Alas, my friend and I, who went to see Amma last night in Los Angeles, have decided that she is not the real deal. Worse, it appears that Amma is a psychic vampire, siphoning off the energy of her devoted followers.

My friend had contacted me earlier in the week asking if I wanted to go see Amma. She is an Indian woman who travels the world offering "free hugs." Someone in his singing class had gone to see her and had some sort of spiritual experience. He was curious, and so was I.

Coincidentally, I had recently heard of Amma just a month ago when I stumbled across an anti-Amma blog called "Cult of the Hugging Saint." Strangely enough, this blog was online last night when we checked it from the event (via my Blackberry), but when I went to look at it today, the blog is no longer available. Hm.