There's not a history of it that I'm aware of, but I think that flipping out if you're unstable and get more shakti than you can handle happens in all spiritual movements. In fact, it happened in the drug culture. Some people could drive and eat dinner with their parents while on acid (me), and others are still in the nut house 40 years later. Another point to consider is that unstable people are often attracted to spiritual paths, hoping to become healed. I don't think you need to worry about your own sanity, should you decide to see Amma. Nor do I think that there's an abnormally high incidence of mental breakdowns among people who see Amma compared with those who get involved in comparable things. If anything, many more people are healed and strengthened than destabilized. For me, Amma is not the path. I enjoy seeing her. I'm uplifted and energized. I like the music, etc. It's a powerful engine on my train, but not the only engine. Thanks for asking. From: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com [mailto:fairfieldl...@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of TurquoiseB Sent: Thursday, May 20, 2010 10:10 AM To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Subject: [FairfieldLife] Rick, a question about Amma As you know (and despite your and others' efforts to get me to go see her), I have never met Amma. I thought I had once, years ago, but that turns out to have been because the people who dragged me to see some Indian woman saint kept referring to her as "Amma." So I thought for a while she was "the" Amma. Not so.
So, that said, my knowledge of her and her trip comes almost entirely from you and others on this forum. I must say that what you have said about her -- and the way you conduct your lives -- have left a positive impression of the lady on me. And yet... And yet, now that I think of it in light of the Ravi Incident, there is one other person I've met who had been into Amma. She was a nice late-30-ish woman who lived near Sauve. It came out, as we got to know each other, that she had been involved with Amma, on a level that she referred to as, "Yes, I was a devotee." I could not help but notice her emphasis on the word "was," so I asked about it. She would not go into much detail, but her "was" status was because after one of Amma's hugs she became psychotic (her term), and had to leave until things "settled down." This was three years in the past, as we were speaking. She didn't feel that she had "settled down" yet at that point. So here's my question: Is there a *history* of this around Amma? First my friend's experience, and now Ravi's. It's got me thinkin'... I hope you know me well enough to know that this is not a "hit" of any kind. And I think I know you well enough to know that you're a remarkably up-front kinda guy. That's why I'm asking this question of you. Despite my image here as a hardened cynic, I do *not* pooh-pooh the subjective experience of "shakti," or as I prefer to call it, "What-ever-the-fuck-it-is." Been there, done that, and some of my T-shirts still have the scorch marks. For me, such "shakti hits" were always benevolent. Yes, they may have blown my socks off and put me in a discom- bobulated state for a day or two, but it was never *more* than a day or two. What I'm wondering about is the case of someone maybe a little more fragile or a little less roll-with-the-punches energy-wise than myself, someone who experiences a similar "shatki hit" and goes bonkers behind it, possibly for months or years. So what's the story? *Is* there a history of this around Amma?
