"So this is the Veda House," I heard one man say. "Look, there’s the Brahmasthan!" exclaimed his wife. The couple was standing in the doorway of our Veda House, the most popular stop at the Annual Housing Expo in Lappeenranta, Finland. Behind them, a long line of curious visitors extended into the street and down the block.

Long before the Expo’s opening day, the Veda House, built according to the principles of Maharishi Sthapatya Veda design, attracted national attention. It was expected to be one of the most exciting exhibits of the 1999 fair. Newspaper and magazine articles appeared on an almost daily basis. Headlines announced, "The Veda House Heals its Inhabitants," and "The House Full of Harmony and Good Energy." It was discussed on radio, television and even national TV news. By the time the fair opened it seemed everyone in Finland had heard about the basic principles of Maharishi Sthapatya Veda design and was eager to see the model home.

Right from the start, our project had met with great success. When Mr. Veikko Häkkinenumlaut and I contacted the office of the Housing Fair to select a suitable building site, we knew we needed a location that met specific Vedic criteria. It happened that there was one site remaining aligned exactly to the cardinal directions, allowing us to orient the building’s entrance directly east. The land even had a gentle eastern slope.

When we made a presentation to the Housing Fair officials about Maharishi Sthapatya Veda design, they found the concepts so attractive that they were willing to compromise on some of their zoning policies in order to fulfill the Vedic requirements.

A log house manufacturer joined our project, offering a good price for the wooden frame and providing an experienced team of carpenters to assemble the structure. In contrast to most log homes, whose round logs and exposed joints are more appropriate for a country cottage, the squared timbers of the Veda House had the quality and polish suitable for a modern city setting. The cut and covered corner joints and white-columned entryway were praised for giving the home a classical, elegant look.

One of Finland’s most renowned interior designers, Mrs. Kaisa Blomstedt, volunteered to furnish the house, which attracted extra attention from architectural and interior design magazines. One magazine presented Mrs. Blomstedt’s Veda House interiors as their cover story.

The distinctive "Vastu" or placement of the house, created by an enclosing square fence, evoked praise and admiration throughout the fair. Visitors enjoyed touring the six rooms of the 1,900-sq. ft. house, including the traditional sauna found in all Finnish homes. The meditation room was decorated with soothing delicate colors and furnished so that the meditator would sit facing east. Another unique feature was the Brahmasthan, an open atrium in the exact center of the home, which created a profound feeling of sanctity and silence.

A small exhibit in the house showed how the principles of Maharishi Sthapatya Veda design can be found within the architecture of many ancient cultures: Angkhor Watt in Cambodia, the Pyramids and the Sphinx in Egypt, the temples of ancient Greece, St. Peter’s Church in the Vatican, as well as some towns and castles in Slavic countries.

We also included beautiful quotes from modern architects on the cosmic dimension of architecture. These exhibits, together with the direct experience of the Veda House, convincingly presented the universality and practicality of this knowledge. This was particularly the case when presenting the Vedic principles to architects and builders.

A quarter of a million people, about five percent of Finland’s population, visited the fair. Some came expressly to see our house. Many people, including building and planning professionals, said they felt the Veda House was the most beautiful and interesting home at the Expo. In fact, it was continuously filmed and photographed throughout the exhibition.

We heard repeated comments about the tranquil and peaceful atmosphere of the Veda House, particularly around the central Brahmasthan area. Over and over, visitors told us that they felt a desire to return to our house after experiencing other, less soothing buildings. Several times I overheard someone say, "There is such a good feeling in here." For a building, there is no higher compliment; and for an architect, no greater sense of satisfaction.

Wojtek Skalski has been an architect since 1975, and a Governor of the Age of Enlightenment for 22 years.

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For more information on Maharishi Sthapatya Veda visit: www.MGC-Vastu.com, or call 515-472-9605 (US) or 613-565-6546 (Canada)