(11 February 2003) His Holiness Maharishi Mahesh Yogi offered every head of state a practical formula to create lasting peace in today’s strife-ridden world: Contract with his Global Country of World Peace to establish groups of peace-creating experts in their countries, and pass a law to bring his peace-promoting Vedic education to every student.

Maharishi also invited the support of philanthropists to immediately establish a group of 40,000 specially trained, peace-creating Vedic experts in India to raise world consciousness to a high level of harmony and coherence in order to prevent the sprouting up of any conflict or negativity anywhere on the globe.

"Even one philanthropist can transform our dear world overnight," Maharishi said.

Maharishi’s announcement came during his weekly global news conference last Wednesday, which was broadcast live via satellite, Internet webcast, and teleconference call to media on all continents. Maharishi’s next news conferences will be held on Wednesday, 12 February, and Thursday, 13 February 2003.

Maharishi’s offer to governments comes after nearly 50 years of bringing enlightenment to millions of individuals throughout the world through his Transcendental Meditation technique and publication of hundreds of scientific research studies verifying the effectiveness of his programmes. Now, Maharishi is bringing his programmes to governments. "We are more confident than ever that if we have the resources, we can create in our dear world family a new order of happiness, prosperity and peace," Maharishi said.

At the foundation of Maharishi’s world peace plan is the complete scientific knowledge of Natural Law. "Natural Law administers the trillions of suns, planets, moons, and stars in the ever-expanding galactic universe with perfect order and without a problem," Maharishi said. "So why can’t a small population of six billion people on earth enjoy the same supreme level of efficiency and effectiveness as the Administration of Natural Law?"

Maharishi said that such administration is now possible, and it only requires that a government contract with the Global Country of World Peace to establish groups of peace-creating experts in their country. "These groups will engage Higher Intelligence to create coherent national consciousness – the basis of prevention-oriented, problem-free administration," Maharishi said.

Maharishi added that governments, which already make laws that require students to learn a language such as English or Spanish, should also make a law for students to develop higher states of consciousness through the Consciousness-based approach of Vedic education. "Then every student will develop total brain functioning and enliven their cosmic creative potential," Maharishi said. "Everyone in the nation will enjoy perfect health and rise to higher states of consciousness. Everyone will think and act spontaneously in harmony with the evolutionary power of Natural Law – and no one will create problems for himself or others."

Maharishi’s world peace plan also calls for establishing 3,000 Peace Palaces in the world’s largest 3,000 cities, including 51 in the UK, to serve as lighthouses of coherence for the city, the nation, and collectively, the whole world. The Peace Palaces will each be home to 100 to 200 peace-creating experts, as well as home to a campus of Maharishi University of World Peace, where local citizens will take courses in Total Natural Law for all areas of society, and students will be trained as future leaders in the science and technology of creating prevention-oriented, problem-free administration.

Maharishi said that the failure of governments to prevent problems makes it clear that they have to try something new. Maharishi cited crime as an example. "Punishing criminals is not the answer to crime. Punishment has existed throughout history but crime continues today. The answer to crime is for governments to adopt something previously unknown in order to produce an effect they have been unable to produce in the past: a crime-free society. For that, it is time for governments to adopt Vedic knowledge of Natural Law, including Vedic education to promote enlightenment; Vedic health care to prevent disease and promote perfect health; and Vedic defence to promote coherent collective consciousness and prevent the sprouting of negativity anywhere in the world."

Maharishi acknowledged that his words are beyond the grasp of people in the world. "There are so many problems and so much suffering everywhere – and then I am heard saying that a new time of happiness, prosperity, and peace is coming for all mankind. It’s like a man who proclaims in the pitch darkness of midnight, ‘The dawn is coming.’ Who believes him? But our strength is that what we are saying is simple, true, and in accordance with the evolutionary nature of life."

Maharishi concluded his news conference by saying that governments, in their parental role for their nations, are destined to sign contracts with the Global Country of World Peace. "Every head of state, in his quiet moments, thinks, ‘What more can I do for my people?’ Every leader wants to promote peace, happiness, prosperity, and health in the life of his people. Our programme of prevention-oriented, problem-free administration will bring the support of the almighty, merciful, invincible power of Natural Law – the Will of God – to fulfil the dreams of every government. All governments are destined to come to this knowledge. There is no doubt about it. It is only a matter of whether it is today or tomorrow."