I’m totally into learning about gurus these days. I created a Squidoo page called Gurus Online and added gurus and a big photo of Paramahansa Yogananda to my MySpace page. I even wrote a bit about Paramahansa Yogananda on my blog, Geniyyah Healing. So when I came across YouTube videos of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, also known as Amma, the hugging saint, I was intrigued and wanted to see her full-length movie, Darshan: The Embrace.

Oh my goodness. This movie is so artfully done, it is a feast for the eyes and hearts of those who yearn for a glimpse into the interior workings of a spiritual ashram, and who desire a taste of what it means to be in India. Besides the views of Amma with her big happy smiles, and her devotees circling around her, the scenery of India was the best part of this movie. The cinematographer did an outstanding job.

Everything about Darshan: The Embrace is pure art. There’s no other way to describe it. This is not a run of the mill movie. It is for people who love viewing the inner heart of an ancient country and culture. It is sure to appeal even to people who aren’t into gurus the way I am.

Amma gets a tremendous amount of devotion from her devotees. It looks like she’s the humble recipient of a constant stream of good chi. She’s also willing to literally dish it out by serving food to whoever needs it. She arranged to have a dinner once weekly, and also a darshan session once weekly. Her darshan is remarkable because she lovingly takes her devotees into her arms and hugs and kisses them. This is beautiful to watch, but the awe-inspiring thing is in knowing that she can sit for many hours, all day long and then some, hugging whoever comes by in her darshan line. Her popularity has grown so much that her darshans require a huge effort. No wonder she cut down from twice weekly to once weekly! She really is a remarkable woman with a huge heart full of love to share.

Darshan: The Embrace is highly recommended for cinematography, or spirituality, or both.

Here’s a CNN report about Amma:

A few books by or about Amma:

Back in the day, George Harrison was my favorite Beatle.

I was eleven years old on February 9, 1964, the day the Beatles appeared on American TV for the first time, on the Ed Sullivan Show. I reluctantly joined the rest of my family in front of the television set, not understanding what was about to take place.

I was the only member of my family who got hung up about it. I was stricken with Beatlemania for years to come. So why did it take me so long to watch the Concert For George?

The concert took place on November 29, 2002, exactly a year after George left his cancer-stricken body behind.

However until I met the Mystic (my significant other) in 2005, I wasn’t much of a movie watcher. Because he likes to watch movies, we joined Netflix. I eventually found music videos there.

The first disk with Anoushka Shankar (Ravi Shankar’s daughter) and her amazing Indian music was riveting. Arpan, words and music written by Ravi Shankar for his friend, George, lingered with me for days… I couldn’t forget the melody. Even now I want to buy this DVD or the soundtrack just to be able to listen to that repeatedly. That is the only track you can’t buy as an individual MP3… they want us to purchase the entire album to hear it again. It is 23 minutes long.

I could have done without the Monty Python skits but they were included because George liked them. Enough said, I think.

On disk two, George’s famous rock musician friends did well in their performances of his songs. I found no fault in them. They included Ringo and Paul from the Beatles, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Jeff Lynne, Gary Brooker, Joe Brown, Billy Preston, and others. Still it is the Indian music by Ravi Shankar and his daughter that stays with me, as well as the heartwarming sight of George’s son Dhani, playing guitar, and George’s wife, Olivia, who sat nearby watching, but not participating. Having them take part in this celebration of George’s life and music makes the concert DVD very, very special.

After seeing this I was curious about George’s family which led me to read about them on Wikipedia, watch YouTube, and look at personal websites. Here are a few links worth looking at:

George Harrison - Official Website
All Things Must Pass
The Guardian Interview of Dhani Harrison

A partial exerpt from Arpan by Ravi Shankar: