Press Trust of India
August 29, 2005
(Distributed to 2000 newspapers and television stations throughout India)

Blame the bad layout—or Vastu—of India’s Parliament building for fueling political infighting, impeding governmental progress, and wasting taxpayer money.

This is the expert opinion of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of the worldwide Transcendental Meditation movement, who is alerting Indian government leaders that a basic cause of their constant fighting over the problems of the nation is because they are holding meetings in a Parliament building with a wrong Vastu. "I have been telling the government the same thing for the past 20-30 years," Maharishi said. "Nothing good can ever come from the government as long as it is in a bad Vastu."

Maharishi delivered his message to the Indian press during a global news conference from his headquarters in Meru, Holland.

According to Maharishi, the science of Vastu reveals that layout and orientation have a powerful influence on the occupants of a home or office building. An eastern entrance facing the rising sun is good because it promotes orderly thinking, harmonious relations, and success. North is also good. But an entrance facing south or west—or an entrance skewed in between—is bad. These buildings promote disorderly thinking, conflict, negativity, and widespread problems.

For this reason, Maharishi wants India’s leaders to abandon all wrongly laid-out buildings—as if an earthquake had hit the buildings. "These buildings should be immediately rebuilt with a proper layout, according to the principles of the Vedic knowledge of architecture in harmony with Natural Law—Sthapatya Veda," Maharishi said.

Maharishi said it is easy to determine whether the layout of a building has a good or bad influence. "People can verify it for themselves," Maharishi said. "If they are living in a building with a south entrance or a west entrance or an entrance that is ‘tilted’ (e.g. southwest or northeast) they will find themselves shrouded in unrest, fears, and problems. If their house faces east they will enjoy harmony, happiness, and prosperity."

Maharishi also said that there are no exceptions to the rule. "Even a beautiful parliament building made of marble, which has been designed by a famous architect, should be demolished if it has a wrong layout," Maharishi said. "Otherwise, the mind of the president, prime minister, and his ministers will never be settled—their thinking will always be disorderly and off-balance."

Maharishi said that the nation will thrive when government leaders live and work in Vastu offices and residences. And families will enjoy greater prosperity, improved relations, and more happiness when they move to Vastu homes.

Recent scientific research documents that brain neurons fire more coherently when an individual faces east than when he faces south or west. "How coherently a man’s brain functions is the basis of how coherently he thinks and behaves," Maharishi said.

Maharishi emphasized that his advice is based not on manmade architectural principles but rather on the eternal Veda—the "Unified Field" as it is known of modern physics—which administers the infinite diversity of the universe with perfect order. "What we are saying has absolute authority—that means it is true for all times, in every place, and for everyone," Maharishi said.

Ironically, Maharishi acknowledged that the leaders may not be able to understand and act on his call to abandon their wrongly laid out buildings simply because they are living and working in bad Vastu.

So, to prevent the negative influences of bad Vastu, Maharishi recently launched his Global Reconstruction Program and invited builders in every country to begin building in every city Peace Colonies, composed of "fortune-creating" homes and offices, and Peace Palaces to teach Maharishi’s Vedic-science based programs to the whole population.

"Now, with this knowledge, builders can stop building ‘unlucky’ buildings that produce problems and difficulties for the people and instead quickly build ‘fortune-creating’ homes, office buildings, schools, hospitals, and factories in harmony with Natural Law," Maharishi said. "In this way, builders can eliminate the unseen basis of so many problems."

And if someone is a nonbeliever? "Ultimately, the proof of the pudding is in the tasting," Maharishi said. "Demolish your present building and build a new one according to Vastu, and see how quickly you begin to thrive—see how quickly you begin to make more money, have better relations, and enjoy more success in your life. These are the benefits of good Vastu."

Good: The layout of the building should be aligned north/south, east/west

Good: An entrance facing east is auspicious and produces a positive influence of coherence, affluence, and fulfillment

Bad: A "tilted" layout of the house (for example, southeast or northwest) is always inauspicious

Bad: An entrance facing south produces a destructive influence of problems, mistakes, and suffering