March 2000 

"Coupon Principle" to Eradicate Poverty Everywhere on Earth

from an address by Dr. Bevan Morris 

In this Fourth Year of Maharishi Global Administration through Natural Law, there is going to be a great focus on the eradication of poverty in the world and the creation of affluent societies everywhere on earth. Maharishi has felt a very deep concern that as much as half of the world’s population is still in great poverty, with all the sufferings and miseries that go along with that.

In the past decades, attempts have been made to eliminate poverty from the nations by international banks loaning money to those countries, or by the International Monetary Fund. But the reality is that this has not eliminated poverty.

So Maharishi is pointing to a new way of eradicating poverty, without money. It’s a very interesting concept, even intellectually, to eradicate poverty without money.

Maharishi’s program shows to the governments of the world that they actually have the capacity to completely eradicate poverty within their own borders without depending on any international institutions, without depending on any foreign loans which have only proven to be a curse to them in the past.

Utilizing Unused Land
Maharishi is saying to the governments of the world that every country has vast resources of wealth that have never been utilized in national life, particularly the unused land in that country.

At this moment unused agricultural land is an especially valuable thing to have, because in the western countries the soil has been poisoned so much by modern chemical agriculture, and people are yearning more and more for pure food.

So in the poor countries of the world, where there are vast tracts of unused land, the possibility is there to grow pure food—organic food, Vedic food—that will be completely nourishing and health-giving for the people of the wealthy countries. So the poor countries can export this pure food to the wealthy countries and earn a lot of money.

But of course the governments feel: "How can we do that? Our budget is already at a deficit, so how can we develop these vast areas of unused land?" 

The Coupon Principle
Here is Maharishi’s principle of how to develop this wealth of the nation without money. Maharishi is proposing to the governments of the world to print coupons and use that to develop this unused land.

What is a coupon? A coupon is a complimentary currency of the nation. It is printed by the government and loaned to a particular project on some of this unused land. The coupon has the same buying power in that particular area of the nation as the national currency, but it is different than the national currency in that it is restricted to only a particular region, and it only lasts in its value for a few years.

For these two reasons this coupon can be printed by the government and loaned to the project, the project can use the coupons to pay the workers and develop a higher quality of life for them, without any fear of inflation. Governments in the past may have been afraid to print more currency because everyone was warning them about inflation. But the coupon is different. It has the effect of the currency in terms of its buying power, but because of its limited domain of application (one province), and limited time of application (a few years), it will not create inflation.

What it will do is allow that area of land in the nation to be developed. By paying the workers with the coupons, the project can begin, the land can be cleared, and the agricultural products planted.

Currency for Coupons
Within one or two years, the first products will begin to be exported. These exports of organic food to the wealthy countries will bring income in foreign currency to the poor country. On the basis of this income, the project can pay back to the government in foreign currency the equivalent of the amount of coupons loaned in the first place.

Within one, two or three years the government will get currency for their original coupons. This is the principle— today’s coupon becomes tomorrow’s dollar, Deutshemark or Japanese yen.

This is an amazing situation. The government has not had to create any new money by taxation or any other means. Just by printing the coupon and loaning it to the project—then with the project exporting, earning the foreign currency and paying it back to the government— the government has received the foreign currency and the whole area of unused land has begun to be developed.

Improving Life Right from the Start
A final point is that the coupons also make it possible to immediately improve the quality of life of the farmers participating in this project. Maharishi feels this is a critical aspect of the plan. He doesn’t want the farmer to wait to get some benefit.

Right from the beginning by using the coupons, he’ll have better housing, created according to the principles of Vastu Vidya of Maharishi Sthapatya Veda design, buildings that are healthy and fortunate for the dwellers in the building. Dr. Eike Hartmann has designed beautiful villages for the farmers. Right away the farmers will have good housing, good roads, good communications, good schools and a higher level of income. They’ll enjoy better food and clothing right from the start.

Maharishi is also calling for the project to involve a reduction in the number of working hours for the farmers, so they have time for religious, cultural and spiritual pursuits according to their local traditions.

Such a shorter working time will be possible because Ted Wallace is bringing the knowledge to develop the cosmic potential of the brain. Every farmer will have cosmic creativity and support of Nature’s intelligence.

They will also have the most modern methods of farming, such as air-conditioned tractors. They won’t work when it’s a strain in the middle of the day. So a beautiful new quality of life will be created from the very beginning of the project.

Then as the exports come, the wealth of the farmers will increase ten-fold or more, and the poorest countries of the world will no longer have to suffer. The poor will feel happiness from within and prosperity on the outside. The western countries will have good food free from poisons to enjoy.

So this is Maharishi’s genius plan to create a poverty free world, to create affluent societies everywhere—just using the government’s law-making authority, without any money from the government, to eradicate poverty everywhere on earth.

Dr. Bevan Morris is President of the Council of Supreme Intelligence of Maharishi Vedic Vishwa Prashasan.