Consciousness-Based Education - Maharishi University of ...

CONSCIOUSNESS-BASED EDUCATION AND Governmenting ever awake within itself. And since it creates and administers everyaspect of the universe, it is also, in Maharishi’s account, the home of allthe laws of nature 2 that maintain the orderliness of every level of life.In this introductory paragraph, Maharishi extends political theorybeyond the boundaries of day-to-day governance to include the administrationof the entire universe. Such an introduction might suggest apurely philosophical approach, with perhaps little practical application,but as we will later see, Maharishi’s theory of government includes ascientifically verified technology for engaging this field of intelligence tosolve the day-to-day problems that confront modern governments.Before examining the practical application of Maharishi’s system ofgovernment, let us briefly introduce the Rāmāyaṇ, and then considerhow this field of pure intelligence at the unmanifest basis of creation isdescribed in this ancient text.The Vālmīki RāmāyaṇMaharishi’s Absolute Theory of Government locates its source in theeternal Vedic 3 tradition of India. During his more than fifty years ofteaching around the world, Maharishi brought to light the essentialprinciples of the Vedic tradition, correcting long-standing misunderstandingsand providing a complete science of human intelligence thatcan be applied to enhance any modern discipline or profession.Among the most significant aspects of the Vedic literature is theVālmīki Rāmāyaṇ, 4 a magnificent epic describing the adventures ofan ancient king named Rām. Along with his wife Sītā and brotherLakshmaṇ, Rām traveled in exile for fourteen years before encounteringand destroying a great demon (Rāvaṇ), who had brought sufferingthroughout the land. After subduing Rāvaṇ, Rām returned to Ayodhyā,the city of his birth, and ruled for eleven thousands years, ushering inan age of unprecedented prosperity, peace, and enlightenment.2“Laws of nature” refers to the collection of the laws defined by the various sciences, which maintainorder throughout the universe. These include the principles that structure life on the individualand social levels (Nader, 1998, p. 1).3Vedic is derived from Veda, which literally means “knowledge.” In it’s most profound sense,Veda refers to the self-interacting dynamics of pure intelligence, which we will be discussingshortly.4There are a number of versions of the Rāmāya, but all references in this paper are to theVālmīki Rāmāyaṇ, unless otherwise noted.146