| Bevan Morris | |
|---|---|
| Born | 3 March 1949 Adelaide, Australia |
| Residence | Fairfield, Iowa |
| Alma mater | Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, Maharishi European Research University |
| Occupation | University president, political leader |
| Employer | Maharishi University of Management |
| Organization | Transcendental Meditation movement |
| Known for | President, Global Country of World Peace |
| Political party | Founder of the Natural Law Party |
Bevan G. Morris (born 3 March 1949 in Adelaide, Australia) is the president of Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, President of the Global Country of World Peace, President of Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation, Prime Minister of the United States Peace Government, President of the Maharishi World Peace Fund, and founder of the Natural Law Party.[1][2]
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Morris learned Transcendental Meditation (TM) from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi at age 19, in Australia. He attended a TM Teacher Training at Maharishi's Academy at Rishikesh where he lived for two years from 1969-1971.[3]
Morris received his B.A. and M.A. in psychology and philosophy from Gonville and Caius College of Cambridge University, England. He earned a Masters degree and a Ph.D. in the Science of Creative Intelligence from Maharishi European Research University (MERU) in Vlodrop, Netherlands. He also holds a Doctorate of World Peace from MERU in Switzerland.[4]
From 1975 to 1979, Morris was the international coordinator for MERU.[5]
In 1979 Morris was appointed President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Maharishi International University, which was renamed Maharishi University of Management in 1995. During his tenure there was expansion of the university campus, and accreditation through the Ph.D. level. In the 1990s, he was reported to be the lowest-paid college president in Iowa, receiving an annual salary of $9,000 in 1994.[6]
Morris held a special three-week "Taste of Utopia" gathering in December 1983 which attracted 7,000 practitioners of the TM-Sidhi program. He later reported that reduced world tensions and a higher Dow Jones stock index occurred during, and as a result of, the event.[7]
In 1984, Morris toured the country seeking expert meditators to form a "collective conscience" that would include "super radiance".[7] In 1990 he sought a $90 million annual expenditure from the U.S. government to fund a group of 10,000 professional meditators whose activities would result in peace and prosperity for the nation. He made the request in an open letter, printed in an advertisement in the Washington Post, to President George H. W. Bush. In a subsequent press conference he suggested that the president learn Transcendental Meditation.[8]
Morris is the founder and national chairman of the U.S. Natural Law Party (NLP),[1] which was described by a spokesman as "the TM party".[9] He took a leave of absence from the MUM to oversee John Hagelin's first campaign for U.S. President, in 1992.[10] Morris was also described in 1992 as the party's spokesman on education.[11] In 1993, he campaigned for a seat in the Australian House of Representatives on the NLP ticket, from a district in suburban Adelaide.[12]
Morris was appointed Chairman of the Maharishi Council of Supreme Intelligence of Age of Enlightenment in 1987.[5] Morris is the International President of Maharishi Vedic Universities, a network of institutions in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America.[13] He is also on the board of trustees of the Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment. He was appointed Minister of Enlightenment of the Global Country of World Peace in 2000 and is now its president. He was appointed President of the Maharishi World Peace Fund in 2003.[3] He is also Prime Minister of the United States Peace Government, of which John Hagelin is president.
In 2009, Morris was living in Adelaide, Australia and reportedly spent a only few weeks a year in the Fairfield area.[14] Morris became the Emeritus Chairman of the Board of Trustees of MUM in 2009 after having served as chairman for 30 years and while continuing to serve as its president.[15]
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