MERU, Holland
Encyclopedia
MERU, Holland, is a residential and office complex which includes the residence of the late Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
, a capital of the Global Country of World Peace
, a campus of Maharishi European Research University (MERU), and other institutions of the Transcendental Meditation movement
. It occupies the forested grounds of the former Kolleg St. Ludwig (Saint Ludwig College), a Franciscan monastery and boarding school.
The site is near the villages of Vlodrop-station
and Vlodrop
in Limburg
, the Netherlands
, adjacent to the Dutch-German border and the defunct Iron Rhine railroad, and surrounded by Meinweg National Park
.
The main structure was built in 1909 and the college operated with interruptions until sold in 1979. The Maharishi Foundation bought it in 1984, and the Maharishi moved there in 1990. He occupied a large residence built to his specifications from 1992 until his death in 2008.
Maharishi European Research University was founded in 1975 in Switzerland where it still has a campus. It has conducted and published research on Transcendental Meditation
and related technologies. Several other institutions are also based there.
Due to the anti-Catholic Kulturkampf
policy of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck
, many monasteries moved from Germany to the other side of the German-Dutch border. A group of Franciscan brothers from Saxony
purchased the land from the owner of a castle in the southern Limburg region
of the Netherlands.
The seminary building was designed by a monk and featured 600 doors and 1,200 windows, all covered by 17000 square metres (4.2 acre) of roof. Started in 1904 and completed in 1909, it was completely self-sufficient, with its own generators, workshops, wells, fields and orchards. A small-gauge railroad was built first to transport building materials and then to carry the 300 tons of coke
used annually for heating.
It was evacuated during World War II and reopened as a school in 1951. It closed in 1978. It was attended by over 3,000 male students.
The building was the Maharishi's residence for the last two decades of his life. In later years, the Maharishi rarely left his two-room quarters in order to preserve his health and energy. He used videoconferencing to communicate with the world and with his advisors, including those in the same building. The site is equipped with satellite dishes for video uplink to the movement's private television channel. Built to the highest Maharishi Sthapatya Veda
standards, the Maharishi is reported to have said that "the walls of this celebrated building ... in no way enclose his unbounded cosmic awareness". He said it helped him infuse "the light of Total Knowledge" into "the destiny of the human race".
It contains the throne room where the Maharishi met with his ministers. By 1996, it was being referred to as the "Maharishi Continental Capital of the Age of Enlightenment for Europe". Tony Nader
was crowned Maharaja Raja Raam there in 2001, and it is now a capital of the Global Country of World Peace. Floodlights illuminated the main building, and 164 flagpoles carried the flags of the individual nations of the GCWP. A spokesman said, "It's like a meditation-based United Nations." Local authorities later limited the use of floodlights and required removal of the flagpoles. The building is a tourist attraction, though security is tight.
, and Doug Henning
.
There is a plan to build a Maharishi Tower of Invincibility on the site, one of dozens planned for construction around the world. A ground-breaking ceremony was held in 2008, shortly before the Maharishi's death. A movement website shows plans for the eight-story tower and other buildings. Another website says that the tower has received initial approval.
Aerial photographs show the development of the site. In 1998, the overall redevelopment plan for the location was budgeted at USD 50 million.
, Switzerland in 1975. Its purpose is to conduct research into the effects of Transcendental Meditation and higher states of consciousness. The original campus was in a Victorian-era hotel above Lake Lucerne
. The first chancellor was physicist Larry Domash; David Orme Johnson was the vice-chancellor. Institutions bearing the MERU name have also operated at Mentmore Towers
, an estate in Buckinghamshire
, England, and at Bissendorf
, Germany.
Notable alumni include Bevan Morris
, Ashley Deans
, Neil Paterson
, Mike Tompkins
, and possibly John Gray
. As of 2010, eight of the thirty-eight members of the Board of Trustees of Maharishi University of Management
(Iowa) are MERU alumni, including the president and vice president.
Stichting Maharishi Global Financing Research, which issued the GCWP's RAAM
currency, is also located at MERU. So is the Council of Supreme Intelligence of Maharishi's Global Administration through Natural Law.
. In 2005, a week-long inauguration of the "Dawn of Sat-Yuga
" was held by the Maharishi with 2000 movement leaders from around the world. The Maharishi's 2006 "Parliament of World Peace" was held simultaneously in MERU and at the Brahmasthan of India over a five week period. Guru Poornima
celebrations have also been held there.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , born Mahesh Prasad Varma , developed the Transcendental Meditation technique and was the leader and guru of the TM movement, characterised as a new religious movement and also as non-religious...
, a capital of the Global Country of World Peace
Global Country of World Peace
The Global Country of World Peace was declared by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder and guru of the Transcendental Meditation movement, on Vijayadashami , October 7, 2000. He described it as "a country without borders for peace loving people everywhere"...
, a campus of Maharishi European Research University (MERU), and other institutions of the Transcendental Meditation movement
Transcendental Meditation movement
The Transcendental Meditation movement is a world-wide organization, sometimes characterised as a neo-Hindu new religious movement, founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in the 1950s...
. It occupies the forested grounds of the former Kolleg St. Ludwig (Saint Ludwig College), a Franciscan monastery and boarding school.
The site is near the villages of Vlodrop-station
Vlodrop-station
Vlodrop-station is a hamlet in the Dutch province of Limburg. It is located on the German border, about 5 km east of the village Vlodrop....
and Vlodrop
Vlodrop
Vlodrop is a town in the south-eastern part of The Netherlands in the municipality of Roerdalen. The town is situated near the German border, about 8 km southeast of Roermond....
in Limburg
Limburg (Netherlands)
Limburg is the southernmost of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands. It is located in the southeastern part of the country and bordered by the province of Gelderland to the north, Germany to the east, Belgium to the south and part of the west, andthe Dutch province of North Brabant partly to...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, adjacent to the Dutch-German border and the defunct Iron Rhine railroad, and surrounded by Meinweg National Park
Meinweg National Park
Meinweg National Park is a national park in Limburg, Netherlands. It is about 1800 hectares in size and was established in 1995. It is a part of the German-Dutch border park Maas-Swalm-Nette, covering 10,000 hectares ....
.
The main structure was built in 1909 and the college operated with interruptions until sold in 1979. The Maharishi Foundation bought it in 1984, and the Maharishi moved there in 1990. He occupied a large residence built to his specifications from 1992 until his death in 2008.
Maharishi European Research University was founded in 1975 in Switzerland where it still has a campus. It has conducted and published research on Transcendental Meditation
Transcendental Meditation
Transcendental Meditation refers to the Transcendental Meditation technique, a specific form of mantra meditation, and to the Transcendental Meditation movement, a spiritual movement...
and related technologies. Several other institutions are also based there.
Kolleg St. Ludwig
Kulturkampf
The German term refers to German policies in relation to secularity and the influence of the Roman Catholic Church, enacted from 1871 to 1878 by the Prime Minister of Prussia, Otto von Bismarck. The Kulturkampf did not extend to the other German states such as Bavaria...
policy of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
, many monasteries moved from Germany to the other side of the German-Dutch border. A group of Franciscan brothers from Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
purchased the land from the owner of a castle in the southern Limburg region
Limburg (Netherlands)
Limburg is the southernmost of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands. It is located in the southeastern part of the country and bordered by the province of Gelderland to the north, Germany to the east, Belgium to the south and part of the west, andthe Dutch province of North Brabant partly to...
of the Netherlands.
The seminary building was designed by a monk and featured 600 doors and 1,200 windows, all covered by 17000 square metres (4.2 acre) of roof. Started in 1904 and completed in 1909, it was completely self-sufficient, with its own generators, workshops, wells, fields and orchards. A small-gauge railroad was built first to transport building materials and then to carry the 300 tons of coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
used annually for heating.
It was evacuated during World War II and reopened as a school in 1951. It closed in 1978. It was attended by over 3,000 male students.
Maharishi Foundation purchase
The Franciscans sold the property to the Dutch government for use as a police training facility but it was never put to use. The Maharishi Foundation purchased the property in 1984 for USD 900,000. It became the Maharishi's headquarters and residence in 1990.Maharishi residence
The Maharishi's former residence is two stories tall and faces due east. Built in 1992, it is the largest wooden structure in Holland and was constructed without using any nails at "vast expense". One reporter described it as "reminiscent both of a Scandinavian sauna and the Taj Mahal", while another called it a "giant pagodastyle wooden palace".The building was the Maharishi's residence for the last two decades of his life. In later years, the Maharishi rarely left his two-room quarters in order to preserve his health and energy. He used videoconferencing to communicate with the world and with his advisors, including those in the same building. The site is equipped with satellite dishes for video uplink to the movement's private television channel. Built to the highest Maharishi Sthapatya Veda
Maharishi Sthapatya Veda
Maharishi Sthapatya Veda is a set of architectural and planning principles assembled by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi based on "ancient Sanskrit texts" Maharishi Sthapatya Veda architecture is also called "Maharishi Vastu" architecture, "Fortune-Creating" buildings and homes, and "Maharishi Vedic...
standards, the Maharishi is reported to have said that "the walls of this celebrated building ... in no way enclose his unbounded cosmic awareness". He said it helped him infuse "the light of Total Knowledge" into "the destiny of the human race".
It contains the throne room where the Maharishi met with his ministers. By 1996, it was being referred to as the "Maharishi Continental Capital of the Age of Enlightenment for Europe". Tony Nader
Tony Nader
Tony Abu Nader is a Lebanese neuro-physiologist, the president of both Maharishi University of Management in Holland and Maharishi Open University, and was designated the 'First Sovereign Ruler' of the 'Global Country of World Peace'. After receiving his medical degree in internal medicine and...
was crowned Maharaja Raja Raam there in 2001, and it is now a capital of the Global Country of World Peace. Floodlights illuminated the main building, and 164 flagpoles carried the flags of the individual nations of the GCWP. A spokesman said, "It's like a meditation-based United Nations." Local authorities later limited the use of floodlights and required removal of the flagpoles. The building is a tourist attraction, though security is tight.
Demolition of College building
The original College building is old, inefficient, and in poor repair. It also does not meet Maharishi Sthapatya Veda standards, including a requirement to face due east. Local preservationists applied for landmark status for the building, and it was declared a national monument in 1997. In 1998, the owners received a permit from the local government to demolish the building, but preservationists appealed. The owners started tearing down the building on September 12, 2001, immediately after a court ruled that it must be preserved. The demolition was halted quickly and the partially-dismantled structure is still standing, as of 2010. A three-storey, nearly life-sized canvas illustration of the intended replacement building was put up on the front side of the partially demolished building. The local government later ordered its removal. According to a 2008 new report, the MERU Foundation has indicated it may leave the site if is it not granted permission to demolish the old building.Other buildings
As of 2006, about 50 followers of the Maharishi live on the property in temporary huts. A 2007 press release says that 12 Raja palaces have been constructed on the site. Leading members of the TM movement have lived or visited there, including Tony Nader (Raja Ram), John HagelinJohn Hagelin
John Samuel Hagelin is an American particle physicist, three-time candidate of the Natural Law Party for President of the United States , and the director of the Transcendental Meditation movement for the US....
, and Doug Henning
Doug Henning
Douglas James Henning was a Canadian magician, illusionist, escape artist and politician.-Early life:...
.
There is a plan to build a Maharishi Tower of Invincibility on the site, one of dozens planned for construction around the world. A ground-breaking ceremony was held in 2008, shortly before the Maharishi's death. A movement website shows plans for the eight-story tower and other buildings. Another website says that the tower has received initial approval.
Aerial photographs show the development of the site. In 1998, the overall redevelopment plan for the location was budgeted at USD 50 million.
Maharishi European Research University
Maharishi European Research University (MERU) was founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in SeelisbergSeelisberg
Seelisberg is a municipality in the canton of Uri in Switzerland.-History:The Rütli meadow, according to legend the site of the original oath foundational to the Old Swiss Confederacy, is situated in the territory of the municipality....
, Switzerland in 1975. Its purpose is to conduct research into the effects of Transcendental Meditation and higher states of consciousness. The original campus was in a Victorian-era hotel above Lake Lucerne
Lake Lucerne
Lake Lucerne is a lake in central Switzerland and the fourth largest in the country.The lake has a complicated shape, with bends and arms reaching from the city of Lucerne into the mountains. It has a total area of 114 km² , an elevation of 434 m , and a maximum depth of 214 m . Its volume is 11.8...
. The first chancellor was physicist Larry Domash; David Orme Johnson was the vice-chancellor. Institutions bearing the MERU name have also operated at Mentmore Towers
Mentmore Towers
Mentmore Towers is a 19th century English country house in the village of Mentmore in Buckinghamshire. The house was designed by Joseph Paxton and his son-in-law, George Henry Stokes, in the revival Elizabethan and Jacobean style of the late 16th century called Jacobethan, for the banker and...
, an estate in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, England, and at Bissendorf
Bissendorf
Bissendorf is a municipality in the district of Osnabrück, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 9 km southeast of Osnabrück. Population 14,404 ....
, Germany.
Notable alumni include Bevan Morris
Bevan Morris
Bevan G. Morris is the president of Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, President of the Global Country of World Peace, President of Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation, Prime Minister of the United States Peace Government, President of the Maharishi World Peace...
, Ashley Deans
Ashley Deans
Ashley Deans is Professor of Consciousness-Based Education at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa and Executive Director of Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment...
, Neil Paterson
Neil Paterson (politician)
Neil Paterson is a politician, former leader of the Natural Law Party of Canada, a senior official of the Transcendental Meditation movement, and majority owner of Global Gold Corporation.-Personal life:...
, Mike Tompkins
Mike Tompkins
Mike Tompkins is a U.S. politician who was the Natural Law Party vice presidential candidate during the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections.-Education and career:...
, and possibly John Gray
John Gray (U.S. author)
John Gray is an American relationship counselor, lecturer and author who has several university degrees received under a variety of circumstances. In 1969, he began a nine year association with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi before beginning his career as an author and personal relationship counselor...
. As of 2010, eight of the thirty-eight members of the Board of Trustees of Maharishi University of Management
Maharishi University of Management
Maharishi University of Management , formerly known as Maharishi International University, is a non-profit, American university, located in Fairfield, Iowa. It was founded in 1973 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and features a "consciousness-based education" system that includes the practice of the...
(Iowa) are MERU alumni, including the president and vice president.
Other institutions
The property also houses Maharishi Vedic University (MVU), Maharishi University of Management (MUM), Maharishi College of Perfect Health, Maharishi Open University (MOU), and Maharishi Purusha Programme. MOU is a distance learning institution that presents video lectures via satellite TV and webcasts. There are other MVC and MUM institutions in other countries.Stichting Maharishi Global Financing Research, which issued the GCWP's RAAM
RAAM
RAAM, or Raam is a bearer bond and local currency issued by Stichting Maharishi Global Financing Research , a charitable foundation based in MERU, Holland. It is also the "global development currency" of the Global Country of World Peace...
currency, is also located at MERU. So is the Council of Supreme Intelligence of Maharishi's Global Administration through Natural Law.
Events
According to movement sources, a number of large gatherings have been held at MERU. The first meeting of the movement's "World Federation of Traditional Leaders" was held at MERU in 2000 and attended by Zulu King Goodwill ZwelithiniGoodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu
Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu is the reigning king of the Zulu nation under the Traditional Leadership clause of South Africa's republican constitution....
. In 2005, a week-long inauguration of the "Dawn of Sat-Yuga
Satya Yuga
The Satya Yuga , also called Sat Yuga, Krta Yuga and Krita Yuga in Hinduism, is the "Yuga of Truth", when mankind is governed by gods, and every manifestation or work is close to the purest ideal and mankind will allow intrinsic goodness to rule supreme...
" was held by the Maharishi with 2000 movement leaders from around the world. The Maharishi's 2006 "Parliament of World Peace" was held simultaneously in MERU and at the Brahmasthan of India over a five week period. Guru Poornima
Guru Purnima
Guru Purnima is a festival traditionally celebrated by Hindus and Buddhists.On this day, disciples offer puja or pay respect to their Guru . It falls on the day of full moon, Purnima, in the month of Ashadh of the Shaka Samvat, Indian national calendar and Hindu calendar...
celebrations have also been held there.