people in on sitting. Full article (PDF) |
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"The healing hug"
Port Phillip/Caulfield Leader - 8 Dec 1997
...people came from all over the world to receive the ‘Darshan’ and from all faiths, including Jews, Christians and Buddhists.
“I think what she teaches or tries to ask people to listen to is just to find some balance in life,” he said. “She is not saying run away to a mountain and meditate for the rest of your life, she is saying live in the world and find some balance between it and the spiritual world. While it is steeped in the Hindu tradition, she has a universal approach.” Full article (PDF) |
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"Sydney Opens Arms to World's Top Hugger"
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD - 21 Nov 1997
“I went overseas at the age of 19 to find peace and happiness and fulfillment,” said Ms. Treadwell, now called Swamini Amrita Prana. “I had not found it in Brisbane, or the Gold Coast, or Perth. In India, I felt intrigued by the mystical and spiritual side of life. My heart started feeling full.” Full article (PDF) |
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"Many agree that Mother knows best"
Sunday Herald Sun - 17 Nov 1996
Meeting with this woman are a mixture of serenity and gentle scoldings. This week there were warnings to married couples to express love for their partners, a call to transcend the limitations of the world and become givers, rather than receivers of true love.
Amritanandamayi is described by her followers as a universal saint, but her advice to the faithful is pragmatic. Full article (PDF) |
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"Mother of a saintly hug that's one in 11 million"
Sydney Morning Herald - 11 Nov 1996
“Her message for Westerners is she can help us have some degree of calmness of mind to help us be happy and useful people”, he said. The “back to basics” approach preached by Mata Amritanandamayi as she is known in India is said to be the essence of compassion.
Full article (PDF)
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"Bliss is in the arms of Mata"
Sunday Herald Sun - 19 Nov 1995
When asked if she considers herself divine – as some of her followers claim – she shakes her head but says that she has come to know her own “true nature”, and that nature is God. True happiness, she says, is possible by diving deep into yourself to find God. “You just have to realize that you are dreaming. You have to come out of the dream; to awaken yourself to realize what you and God are”.
Full article (PDF) |
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"Ammachi (Mata Amritanandamayi) is touring Australia in November 1995"
Golden Age Magazine - Sept/Oct 1995
She teaches by the example of her own life and conveys the highest spiritual truths in the simplest language. An inspiring example of humility, compassion, simplicity and patience, she has infused devotion to God, love for fellow beings and the spirit of selfless service into the hearts of millions. Full article (PDF) |
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