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KOCHI, INDIA, September 24, 2003: Kochi is closed on Tuesday for a special election, but a visitor may easily think it is part of the celebration honoring Mata Amritanandamayi’s 50th birthday instead. Amma was named “Hindu of the Year” by Hinduism Today in 1993 and represented Hinduism at the 1993 Parliament of the World Religions in Chicago and again at the Conference of World Spiritual and Religious Leaders held at the UN in 2000.



All along the roadways are huge posters of Amma’s birthday and steady streams of people head for the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kavaloor. “We expect at least 500,000 visitors during this four-day fest,” says Swami Dhyanamrita, a member of Amma’s inner circle of devotee-managers. At least a dozen media teams have registered from Berlin, Paris, USA, England and even Ireland. As Amma arrives, Swami Abhayamrita Chaitanya, the head swami of all Amma operations in this birthday mela, says: “These 96 hours are packed minute to minute so that we have barely allowed Amma an hour of rest.” The program is indeed a huge endorsement-action plan. Actress Linda Evans, US Senator Larry Pressler and Martin Luther King’s daughter Yolanda will arrive for a special interactive session. President Kalam will address a two-day workshop of international CEOs, on “Making India Economically Secure and Spiritually Strong.”

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