A simple embrace can be one of the most therapeutic actions a person can give to another one when he or she feeling down in the dumps. The existence of a “hugging saint” may help prove that theory.

Amma I’m the last person to buy into anything remotely related to mumbo-jumbo, but when I heard that Amma, aka Mata Amritanandamayi, was coming to Tysons Corner this weekend, it seemed worth a mention. Amma’s deal is that she runs an ashram in India, but spends half the year traveling around the world, setting up camp in various hotels and convention centers and offering free hugs to anyone who wants one. The sale of…