Anandamayi Ma in a Crowd
Anandamayi Ma with Gopal

LEARN ABOUT ANANDAMAYI MA

“To live in the world is to be on the way to Self-realization —Anandamayi Ma”

WHO IS ANANDAMAYI MA?

Anandamayi Ma was a 20th-century avatar: a direct emanation of wisdom, born totally awake. By her own testimony, Ma manifested in response to the prayers of sentient beings for a female incarnation of the divine.

While accounts of her extraordinary lila, or enlightened activities, are legion, she lived her life as a householder in unusually close contact with her devotees, advising them about all aspects of life, laughing with them, comforting them, singing and simply allowing all those who came to find refuge in her presence. Her guiding presence is still available to anyone who wishes to seek it out.

Although Ma had little formal education, she directly embodied enlightened wisdom to such a degree, she was able to convey the subtlest teachings to tens of thousands of followers from all walks of life. Her teachings are precise, playful, gutsy, down-to-earth, inspiring and deeply moving. Jaya Ma!

SATSANG WITH ANANDAMAYI MA

Anandamayi Ma gave oral teachings in response to the questions of an enormous number of people from all walks and stations of life. She wrote no books or articles. Her satsangs remain one of the primary ways that we can receive Her teachings today. Atmananda, Ma’s English-language translator, worked closely with Brahmachari Kamal Bhattacharjee, a Pandit who devoted his life to recording Ma’s satsangs in Bengali with meticulous concern for accuracy. Together, they produced the most definitive record of Her words.

  • Words Of Sri Anandamayi Ma: Translated by Atmananda. A principal book of Mataji’s in-depth discourses in English. Free.

  • The Essential Sri Anandamayi Ma: Includes a good biography by a devotee, a selection of discourses from Words of Sri Anandamayi Ma (available in full above), and a wealth of photographs. Beautifully produced and good for starters if you keep in mind that all efforts to summarize Ma’s teachings pale in comparison to her own words.

  • Matri Vani (Mother’s Words) Volume I: A collection of short excerpts from Anandamayi Ma’s dictated letters to some of Her devotees. Translated by Atmananda. Free.

  • Matri Vani Volume II: A second collection of excerpts from letters and conversations. Translated by Atmananda. Free.

  • Ma’s words on the website of the Anandamayi Ma Sangha in India: a collection of her sayings and other teachings.

  • Mother Reveals Herself: Words of Ma recorded during intimate conversations with one of her primary disciples, Bhaiji or Jyotish Chandra Roy. Contains Ma’s own account of the extraordinary circumstances of her birth. 

  • Shree Shree Ma Anandamayee, Volume 8: by Gurupriya Devi. Ma’s great disciple and chronicler shares Ma’s day-to-day life, travels, and teachings. Previous volumes can be found here. 

ANANDAMAYI MA DARSHAN

Darshan means to see. By seeing Guru and being seen by Her, we can directly see more of Reality and thereby progress in our spiritual unfoldment. This can happen to some extent even through the medium of a picture of Guru.

During her lifetime, Ma instructed that any images of her remain forever free. Jaya Kula honors that instruction by providing free, hi-resolution photos of Ma on our website and at teachings. You may download and print out these images for your altar, home or business. Click on a thumbnail photo to see and download the full image.

For hundreds more photos of Anandamayi Ma, visit the Photo Gallery and the Photo Collection at the Anandamayi sangha resource website. A new collection of photos has been put up at the official India sangha website.

BIOGRAPHIES OF ANANDAMAYI MA

LIFE WITH ANANDAMAYI MA

Many of Ma’s devotees have written memoirs of their lives with Her. In addition, Ma encouraged some to keep a spiritual diary. These writings present a fascinating portrait of what it means, on a very personal, day-to-day level, to be a disciple of a great Guru.

ANANDAMAYI MA SINGS KIRTAN

Listening to Anandamayi Ma singing kirtan can be a revelation, especially for those who might be wondering just what the name of God is all about. Anandamayi Ma sings “Ma Durga” kirtan:

ANANDAMAYI MA KIRTAN

  • Chant Jai Hridaya Vasini: Jaya Kula’s kirtan ensemble, Archana, sings a beautiful new arrangement of a selection of the names of Anandamayi Ma. These names were chosen by Jyotish Chandra Roy, affectionately known as Bhaiji, one of Ma’s principle disciples. The words in transliterated Sanskrit and English are included in the PDF. Jai Hridaya Vāsini (PDF)

ANANDAMAYI MA IN THE MOVIES

We are lucky to have many home movies and two documentaries featuring Anandamayi Ma. As is the case with all Realized beings, simply watching Her speak, move and interact is a teaching and a transmission.

30 minute documentary video about Anandamayi Ma with some rare video footage of her. Unfortunately, the filmmaker got carried away with some “special” effects, but still worth watching.