17 July 2002 Press Conference Highlights

Opening Remarks

Maharishi: ‘I was very happy to have heard from Dr John Hagelin, the most successful researcher in the field of physics, a brilliant survey of the reality of the possibility for the whole world to be permanently in peace. Dr Hagelin has very beautifully introduced the whole idea.

‘I said last week in very simple words that the world is being governed by human constitutions—constitutions created by human beings throughout the world in every country. Constitutions have been drafted by human beings, and as human beings their drafts contain human weaknesses—weaknesses of human mind and intellect. And on the other side we have God-made creation—the universe, infinitely expanded galactic universe full of diversity, full of variety, but always under the threshold of orderly functioning, orderly functioning.

‘So, in our wisdom, we locate that cosmic intelligence, the Will of God, that creates and administers the universe. And we have in the Vedic Tradition the detailed version of how all the diversity is sustained on the ground of unity, and how coherence, order, harmony, bliss could be the reality of every nation, every human being. It only needs a few people here, there, everywhere in each country, which we have experienced teaching Transcendental Meditation for 50 years in the world.

‘And we are convinced that with these Yogic Flying groups, people practicing Transcendental Meditation and its advanced techniques and its Sidhi programme, which are authentic prescriptions of living total life from the Vedic Literature, the world will be Heaven on Earth—that's all—Heaven on Earth. We've been using this phrase, “Heaven on Earth”, for so many years.

‘And now when the world has been challenged with the warmongers, these weapon-creating countries challenging the nations: "I’ll kill you there, I’ll wage war, I’ll have missiles on you, and this and this." Childish, very childish tendencies! When they come up, then we have to remember that we can't be a silent witness to the sinking ship. We have the power, we have the ability to save this ship of life from sinking into disaster.

‘I don't mind. Anyone who has a green light, he shows green light. Someone who has a red light, he shows red light. Someone who has white light, he shows white light. So, whatever a man has, he wants to serve the people; he wants to serve his society, his nation, his friends from the knowledge of life that he has. So those warmonger nations, they have that destructive power. With that they want to serve the world. Fine, go ahead.

‘I have something which is peaceful, which is present, harmonious, very elegant, good. We offer that thing, that thing. So whatever we have with that we serve our society, that's all.

‘So, I welcome the press, if they have any questions. The press must have many questions, because they have been printing the news, thinking that the President of America, a great power, will save the world. So, whatever he does, press thinks he's doing right, the press publicizes. Fine, go ahead, publicize the destruction of the world. I invite the press, if they have any mind, for peaceful society. So they are welcome to ask their questions, and I'll be very happy to answer all these questions.

‘But I must go back to the introduction of today by Dr Hagelin. He has expressed all the values in favour of protection of life, prevention from disasters. Dr Hagelin has presented a preventive process in the field of administration in the world of destruction-predominant, massacre-predominant world created by these warmonger nations. They think they are wise, their wisdom will come forth: bring the population to ashes, destroy the world to ashes.

‘It will be my joy to entertain the ideas from the press, and we’ll think altogether what is really good for the world. Either we destroy the world and create a new world—maybe it will be a better world. Or we prevent this destruction, and let the world be Heaven on Earth. So let's have questions.’

Question: On the Power of Peace that Meditators Create

Dr Hagelin: ‘Yes, very good, Maharishi, there are a lot of questions from the press today coming in. The first appears to be from Newsweek magazine. And he read that according to a biography of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi found online, there are currently about five million practitioners of Transcendental Meditation worldwide. Should we already be feeling the positive results of such a large number of TM practitioners?’ 

Maharishi: ‘The power of peace that meditators in the world—five million as we have counted—have created will put this destructive power to vanish. In the same way as I always say, when the light is lit, the darkness will be over, the darkness will be over.

‘We have every right to see how the destructive power in the world rising against God's creation will not be successful. There was a Hitler in Germany. There were some more invaders in the past. But where are they? The world still continues and continues and continues. Let all these destroyers of the world know that they will not be here, but the world will continue. And we are trying to create a Heaven on Earth. So Heaven will continue; all these destructive means will simply vanish in the air.’

Question: How to Promote the Message of Peace

Dr Hagelin: ‘The next question is: “Maharishi, you seem to feel that the press will do a better job of understanding and promoting your message of peace than the governments have done. But the press and the government have a lot in common. They have the same educational backgrounds, the same stressful lives, the same financial and corporate and international pressures, and the same tendency to chase after problems rather than supporting prevention. What makes you think that the press will be able to respond to the solutions you are offering?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘Press is being paid by the government. For money, they promote the government—just for money, just for money. But when a better sense of life dawns in the collective consciousness of the world, they will not want bloody money; they'll go for purer money. Money can be earned in so many pure ways, rather than bloody money from the sale of arms or from the advertisements of the country. It's a matter of better sense, when it dawns.

‘But the time is coming now, the influence of harmony is going to be rising more and more, and all these patches of darkness that continue to exist in the world, they will begin to vanish with the onset of light here, here, here. Groups of people here, there, there, practicing Transcendental Meditation, practicing Yogic Flying, practicing Sidhi Sutras. They will be wiser, and they will be radiating wisdom of life; they will be radiating this preventive power of the almighty Natural Law. Whether they do it today or tomorrow or next day.’ 

Question: On Joining Other Prayer Groups to Create World Peace

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, this question is from a religious writer. “Many spiritual organizations and groups around the world focus on group activities to create world peace: group prayer, group meditations, group visualizations, group recitations. Why is yours different? Could all these different world-wide groups work together or be co-ordinated somehow to create a larger effect, maybe by practicing their programmes at the same specific time.’ 

Maharishi: ‘No, no, nothing. There is nothing in the world to compare with Transcendental Meditation. All the champions of prayers—we have heard the apologies of the Pope. Great champion of prayers, now praying to God for forgiveness for the misery, for the destruction that his organization has done in the past centuries in the world. . . .

‘We have to face the truth sometime. It's not my nature to criticize or to do some wrong to anyone. I'm not doing wrong to anyone. I'm just reminding the press of all the uselessness—not uselessness—the negativity that the great Popes, the leaders of a religion, have committed throughout the ages. To be frank, and plain and simple, like that, like that, like that. This is not the kind of prayer that we teach, no.’ 

Question: On Contacting the Government

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, from the Washington Post, Tasarah Wilts writes and asks: “Maharishi, are you saying that President Bush is a deceptive power? Have you contacted him directly with your proposal?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘I held a press conference in Washington so many times. If he doesn't hear them, that is his part; it's not my part. I'm not a known in America. . . . The great country is being led by very wrong sentiments. Very, very wrong, very, very, very, very wrong.’ 

Question: On Ahimsa, Non-Violence

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, this question is from Germany from the magazine, Gesunde Beselschaft. They asked if Maharishi would comment on the following quote from Hinduism Today. “Speaking at the celebration honouring the 83rd birthday of the Jain Saint, Acharya Mahapragya, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Susham Swaraj, said: “If only we could all accept Ahimsa, non-violence, it would help in destroying terrorism from its roots everywhere in the world.”

‘Referring to terrorist attacks in Jamnu and Kashmir, she said: “We have seen utmost efforts everywhere to put an end to the menace of terrorism. But everything would be solved only if we all adopt the concept of Ahimsa, non violence, as preached by our saints.” And this reporter was asking whether Maharishi had a comment on that quote about adopting Ahimsa.’ 

Maharishi: ‘Principle of Ahimsa is grand and very good. That is the principle of eternal peace. That is eternal peace. But peace requires strength to be perpetual. Ahimsa is in the hands of lifeless people today, completely lifeless. These words have no meaning today.

‘We want to create that coherent world consciousness, where Ahimsa will be a living reality, a strong living reality. . . .

‘I favour Ahimsa, but I'm going to create Ahimsa in the whole world. Ahimsa is a character of life. It's not a virtue; it's a character of life. It is interpreted in terms of live and let live, and all that, all that. Ahimsa is a great thing, but Ahimsa in the hands of the weak people, lifeless people, has no meaning, has no existence, has no influence, has no effect.’

Question: On Destruction

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, this is a follow-up question from Newsweek magazine reporter. He asked: “What about this Afghan war, the destruction of the Taliban terrorist organization through military forces? Would Maharishi comment on that?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘Anywhere, destruction is destruction. Anywhere, destruction is destruction. I'm not favouring the destruction of some man. In the same way I'm not favouring the destruction by the US in any country here there or anywhere. I'm dismissing destruction as being childish, ignorant of the advances in science and ignorant of the field of knowledge, field of consciousness, ignorant of the field of consciousness.

‘I cannot say, even to this mightiest government of USA, I cannot say that the government is right in destructing here and there. I dismiss the government! I'm speaking of a principle. American press may support the destruction and the President and the rule of America to destroy the world, but I cannot say that this is right.’

Question: The Result of Wrong Doing

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, there are quite a few questions that have come in from religious writers throughout the world. One says: “Maharishi has mentioned 'Hell' in recent press conferences, and has also said that ‘as you sew, so shall you reap’ . If wrong-doing returns to the wrong-doer eventually anyway, then what is Hell, what is the point of it? Is Hell a state in this world, or only in some afterlife?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘. . . I mean after death. This philosophy, my philosophy, is a dream for those who after death remain lying under the big stones in that yard. The whole philosophy is incomplete, ignorant and very, very—just incomplete and ignorant.

‘Hell is open to sin. Sinners go to Hell. Virtuous go to Heaven. Every religion has this, Hell and Heaven and Hell and Heaven.

‘Hell is open to those who do wrong things. All the destroyers of the world—for them—if there is a Hell, and they must belong to some religion, it must be Hell. According to their own religion, they have an open door to Hell. Those who are destroyers, wherever they are, whatever they are in life, end is going to come anyway. And then, Heaven—not Heaven—but Hell is open for them. It is there. The destroyers of the world in this life, they have a missile, they can create ashes in the human society, but they cannot escape the door of Hell. Finished.

‘Ask them, ask their mother, ask their father, ask their religious preachers, if the sinners go to Hell, if the sinners go to Hell. If they belong to a religion, then after death they remain under the care, under the pressure of a stone, that is not the reality. That religion is wrong in its totality, it's wrong.

‘That religion—religion means path to God. That is not the path to God; it is path to Hell. Whatever the religious writers, doesn't matter, whatever. They can earn their living by writing something, whatever, but reality is different.

‘Destroyers—everyone has to pass away; everyone has to pass away. But ‘till he passes away, he's advised to do the right thing to the people: help thy neighbour, support the sufferer, like that, like that. There are things everyone knows. We don't have to sit and preach that. But it's a misnomer that the present destroyer may think he's going to Heaven.’

Question: On Funding Peace Projects

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, some quick questions—a follow up again from Newsweek Magazine: “Which governments did Maharishi Mahesh Yogi seek help and funding from, during the past 15 years. At one point did their disengagement cause him to take up the project, to start the project on his own?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘This instance in New York made me tell the people of New York, that if they can collect an endowment of one billion, all future calamities can be prevented for the world to be a happy world. But no one replied to that. The conclusion that came to me is: that this thing is happening in a—what you call—capitalist country. And in the capitalist country, personal gain is the main motivator for any man to do anything—personal gain, personal gain. So, when I call for world peace, who is going to gain personally from world peace? “What is world peace going to give me?” That is the response of a capitalist country.

‘I had to keep away, and I had no hope that there will ever be any sensible man in United States, because it's a capitalist country. And world peace is a broad necessity of life on Earth. But who worries about the broad requirement of the world?

‘So, what I have created, what I have created for that capitalist country? I said: Alright, the leaders of the Movement created a means of earning for the wealthy people in the US, that they can invest money, and like in any business, they invest money and get the benefit. So there is a world-peace bond which has been considered—it's about to be floated and all. World-peace bond.

‘This may interest—may—this may interest the individuals or the corporations or the pension funds to buy the bond and get the interest, at the same time create peace and at the same time earn money. This is the policy that my people are adopting today. Because nothing will happen, unless the individual of a capitalist country is given some benefit. This is the benefit. This I'm telling you is how the psychology has gone to create a field of business, where wealthy people can buy the bonds, earn money from there, and then world peace will be created from that.

‘This might work. This they are starting just now, after so many months or some years of this expectation that the wealthy may. And now, we have seen the means of earning wealth in a capitalist country. So much of fraud, so much of ugly things. All are involved in it: President, Vice President, all the people involved in a big muddle of business, like that, like that, like that. This is the condition of a capitalist country. When we begin to think, then we find what is there, what is there, what is there.’

Question: The Role of the Press

Dr Hagelin: ‘Let me repeat a very important announcement: Maharishi announced the creation of world peace bonds, interest-bearing bonds, the revenues generated from which would go to create perpetual peace. Information about these world peace bonds, interest-bearing investments that are philanthropic-minded is available at www.globalcountry.org.

‘Maharishi, a follow-up from the Washington Post: to her previous question, Theresa Wilts asks: “Are you saying, Maharishi, that the US is plotting to destroy the rest of the world? Are you saying that this is deliberate, a deliberate goal? And how exactly does Maharishi see the American press as being complicit in this goal?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘American press is promoting the destruction of the world. Very simple! Washington Post may remember my conference so many months ago where I said: by killing the culprit, the crime doesn't come to an end. Every country has laws to punish, every country has laws to punish, but crime has not come to an end in any country. So, it's not through punishing the culprit that crime could be eliminated. It is from prevention.

‘Prevention-oriented value will be that education which will develop full brain-functioning, development of full brain. We have heard that the drinking habits, the eating wrong habits and all that, create big functioning holes in the brain. So, whatever you tell the man, he will not—he doesn't hear it; he's not able to, he's not able to hear it, he's not able to hear.

‘So, this kind of thing, if the press promotes virtue, in one day American press can tighten the government of America, throw it off balance, and bring the country, bring the nation out of sinning process. But as long as press is supporting sin—fine—support sin, destroy the world, and think that you are purifying the world by destroying the culprits.

‘Great writers, very great writers, great American writers, very great British writers—all these going together to support the crime of criminal tendency of the government of USA, criminal tendencies of the government of Britain, criminal tendency of the government of Germany. Press cannot think that they are not creating that and it is the government that is creating that. But you are supporting the government by publicizing all the great things about this, this, this, this.

‘The whole thing has to be redone, revised, brought on a more wise level. And the press can do it. Writers can do it—writers in the press. Because when the people read their paper, they make their ideas on that thing, and then they behave and all that.

‘It doesn't matter, doesn't matter, doesn't matter. My success does not depend on the press, even though I want the press to publicize good things. But world peace is not going to depend on the whims of the press. It will be on the basis of effectiveness of coherence in the world consciousness, effectiveness of coherence in the world consciousness. And all the wrong press of America and Britain in the name of patriotism, in the name of patriotism, in the name of patriotism. You take the country to Hell in the name of patriotism?’

Question: On Effect of Vedic Technologies

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, here's a question on American business: “US business is in a crisis. Leading companies have had to face bankruptcy and scandal, because of accounting scandals: Enron Corporation, KMart, Tyco, WorldCom and others. Is it possible to comment on the karma of American business? What is happening to cause these problems to be exposed at this time? What can we expect in US business when your Vedic technologies of consciousness are in place?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘Then nothing wrong will sprout in the country—negative things will not happen. Deceiving others will be absent; harming others will be absent. It is this money-mongerness that makes a man blind, and he doesn't know whether future is for him for Hell or Heaven or what, what. Very great ignorance, very great ignorance.

‘One can be in the darkness and break one’s head and bleed and all that, all that. But all that will finish, absolutely come to an end with the onset of light. Light a candle, and you live in Heaven, in Heaven.

‘I was drawn to America fifty years—or how many?—forty years ago, because I thought it's a country of science. And whatever is proven to be good, people go for it, people go for it. But now I found science is a fraud in America. It can only be used if it can kill. It can only be used if it can create Hiroshima here and there and there. It can only be if it can destroy Afghanistan, and all that. There may be reasons behind it, but the fact of bombing any nation, any nation, any nation, Middle East bombing, does not behove a strong nation. It will always be a blemish on it.

‘I'm saying all these strong words, I am knowing that I'm using all these strong words, but soft words I have spoken enough. When a man is in very deep sleep, you call him and you call him and you shake him little, little. But when he does not wake up, you have to give him big, big shakes. This is what I'm doing now after so many years. After so many years gently speaking, gently speaking, and not waking them up, I have to tell them: open gate to Hell, that's all—and all their supporters, and all their supporters!’

Question: On Establishing Groups to Create World Peace

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, here are a couple of practical questions on implementation. Number one: “How big is your group in India right now, and how soon do you think the group will be big enough for the world to feel an effect?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘The size of the group in India—Pandits— depends upon the money that we can give them. Vedic families don't earn money through the Vedic profession. They send their children to English schools, and they send their children to become a clerk somewhere, to become a bank manager somewhere, to become—. So the group in India cannot be said to be anything at anytime. It all depends upon how soon we can organize for them to have sustenance, sustenance. So, many values are there, so many values are there. I stand on the principle and hope, I stand on principle and hope.

‘I started the Movement of Transcendental Meditation all by myself—there was no second person. I had to convince individuals in this country, in that country, year after year, year after year, year after year. And now, I have to start on the same, convincing the nations, nations, nations, nations, nations. I have created that Global Country of World Peace, and then many countries are coming to join the Global Country of World Peace, but the process is slow.

‘I hope the press will take the principle of world peace far and wide, and very soon we'll have individuals in every country to join the whole thing, and create groups here, there, everywhere, like that, like that, like that.’

Question: Transcending

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, there are several questions from religious writers. One is: “Many in churches may want to know: if they do TM, where are they going when they transcend?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘They are going to the Unified Field, the basis of all creation, basis of all creation, basis of all creation.

‘Let us hear where they are going from our Minister of Enlightenment, Dr Bevan Morris. I would like Dr Bevan Morris to tell them where they will be going’

Dr Morris: ‘Thank you Maharishi. During the practice of Transcendental Meditation the active mind settles down to experience finer and finer states aspect of the thinking process, until it reaches the state where the mind is completely in its' most settled state, in the silent state of consciousness, or pure consciousness.

‘This is a very beautiful experience, for the more than 5 million people who practice Transcendental Meditation around the world. What they're experiencing in that most silent, most settled state of their own consciousness, is the basic field of the universe. They're experiencing, as Maharishi just said, the Unified Field of Natural Law, the basic universal, self referral field of Nature's intelligence, which is the source of all the streams of intelligence of Natural Law that administer the ever expanding universe. . . .’

Dr Morris goes on to describe the benefits of Transcendental Meditation and the growth of higher states of consciousness. He emphasized that experiencing transcendental consciousness, experiencing this most profound state of one’s own consciousness, enlivens total brain functioning in a single stroke. It awakens the totality of the brain, and this is seen in scientific research.

Question: On Role of Traditions in Vedic Civilization

Dr Hagelin: ‘There are quite a few, but there are a couple I think that would really be worth addressing if there is time. One has to do with the role of the native peoples of the world. The question is from Radio Hungary. “Maharishi has recently said that maintaining ancient national traditions are very important in the life of the nation. A lot of tradition-respecting races have had their ancient culture and heritage taken away by missionaries on the pretext that they were following barbaric, pagan ways. What part will nations with ancient traditions, both those that still have their traditions and those that had it taken away, what role will such nations play during and after Vedic civilization returns?”’ 

Maharishi: ‘With the return of Vedic civilization, there will be a return of knowledge-bound understanding, knowledge-bound behaviour, knowledge-bound society—knowledge-bound. That means total knowledge of Natural Law. Total knowledge of Natural Law—in the Vedic Literature there are forty values of the Veda, which details the forty values of knowledge. Total Knowledge has been divided into forty values, and all those forty values become lively in the transcendental consciousness.

‘The main thing is that the awareness of man during his early age of a student is to enliven that field of intelligence, which is total Natural Law. Total Natural Law has to be made lively, as Dr Morris just now said—total brain functioning, total brain functioning. Total brain functioning is not a gossip. The world press should see that the use of the total brain functioning through TM is not a gossip. It’s not a story; it's not a children's story that could be cast aside. On this basis we are creating a very, very lively, intelligent world consciousness.

‘Whether in this generation the press realizes it or not, but that is going to be a reality by the influence that it will create, the influence that it will create. Today's warmonger-news-creators, writers of all these great press, tomorrow they will find reason to plead the right sense of life, because of the influence of coherence that we are going to create in the world. It's the influence of coherence; it's not an intellectual replacement of sin by virtue. No, no, no. It's not an intellectual thing. It's a positive effect in the environment. Just as either you enter into a dark room or enter in into a lighted room.

‘So far education has been very damaging to life, because partial use of the brain physiology or full use of brain physiology—there is nothing in all these great universities of the world to give stimulus, to give encouragement to the brain—all the brain tissues, and all that, all that. It does not create a cosmic intelligence in man. That's why man is faltering here, faltering there, faltering here, faltering there. This is due to lack of Total Knowledge, education, that's all.

‘As you sew, so shall you reap. When you educate your children in a very haphazard way, don't train them to use their full brain, then they become older, and shoot on this, shoot on this, shoot on this, shoot on this. Then you say: “What is this happening, what is this, what is this happening?” It is your own doing. The way you culture the students, that is the way you put them on the behavioural level in society.

‘Education: Total Knowledge. Total Knowledge is in the Veda. It's such systematic unfoldment of pure consciousness, the field of Total Knowledge. This is Vedic Education. It's very good. That will create the effect. I'm emphasizing on creating the effect.’

Question: Fulfilling the Hopes of the Religious People

Dr Hagelin: ‘Maharishi, this is a very interesting question. It says: “Many religious groups expect a saviour, or an incarnation of God to return to Earth to save the world from suffering and destruction. Yet you are indicating that your large groups will accomplish this goal by awakening the Will of God on Earth. How do your plans relate to the expectations of these religious groups? And what would you say to them about their hopes for an incarnation?” ’ 

Maharishi: ‘Their hopes will be fulfilled. All the religious groups, their prayers will be fulfilled. Their true sense of behavioural patterns will be fulfilled. They will all find fulfilment as the world consciousness becomes purer and purer and purer and purer.

‘So, the time of their fulfilment is coming, and it's a great news for them. It's a great news for them that the time is coming for the fulfilment of their desires, fulfilment of their hopes, fulfilment of their religion that the Will of God will be, as they always pray, “[Thy] will be on Earth as it is in Heaven” and all that, all that.

‘All the hopes of the religious programmes, hopes of the religious prayers—all that is going to be fulfilled whatever has been the past. We don't mind that darkness existed in the past. We are now to bring the light, that's all. Darkness will not be found.

‘So, fulfilment is the sign. It may be seen from a distance now, but it has come in the vision. And now as days go by, it will come nearer and nearer and nearer and nearer to be practised by all. So, there is a great hope for all the religious people, for all the religious writers.’

Dr Hagelin: ‘Thank you very much, Maharishi, for that beautiful vision of hope of the rule of Natural Law, the Will of God returning to earth, a development that is already within vision, Maharishi had said. We'd like to thank His Holiness Maharishi Mahesh Yogi very, very much on behalf of the global press for addressing all of their questions and their issues and concerns today.’