Sri Anandamoyi Ma
Encyclopedia
Sri Anandamayi Ma (also Anandamoyi Ma) was a Hindu spiritual teacher and guru
from Bengal
, considered a saint by many and hailed as one of the prominent mystics of the 20th century. Anandamayi means "bliss-permeated mother", a name given by her disciples in the 1920s to describe what they saw as her habitual state of divine bliss. During her life, she attracted thousands of followers who saw her not only as a teacher and guru, but as a manifestation of God, or Devi
.
She was also called Dakshayani
, Kamala
, Vimala
, and "Mother of Shahbag". Swami Sivananda
(Divine Life Society) described her as "the most perfect flower the Indian soil has produced." Precognition
, healing
and other miracle
s were attributed to her by her followers.
, British India, in what is now Bangladesh
. Her father, originally from Vidyakut in Tripura
, was a Vaishnavite singer known for his devotion. His daughter claims to have had frequent experiences of the divine in childhood and, it is claimed, often went into a state of ecstasy
on hearing kirtan
(devotional chanting). She attended the village school for barely two years.
In 1908, at the age of thirteen, in keeping with the custom at the time, she was married to Ramani Mohan Chakrabarti of Vikramapura, whom she called Bholanath and Pitaji. She spent five years after her marriage at her brother-in-law's home, where she was in a withdrawn meditative state much of the time. It was here that a devout neighbour, Harakumar, developed a habit of addressing her as "Ma", and prostrated before her morning and evening. When Nirmala was about seventeen, she went to live with her husband in Ashtagram
. In 1918, she moved to Bajitpur
, where she stayed until 1924, during which time Nirmala went deeper into her spiritual states. It was a celibate marriage—whenever thoughts of sexuality occurred to Bholanath, Anandamoyi would grow faint and her body would take on the qualities of death.
On the full moon night of August 1922, at midnight, twenty-six-yearold Nirmala went through the actions of spiritual initiation—initiating herself, rather than following the tradition of initiation by a guru or priest. She later stated, "As the master (guru) I revealed the mantra; as the disciple (shishya) I accepted it and started to recite it." Because of his wife's condition, members of Bholanath's family suggested that he remarry. Instead, he asked her when and by whom he should be initiated. She gave him a date five months in the future when she would initiate him. After an acquaintance asked her for proof that she was qualified to do so, she touched Bholanath on the top of the head. He went into a deep withdrawn state for several hours, declaring later that he was feeling "indescribable bliss."
At that time, her sadhana
(spiritual practices) took on more concrete form. It is claimed that she began spontaneously chanting Sanskrit hymns, even though she was completely uneducated. She also performed intricate yoga postures and went for days at a time without food or drink. At one point, Bholanath called an exorcist to 'cure' her—these attempts failed, and finally a physician told him that she was experiencing God intoxication rather than mental illness. It was during this period that, it is claimed, she began exhibiting various spiritual powers, or siddhi
s. In January, 1923, she began three years of complete silence, or mauna
.
with her husband in 1924, where he had been appointed caretaker of the gardens of the Nawab of Dhaka
. Nirmala continued to perform household tasks, though she often practiced silence and was said to be in a withdrawn state of ecstasy much of the time. These states began to interfere with her work. On his return from the office at the end of the working day, Bholanath often found Nirmala lying on the kitchen floor, the food half cooked or burnt. In 1926 she set up a Kali
temple in the Siddheshwari area and devoted herself to spiritual practices. Nirmala claimed to have undergone a mystic experience while praying in the temple one day. In a deep meditative state, she held difficult yogic positions
for long periods and spontaneously formed complex tantric hand positions
and gestures.
During the time in Shahbag, more and more people began to be drawn to what they saw as a living embodiment of the divine. Jyotiscandra Ray, known as "Bhaiji," was an early and close disciple—he was the first to suggest that Nirmala be called Anandamayi Ma, meaning "bliss-permeated mother". He was chiefly responsible for the first ashram built for Anandamayi Ma in 1929 at Ramna, within the precinct of the Ramna Kali Mandir
.
Scholars were attracted to Anandamayi Ma's spirituality and teaching, though she called herself "a little unlettered child".
Her early followers included Mahamahopadhyay Gopinath Kaviraj, Sanskrit
scholar, philosopher, and principal of Sanskrit College
in Kolkata
, and the educationist Dr Triguna Sen. Uday Shankar
, the famous dance artist, was impressed by Anandamayi Ma's analysis of dance, which she used as a metaphor for the relationship between people and God.
with her husband. From that time, until her death in 1982, she traveled across the subcontinent, never staying more than two weeks in the same place. Several ashrams and teaching hospitals were established in her name at Ramna (near Shahbag) and Kheora in Bangladesh, and Benares, Kankhal
and other parts of India
. Twenty-five ashrams are named after her. She also renovated many dilapidated holy places, including the Naimisharanya, where she set up a temple and arranged for the recitation of holy names and the performance of kirtan and other religious rites. During this period many people, such as Arnaud Desjardins
, the French producer of spiritual films, Melita Maschmann, the German novelist, and Dr. Colin Turnbull
, the English author, became her disciples.
Kamala Nehru
, wife of the future Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru
, became a devotee in 1933. Anandamayi Ma was then staying at a small temple in Dehradun
, while Jawarharlal Nehru was incarcerated by the British in Dehradun jail. Later she took Kamala to the Ambika temple in Kajpur to perform a three-day yajna
. She gave to her daughter Indira
the rosary which Mataji had given her. Mahatma Gandhi
came to hear of Anandamayi through Kamala and sent his aid, Jamnalal Bajaj, to see her. He in turn became a devotee. After the unexpected death of Bajaj, she went to Wardha
to console Mahatma Gandhi.
Paramhansa Yogananda wrote about her in his Autobiography of a Yogi
. His meeting with her is recounted in the chapter titled "The Bengali 'Joy-Permeated Mother'", where she explains her background:
She died on 27 August 1982 in Dehradun, and subsequently on 29 August 1982 was given Samadhi
in the courtyard her Kankhal
ashram, situated in Haridwar
in North India
, a shrine was later erected over the samadhi, now known as the “Ananda Jyoti Peetham”.
The central theme of her teaching, in endless variation, is "the supreme calling of every human being is to aspire to self realization. All other obligations are secondary" and "only actions that kindle man's divine nature are worthy of the name of actions". However she did not ask everyone to become a renunciate. "Everyone is right from his own standpoint," she would say. She did not give formal initiations and refused to be called a guru, as she maintained that "all paths are my paths" and kept saying "I have no particular path".
She did not advocate the same method for all. "How can one impose limitations on the infinite by declaring this is the only path—and, why should there be so many different religions and sects? Because through every one of them He gives Himself to Himself, so that each person may advance according to his inborn nature." Though she was a Tantric
, Anandamayi Ma blessed Saivites
, Shaktas, Vaishnavas, Muslim
s and Christian
s equally. Even now, the Muslim population of Kheora still refer to her as "our own Ma". She taught how to live a God-centered life in the world and provided the living inspiration to enable thousands to aspire to this most noble ideal. She also advocated spiritual equality for women; for example, she opened up the sacred thread ritual, which had been performed by men only for centuries, to women. Her style of teaching included jokes, songs and instructions on everyday life along with long discourses, meditation and reading of scriptures.
The Publication Department of Shree Shree Anandamayee Charitable Society in Kolkata
regularly publishes her teaching in the periodical Anandavarta Quarterly. The Shree Shree Anandamayee Sangha in Haridwar organizes the annual Samyam Mahavrata congregation to devote a week to collective meditation, religious discourse and devotional music.
Guru
A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...
from Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
, considered a saint by many and hailed as one of the prominent mystics of the 20th century. Anandamayi means "bliss-permeated mother", a name given by her disciples in the 1920s to describe what they saw as her habitual state of divine bliss. During her life, she attracted thousands of followers who saw her not only as a teacher and guru, but as a manifestation of God, or Devi
Devi
Devī is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism, its related masculine term is deva. Devi is synonymous with Shakti, the female aspect of the divine, as conceptualized by the Shakta tradition of Hinduism. She is the female counterpart without whom the male aspect, which represents...
.
She was also called Dakshayani
Dakshayani
Dākshāyani or Satī is a Hindu Goddess of marital felicity and longevity. She is worshipped particularly by Hindu women to seek the long life of their husbands...
, Kamala
Lakshmi
Lakshmi or Lakumi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity , light, wisdom, fortune, fertility, generosity and courage; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are also found in Jain monuments...
, Vimala
Gayatri
Gayatri is the feminine form of , a Sanskrit word for a song or a hymn. Gayatri is a consort of Brahma and the goddess of learning. Brahma married her when there was a need for a companion during a yajna. Brahma had to start the yajna along with his wife...
, and "Mother of Shahbag". Swami Sivananda
Swami Sivananda
Swami Sivananda Saraswati was a Hindu spiritual teacher and a proponent of Yoga and Vedanta. Sivananda was born Kuppuswami in Pattamadai, in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. He studied medicine and served in Malaya as a physician for several years before taking up monasticism...
(Divine Life Society) described her as "the most perfect flower the Indian soil has produced." Precognition
Precognition
In parapsychology, precognition , also called future sight, and second sight, is a type of extrasensory perception that would involve the acquisition or effect of future information that cannot be deduced from presently available and normally acquired sense-based information or laws of physics...
, healing
Faith healing
Faith healing is healing through spiritual means. The healing of a person is brought about by religious faith through prayer and/or rituals that, according to adherents, stimulate a divine presence and power toward correcting disease and disability. Belief in divine intervention in illness or...
and other miracle
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
s were attributed to her by her followers.
Early life and sadhana
Anandamayi Ma was born Nirmala Sundari (নির্মলা সুন্দরী; Nirmôla Shundori, English: "Immaculate, Beautiful") on 30 April 1896 to Bipinbihari Bhattacharya and Mokshada Sundari Devie in Kheora, Brahmanbaria DistrictBrahmanbaria District
Brahmanbaria is a district in east-central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Chittagong Division. It was part of greater Comilla District until 1984. Before 1830 the Sarail Pargana was a part of Mymensingh district...
, British India, in what is now Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. Her father, originally from Vidyakut in Tripura
Tripura
Tripura is a state in North-East India, with an area of . It is the third smallest state of India, according to area. Tripura is surrounded by Bangladesh on the north, south, and west. The Indian states of Assam and Mizoram lie to the east. The capital is Agartala and the main languages spoken are...
, was a Vaishnavite singer known for his devotion. His daughter claims to have had frequent experiences of the divine in childhood and, it is claimed, often went into a state of ecstasy
Religious ecstasy
Religious ecstasy is an altered state of consciousness characterized by greatly reduced external awareness and expanded interior mental and spiritual awareness which is frequently accompanied by visions and emotional/intuitive euphoria...
on hearing kirtan
Kirtan
Kirtan or Kirtana is call-and-response chanting or "responsory" performed in India's devotional traditions. A person performing kirtan is known as a kirtankar. Kirtan practice involves chanting hymns or mantras to the accompaniment of instruments such as the harmonium, tablas, the two-headed...
(devotional chanting). She attended the village school for barely two years.
In 1908, at the age of thirteen, in keeping with the custom at the time, she was married to Ramani Mohan Chakrabarti of Vikramapura, whom she called Bholanath and Pitaji. She spent five years after her marriage at her brother-in-law's home, where she was in a withdrawn meditative state much of the time. It was here that a devout neighbour, Harakumar, developed a habit of addressing her as "Ma", and prostrated before her morning and evening. When Nirmala was about seventeen, she went to live with her husband in Ashtagram
Astagram Upazila
Astagram is an Upazila of Kishoreganj District in the Division of Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Geography:Astagram is located at . It has 21077 units of house hold and total area 355.53 km².-Demographics:...
. In 1918, she moved to Bajitpur
Bajitpur Upazila
Bajitpur is an Upazila of Kishoreganj District in the Division of Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Geography:Bajitpur is located at . It has 35051 units of house hold and total area 193.76 km².-Demographics:...
, where she stayed until 1924, during which time Nirmala went deeper into her spiritual states. It was a celibate marriage—whenever thoughts of sexuality occurred to Bholanath, Anandamoyi would grow faint and her body would take on the qualities of death.
On the full moon night of August 1922, at midnight, twenty-six-yearold Nirmala went through the actions of spiritual initiation—initiating herself, rather than following the tradition of initiation by a guru or priest. She later stated, "As the master (guru) I revealed the mantra; as the disciple (shishya) I accepted it and started to recite it." Because of his wife's condition, members of Bholanath's family suggested that he remarry. Instead, he asked her when and by whom he should be initiated. She gave him a date five months in the future when she would initiate him. After an acquaintance asked her for proof that she was qualified to do so, she touched Bholanath on the top of the head. He went into a deep withdrawn state for several hours, declaring later that he was feeling "indescribable bliss."
At that time, her sadhana
Sadhana
Sādhanā literally "a means of accomplishing something" is ego-transcending spiritual practice. It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu, Sikh , Buddhist and Muslim traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives.The historian N...
(spiritual practices) took on more concrete form. It is claimed that she began spontaneously chanting Sanskrit hymns, even though she was completely uneducated. She also performed intricate yoga postures and went for days at a time without food or drink. At one point, Bholanath called an exorcist to 'cure' her—these attempts failed, and finally a physician told him that she was experiencing God intoxication rather than mental illness. It was during this period that, it is claimed, she began exhibiting various spiritual powers, or siddhi
Siddhi
is a Sanskrit noun that can be translated as "perfection", "accomplishment", "attainment", or "success". The term is first attested in the Mahabharata. In the Pancatantra, a siddhi may be any unusual skill or faculty or capability...
s. In January, 1923, she began three years of complete silence, or mauna
Vow of silence
A vow of silence is a religious vow, usually taken in a monastic context, to maintain silence. Known as Mauna in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, the practice is integral to Christian and Islamic traditions as well...
.
In Dhaka
Nirmala moved to ShahbagShahbag
Shahbag is a major neighbourhood and a police precinct or Thana in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It is also a major public transport hub, and serves as a junction between two contrasting sections of the city—Old Dhaka and New Dhaka—which lie, respectively, to its north and south...
with her husband in 1924, where he had been appointed caretaker of the gardens of the Nawab of Dhaka
Dhaka Nawab family
Dhaka Nawab Family reigned in Dhaka from mid 19th century to mid 20th century, after the fall of the Naib Nazims. The hereditary title of Nawab, similar to the British peerage, was conferred upon the head of the Family by the British Raj as a recognition of their loyalty in the time of the Sepoy...
. Nirmala continued to perform household tasks, though she often practiced silence and was said to be in a withdrawn state of ecstasy much of the time. These states began to interfere with her work. On his return from the office at the end of the working day, Bholanath often found Nirmala lying on the kitchen floor, the food half cooked or burnt. In 1926 she set up a Kali
Kali
' , also known as ' , is the Hindu goddess associated with power, shakti. The name Kali comes from kāla, which means black, time, death, lord of death, Shiva. Kali means "the black one". Since Shiva is called Kāla - the eternal time, Kālī, his consort, also means "Time" or "Death" . Hence, Kāli is...
temple in the Siddheshwari area and devoted herself to spiritual practices. Nirmala claimed to have undergone a mystic experience while praying in the temple one day. In a deep meditative state, she held difficult yogic positions
Asana
Asana is a body position, typically associated with the practice of Yoga, originally identified as a mastery of sitting still, with the spine as a conduit of biodynamic union...
for long periods and spontaneously formed complex tantric hand positions
Mudra
A mudrā is a symbolic or ritual gesture in Hinduism and Buddhism. While some mudrās involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers...
and gestures.
During the time in Shahbag, more and more people began to be drawn to what they saw as a living embodiment of the divine. Jyotiscandra Ray, known as "Bhaiji," was an early and close disciple—he was the first to suggest that Nirmala be called Anandamayi Ma, meaning "bliss-permeated mother". He was chiefly responsible for the first ashram built for Anandamayi Ma in 1929 at Ramna, within the precinct of the Ramna Kali Mandir
Ramna Kali Mandir
The Ramna Kali Mandir , also known as the Ramna Kalibari was one of the most famous Hindu temples of the Indian subcontinent...
.
Scholars were attracted to Anandamayi Ma's spirituality and teaching, though she called herself "a little unlettered child".
Her early followers included Mahamahopadhyay Gopinath Kaviraj, Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
scholar, philosopher, and principal of Sanskrit College
Sanskrit College
Sanskrit College is a specialized state-government administered liberal arts college offering an undergraduate degree in Sanskrit language, Pali language, linguistics, and ancient Indian and world history. It is one of the affiliated colleges of the University of Calcutta. Founded on 1 January...
in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, and the educationist Dr Triguna Sen. Uday Shankar
Uday Shankar
Uday Shankar , the pioneer of modern dance in India, and a world renowned Indian dancer and choreographer, was most known for adapting Western theatrical techniques to traditional Indian classical dance, imbued with elements of Indian classical, folk, and tribal dance, thus laying the roots of...
, the famous dance artist, was impressed by Anandamayi Ma's analysis of dance, which she used as a metaphor for the relationship between people and God.
In Dehradun
In 1932, Anandamayi Ma moved to DehradunDehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
with her husband. From that time, until her death in 1982, she traveled across the subcontinent, never staying more than two weeks in the same place. Several ashrams and teaching hospitals were established in her name at Ramna (near Shahbag) and Kheora in Bangladesh, and Benares, Kankhal
Kankhal
Kankhal is a small colony in Haridwar in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand state in India.Mentioned in the Vayu Purana and the Mahabharata as Kanakhala , Kankhal is one of 'Panch Tirth' within Haridwar, with other spots being Gangadwara , Kushwart , Bilwa Teerth and Neel Parvat...
and other parts of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Twenty-five ashrams are named after her. She also renovated many dilapidated holy places, including the Naimisharanya, where she set up a temple and arranged for the recitation of holy names and the performance of kirtan and other religious rites. During this period many people, such as Arnaud Desjardins
Arnaud Desjardins
Arnaud Desjardins , was a producer at the Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française from 1952 to 1974, and was one of the first high profile practitioners of Eastern religion in France...
, the French producer of spiritual films, Melita Maschmann, the German novelist, and Dr. Colin Turnbull
Colin Turnbull
Colin Macmillan Turnbull was a British-American anthropologist who came to public attention with the popular books The Forest People and The Mountain People , and one of the first anthropologists to work in the field of ethnomusicology.-Early life:Turnbull was born in London and...
, the English author, became her disciples.
Kamala Nehru
Kamala Kaul Nehru was the wife of Jawaharlal Nehru - leader of the Indian National Congress and first Prime Minister of India. Kamala married Nehru on 7 February 1916.-Contribution to the Indian Freedom Movement:...
, wife of the future Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
, became a devotee in 1933. Anandamayi Ma was then staying at a small temple in Dehradun
Dehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
, while Jawarharlal Nehru was incarcerated by the British in Dehradun jail. Later she took Kamala to the Ambika temple in Kajpur to perform a three-day yajna
Yajna
In Hinduism, yajna is a ritual of sacrifice derived from the practice of Vedic times. It is performed to please the gods or to attain certain wishes...
. She gave to her daughter Indira
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
the rosary which Mataji had given her. Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
came to hear of Anandamayi through Kamala and sent his aid, Jamnalal Bajaj, to see her. He in turn became a devotee. After the unexpected death of Bajaj, she went to Wardha
Wardha
Wardha is a city and a municipal council in Wardha district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Wardha district. Wardha gets its name from the Wardha River which flows at the North, West and South boundaries of district. Founded in 1866, the town is now an...
to console Mahatma Gandhi.
Paramhansa Yogananda wrote about her in his Autobiography of a Yogi
Autobiography of a Yogi
In 1946, Paramahansa Yogananda , published his life story, Autobiography of a Yogi, which introduced many westerners to meditation and yoga...
. His meeting with her is recounted in the chapter titled "The Bengali 'Joy-Permeated Mother'", where she explains her background:
She died on 27 August 1982 in Dehradun, and subsequently on 29 August 1982 was given Samadhi
Samadhi
Samadhi in Hinduism, Buddhism,Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools is a higher level of concentrated meditation, or dhyāna. In the yoga tradition, it is the eighth and final limb identified in the Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali....
in the courtyard her Kankhal
Kankhal
Kankhal is a small colony in Haridwar in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand state in India.Mentioned in the Vayu Purana and the Mahabharata as Kanakhala , Kankhal is one of 'Panch Tirth' within Haridwar, with other spots being Gangadwara , Kushwart , Bilwa Teerth and Neel Parvat...
ashram, situated in Haridwar
Haridwar
Haridwar is an important pilgrimage city and municipality in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India...
in North India
North India
North India, known natively as Uttar Bhārat or Shumālī Hindustān , is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage...
, a shrine was later erected over the samadhi, now known as the “Ananda Jyoti Peetham”.
Teachings
Anandamayi Ma never prepared her discourses, wrote anything down, or revised what she had said. People had difficulty transcribing her talks, as the musicality and alliterative word-play didn't translate well to writing. Only Brahmachari Kamal Bhattacharjee was able to transcribe her discourses with scrupulous fidelity.The central theme of her teaching, in endless variation, is "the supreme calling of every human being is to aspire to self realization. All other obligations are secondary" and "only actions that kindle man's divine nature are worthy of the name of actions". However she did not ask everyone to become a renunciate. "Everyone is right from his own standpoint," she would say. She did not give formal initiations and refused to be called a guru, as she maintained that "all paths are my paths" and kept saying "I have no particular path".
She did not advocate the same method for all. "How can one impose limitations on the infinite by declaring this is the only path—and, why should there be so many different religions and sects? Because through every one of them He gives Himself to Himself, so that each person may advance according to his inborn nature." Though she was a Tantric
Tantra
Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....
, Anandamayi Ma blessed Saivites
Shaivism
Shaivism is one of the four major sects of Hinduism, the others being Vaishnavism, Shaktism and Smartism. Followers of Shaivism, called "Shaivas," and also "Saivas" or "Saivites," revere Shiva as the Supreme Being. Shaivas believe that Shiva is All and in all, the creator, preserver, destroyer,...
, Shaktas, Vaishnavas, Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s and Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s equally. Even now, the Muslim population of Kheora still refer to her as "our own Ma". She taught how to live a God-centered life in the world and provided the living inspiration to enable thousands to aspire to this most noble ideal. She also advocated spiritual equality for women; for example, she opened up the sacred thread ritual, which had been performed by men only for centuries, to women. Her style of teaching included jokes, songs and instructions on everyday life along with long discourses, meditation and reading of scriptures.
The Publication Department of Shree Shree Anandamayee Charitable Society in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
regularly publishes her teaching in the periodical Anandavarta Quarterly. The Shree Shree Anandamayee Sangha in Haridwar organizes the annual Samyam Mahavrata congregation to devote a week to collective meditation, religious discourse and devotional music.