That there was something unique about the child, was manifested at the time of her birth. One of the first such symbols was that at the time of her birth, her mother did not experience the usual labour pains. And as a grown up, Ma once told her mother that she could recall the huge Mango tree that was outside the window in the room she was born. This surprised her mother as she had never taken Ma to that room after her birth! Ma Anandamayee, the divine being, thus expressed her divinity right since the time of her birth. It believed that in extremely rare occasions the lord of the universe Shiva chooses to assume physical features and when the time does come, it is for a cause to serve humanity for its welfare and education. Ma Anandamayee's followers believe that she was part of that cycle, who descended to the earth with a divine illumination and made a difference to the lives of all she came in touch with.

Childhood Location Marriage and self initiation Daksha Mahadev Temple Travelling guru How to get there Her teachings Where to stay Shri Ma Anandamayee International Centre, Kankhal, Haridwar

Childhood

Nirmala Sundari, the given name of Ma Anandamayee, was born in a small non-decrepit village called Kheora in East Bengal (the region which is now in Bangladesh) on April 30, 1896. Her mother was Mokhshada Sundari, who later on came to be known as Didima (Bengali for grandma), and father was Bipin Behari Bhattacharya. Soon after her birth, her father became an ascetic. The young Ma Anandamayee kept on giving glimpses of her divinity throughout her childhood. When she was sent to school, she managed to learn the Bengali consonants and vowels in one day, which earned her praise from her teacher and a promotion. Throughout her schooling, which was rather sketchy, she was one of the best pupils having no real trouble learning her lessons. Since her parents belonged to the priestly community of Bengal, meditation and religious rituals formed the fabric of her family's existence. At such religious discourses or congregations Anandamayee Ma would enter a trance like state and would remain so for quite a few hours. Religious chanting would often take her into an ecstatic state. As a child she often told her family members that she could actually see religious figures, gods and goddesses emerging from religious objects like statues and idols. And more often than not they would believe her, as there was a sort of spiritual aura around the child. As she grew in age she would often be spotted in a state of deep samadhi (religious trance), her eyes fixed onto a spot gazing endlessly into space.

Marriage and self initiation

She was married off by her parents at a very young age. From the very beginning of their married life, her husband was convinced that this was no ordinary relationship as he felt the divinity in her. Later on, her husband Ramani Mohan Chakravarty (who later came to be known as Bholanath) became one of her most ardent and loyal devotees. In fact, at one point of time he even took a vow of silence and would silently tend to Ma Anandamayee's needs. Although till the time he was alive, Ma too never forgot her wifely duties towards Bholanath and would always look after him. Till his last moments Ma remained at his side tending to him, performing the kriya on his forehead and trying to soothe his pain. In India, there is a custom of taking deeksha (initiation) when one decides to go on the path of spirituality or enter a sect from a guru. This is done when the disciple, or the one seeking initiation, sits with the guru and the latter says some Mantras (holy words), which a disciple repeats after him. However, Ma Anandamayee was never formally initiated by a guru or a holy man. In fact, she one day initiated herself as she could visualise the rituals (performed at the initiation scene) and could inwardly hear the chanting of the mantras (sacred words said at such initiation ceremonies). After this self-initiation, began a period of quite sadhana (worship) in Ma Anandamayee's life. And soon her name spread to far off places and people began coming in droves to meet Ma and to seek her blessings.

Travelling guru

With the number of devotees swelling up, they began asking her to take part in kirtan (prayer session) in their homes. And once Ma obliged them, commenced a series of long distance travels all across the country. A number of her devotees made ashrams where Ma could stay with her immediate followers, which included Bholanath. This continued for most of her prime years. During her trance like meditative spells Ma would simply forget to eat food. This was a cause of lot of concern for her disciples, who took upon themselves the role of feeding her. Her travelling took her to far corners of the country, from Bengal and Chittagong in the east to Punjab and in the west and the Himalayan in the North.

Her teachings

Ma Anandamayee believed in some of the most basic human values, which she would encourage her followers to practice in their life. She felt that one of the most important things in life was serving others without complaining or asking for any gains. She felt that even desiring praise in return would make the work rendered redundant. Another thing she always talked about was the importance of detachment from the world and spending time in religious activities. For her it didn't matter whether one worshipped one god or the other, what she felt was important was the devotion of the worshipper. While her parents were Vaishavites (followers of Lord Vishnu), her husband believed in Shiva. But to Ma Anandamayee the two were like two paths to achieve the same aim, becoming one with the eternal truth. Ma's thoughts on terms like vanity, real/natural and super natural, which affect humanity are very profound. On vanity, she said, "When, as an ignorant, your aham (ego) acts, ahamkar (pride/vanity) is generated. Again when the same ahamkar turns into so-hang (myself); one realises there is none but One". Ma's tolerance and belief that all religions were a path to one goal -realisation of the supreme - is indicated by the fact that there have been instances in her life when she has performed the Namaz and recited verses from the Holy Quran. Another similar example was when she explained the essence of the Bible to a Christian disciple. She was a truly secular person who believed all religions, all forms of life and objects animate and inanimate, were primarily the manifestation of the one eternal truth. Ma Anandamayee merged with the eternal on August 27, 1982, leaving her body at Kankhal in Haridwar.

Shree Ma Anandamayee International Centre, Kankhal, Haridwar

As Ma travelled throughout the length and breadth of the country, many of her disciples established ashrams by her name or for her. Although, she didn't stay at one place for more than 15-20 days, she often stayed in the ashram of Swami Akhandananda Giri's ashram located in a town called Kankhal, about 3 kms from the holy city of Haridwar. Ma had first visited this ashram sometime in 1934. Although Ma was not really attached to any one place during her lifetime, Kankhal held a special place in her heart. She would enjoy praying or having audience with her followers sitting in the quite and verdant environs under a huge Banyan tree in the ashram. Under this same Banyan tree was made Ma's samadhi. After Ma left her body behind, it was decided that an international centre dedicated to the mother was the need of the hour. This was a concern of Ma's as well and she had often worried about her followers who would come from afar including the west to visit her. It was her earnest desire to have a proper lodging and boarding facility to be made available to them. Keeping this in mind, work on the Shri Ma Anandamayee International Centre, Kankhal, Haridwar was begun in 1993. It was felt that an ashram should be built not only as a tribute to Ma, but also as a place where Ma's followers and scholars from both India and abroad could congregate to study and meditate upon the meaning and message of Vedanta. For this purpose Rs 10 crores were mobilised through donations to construct self-contained cottages for meditation with basic amenities of electricity, running hot and cold water, medical facilities and a library. A trust was established on April 8, 1993 by J N Dhamija who became its promoter and president, especially to pitch the project to Ma's overseas devotees. By July 4, the same year land acquisition began, adjacent to Ma's Samadhi Mandir in Kankhal measuring approximately 396 Sq. Yds. In fact, Ma's Samadhi Mandir is situated nearly about 50 metres from the Centre. A building consisting of several bedrooms was constructed to house Ma's devotees. This was named as Ma's International Centre. The foundation stone for this building was laid in 1995 and two years later it was thrown open to the general public.

Location

The Centre is situated in the lush green hilly terrain of the Himalayan mountain range, a site so enchanting that it serves as an ideal spot for meditation and introspection. Kankhal at one time was a bigger town than Haridwar and housed grand huge houses in the early part of the 19th century.

Daksha Mahadev Temple

This town's other attraction, apart from Ma's ashram of course, is the Daksha Mahadev Temple, which is a temple to Shiva (also called Mahadev). According to legend Shiva, of the Hindu trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, was married to Sati who was the daughter of King Daksha. Daksha was not happy with his daughter's choice of husband. He once held a huge yagna to which he didn't invite either his daughter or son-in-law. Feeling hurt Sati insisted that Shiva should give her permission to go. But Shiva was reluctant and told her that one shouldn't go to someone house uninvited. Sati However did not heed his words and left for her father's place anyway. Upon reaching King Daksha's palace, he insulted and ridiculed Shiva. Not being able to tolerate this behaviour from her father, she self-immolated. When Shiva got to hear of this he became raging mad and decided to end Daksha's life. However, by now an apologetic and unhappy Daksha asked Shiva for forgiveness. Shiva forgave the King and on his request agreed to remain on that spot forever, of course in the form of a stone idol. According to another interpretation of the same legend, instead of Shiva, his chief lieutenants, Veerabhadra and Bhadrakali, attacked the site after Sati was consumed by her own fire. In the ensuing battle, Veerabhadra killed Daksha. It is in memory of this event that the Daksha Mahadev Temple was consecrated in 1961. Kankhal and this temple comes alive during the Shivaratri celebrations, which are considered amongst the best in the country. Although not connected to Ma's ashram, it does give an added bonus to visit this small ashram town.

How to get there

In order to get to the ashram, one needs to first arrive at Haridwar, which is a half-hour drive from Jollygrant Airport at Dehradun, a well known north Indian town. Taxis and buses ply regularly from the Airport to Haridwar, which makes it easily accessible. Haridwar is also well connected by rail & road being 215 kms from the capital city of New Delhi. (six hrs journey.) Once in Haridwar, one can reach the ashram using either tongas (horse-drawn carriages), taxis or local buses. Climate: Even though it is situated at a height of 300 metres, Kankhal is hot in summers (mid April till June) when the mercury can rise to a high of 40 degrees Celsius. It gets very chilly in winters (November till February) with the temperature dipping to a low of six degrees Celsius. The monsoon season, from mid-June to end-August, is best avoided for a visit to the ashram. The time from September till June, is ideal for a visit to the ashram.

Where to stay

Pilgrims are allowed to stay within the ashram premises. However, one must ensure that one has made adequate bookings. The best way to do so is to either call or write in to: Shri Ma Anandamayee International Centre, Shree Shree Ma Anandamayee Ashram Daksh Mandir Road, P.O. Kankhal, Haridwar, Uttar Pradesh India Pin Code: 249408 Tel: (091)-133-426575 Fax: (091)-133-416345 For all those of you haven't had the privilege to meet Ma in her physical form, the ashram at Kankhal with Ma's samadhi is the ideal place to commune with her. This area is exceptionally calm and peaceful, just like the ever-smiling visage of Ma, who her followers consider God-incarnate, who came to visit this planet and bless all of humanity. – Vandana Mohal

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