Biodata

Matha Amritanandamayi (born 27 September 1953), often known as Amma ("Mother"), is an Indian Hindu spiritual leader, guru and humanitarian, who is revered as 'the hugging saint' by her followers.She is the chancellor of multi-campus research university Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham. Matha Amritanandamayi Devi is an Indian guru from Parayakadavu (now partially known as Amritapuri), Alappad Panchayat in Karunagappally, Kollam District, in the state of Kerala.Born to a family of lower-caste Malayali fishermen on 27 September 1953, she was the third child of Sugunanandan and Damayanti. Her mother Damayanti died on 19 September 2022. She has six siblings. As part of her chores, Amritanandamayi gathered food scraps from neighbours for her family's cows and goats, through which she was confronted with the intense poverty and suffering of others. She would bring these people food and clothing from her own home. Her family, which was not wealthy, scolded and punished her. Matha Amritanandamayi began to spontaneously embrace people to comfort them in their sorrow. Despite the reaction of her parents, Matha Amritanandamayi continued. Regarding her desire to embrace others, Matha Amritanandamayi commented, "I don't see if it is a man or a woman. I don't see anyone different from my own self. A continuous stream of love flows from me to all of creation. This is my inborn nature. The duty of a doctor is to treat patients. In the same way, my duty is to console those who are suffering.”