Ilchi Lee

Even with well-meaning governmental and international aid, the survivors face huge challenges in grieving those who died, clearing away the debris, rebuilding infrastructure and homes, and getting the economy going again. And most importantly, individuals, families and communities face the task of reestablishing normal lives.

Where do they begin? The world typically focuses on the external necessities – supplying food, water, shelter, clothing, medicine and the like. While these are of course needed, they are the stuff of survival. But human beings, with their natural inheritance of vast brainpower, have the potential to achieve more than just survival. We are physically, mentally and spiritually wired to create our own positive reality and thrive with health, happiness and peace.

So how do we move from devastation and tragedy to stability and happiness? As soon as the shock wears off, hope is what keeps survivors from falling apart. From the inside, hope unleashes energy, ideas, and action. External aid from governments and international sources usually declines with time, as new disasters capture their attention. When this happens and there is no hope to inspire continuing progress, people and communities collapse into paralysis and failure.

The strongest and most sustaining energy for recovery comes from the human spirit. The fuel is there. What is needed is the spark of hope to get things moving and keep them going. Each in our own way, let us encourage today’s victims in Asia to choose hope, and help them create a life even better than before.

An interesting story at work today: I was standing in line to use the copy machine this morning, and a colleague of mine, who was using the copy machine ahead of me, and I started to catch up with one another. She asked me where I went on my vacation, if it was someplace beautiful, and I started to tell her about Sedona, Bell Rock, Arizona, Mago Garden [local name for the Sedona Mago Retreat Center], Dahn Healing System, and, of course, the book, In Full Bloom. I shared about Ilchi Lee’s scheduled trip to Chicago, and the Brain Education Conference at the United Nations in New York, and Brain Education for Children / Brain Education for Successful Aging. My colleague asked me where she could get a copy of the book.

Here is where the story gets interesting because I had just purchased one copy of the book at Amazon.com when writing a book review. It arrived over the weekend, and was in my brief case, so I walked her back to my office and gave her the book as a gift. She hugged the book to her chest, profoundly thanking me for the gift because, you see, her father had just passed away, and she has cancer. The cancer drugs had caused a strong allergic reaction, where she broke out in hives all over her body, so now she is grieving the loss of a parent, trying to heal a horrible skin rash, trying to adjust to new cancer medication, and trying to hold on to every bit of brain function and life that she can for as long as she can do so. She told me the loss of her father had changed the way she looked at life and the quality of it.

My colleague walked out of my office holding the book in her hands like it was fragile china that might break, with all the hope of life itself in her eyes. I have tears in my eyes as I am typing this story to share with you!

P.S. I had already given out free copies of the book to all of my co-workers before leaving for Dahn Healing System at Mago Garden. Somehow, had I missed giving the book to her at that time? My colleague is also planning to go to the In Full Bloom on-line course on Ilchi.com. Her story reminds me of some very wise words you have kindly shared with us: "There is always HOPE.”

I was grateful for their energy and enthusiasm, and their courage to come to a foreign country to perform for six months. Because of their spirit and their mission, I called them the Young Earth Human Ambassadors for Peace. They are learning about Korean culture and sharing their culture with Korea. With every performance they give, they are spreading the spirit of “Hong Ik In Gan” or widely benefitting humanity for the sake of health, happiness, and peace.

I have just left South Korea to visit Canada before beginning a lecture tour in the United States, and I am glad this team of remarkable young people will remain in Korea for several more months, facilitating cultural exchange and inspiring the people of Korea. Below is a video they made themselves about the first part of their trip through which you can see their spirit, and the spirit of Korea.

If at the time I had thought, “Could I make difference in the world by simply helping a stroke victim?” and didn’t go to the park the next day, nothing would ever happen to make my vision come true. I needed to start somewhere. Instead I thought, “Okay. Let’s go step by step. If I can deliver health, happiness, and peace to one person at a time, then others can do it as well and the world will change little by little.”

If you have any awakening within you, the most important next step is to turn it into action. No matter how small the awakening is, if you can keep taking action, you can create something new, something valuable to you.

I have said many times that everyone has greatness within themselves. The same seed that made me wake up early and go to a local park exists within you. This seed is the seed of greatness. If you find it, please view it as the greatest thing, even though it may appear as a very tiny idea. If you criticize, “Oh, that’s not important. That’s not good enough,” and keep erasing these ideas from your mind, the seeds cannot grow.

Even if your first step doesn’t seem to make any difference, what if you keep doing the same thing for 10 years? If you keep planting trees, you will make a thick forest. One seed will become a wheat field.

The important thing to remember is “keep doing it.” When a silk worm starts making a cocoon, it is at first just a short thread. But after some time, she has made a beautiful cocoon, and finally a butterfly is born from it. That’s the beauty and power of all living creatures on the earth, and we humans have that same power.

If we believe in the life within us, if we believe in our greatness and keep acting on our choices, we can create something beautiful.

I learned from teaching in that park that even when we have a great dream and plan in our mind, the actualization of the big dream starts from a small action we can take.

Through a 21-day vigorous meditation on the mountain during which I neither ate nor slept, I came to realize that, “Cosmic energy is my energy and my energy is cosmic energy. Cosmic mind is my mind and my mind is cosmic mind.”

As I realized that everything in the universe is interconnected and exists as one, I felt deep compassion arise in my heart for the future of the earth and all humans on it. I felt moved by this feeling to dedicate the rest of my life for the good of the earth and humanity. That was my greatest and most powerful awakening and the most beautiful choice that I’ve made in my life.

Even though I had this great awakening inside, all of my external circumstances were exactly the same. Nothing had changed at all. I didn’t have money or help from other people to begin a large endeavor right away. When I returned home, all I had were an awakening and a choice. My awakening at Mt. Moak was just a starting point.

I'll post more thoughts tomorrow.

Inspired by the majestic beauty of the land, I began offering meditation tours for members of the Dahn Yoga centers in South Korea.

At that time I did all of the training and teaching myself. I really tried to inspire the people who came on the tour, to introduce them to the spirit of the earth that was so easy to feel in Sedona. In ancient Korean traditions, the earth is called “Mago”, similar in meaning to “Mother Earth” or “Gaia”. I taught them how to connect to Mago and to the deepest part of themselves that is one with Mago. These meditation tours are still continuing today, even though I no longer lead them myself.

Sedona’s natural beauty and people’s reaction to it, including my own, helped me to realize that the earth itself is the common denominator among all of the people living on it. I started to share this realization actively, knowing that the concept could help people understand my initial enlightenment, when I realized, “My energy is cosmic energy and cosmic energy is my energy. My mind is cosmic mind and cosmic mind is my mind.” The same is true for all people when they look deep inside themselves. They can experience the same sense of oneness with everything as I did. I think the idea of having the earth in common connects people, helping to eliminate barriers or differences between them.

While I was sharing these concepts I met some people with similar notions. These people, especially Hanna Strong, Morris Strong, Seymour Topping, and Neale Donald Walsh helped me to spread the idea of the earth being each person’s primary affiliation, and of a common vision of peace. I was very happy to meet people here who already had a vision of the world that was similar to my own, when I had just started to work in the United States.

In order to create my vision I decided that I needed to start a training and retreat center in the United States as I had in South Korea. My favorite thing to do at that time was climbing to the top of Bell Rock to meditate. Bell Rock is one of the more famous rock formations in Sedona. I loved the feeling I had when I was there. I always felt more strongly connected to the earth. One day while I was meditating on top of Bell Rock I had a vision of a kind-looking Caucasian gentleman with white hair who I later discovered was Lester Levinson. Lester Levinson was the originator of the ”Sedona Method” of personal growth, and he had bought land in the middle of the Coconino National Forest near Sedona. He had run a retreat center on the land for many years before his death just two years prior. When he appeared to me he asked me to use his land to help many people heal and find peace.

This experience was strange but also very powerful. I was deeply moved by Lester Levinson’s sincere request. Because of the impression it made on me I investigated the land and the story behind it. Acquiring the land seemed like an impossible task, so I did not immediately act. Eventually, I decided we should use the land as Lester Levinson asked. With great effort, the land was purchased for the non-profit Tao Fellowship, to be used for events and educational programs that help people connect to Mago and find peace.

At first the retreat center was called Sedona Mago Garden, and as it grew and stabilized, it became the Sedona Ilchi Meditation Center. Its latest transformation into the Sedona Mago Retreat Center offers many more Brain Education programs that are accessible and interesting to people without prior Brain Education experience.

My experience with Lester Levinson and Sedona crystallized for me that no matter how truthful or powerful a message feels, one is nevertheless confronted with doubt and fear for the future. However, when you know the message comes from the source of life, then you have no choice but to accept it, however impossible it may seem at the time. I know of no other option. Following that message led to the creation of a place where anyone can connect to Mago and to themselves, where they can find a beacon of peace.

Surfers who ride great waves must first attempt riding small waves at least 300 times before getting a feel for them and attempting to ride the big waves.

I have found these conditions for surfing the waves of life:
1. Look far beyond the wave
2. Predict the wind and the wave
3. Hold on to your balance until the very end
4. Choose your wave with courage

If you are ready...
...catch a wave and from atop the ocean you will experience unimaginable bliss.

However, surfing at times is an attempt where you risk your life. Why do you brave such dangers in order to ride waves?

"Whenever the wave comes, my body becomes tense and I wonder whether I should wait for the next one but the experience beyond the wave moves my body."
- Peter Cole (Big Wave Surfer)

Those without courage will stay on calm waters or watch from afar.

But if the ocean is life... and a wave is an obstacle on the path to your hopes and dreams... will you run or ignore the wave because you are afraid? Or will you choose a bigger wave and ride it with joy? What will you choose when a wave comes?

I quickly lost the reins so I lied on my stomach on the speeding horse. The moment I got hold of the reins again, Su threw me off with all of his might. My body soared high and was dashed to the ground in a moment. I had trained my body with martial arts and exercises for a long time, so I was able to land safely, protecting my head. “Crack!” I heard my lower back say.

As people ran toward me, I heard them calling my name, surprised. Not being able to move my body an inch, I stayed flat on the ground. For a brief moment, I saw the sky and thought it was very beautiful. I was amazed at how mysterious and fascinating our brains are, considering how a part of my brain was able to notice the beauty of the sky, even while my body was in serious pain.

The doctor who came to see me later that day very strongly recommended that I lie still in bed for at least a month. However, as soon as he left, I thought about how I could move my body. While lying in the bed, I vibrated my body left and right very minutely. As the days passed, I expanded my movements to seated and standing postures. Through the various experiments I made with my body, I was able to develop Jang Saeng Walking. Jang Saeng is a Korean word meaning longevity or vitality. This style of walking helped me to heal my back.

In less than a week, I could walk again and had recovered from the fall to a certain extent. However, there was something I hadn’t overcome. It was a fear of horses. The shock I got when I fell down was so strong that my body seemed to remember it vividly. Just thinking of a horse made my body very tense. I thought if I did not overcome my fear, I would not be able to ride a horse again.

Against the wishes of the people around me, I decided to ride Su again. As I expected, I felt my body become nervous. At first, I just got on and off the horse repeatedly. Next, I rode on him, guiding him to walk sedately. I kept going for rides with Su until I was completely free from my fear.

What I learned from this experience is that we should take action in spite of our fear. Everybody has fear. We fear our future because it cannot be predicted. Those who have experienced a failure, feel scared because of the thought they might fail again. One cannot overcome fear merely by thinking. Fear that you haven’t overcome will remain fear, but fear you have overcome will become a beautiful experience that helps you grow.

The HSP 12 Steps training program is composed of 12 levels of physical achievement, starting with push-ups and ending by walking on their hands. See below for a short video clip of me walking on my hands.

I couldn’t urge them do what I couldn’t do, so I began practicing hand-stands. After succeeding with basic hand-stands, I decided to practice lifting my whole body directly from a head-stand to a full hand-stand.

Whenever I had free time over the next six months, I practiced by playing with my body’s abilities. However, lifting my body from a head-stand to straight up in the air was not something I could do yet.

One night, I dreamed that at last I lifted my body into a hand-stand exactly the way I wanted to. Even in the dream, I felt really joyful and happy.

Then I suddenly woke up. I ran to a wall right away. Without any trace of doubt, because I had achieved it in my dream, I lifted up my body. And guess what? My body easily rose up, as if it was on an elevator. Without any thought, I could accomplish my goal. It is not easy to express the joy I felt when achieving what I couldn’t do before.

Since then, I have been practicing push-ups using only two fingers of each hand. At first I felt severe pain and was concerned that I might break my fingers. However, now I can do more than 10 push-ups in this way.

It would be untrue for someone to say they can’t do exercises because they lack the time. It really is a matter of how strong your resolution and willpower are.

Most people have no idea how very big a difference even small, short exercises make when you do them sincerely and diligently – not to mention how great is the joy you feel.