Tag Archives: Ufford

Heart Wisdom from Teachers of Amma, the Indian “Hugging Saint”


by Rev. Scott Ufford

An Introduction:

Many of us in the West haven’t heard of her. But Sri Mata Amritanandamayi, beloved by over a billion spiritual seekers as Amma, the Hugging Saint, might be one of the most brilliant women to walk the Earth.

I say “brilliant” meaning that in every sense of the words “spiritual”, “intellectual”, “ethical” and “humanitarian”, Amma grasps the needs of her fellow humans. She reacts with decisive kindness.

Are you surprised that the objective of her multifaceted brilliance could be a soft-hearted quality like “kindness”?

Please understand, Amma has inspired legions of volunteers to help bring practical charitable assistance to millions of people worldwide. For people caught in an array of troubles we might justly call “monumental” or “catastrophic”.

Amma has shared her loving wisdom in speeches at the United Nations and the Parliament of the World’s Religions. She champions The International Day of Peace, also known as World Peace Day (November 17th each year). She’s received The Gandhi-King Award for Nonviolence and numerous other honors.

Anyone else in her position of international acclaim, however much deserved–and for her it appears fully deserved–could be expected to glory a little in her accomplishments. To indulge her ego once in awhile. To cast a blind eye on her own faults.

Or, even to slow down on the exhausting job of caring for the endless streams of needy–or wounded–or curious–or faithful–that awash her at every public appearance.

But the truth is, that’s not what Amma’s all about.

Amma has given her heart, soul and life to the most simple task of healing, through hugging, every single person who asks.

Whether for solace, for guidance or for a blessing. Whether yearning for a lost mother’s kiss never given or for a flash of love seemingly poured out from an unlimited Open Loving Heart, they come to Amma.

Crowds of those humblest. Those weakest. Those youngest. Those poorest.

Those close to death. Those broken of spirit. Those broken by material cares or worries. Those tormented by what they could have done, could have been–or by what they have done.

Those yearning to feel the touch of true caring without judgment or rejection.

Those desiring to feel precious moments in the arms of a spiritually awakened master.

…We all have our private stories to cleanse and purge and understand, and overcome and embrace and release–so we can start to live again, better than before.

We all have our secret sacred little ways to find answers, to reach out for help, to gain the strength to help others. Ways to jump-start our untrusting, hoping hearts.

Over seven million seekers, 7,000,000 people just like you and me–or, people completely different on the outside yet strikingly like us on the inside, in their hidden soul needs, fears, tests and aspirations–have found their way to Amma’s motherly embrace.

This alone seems like an unbelievable miracle:

Never has a single one of those seven million-plus souls–no matter how lost, how destitute, how self-destructive or self-inflated or ignorant–never has a single one, from the lowest to the highest, ever seen Amma shake her head “no.” Or been rejected by Amma out of stress, dislike, fatigue…

She welcomes everyone. With a simplicity and mastery of the heart’s unspoken needs.

I, too, gladly received a hug and blessing–called “darshan”, in Hindu–from Amma. Beforehand, she didn’t ask about my religion. Or ask me to “follow” her, or worship her, or pay her. Or in any way, do anything except feel her Divinely inspired love pouring down.

She made me feel as if I, too, was a natural part of that love and could receive and give a bit of that love.

Her hug felt like a lightning-bolt.

But she hadn’t asked me to come to her. I just felt naturally drawn.

As Amma says, “Take one step towards God, and God takes one hundred steps towards you.”

Isn’t that what we really hope is true?

I know you’ll enjoy Amma’s soul-filled website at http://amritapuri.org. Here, Amma’s profoundly moving life story is revealed. She shares sweet spiritual insights as if crystalline waters freely drawn from the purest well.

In the New Year ahead, to maybe help you find your own unique steps, I’ll share valuable, never-before-heard excerpts of talks channeled from “Teachers of Amma”.

Please note:
I’m a messenger, not the source. I don’t claim here or in any writings, private counselings or church services, to have any special spiritual heights or virtues. Instead, I’ve been gifted with sometimes hearing, and sharing, wisdom from spiritual titans and teachers whose consciousness dwells a thousand fathoms over my head.

Let’s close with these honest, direct words of Amma:
“Children, sing from the depths of your hearts.
Let the heart melt in prayer.
Leave aside all shyness and open your hearts to God.”

Thank you for listening to your own heart’s new birth.
It’s happening.

Rev. Scott Ufford Copyright 2010

Revolutionary Spiritual Facts according to Jesus Christ & Mahatma

Recorded by Rev. Scott Ufford

Together Jesus and another Great Soul identified only as Mahatma, spoke these revolutionary facts which cut to the essential truths of our spiritual reality.

Maybe you never thought of your inner relationship with God/ Higher Greater Source in this clear, focused way. If so, you’re in for an eye-opener that can help you disintegrate your fears:

I.

“Fear is a form of worship.

Love is a form of equality.

A true love drives out the desire to fear and replaces it with the pleasure of healthy respect. Whether you like or care to associate further with that respected thing, or not.

You cannot respect any thing simply by observing its outside. By knowing that within this thing is actually some form and reality of godcreation, you move past fearing its outside.

Seeing only its outside can lead you to fear its unknown potential to harm you or to deny you your rightful loving experiences.

The aspect or quality of any thing which induces your fear is an aspect which you believe to be lacking or imbalanced within yourself.

What you fear encountering in yourself, you fear encountering in the world.

Since the world is physically much larger and more capable than your self, you can only remove your fear of the seen world by entering into awareness of the unseen world and the true, unseen reality within all things.

You cannot glimpse these fear-destroying laws of inner reality unless you believe that some wise and capable Source exists, greater than your current awareness of your self.

This Source must at heart be as actively motivated for your well being as It is for any other thing’s well being. The law of innate equality and value must exist for your self as well as for that feared thing.

All inequality is only the result of fear and misunderstanding of the real nature of oneself, as well as of the other.

II.

If you believe that you are meant to remain limited and suffering from the greater aspects of other things, you will experience this until you stop enslaving your self to these fears.

The knowledge that:

You consciously exist, for infinity, in some way;

No physical self destruction can remove this eternal consciousness from you;

Consciousness by definition is always growing and changing and experiencing; and so

Your experience of that helpful, Greater Source self is also infinite;

leads to the constant capability for the progressive removal of your fears of your self, of other things and of that Greater Source.

As all things ease into realizing that everything simply IS, the removal of fear removes all reasons for physical sensations of fearful aggression and fearful victimhood.

The removal of supposed reasons for fears allows your own strengths to emerge from within your hidden unacknowledged self.

As you see and remove your fears, you acknowledge that your help in doing this comes from that Greater Source which is forever available to your self as well as to all others.

As you grow, you stop fearing the fact that you have fears about any given thing, including Greater Source and your self.

You do not need to compete for, qualify for or fear the lack of that help from that Higher Greater Source, since It has no fears of you whatsoever. It sees you perfectly clearly, or at least thinks It does.

III.

You are free to continue seeing and experiencing a clearer and more helpful relationship with that Higher Source.

Any aspect of Higher Source which seems to mirror any of your fearful or unkind or blind characteristics is an aspect which you are free to see past.

Any aspect of Higher Source which seems unwilling to help or to understand, or to behave charitably towards your self, must be encouraged to behave towards your self and Itself in a way more like An Even Higher Source.

{This means you are free to talk to any aspect of higher reality which seems to fail to see you clearly or charitably.}

You are free to reach past these limiting aspects of Higher Source up to that which is good for you.

This way, whether those limiting aspects of Higher Source are only products of your own limited perception or are of Higher Source Itself, your respectful exploration of fear removal puts you in a growing state of awareness and into an inner reality of happiness and strength.

This state will manifest in your physical surroundings to some degree because a realized truth is realized everywhere in your existence.

You will learn to appreciate and enjoy the degree to which inner reality manifests in your outer life. This experience is another form of the loving respect, or at least respect, for your self and for all things—because this verifies that your fear removal is real and working for you.

This is true for the infinity that you and all things exist.

No saint or sage has found clear enlightenment within his fears. The light lurks around, beyond and before his fears. The trail of his fears is a trail of tears in the process of drying up and transmuting into tears of laughter.

You are free to emerge from fear, and so from worship, into love, which is a state of happy equality.

You are free to do this in your own time, at your own healthy pace, in your own unique and necessary way, without any fear of judgment.

All of the results of your efforts combine with all of the results of every other being’s efforts.

Together, you are changing your world and your reality in good ways.

This spiritual evolution is an absolute and revolutionary fact.”

—Jesus Christ / The Mahatma

recorded by Rev. Scott Ufford, 7-15-1997
Copyright 1997, 2010 Scott Ufford
http://www.scottufford.com

A Shocking Prophecy About Turkey’s Future by the Noblest Ottoman Sultan

by Rev. Scott Ufford

This prophecy about Turkey and the Middle East’s remarkable future was given to me, a Christian Spiritualist, by the soul of the Ottoman Empire’s greatest sultan.

Received point-blank while meditating in Eminonu Mosque of Istanbul, Turkey, on November 11, 2007, after visiting The Tombs of Five Sultans and Their Wives. The Sultan’s words were so unexpected and meaningful, my wife even took a photo of the notebook transcript while we were still in the mosque:

“Istanbul will once again become the most famous city of the Near East. A spiritual capital eclipsing Constantinople and the Ottoman Empire.

Istanbul will center the spiritual forces of Islam in harmony with Christians and Jews.

A great spiritual awakening must first enter the hearts of everyday men and women.

You will see a spiritual revolution sweep the Earth from its four corners. This revolution shall uplift all religions and all races.

Istanbul a city NOT of military power, NOT of political will, NOT of economic struggle and conquest.

Even as I once placed the Middle East, the sacred Mecca under the protection of the (Caliph) so will Istanbul center the religious spiritual hopes of the regions.

Enemies are not to be destroyed in military conquest. War is impossible for true victory. You may destroy your enemies’ guns: good. But until you change his heart, much life is lost and little victories, won.

I would turn your hearts and spirits to this great task: as you earn your monies, open your hearts.

As you divide powers and grow militarily strong, you must enter your senses.

The God that guided Mohamed must return to guide the hearts of your everyday men and women.

From these citizens shall come leaders with visions. Their eyes shall open into possibilities of peace with prosperity, of community with sharing, and of teamwork with excellence.

Istanbul as the spiritual capital is not for the glory of Turkey. Instead, this is for the glory of the God who made all people, blesses all people, guides all people. Who desires them all to be well-fed, and decently clothed, housed and taught.

Only with a free, awakened will may all turn to the glory and peace of the one Creator. This prediction is not for the ego of Istanbul. This prediction is to awaken the home of the true spirit in the human heart.

Open its doors. Study wisely the wisdom therein. Share freely the goodness and prosperity.

As a link between Europe and Near and Middle East in centuries ahead a completely new vision of God, peace, hope, community, Allah and human possibilities will flower into excellence.

Even as the tulips began in Turkey so shall your grandchildren and their children see:

Istanbul as a center of hope, charity, activism, quiet meditation. A center of discourse, a meeting place of nations, a center for jurisprudential excellence of many nations—not as an empire—but as a center of true civilization in the purest word.

–Mehmet Bey”

The sultan followed up his prophecy:

“Trust in this slow evolution. You will recognize when the signs of struggle and worry in the eyes of the common man and woman are replaced by a clear light, a peaceful understanding, a warm compassion—the times of these predictions are coming.

Every word here is true in its essence.
All of this is a true prediction. Voluntary for the human hearts to fulfill!

This spiritual revolution will transform the essential life of many known, and so far unknown, spiritual centers around the world and this religion.

You shall see!
Peace is the power unsurpassed.

Peace is the true prosperity that turns hard work and prayer into cooperation and surprising success.”
–II Mehmet, 1432-1481 AD

Peace and blessings to all who read and consider these words.
Rev. Scott Ufford Copyright 2007, 2010