Re: Saree Story

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From: savitha ananth (savithaa@hotmail.com)
Date: Thu Oct 24 2002 - 06:48:20 PDT 

From: "savitha ananth" <savithaa@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Saree Story
Date: Thu, 24 Oct 2002 13:48:20 +0000
Message-ID: <F80UkBdDTTp7zb6GEtZ0000ecbe@hotmail.com>

Thank u, Nandu, Kenna, Latika and all the delightful characters in this delightful episode!!

Love

Savitha

>From: "latika verma"
>Reply-To: amma-l@hindunet.org
>To: amma-l@hindunet.org
>Subject: Saree Story
>Date: 24 Oct 2002 07:33:11 -0000
>
>Dear kenna,
>Thank you very much for this wonderful incident.
>Latika
>
>On Wed, 23 Oct 2002 Kenna wrote :
>>Namah Shivaya dear Latika,
>>
>>Here is the story, which was posted on the list last year.
>>
>>In Amma's grace,
>>premarupa
>>Aum Amriteshvaryai Namah
>>
>>Dear List members,
>>
>>Our friend and sister Chandrika thought that the list members
>>might like to see this description of my seva this summer. I
>>hope no offense is caused by any of the stuff below.
>>
>>Before the summer 2001 tour, Daya from the San Ramon ashram told me
>>that I had been recommended for some seva. I was secretly
>>delighted, thinking that perhaps it was lap seva or
>>translation, something glamorous, that involved being close to
>>Amma.
>>Daya then said that I was supposed to clean the men's toilets,
>>and generously offered to let me choose between the
>>flush toilets and the pit toilets near the dining area!
>>I did do the cleaning, with bleach and everything!
>>
>>If you remember, last November someone from the San Ramon
>>ashram asked Amma about her opinions regarding how women
>>were regarded at the Indian ashram.
>>Well, Amma announced at that time that I was afraid of women.
>>I hadn't told her I was, but I confessed it was true.
>>
>>She took up the argument
>>once again this summer, and accused me of considering women
>>as inferior. Again, I admitted that sometimes I did entertain
>>such opinions. 'How could you think that, seeing that a
>>woman gave you birth?' she scolded me. 'Well, that is how
>>all this trouble started, isn't it?' I muttered
>>resentfully.
>>
>>Amma asked me to wear a sari and go and sing
>>on stage. I did not want to, and told her that there was
>>no sari to wear. Some busybody then piped up that
>>there were saris in the store. I told Amma,
>>'Surely you don't want me to buy a sari just for this!' and
>>quickly went onto the stage to sing. There was no shortage of
>>busybodies that day -- another person quickly brought
>>a sari from the store, and Amma called me back from the stage.
>>
>>By now, I figured that I should at least hide my embarrassment,
>>and let Amma and some women drape the sari on me. I even
>>co-operated, and posed with the sari around my head. Amma
>>asked me, 'Why are you so embarrassed? Women wear pants all
>>the time. It's ironical that you men (she indicated some of
>>us) think women are inferior, but end up worshiping Devi!'
>>(She pronounced 'pants' 'Faant', in a countrified way,
>>which I found amusing.) Janani was busy videotaping, and
>>I called to her to not put all this on some world tour
>>cassette. Amma then asked me to wear the sari
>>while singing, and I told her that I really didn't want to.
>>She said OK. So I took off the sari, and sang Kannante Kaalocha.
>>
>>I wondered whether I had acquired some horrible karma by
>>not obeying Amma fully, and wished I had another chance
>>to wear the damn sari and sing. I didn't want to take another
>>birth as a woman, or as anything at all, for that matter.
>>Amma sensed that I was worried, so she told someone 'He
>>thinks I asked him to sing wearing the sari, but I didn't really.'
>>
>>The next day I was sitting quietly, and Br. Dayamrita asked
>>me why I was not near Amma and joking with her. When I told him
>>that I
>>wasn't in the mood, he told me that my given name, Nandakumar,
>>is not just a name for Krishna, and it meant the boy
>>who delights people (Nandakam means delight).
>>He indicated that it was my *job* to amuse, and suggested that
>>I dress up as Amma. I readily agreed, and wearing one of
>>those long dresses and with a white scarf like Amma's around my
>>head
>>and lower face, I approached Amma with no-one noticing
>>anything amiss. There, I pretended to be Amma, and imitated
>>her saying 'Sivane Sivane', and scolding the lap seva people.
>>Amma found it hugely amusing. She giggled and said to Ravi
>>that I should have added coconut shells to my costume.
>>When I went for darshan later, I asked Amma how many more births I
>>would have to take for what I did. I was more worried about
>>the onlookers than Amma herself. Amma said that
>>I should be free with her, and not think like that.
>>
>>She asked me to go and sing again, and this time I wore
>>the dress and sang Apaara Kripalo. Amma said that she
>>liked my singing, and that I sang with feeling, which pleased
>>me, of course. I was also not so embarrassed as the previous
>>night. Some people told me they found the whole exchange
>>very healing and meaningful to them.
>>
>>The funny thing is, I did get my seva close to
>>Amma after all. My seva was to make Amma laugh. Throughout the
>>tour,
>>people kept asking me to go and make Amma laugh when
>>Amma was being too serious, or because they were feeling bored.
>>And I was asked to do it whether I was in the mood or not.
>>
>>Amma asked me why I talked about so much stress in my life;
>>she always saw me laughing. I said that my laughter was mainly
>>when she was there. Somehow, like being in the shade of a
>>tree I suppose, her presence soothes and relaxes.
>>
>>During darshan in Los Angeles, she whispered in my ear 'my
>>daughter,
>>my daughter'. I was so surprised, but when I suddenly realized
>>what she was saying, I burst out laughing. She laughed too, and
>>said,
>>'Laughter should always burst out of you just like now.'
>>
>>Om Amriteswaryai Namah,
>>Love,
>>Vallath (Nandu) Nandakumar
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>______________________________________________________________________
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>>
>>
>>
>
>
>______________________________________________________________________
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