Amma: Healing the Heart of the World

Throughout the world she has been called "the hugging saint." Revered in her own country as a healer and a sage, credited with thousands of miracles by her devoted followers, Ammachi, or Amma (Mother), spends most of her waking hours providing strangers with hugs of unconditional love.

"I always wanted to know the cause of misery and thought if sorrow is a truth, then there must be a cause and a way out," Amma explains. "I realize my purpose is to console -- to personally wipe away tears through selfless love, compassion, and service."

In this authorized biography of an amazing woman, we learn the story of Amma's humble beginnings in a poor remote village in southern India, where she was rejected by her family because they felt her skin was too dark. Forced into servitude as a victim of racial prejudice in her own family, Amma discovered her divine calling is to comfort others, and so embarked on a quest to provide healing through the simple grace of hugging people -- black, white, yellow, and brown; rich and poor; healthy and sick. As the number of people she hugged increased, word of her healing powers spread. And what began as one woman's journey on foot has become the driving force behind an international organization promoting awareness of a greater spiritual journey and providing healing to millions around the globe.