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Mata Amritanandamayi Initiates New Charity Projects

Amma's heart has always gone out to those in need. Since She was a young girl, whenever Amma has seen someone lacking food, shelter, clothing, money or just love, She has given to them unconditionally. In essence, this is because Amma has never seen anything as different from Her own Self. Her vision is that of a one who has realised the Supreme Truth, the inherent divine oneness of all creation. Thus, when Amma see the world's starving, mistreated and heart-broken, Her compassion is such that She cannot but rush forward to uplift and console them.

As Amma frequently says, "Children, always remember that your true family is the world family, the family of humankind. If you happen to injure your left hand, your right hand will immediately come to its aid. This is because both hands belong to your own body; you feel that you are one with them. It is with the same spirit of oneness that we should love and serve our brothers and sisters in this world." In order to help Her disciples and devotees expand their vision from that of the small selfish "I" to that of the all-inclusive universal "I," Amma is always encouraging them to live selflessly, to take as little as they need from the world and to give as much back as they can. This way, not only will they be benefited as spiritual seekers, but so will the world around them.

"Divinity Herself has come to help humanity." --Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, India's Honourable Union Minister for Human Resource Development

In Amma's own words: "When you take you become a beggar, when you take give become a king."

So whether it be feeding and clothing the poor, taking care of neglected senior citizens or providing loving and compassionate medical services, all the charities initiated by the Mata Amritanandamayi Math during the past 25 years are simply extensions of things Amma has been doing naturally since a young girl.

Today, the Math's humanitarian projects cover all areas of human need. As Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, India's Honourable Union Minister for Human Resource Development, put it during the Amritavarsham50 Celebrations: "Amma's service to the entire humanity is fast expanding, and it is wholehearted and selfless. She expects nothing in return. Divinity Herself has come to help humanity."

During the four days of Amritavarsham50, a series of notable personalities inaugurated a total of six new charitable projects, including an AIDS hospice in Trivandrum, a free legal cell, a new free-housing venture with the Kerala government, a new care home for the elderly in the Kottayam District, free marriages for impoverished couples and a campaign against blindness.

Among the political leaders who officially launched the new projects were India's Vice President, His Excellency Bhairon Singh Shekhawat; Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, India's Honourable Union Minister for Human Resource Development; India's Honourable Union Minister of State for Law & Justice, Shri. P.C. Thomas; Smt. K.R. Gouri, Kerala's Honourable Minister of Agriculture; and Shri. K.M. Mani, Kerala's Honourable Minister of Law.

To learn more about the Mata Amritanandamayi Math's charitable works and to find out how you can help, click here.