[1] The center was established in 1986 near Bangalore, India, by Ravi Shankar to offer a base for the Art of Living Foundation.

[2][3] The Vishalakshi Mantap was inaugurated by Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat on January 17, 2003.

The structure includes a meditation hall consisting of five tiers with designs of lotus petals surrounding it, and has a capacity of 25,000 people.

[5] In 2011, a public-interest litigation petition filed in the Karnataka High Court alleged that some of the center's structures encroached on the Udipalya tank.

[6] The government of Karnataka found on inspection that the center had encroached on 6.53 hectares (16.1 acres) of the tank area and issued a show-cause notice.