After 21 Days of fasting and meditation on Mount Moak in South Korea, Ilchi Lee was awakened to the enormous potential held in the choices of each individual human. He saw how the future of the entire planet is being shaped by the way we think, live, and act. Each choice we make affects our reality. We have the power to either create a reality of collective peace and health, or one of dire destruction. He has made it his life’s mission to teach others about their potential to change their own circumstances and contribute to the health of society and the planet as a whole. He envisions a future of many people engaged in the healing of the earth.

Soon after this experience, he understood that the foundation for the future he envisioned existed in the ancient Sun Do culture of Northeast Asia. Their guiding principle was Hong Ik or the ideal of elevating the collective needs of all people above individual desires. Emphasizing the power and responsibility to create a better world for all, they had created a lifestyle of cooperation, mindfulness, and health.

Ilchi Lee realized that application of the Hong Ik principle could inspire and help modern humans; for the sake of the Earth’s future we could learn to transcend our individual limitations. Regardless of nationality, race, or cultural background, many cultures have similar ideas about the basic goodness of humanity. Awakening of this nature, the best in the human spirit, can empower individuals and humanity as a whole to realize their highest ideals and grandest dreams.

Based on wisdom of the ancient Sun Do culture and his training in Oriental Medicine and martial arts, he developed methods for self-healing, while encouraging his students to make conscious contributions to the improvement of their families and their societies. This Hong Ik philosophy guides Ilchi Lee’s life and work, and encompasses his personal understanding of the brain, his insights into the nature of humanity, and his dedication to the earth.