Vedic “Disneyland” Comes to America
by Michael Mamas

This article was published in the The New Indian Express in March, 2012

Imagine a place where you could take your family that would bring a person from no knowledge of Veda to having a deep appreciation of the depth and breadth of Vedic Knowledge and what it can offer the world. All that rolled into a fun-packed, fulfilling vacation, it will be a spiritual “Disneyland” of sorts. For an evening’s entertainment, you could choose amongst a visit to the Gandharva school of music to listen to an evening raga, a pulse evaluation by a Vaidya, a visit to one of a number of Vedic temples, listening to the pandit boys practice their chants, or any number of presentations, including an astronomical exploration of that night’s sky.

What is Vedic cognition? How did the universe manifest? What is the seamless interface between modern and ancient Vedic science? How is it possible that pujas and havans actually work? What is cultural integrity all about? What is enlightenment? Answers and explorations of all these questions and more would be at your beck and call.

The Vedic answer to “Disneyland” would be a profoundly enriching, even transformative experience, while being delightfully entertaining for the whole family.

This place already exists in America, in the mountains of North Carolina. It is called Mount Soma, home of Sri Somesvara Temple. Yet there is much work to be done. The stapathis have provided the plans for a perfect Gurushala, complete with five temples: Shiva, Vishnu, Mother Divine, Ganesh, and Surya. A Vedic University is being birthed, and the MM World Peace Project and the MM World Men Project have already begun. A Narmadeshwar lingam will soon be installed in our Ganga, known by the locals as Maynor Creek.

The knowledge is eternal, yet it must eternally be expressed in new ways to be received by the people, the mentality, of that time. Today, the simple truth is that the Western scientific mentality dominates the world. If spirituality does not make sense to people, they reject it. If we allow this to continue, we will lose our children, and our children will lose the great gifts the Rishis have handed down through the ages. Fortunately, we live in a time when science has advanced enough to embrace what Rishis have been saying for thousands of years. It is ours to bring that understanding forth.

Hands must reach across the oceans to unify humanity. Being in the West, Mount Soma creates a bridge between continents. In India, it would be lost within the garland of temples. Only in the West, and only by one who knows and loves both East and West, can such a place be created.

Such an enlightened city is a beacon light for the entire world. It is not enough to have one temple or even multiple temples. All levels and aspects of life must be addressed to provide conduits of harmony to radiate to all: A real United Nations, not just one of politicians, but of business leaders. A place where these leaders come to organize and bring prosperity to all people, everywhere. Housing for people of all income levels and an ashram for the inwardly inclined.

A place where young boys become world men – not compromising, but instead enhancing their cultural integrity. They will learn to seamlessly interface with all cultures, while breathing life and integrity into each. Not a mixing of all the colors of humanity’s pallet into a dull grey, but an enhancement of the vibrancy, integrity, and nobility of each color, each culture, throughout the world.

The Shastras say that such a place has the potential to transform the world. Let it be so.

Now is the time.

© Michael Mamas, 2/12

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