Greetings from India!

From December 24:

So far, so good!  Great, even.  The weather is fine: gentle breezes and 70's at night and the morning, hotter 80's in the day, but the  ashram is well provisioned (we are over 3500 folk in about 20 different buildings - still haven't counted them all!) for cool air and good circulation.  Many visitors - maybe 7500 - from the area: Amma is very popular.  Whole families, all decked out in beautiful clothes.  /* sidebar: we're not allowed to take pictures on the ashram premises, as its a holy place...otherwise you would be overwhelmed with many beautiful shots */ Suffice it to say, the Indian families are really neat: cute kids, and 3 generations together are not unusual.

The Americans and Europeans are great also.  Today I met a UC Santa Cruz student as well as a woman from Oregon on her world tour (who loves the Jerry Garcia Band!).  I see my buddy Ward daily and he's been a great guide.  I've got 2 roommates: a german, Adi, who is going back to Berlin to do teaching, and a Japanese fellow who teaches kindergarden.  Both very considerate.  Great folk.

The food is both Western and Indian and is pretty good.  I've been eating lots of raw vegetable salads and plenty of fruit.  Good coffee, great chai. 

And Amma: she's pretty much available giving darshan daily to the residents, 4 days a week to the general public.  We've also got a lot of classes and other activities.  To see the ashram check out: http://amritapuri.org.  That should give you an overview of the area.

Ok, times up, gotta go.  Merry Christmas and a very happy new year to all of you.  And kisses all around.

*** Second Installment *** December 30, 2016

Now 9 days into the ashram and India I've noticed a few things I miss, and don't.

What I miss: Peets coffee, croissants with Annetta blackberry jam, beautiful sunsets, the Chronicle, Mason and Thomas the tank train.

What I don't miss: traffic and driving, wine with dinner or otherwise (yes, this is a dry state, but that's not the concern), television, crazy Berkeley street people ranting.

If you don't love chaos, bumping crowds, long lines at banks where you're limited to exchange $75 at a time, beepy little putt-putts - actually my 2 rides have been fine... I could go on.  It's a great education in tolerance.

The following Amma has is great: from kids to grandparents the place is jumping.  Met some great folk here.  Having a wonderful and incredibly relaxing time.  Meditating lots, seeing Amma 5 or more hours a day, feeling more whole.

Good time.  Happy new year all!

*** Third installment *** Jan. 2, 2017

Things about Southern India you might now know:

It is very dusty: clay everywhere not covered by concrete.  I'm not looking forward to rains! :-)

Full employment: Everyone works 5-6 days a week.  At the ashram construction is never ending.

Men wear long saree type bottoms: sort of like old school french waiters at the turn of the century.

The kids are incredibly cute!

The food is hot - but I mainly eat in the Western cafe onsite.  Haven't eaten at a public restaurant, not do I intend to in all likeliehood.

The days are like Acapulco: pretty warm up to the high 80's - warmer than Hawaii.  Overcast but no vog.  The nights and early mornings are beautiful.

Amma is doing a 7 city in 15 days tour starting Jan. 25, and what this means to me is that I'll probably leave for Sri Lanka at the end of January, not mid February.  Meaning I'll probably get back to the states mid-Feb - like the 13th or 14th, not the 25th.  Seemingly...

The people at the ashram, both students, staff and visitors, are incredibly kind and helpful.  Lots of French, Germans and plenty of Americans.  I've met a bunch of folk from Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, Oregon.

The "seeker" from the 1960's is still alive and well in India.

To give a picture of scale, there are about 3500 current residents and up to as many if not more visitors over the holidays and on the weekends.  This is a very busy, open place.

All is good!  Sending you all new years wonderful greetings, kisses, hugs and good vibes.

*** Fourth Installment ***  January 4, 2017

Some more things about Southern India and ashram life:

At Amritapuri we're basically in the Kerala backwaters.  It's sort of like my idea of the Louisiana bayou: murky standing water, humid as heck! during the daytime, very smelly.

Pretty much all my expectations have been met and I'm pretty well provisioned.  Only things I forgot were my own towels (Indian ones are very thin) and a rubber bathmat, as we shower in the bathroom and not in a stall.  Makes for a slippery place...

Amma's ashram and teaching is really pretty universal: do anonymous good, be present, enjoy.  In fact her message, particularly when responding to questions of students who belie their pain in life is as simple as Vic Baranco's: "Stop living in the past: that's the cause of your pain! Be present and you've got a better chance of experiencing life's ups and downs. Do good stuff.  And enjoy it!"  

She's not exactly "the loving guru" though at the end of the day all her life supports a loving, kind environment.

She has to, however, frequently remind folk of their path...

The ashram has multiple offerings: yoga, astrology, pujas, ayurvedic studies: the whole enchilada.  She accepts all and is great at making her message universal.

As such, this ashram could serve as the ultimate "get well" spot, healing all your ills.  Though probably not weight loss, as the vegetarian menu is high in carbs.  But the living here is very clean and easy.  Remarkably refreshing!!

My plans now are that I'll be here until Jan. 27 or 28, then go via train to Kanyakumari which is the southern tip of India - a very holy place.  In fact, this is where Maharishi gave his first talks in 1956, a few years after his master's death.  Amma is going to dedicate a new temple there and it gives me a round trip voyage of teachers experience to be there where both have been.  Really looking forward to that.  Then to Trivandrum on the 29th, and to Sri Lanka on the 30th for 2 weeks.

Kisses to all