Mahesh Yogi wants to build a World Capital of Peace in Kansas. But before that he has to contend with 1,800 conservative Christians.
WASHINGTON DC: There is a new buzz in a sleepy town called Smith Centre in the heart of the American mid-west. And it is not sending out a positive vibe in Kansas, the state that is usually called the Bible belt of the country.
This town with a population of 1,757 (July 2004 data) is now coming into the national spotlight after the India-born founder of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) movement, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, purchased land to build what his foundation is calling the World Capital of Peace, where group’s meditators will send “waves of coherence” across the country.
The meditation group will spend around $15 million on this project, and will erect several buildings, including a retreat, a training centre, meditation centres, a broadcast studio, and residences for members of the group and guests.
For many cities, a big investment like this one would have brought cheers – not at Smith Centre. This predominantly Christian town with 98.8 per cent of its population being white non-hispanic feels that TM is nothing more than a cult.
Farmer Bryce Wiehl was quoted in a USA Today report saying: “You are in the Bible belt, and this is a Hindu-based religion. People don’t like that idea.” Another resident Greg Judy, who belongs to the Faith Community Bible Church, said: “These beliefs are not compatible with Christianity.”
The mayor of the town, however, told USA Today: “The town is very divided, but we are looking at it with open eyes and open minds.”
Meanwhile, the report also said that Eric Michener, 54, is helping coordinate the TM project. He told the newspaper: “I’ve heard people say we are some type of satanic cult. I would love to meet with anyone who is concerned about what we are really about.” The Maharishi is reportedly building “peace palaces” around the world where members of the foundation will meditate to reduce crime and conflict. One of the cities he has chosen to erect a peace palace is New York.
Judy, who is a prominent religious figure in Smith Centre, says that the town will undertake a petition drive to ask the Maharishi “to stay away.” TM movement member Michener, meanwhile, told the paper that the TMers who move here will prove they're not a cult, that they are not against Christianity, and can be good neighbours.
Born Mahesh Srivastava in 1917 in the Jabalpur, Rajasthan, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi became an international figure in the 1960s when he founded the TM movement, and when The Beatles became his students.
They left the movement after Mahesh Yogi allegedly made a pass at one of the female members of their entourage. Band member John Lennon later wrote a song Sexy Sadie to highlight this disappointment.
Other prominent followers of the TM movement include the rock band The Beach Boys and Oscar-winning actor and director Clint Eastwood. Mahesh Yogi currently lives in the Netherlands.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}