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Extreme City: Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa
August 29, 2009 by Sherri Granato

Capital of the Global Country of World Peace

Iowa is often referred to as the American Heartland so it comes as no surprise that a vast amount of people would find a peaceful refuge within its borders, or at least within one of the cities located within the state. The city of Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa named for the famed yogi Maharishi, Maharishi Vedic City is the fastest-growing city in all of Iowa. So the question is why are people suddenly flocking to this small community in leaps and bounds, and is it worthy of sharing?

The Travel Channel decided to investigate what they dub an “Extreme Town” for themselves and share their discoveries with anyone who cares to know the hidden secrets and vast treasures that are luring citizens into relocating to the Midwest region of the United States. So pull up a chair and learn a little bit about Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa, and “Welcome to the Capital of the Global Country of World Peace”.

The city itself is spectacular in the fact that it is squeaky clean and virtually crime free. The Travel Channel was so enamored by their findings that they included the city on their list of most unique zip codes and brought it to television for viewers to catch a glimpse of something you wouldn’t otherwise believe.

The unbelievable part is that every person that lives within the city limits of Maharishi Vedic City happens to practice Vedic Natural Law, which is in layman’s terms an ancient Indian science focusing on transcendental meditation. The ultimate goal in this practice is nothing more than a deep mental cleansing and physical peace that is practiced for 15 to 20 minutes twice a day. The ending result leads to revitalization and happy thoughts that are free and clear of stressful situations.

From the beginning the original idea of the city was the master plan of San Francisco real estate developer Chris Johnson. In 1991 his idea evolved into a working municipality centered on the principles and teachings of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, including his views on architectural design.

Due to his vision the town offers homes all facing toward the east, clean cut lines, beautiful in nature, and all offer a gold colored kalash on the roof. Since 2001, the population has grown ten times its original size with 1,200 residents now calling it home.

The significance of the kalash on top of the house is that it completes the desired form. The mental peace one finds in the heart of a temple whose top is a dome-shaped kalash and having a kalash placed on the peak most obviously testifies the importance of the roof-component of Vedic architecture. All homes built in the city must face the east simply because the design promotes health, happiness, and good fortune.

Maharishi Vedic City is made up of a ring of ten circles covering slightly more than one square mile, the town has its own observatory with ancient astrological and astronomical instruments to orient itself within the cosmos. City leaders and educators recognize that the solution too many problems with today’s youths is a lack of proper education that develops the total brain potential in every child.

With this in mind the city developed an ordinance on January 28, 2004, to establish Maharishi Vedic University to provide a public university, colleges, and primary and secondary schools for the city’s residents. Just a few miles south of the city is Fairfield, Iowa, the home of Maharishi University of Management, formerly known as Maharishi International University.

Many residents moved to Fairfield to participate in the practice of Transcendental Meditation. The university campus, located on the north side of Fairfield, is home to two large golden domes used for the group practice of TM-Sidhi program. The other technique, referred to as the Yogic Flying technique consists of sitting in the cross-legged lotus position on a foam mat while the body lifts up and the subject moves forward in short jumps.

Living in Maharishi Vedic City is for anyone that wishes to live the remainder of their life on Earth stress free. The whole city enforces this notion by the way that the citizens do things day to day. Everything from the local businesses to the schools and restaurants are geared to maintain inner peace throughout a life style that is the choice of the people living there.

Everyone including school children stop what they are doing to meditate 15-20 minutes per day, everyday, twice a day. The mind is then cleared of lack luster debris, replaced by positive thoughts that promote all things good and wholesome.

The Raj Ayurveda Health Center offers comfortable lovely rooms, organic vegetarian food, and is simply one of a kind as it sits in the middle of a cornfield is this oasis. The health center explains everything you ever wanted to know about ayurvedic and transcendental meditation.

Visitors learn how individual factors in their make-up affect physical tendencies, moods, cravings, motivation, and behavior. The ultimate lesson from visiting the center is simple shifts in diet, exercise, and daily and seasonal routines can enhance their progress toward increased strength, stability and vitality. Contact the Raj for individual and group rates. Call: (641) 472-9580, ext. 0, or email: theraj@lisco.net.

As for the dietary plan of the good citizens of Maharishi Vedic City, Organic is in, and synthetic chemicals are out! Even the restaurants support the beliefs of the residents by only cooking with the purist of ingredients. City officials recognize the importance of healthy food for the citizens and have banned the sale of all non-organic food from its city. Construction has begun on the first of a planned 100 acres of greenhouses at Maharishi Vedic City Organic Farms which will grow organic produce for residents of the City and Midwest.

The city has been featured in various media venues from newspapers, magazines, radio, and news and most recently on the Travel Channel under Extreme Cities. For more information on the traditions being practiced in the American Heartland, go to: http://tinyurl.com/mo2326.

Places of Interest to Visit: the Rukmapura Hotel, a large Stapatyavedic, log-built hotel and see the nearby Pandit Campus, where nearly 1000 Pandits from India help create peace and harmony in the world.

http://tinyurl.com/msvfwr

Extreme City: Maharishi Vedic City, Iowa
Neighborhood: American Heartland
Maharishi Vedic City, IA 52556
United States of America