How She Began Amma was born in a remote coastal village in
Kerala, South India in 1953. Even as a small girl, she drew
attention with the many hours she spent in deep meditation on
the seashore. She also composed devotional songs and could often
be seen singing to the divine with heartfelt emotion. Despite
her tender age, her compositions revealed remarkable depth and
wisdom. When Amma was nine years old, her mother became ill, and
Amma was withdrawn from school in order to help with household
tasks and the care of her seven siblings. As she went door-to-
door gathering food scraps from neighbors for her family’s cows,
she was confronted with the intense poverty and suffering that
existed in her community, and in the world beyond it. Where Amma
encountered people in need, she brought them food and clothing
from her own home. She was undeterred by the scolding and
punishment she received from her family for doing so. Amma also
began to spontaneously embrace people to comfort them in their
sorrow. Responding to