The mood was very good after the ceremonial laying of the foundation stone. Great optimism spread among all those involved.

Architect Schrattenecker submitted the plans, which had been meticulously prepared over the past months, to the building authorities at the end of July 2020. We assumed that a construction negotiation would be possible within a few days. The disappointment was great when we did not get a date for the construction hearing until September.

Then, on 1 September 2020 at 8 o'clock, the time had come. Architect Schrattenecker and representatives of the Schachinger family took part in the building negotiations at the municipal office in Geboltskirchen. Everyone hoped that construction could begin the very next day.

But things turned out differently. The authorities demanded that changes and adjustments still had to be made to the submitted plans. Moreover, it turned out that the drinking water supply via the local water cooperative was not possible.

So the required changes to the plans were done in a hurry. To secure the water supply, a well had to be drilled at the soma site. The company carrying out the work quickly encountered groundwater, but the necessary water samples initially showed slight bacterial contamination. Therefore, water had to be drained from the well for a longer period of time until a perfect water sample was obtained.

It was the end of October before all the requirements for the start of construction were met. Immediately, our construction company Bau Mayr from Waldzell started with the earthworks. Unfortunately, the months of November and December 2020 were extremely cool, rainy and foggy - not ideal conditions for the earthworks.

As a result, there were already considerable delays at the beginning of the construction work. The target date for completion was originally 30 June 2021. It was already clear at this point that it would be impossible to meet this deadline. Christmas 2021 was envisaged as a new completion date.

By Christmas 2020, all the earthworks could be done and the building's floor slab completed. Due to the onset of winter, work on the shell of the building could not be continued until February 2021. The exterior walls of the soma building were built exclusively with 50 cm hollow bricks. By using this ecologically high-quality building material from the region, it was possible to completely avoid the use of Styrofoam or other less environmentally friendly insulating materials.

The intermediate ceilings were constructed as wooden truss ceilings without lattice iron. The necessary steel trusses were demagnetised in order to restore the natural earth magnetic field in the building.

By applying the laws of Vedic architecture (Maharishi Sthapatya Veda), the building has a strong positive, healing effect brought about by its crystal-like structure. To support this health-promoting effect, only biologically high-quality materials were used for the further construction of the building. Among other things, only shielded cables were used for the electrical engineering.

The site for soma was chosen by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi because it provided access to the thermal water of the Dreikönigsquelle spring in Haag am Hausruck. In the course of creating the infrastructure (canal, electricity, telephone, internet), the supply line for the thermal water was also built. This water comes into the house at a temperature of about 80°C and is used to heat the house.

In the interior design, attention was paid to the highest quality and ecological value. The guest rooms are furnished with furniture from the company Team 7, which is a world leader in organic furniture.

The previous House of Health in Ried had already been sold before construction began. The handover of the house was contractually agreed for the end of June 2021. Due to the delay in completion, alternative premises had to be found for Dr. Schachinger's surgery and for the Ayurvedashop. Fortunately, suitable practice rooms and a sales room with storage for the Maharishi Ayurveda products could be found in the inner city area of Ried.

You will find out in the next and last episode how the completion of the building and the relocation will proceed.