Amma in Iowa 2007

Iowa Seva Sign-up

Namah Shivaya,

It takes thousands of volunteer hours to host Amma�s programs, so we really appreciate your willingness to help. To help us match you with suitable jobs, please tell us a little about yourself�.

Iowa Seva Coordinators

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SEVA SIGN-UP FORM

Please fill out this form as thoroughly as possible. We appreciate your willingness to help Amma's Iowa program be the best it can be.

Legal Name (first & last)

Spiritual Name

Email

Phone
Home
Cell

Local Satsang

Have you met Amma before?

Yes No

Will any children be attending the program with you? (check any that apply)

4 - 9 years
10 - 13 years
14 - 17 years

How many children will be accompanying you?

Please indicate the areas in which you are willing to do seva:

Kitchen
Dining Room
Snack Shop, Western
Snack Shop, Indian
Safety, General Security
General Seva (Various odd jobs)
Children's Program
Teen Room
Pre-program Set-up
Post-program Clean-up
Shoe Racks
Any or All of the Above

Would you like to be on one of our Hall seva teams?

Yes No

Seater/Greeter
DL Enter, DL Middle, Mantra Cards, Gate, Stairs, Traffic
DL Front, Exit
Priority

Have you done any of these sevas before?

Yes No Some

Are you willing to do sevas that require you to occasionally lift up to 50 lbs?

Yes No Indifferent

Do you have any physical disabilities that prevent you from lifting or standing?

No Yes Some

If you selected Yes or Some, please explain so we can better accommodate you:

How many hours of seva may we assign to you PER PROGRAM?

Devotees are kindly requested to be willing do two hours of seva outside the hall before they do hall sevas near Amma (such as line entry, exit, etc.).

2
4
6
8
8+

During which programs will you be available to do seva?

Monday, July 2, 2007:

Morning - 8:00 am to about 3:30 pm
Evening - 6:30 pm to end of darshan

Tuesday, July 3, 2007:

Morning - 8:00 am to about 3:30 pm
Atma Puja Setup - 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Devi Bhava - 6:30 pm to end of darshan

If your schedule is more complicated, please let us know when you'll be available:

Would you like to do very early or very late seva?

Very early and very late sevas are difficult to fill, so if you are an early bird or a night owl, please let us know!

Early Bird - 6:30 am to 9:00 am
Night Owl - Midnight through the end of darshan
I'm neither, so please assign more reasonable hours!

Notes or Comments for the Fairfield Seva Coordinators

Is there anything else you'd like us to know? Please put it here!

Printable Overview

Program Location:

Coralville Marriott Hotel & Convention Center
300 East 9th St.
Coralville IA 52241

[map]

]]> Program Times:

Wednesday, July 2nd 2008
Thursday, July 3rd 2008

Program times will be posted when available and confirmed.

Contact:

Toni Rubin
319-541-0190
Or
Irene Archer
641-472-9336

M.A. Center has endeavored to make the information presented as accurate as possible, but is not responsible for any inaccurancies or changes in the material. You should inquire directly with each party listed to assure the infomation is correct. M.A. Center does not certify, recommend or guarantee any of the persons or companies about whom information is provided.

Housing

Special Amma rate rooms will be available at a later date.

Homa Information

A homa (Vedic fire ceremony) will be given in Iowa this year during Amma's visit. It will take place on Tuesday morning, July 3rd, from 6:30am to 8:30am and will be performed by one of Amma's swamis at the home of a devotee 10 minutes from the Coralville Marriott. Address and directions are given below. The homa is open to everyone, whether or not you have signed up for pujas.

You can arrange for specific pujas for yourself and family at the puja table in the darshan hall at the Marriott on Monday, July 2nd during Amma's morning or evening programs. The purpose of each puja can be found at www.amritapuja.org http://www.amritapuja.org. The following pujas will be offered at the homa:

Planetary pujas $ 35 each
Navagraha homa $250
Ganapathy homa $ 65
Maha Ganapathy homa $130
Swayamvara homa $ 65
Karuka homa $100
Tila homa $100

]]> Generally, pujas are performed to keep us in harmony with cosmic forces, thereby removing and overcoming the sorrows of life and bringing spiritual upliftment. By doing puja, thoughts and vibrations of spiritual forces are created around us. These spiritual forces work to eliminate the negative influences in our life and help surround us with positive energy which can bring us peace of mind, material prosperity and enable us to more clearly touch the Divine, our true nature.

Location of homa: 2581 Hwy 1 N.E., Solon, Iowa

Directions (from the Marriott Hotel): Exit Marriott and turn right on 1st Avenue, then immediately turn right onto Hwy 80 going east. Take Hwy 80 east for approx. 2 1/2 miles, then take Exit 246 and get on Hwy 1 north. Go north on Hwy 1 for approx. 4 1/2 miles. Look for the Newport Road street sign on the left, go past it and turn into the 2nd driveway on the left. There will be a black mailbox marked 2581. Please carpool if you can.

Transportation

Directions to the Marriott Hotel & Convention Center

Directions from CR Airport:
Take I-380 S to US-218 S. Merge onto I-80E via Exit OA toward Iowa City
Take Exit 242 toward Coralville. Turn Right onto 1st Ave and then left at the light to Marriott.

]]> Directions coming from West:
I80E then Exit OA toward Iowa City. Take Exit 242 toward Coralville. Turn Left onto 1st Ave to Marriott.

Directions coming from East:
I80W then Exit on 1st Ave Coralville to Marriott.

The Eastern Iowa Airport has a selection of rental car companies on-site.

On-Site Rental Car Agencies:
Avis
toll-free phone: 1-800-331-1212
local phone: (319) 366-6418
Hertz
toll-free phone: 1-800-654-3131
local phone: (319) 365-9408
National
toll-free phone: 1-800-328-4567
local phone: (319) 363-0249
Enterprise
local phone: (319) 366-5522

The Eastern Iowa Airport Shuttle Services and area Taxi Services.

Shuttle Services

Airport Shuttle Service
toll-free phone # : 1-800-725-8460
local phone # : 365-0655
Web site : www.crshuttle.com
Email address : crshuttle@yahoo.com

Airport Express
toll-free phone # : 1-800-383-2219
local phone #: 626-5467
Web site: www.limosbyexpress.com

Taxi Services
Century Taxi
local phone # : 319-365-0505
Yellow Cab Inc.
local phone # : 319-365-1444

Local Information

Iowa City/Coralville maps are available on line or at the front desk upon arrival.

Drug store: Walgreens, 102 2nd St., Coralville 341-6153, open 24 hrs.

Bank: Hills Bank and Trust, 1009 2nd St. Coralville 351-8000 Hours: 9am-5pm M-Sat (drive up until 6pm), Sat 9am-noon.

Target: 1441 Coral Ridge Ave. (Coral Ridge Mall) 351-5150, Hours: M-Sat. 8 am-10pm, Sun. 8 am-9pm.

Walmart: 2801 Commerce Dr, Coralville 545-6400, open 24 hrs. (Grocery store, too)

Laundromat : Spin City, 201 1st Ave, Coralville 351-9965, open 24 hrs.
Washing machine: $1.75, dryer: 0.25/8 min, soap/softener:0.50/pkg

Copier: Copyworks, 309 2nd St., Coralville, 338-1717, open 24 hrs. Sun-Th
Zephyr, 517 2nd St., Coralville 351-7100 Hours: 8am-7pm M-F

Office Supply Store : Staples, 911 Highway 1 West, Iowa City 466-0335
Hours: 8am-9pm M-F, 9am-9pm Sat, 11am-6pm Sun

Grocery store: HyVee, Lantern Park Plaza, Coralville 351-5523 Open 24 hours.

Florist: Heaven Scent Flowers, Lantern Park Plaza, Coralville 354-9456 9am-5pm M-F, Sat 9-12 (nearby HyVee also has florist section, Hours: 7am-8pm M-Sat, 8am-8pm Sun)

Health food store: New Pioneer Co-op, 1101 2nd St., Coralville, 358-5513,
Hours: daily 7am-10pm

Hospital: Mercy Hospital, 500 E. Market St., Iowa City 339-0300
Univ. of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, 200 Hawkins Dr., Iowa City 356-1616

Health care advice: Mercy On Call 358-2767, available 24 hrs/day

Indoor Pool: Coralville Aquatic Center, 1506 8th St., Coralville 248-1750 Admission $2.75, children under 2 free, Hours: Call for hours of lap and open swimming (changes daily)

Outdoor Pool: Coralville Community Aquatic Center 248-9330 (water slides, fountains)1513 7th St. (Across from Morrison Park) Coralville Admission $3.75 11am-6pm, $3.00 6-8pm, children under 2 free Hours Sun 11am-8pm
Post Office: 420 10th Ave., Coralville 354-1061, Hours: 8:30am-7pm M-F, Sat. 9am-3pm

Park: Morrison Park 1500 Block of 5th St., Coralville

Library: Iowa City Library, 123 S Linn St, 356-5200 Hours: 10am-9pm M-Th, 10am-8pm Fri, 10am-6pm Sat., noon-5pm Sun (Closed 7/4) Computers/Internet available to public with i.d.

Crafts Supply Store: Hobby Lobby, 2050 8th St., Coralville 358-9262, Hours: 9am-8pm M-Sat.

Restaurants:
Bob�s Your Uncle, 49 Mormon Trek Dr., 338-7400
Taco Bell 213 1st Ave. Coralville 354-1236
Subway 89 2nd St, Coralville 354 1272
Slugger�s 303 2nd Ave.,Coralville 354-4459
Peking Buffet 93 2nd St., Coralville 688-9833
Olive Garden 930 25th Ave. Coralville 339-9100
HuHot Mongolian Grill 917 25th Ave, Coralville 358-9100
Mondo�s Tomato Pie 516 2nd St. Coralville 337-3000
Papa John�s Pizza 89 2nd St., Coralville 887-2727
Eldorado Mexican Restaurant, 102 2nd St., Coralville 688-5237
Thai Spice 1210 S. Gilbert St., Iowa City 351-2581
Indian Caf� 227 E Washington St., Iowa City 354-2775
Red Avocado (vegetarian) 521 E. Washington St. Iowa City 351-6088
Z�Marik Noodle Caf� 19 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City 338-5500
Masala (Indian vegetarian) 9 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City 338-6199

Who is Amma?

Her long Sanskrit name is Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, which translates into Mother of Immortal Bliss. Yet to millions around the world she is known simply as Amma (mother) or Ma (beloved mother). So approachable is she that many have come to realize in her a love that is archetypical of "everybody's mother," which is, of course, difficult to describe.

When she speaks at the United Nations, she comes invited as a preeminent spiritual leader. The news media has dubbed her the Mother of Compassion because of the extensive humanitarian charities she has launched. As such, her work is often compared to that of the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The press has also nicknamed her the Hugging Saint, because of her famous hug-blessings, which she has given tirelessly since she was a teenager. It is estimated that Amma has already hugged over twenty million times.

Around the world she is identified as a living saint. By observing Amma, it becomes obvious that she exhibits nothing of what we would call a personal life. Sleeping a couple of hours a day, she is the untiring servant of all people, dedicated to removing human suffering. Her outreach takes two principal forms, first, the darshan programs, where she reaches out on an individual basis via the hug, and second, her charities, designed to improve peoples' lives on a broader scale.

]]> Darshan

Darshan is a Sanskrit term describing audience with a saint or sage. In the ancient tradition, darshan usually consisted merely of the sighting of a holy person. In a radical break with custom, Amma's darshan blessing emerged as a long, tender, healing embrace. Even as a young mystic, this was her practice in her native fishing village, located on the south coast of India along the Arabian Sea.

Amma makes herself available to anyone wishing to receive her darshan. There is never a charge at public programs, and no one is excluded. Hour after hour, day after day, year after year, she receives everyone in the same loving way, irrespective of religious faith or non-belief.

Over time, Amma's popularity has risen to the point where in India she has been known to hug over 18,000 in one day, sitting sometimes for over twenty hours. Nearly half of the year she can be found at her Kerala ashram. Ammachi first traveled to the U.S. and Europe in 1987. As word has spread, many thousands now see her every year. Ammachi regularly makes a summer U.S. Tour, followed by a European tour in the fall.

On a typical tour stop, Amma will lead a brief morning meditation followed by darshan late into the afternoon. In the evening she returns to give satsang (an inspired talk), followed by an approximate 90-minute session of bhajans (devotional songs) where she leads an unusually talented troupe of swamis (monks). At the conclusion of the music she will sit, hour after hour, well into the morning hours, giving darshan.

Those who want to receive her blessing are given a numbered token on a first-come, first-serve basis. During the course of the evening, live music is performed, while those gathered meditate, enjoy dinner, or visit the bookstore.

As the evening wears on the numbers dwindle, it is both humbling and inspiring to watch how Amma shows no sign of fatigue. She will not even pause until the last person has been received. All the while, she sustains a beaming smile while lovingly embracing one after another. With each hug and smile a spark of her own energy is passed along.

For more information on Amma's schedule and tours, you can click on the Mata Amritanandamayi Center website at amma.org.

Charitable Institutions

The second way Amma reaches out is via charitable institutions, administered under the aegis of the Mata Amritanandamayi Mission. Teaching by the example of her own life, Amma blends spiritual awareness with practical social service. "Compassion to the poor is our duty to God," she instructs. "If you do spiritual practice without performing selfless actions, it will be like building a house without any doors."

Accordingly, she has launched two distinct types of volunteer institutions: direct aid organizations, and educational facilities designed to help the underprivileged help themselves.

Direct aid organizations include a program to build 125,000 homes for the poor, women's shelters, pension disbursements for widows, orphanages, hospices, hospitals, and community aid centers, just to name a few. The most ambitious of these is the 800-bed hospital, the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS), which offers state-of-the-art medical treatment including open-heart surgery, neurosurgery, and organ transplants, free of charge to the needy. Concurrently, Amma's network of educational facilities is blossoming all over India. So far, it includes numerous elementary, secondary, vocational, and graduate schools, ranging from remote tribal tutelage to advanced business and technical certification.

Equally, Amma has encouraged Western devotees to serve selflessly in their own communities. This has resulted in the successful Mother's Kitchen program. Volunteers routinely prepare and serve delicious meals to the poor in many U.S. inner cities.

At a young age, Amma concluded that human suffering stemmed almost fully from a lack of love. Thereafter she resolved to be part of the solution, thus offering her entire life as an expression of divine love.

For More Information

For more information on Amma's charitable activities, you can click on the Mata Amritanandamayi Center website at amma.org or amritapuri.org.