She is known as Amma (meaning “Mother”), the “hugging saint.” Mata Amritanandamayi has personally embraced millions of people around the world. But her movement is far more than a series of public gatherings. It is a global spiritual and humanitarian organization with networks on all continents, recognized by the United Nations for its service work. Dr. Francois Gauthier, Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in India, and co-director, Dr. Bhavani Rao R., Dean at the School of Social and Behavioural Sciences, lead a project that examines the multiple dimensions of mysticism within this movement.
Mysticism in Action
Amma is a recognized mystic embodying the powers of the Hindu Goddess Kali, proposing a radically inclusive spirituality in which mystical states, devotional singing, yoga, self-perfecting, and selfless service (seva) are all interconnected. The project asks how today’s quests for mystical experience are woven into a wider package with ambitious social goals. It examines how this relational approach to mysticism, theorized as “gift,” is understood and lived by people from very different cultural backgrounds. And it explores what it means that the central figure is a woman embodying the Divine Feminine and promoting the empowerment of women and environmental ethics. Since the 1960s, Indian mysticism has entered the mainstream through meditation and yoga practices. Gauthier and team see the Amma movement as an outstanding opportunity to study how mysticism functions when it is outward-facing, not only solitary, and how communal mysticism can be viewed as a gift.
Fieldwork Across Continents
The research includes a month of fieldwork at Amma’s ashram in Kerala, India, and a month following Amma’s European tour across many cities. The team will hire and train junior and senior researchers in India and Europe. Outputs include academic articles, a website, digital media, and a book. The project could reshape the assumption that mysticism is primarily private — showing instead that for millions of people, it is the foundation of a life turned toward others.