33 things to know before going to Amritapuri ashram in Kerala India
Back in March 2015 I spent 10 days at Amritapuri ashram in Kerala, India where I joined my dad after his 2 weeks there (he was there on his own while I was traveling around Kerala with a group of other travel bloggers.)
Amritapuri, which was opened by Amma in 1981 was the first ashram we, my dad and I, both ever visited. It is situated on a peninsula, or let’s say a small island, surrounded by Kerala Backwaters and the Indian Ocean.
Ashram is a place where spiritual aspirants live with a Guru.
At Amritapuri ashram the Guru is Amma.
I remember that we spent quite a lot of time searching for information about Amritapuri before we arrived. There is not that much online so I took time to write down what I could remember. It might be useful if it’s your first ashram visit, too.
There’s so many expressions you might hear in any ashram in India so I included many of them in thi list as well so you have it all in one.
*It is NOT allowed to take photos inside Amritapuri, so I could only take pics on the beach or close to the ashram.
The first 3 important things travelers going to Amritapuri need to know:
- You need to register with an ID to enter Amritapuri ashram even if not staying there overnight (it’s a new rule which was not there back in 2015)
- Carry a few copies of your passport. Most probably you will need a passport copy to exchange money, to get a SIM card etc. Carrying passport copies when traveling can never hurt you.
- There is a bank inside Amritapuri campus. You can exchange foreign money there and also withdraw from an ATM cash machine attached to the bank. But only Visa cards are accepted at the ATM there. Please keep in mind that no other cards are accepted.
33 things to know before going to Amritapuri ashram:
1. Amritapuri means the abode of immortality which refers to ashram premises.
2. Amritapuri is more expensive than other ashrams in India. In 2015 it cost 250 rupees per person per night with 3 Indian meals included daily. There’s also free potable water at a few stations around the ashram where you can refill your bottles. You can buy fruit/fruit juices in the afternoon at one of the stalls inside and fresh coconuts all day long just outside of the main gate next to the reception and the Kali temple.
3. The adjoining village is Parayakadavu and the one across the bridge is called Vallikavvu. There you can exchange or withdraw money, buy fruit, clothes and anything else at the market and even go to the internet cafe. I’ve heard that now there’s also new shops in Amritapuri premises even before the bridge which were not there back in 2015.
4. Amma, whose full name is Sri Mata Amritanandamayi is the woman who built Amritapuri and other ashrams around India. Her name Amma means ”mother of immortal bliss”. It was Amma’s first disciples who gave her this name.
5. Ficus peepul-ashvattha tree in front of ashram is the tree of life representing a holy place.
6. Puja means worship, adoration, respect. Pujas can cost anywhere between 2,000 rupees to 6,500 or even 9,000 depending on what you need them for. They are performed every morning and evening. You can sit on the floor/chair and be part of the ceremony for free finished by fire cleaning, sacred water drinking, prasad eating and praying inside. Or you can order a puja ritual beforehand to get one aimed directly on your person which will be done at the end of the general puja.
7. Prasad is food offering, a gift of God. At Amritapuri in the morning after Pujas you could get a sort of sweet pudding with raisins.
8. Arati is offering of a flame to the form of God (e.g. after the bhajans when a person walks with fire around the statues.)
9. Darshan means inner vision in Sanskrit.
10. Bhajans are poetic devotional songs to express love and longing for God in groups. You can hear one of the most effective spiritual practices at the temple twice a day. Just women can enter the main Kali temple where other women are singing Bhajans.
I still remember what my new friend Marek said: ”To listen to the Bhajans, only women can go to the Kali temple. But I so like them that now I go upstairs to help them with the leaflets and labels. Only men doing a SEVA activity can stay up there at the balcony and listen to the Bhajans. The last Bhajan song is incredible, with bells and all those female voices, right?”
11. Pradakshina is the act of turning around three times clockwise after worship/bhajans and it is done to surrender to the divine.
12. Bell ringing – pujaris ring bells to call attention of God and to silent the devotees and other noise (before arati.) During arati and bhajans it is done to focus our prayers at the time on God.
13. Greeting you will hear everywhere Om Namah Shivaya means salutation to the auspicious one. ”We greet the God in another person.” The phrase is also used instead of thank you, hello, goodbye and excuse me.
14. Many people at Amritapuri ashram wear mala rudraksha bracelets or necklaces consisting of 54 beads or 108 plus one bindu on one thread to connect to God during prayers. The seeds are from a sacred tree elaeocarpus ganitrus. It is believed that the natural electromagnetic properties of malas rudraksha reduce stress ad improve concentration. According to Wikipedia, ”the benefits have not been proven by science but rudraksha is believed to provide good support for those who are constantly on the move and who eat and sleep in a variety of places.” It’ a funny fact as one morning when walking along the beach a mala rudrasha bracelet was washed up on the shore just next to my feet. A ”coincidence?”
15. When you enter the temples and most of the buildings, the shoes are left outside. The shoes attract dirt and symbolize the impure ego. If you touch someone with our feet, then you should touch them also with your hands and bring the hands to your forehead to show respect.
16. Homas are fire ceremonies.
17. You can get a free Ayurvedic consultation on Mondays.
18. There’s free 2-day IAM meditation courses offered pretty often. You can also join if you wish to refresh your memory after having passed an IAM course already. IAM is taught to help people find fullfillment in life. It’s a combination of pranayana, yoga and meditation which leads to better clarity, creativity, awareness and reduction of stress. It is taught free of charge around the world, only sometimes the place fee is charged (which was the case of my first IAM course in Prague, too.) Also yoga retreats take place at Amritapuri. For more info, contact yoga@amritapuri.org.
19. You have to pay for the 90-min yoga classes. When there’s Amma at Amritapuri, usually there’s more people so more yoga classes are scheduled. Otherwise, sometimes only classes for women are there which was also the case when I was there. However, I practiced yoga on my own on the beach anyway.
20. It is forbidden to swim on the beach outside of Amritapuri. The ocean current is too strong and dangerous. But I could not even imagine people swimming there as maybe many Westerners would swim in their bikinis only. That would not be appropriate in the holy ashram area.
21. Amma gives spiritual name to people once in a while, maybe once per month or once per three months.
22. Many people around both India and Amritapuri wear a dot on their forehead. Tilak, or tilaka dot is a mark of auspiciousness (success) and it can be also worn on other parts of the body. Usually though, it is applied on the third eye, the place called bhrumadhya.
Tilak here can be drawn using sandal wood paste (aspect of universe Shiva, to calm down), red kumkum turmeric powder (used only in the morning for active energy), or sacred ash vibhuti. You can find these three things to mark your own tilak at the place where Pujas are performed at Amritapuri. Men paint also different kinds of tilak all over their forehead, not just dots – Vishnu God is represented by vertical lines while other Gods by horizontal tilak.
23. People of all religions are welcome to Amritapuri ashram because Amma believes there is just one God – our up conscious.
24. You will hear Vishnu and Krishna names a lot. It’s said Vishnu came 21 times to the Earth and Krishna was one of his avatar forms which came 5,000 years ago.
25. Most of the Amritapuri residents wear simple white clothes. White is symbol of purity to remind us our spiritual goal. There’s a few shops right at the ashram where you can buy white clothing (new or used one.)
Dress code: Even if you decide not to wear white clothes, but you opt for another color, you should still wear modest clothes covering your knees and shoulders. Nothing too tight, nothing too sexy, no shorts, no leggings, no tank tops. It’s not appropriate to walk around an ashram showing too much skin. Remember, it’s a spiritual place.
26. Usually, meals are not supposed to be as spicy as they were when we were at the Amritapuri. In the beginning we literally spent every meal with tears and running nose. However, we heard that the cuisine is less spicy when Amma is at the ashram. We were told that meals served at the ashram should be without spices and salt. But they were too spicy for us, to be honest.
27. There’s a Western cafe inside the ashram which surprised me to see at first. But later on, Marek explained to me what he was told:
”Amma knows what she is doing. The foreigners would go to buy coffee and sweets to the village anyway, and spend more money there. This way they can not only spend more money here in the ashram at the cafeteria but most of all practice self-control, too. Try to get a coffee once, then just pass by, see others drinking and slowly, day by day, consciously say no to it. Once you learn to avoid all these pleasures of the modern world here, it will get easier then in the outside world when you get back to normal life.”
28. In Amritapuri, there’s two good astrologers. If you don’t know the exact time when you were born, then one of the astrologers, Sanjit, can tell you more depending on a few important situations in your life. You can sign for his 30 minute reading at 002 cottage for the price of 600 rupees. The second astrologer is Mohan in the Kali temple who will tell you more about your life if you know the time of your birth (for the same price for 30 minutes.)
29. The rule is that everyone cleans the dishes and cups after themselves at the restaurants and put them back to the shelf. All the shops and restaurants here are operated by volunteers and everyone is required to help with their own bit for at least 2 – 4 hours per day. It’s not a must, but a nice SEVA deed.
30. You are asked to switch off the lights, fans and water when not in use. There’s only cold water running in the bathroom pipes but in that heat it gets hot during the day anyway. There’s no air conditioning in the rooms either, only fans.
31. Amma is not at Amritapuri all the time but she spends a lot of months traveling. The ashram gets busier when she is there so it’s recommended to book your accommodation beforehand. Otherwise, you can even come and try your luck right there at the ashram reception.
32. What really touched my heart when I was at Amritapuri ashram was the charity. Amma controls the Embracing the World organization which has been helping poor people, people attacked by tsunami, earthquake in Haiti and Japan, or orphans. For example, the organization gave money to the Orphanage in Kerala and in Kenya which helped more than 25,000 children. It’s also financially supporting more than 55,000 widows and handicapped children in India, and also built 47 schools and a University in India. More than 45,000 houses around India were constructed thanks to this organization; and a hospital in Kochi where more than 2.2 million of patients have been helped. Every year food is given to more than 10,000 people all across India; another 73,000 people in Northern America are fed. The GreenFriends volunteers work on many ecological projects around the world and are planting trees as part of the Billion Tree Campaign, too.
33. Amritapuri is home to thousands of children from all over the world. This ashram is a living example of the ancient Indian ideal where ”the whole world lives as one family.”
TIP 1: To find out more information about Amritapuri , check out also my second article: 21 things I learned at ashram Amritapuri.
TIP 2: I wrote 3 articles about Amritapuri altogether. Here’s the last one – about my 10 days at Amritapuri and what we did there for so long. Have a read.
This article was not sponsored in any way. I was just a regular guest at Amritapuri ashram and paid for my stay. To find out more, you can also check the main Amritapuri website.
Dinesh kumar
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Thanks for such a good review of the ashram
Savithri
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Amma ashram is not at all expensive than other ashrams.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Well, I have friends who have stayed in different ashrams for cheaper. But there’s definitely not much of a difference :)
Sheela
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Once we had been there with the family I couldn’t forget that experience at all. I used to recall that often. When I read your travel plans I felt very happy that Icould again refresh my memory
Thank you dear friend for sharing ??
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Happy you went to Amritapuri too :) It’s a very unique place.
Adarsh
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Hello alex i am adarsh near the amrithapuri. i want to travel with you
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks Adarsh but I don’t travel with strangers. But I miss Amritapuri. It’s a really nice place :)
Haridas
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Madam you are correct
Shweta bharti
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Can you please tell me that exact timing when amma is in ashram?
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Sorry, cannot help you with that one. Her plans are changing so it’s better to contact the ashram directly.
Lakshmi K
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Hi Alex,
I grew up in India and met Amma in my early teens. I see her every time she comes to my city. Over the years, while the Ashram has changed dramatically, Amma has changed not a bit. I’ve not been to the main Ashram in a long while so your post is very helpful. Many thanks for that. Forgive me for an unrelated question – the pants you’re wearing looks so nice and comfortable. What are they called and where did you get it from?
Much love from Seattle.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Many thanks for your kind comment :) I still have to meet Amma in person as she was not there when I visited the ashram :) And those pants have no name, I bought them in a Chinese shop somewhere in Europe :D
Lakshmi K
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Ah, ok. Thanks. There are similar pants called Harem pants or Bangkok pants, but they look baggy and loose. Yours looks perfect. :) Btw, I’d definitely recommend meeting Amma if you get a chance. While I’m not religious, I totally believe in love and empathy and she has that in abundant supply.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Haha yes I know what you mean, I don’t like when pants are too loose :) And yes for sure I’d like to meet Amma :)
Luve
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I have never been in the ashram without Amma being there. Beautiful article but being in the ashram when Amma there opens a whole more facilities to the visitors since there is much more going on and no one has to put up with eating spicy in the morning. There is a cantine. also there is many workshops many experts Westerners that are visiting offer. There is yoga retreats. and its the real yoga . Not about showing off flexible bodies. Amma gives darshan 3 x a week and she gives satsang . Sings everyday and live music is all day on while she is there. A lot of fun. a whole other dimension. Festivities are celebrated in traditional way.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks for your nice comment :) Yes I’ve heard that the ashram is completely different when Amma is there so I hope next time I go there, she will be there so I can see the difference myself :)
lavanya
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I am from Hyderabad. i want to visit amma ashram for 15 days. please can i know the details of ashram nd also about the sevas that r performed there.And what will be the cost if i stay there for 15 days i allso want to know about the procedure of getting in to ashram. I am glad to tell u that my son D.Abhishek is studying 1st yr enjeeneering course in main branch i.eCoimbatoor,in Amrita viwapeetam.
mohan
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Nice article in details. been there, and going back for month again.Love it.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Great you are going back to Amritapuri, Mohan. Hope you enjoy it there.
Krishnakumar
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Yoga is great, but don’t fall for human gods!!!
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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I believe in the power of the Universe :)
Sue newton
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Good information , thank you for sharing . I am from Trivandrum,Kerala. born in Singapore.Settled down in UK. Now living in Saudi Arabia.
Twice I visited Amma ,when she came to London. Never visited Amritapuri yet .I come to kerala to be with my mother and visit few temples and go back. On sept 2015, 8th my mother sadly passed away. Its heart breaking .hard to pass each day. I love travelling and seeing new places and learn new culture. bye for now Sumam.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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So sorry to hear about your mum Sue! Sending you a lot of energy and hope you can visit Amritapuri one day ;)
jehzlau
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Hello Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler! It’s been a long while! :D I don’t know if you still remember me, but we’ve met once, when you were here in Manila, last November 2011. Haha. :D
Just checking out the blogs that I’m subscribed to. :D
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Heyyy! I do remember you, of course :) Hope you are doing great!
sachin
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what is the daily schedule at the ashram?? do they teach yoga and meditation there as well?? have been to a few ashrams in rishikesh.. i am planning a kerela trip in november, so it would be great if you could throw some light on your stay at the ashram..
thanks
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Please also read my other 2 posts about Amritapuri :) They do IAM meditation courses, how often it depends on how many people are up for it … There’s yoga classes for women a few times a week and for men maybe when there’s Amma at the asrahm but I am not so sure about male yoga though. The yoga schedules change depending on the time of the year and how busy the ashram is.