Category: News

Ilchi Lee attended the grand opening of the ECO Learning Center in Cottonwood, AZ last Tuesday, September 20, 2016. The center is run by the Earth Citizens Organization (ECO), which Ilchi Lee founded in order to share the Earth Citizenship idea that the earth should be the central value on which individuals, organizations, and nations based their decisions.

ECO has been training Earth Citizens leaders who teach mindful and sustainable living in their communities. Through supporter donations, they have built the ECO Learning Center to facilitate and grow their mission. Through the center and the leaders it trains, ECO is helping people to “LIVE ECO,” which means

1. Be kind.
2. Don’t waste.
3. Exercise inside out. (Don’t just exercise your muscles. Instead strengthen your core and act genuinely.)

Ilchi Lee was very pleased that the land he purchased about twenty years ago was more actively fulfilling its purpose of serving the community and the Earth.

The First International Dahnhak Kigong Competition was recently held at the Halla Tae Kwon Do Gym in Jeju Island, South Korea, September 15-17, 2007, attracting 7,500 guests from several countries.

It was so widely popular that Jeju province government provided $1 million in support for the event.

The event was attended by the Governor of Jeju, members of the National Assembly and other government officials. It opened with a joint performance of Chun Bu Shingong by the Phoenixi from the United States and Young Earth Human Alliance members from both South Korea and Japan. The participants and members packed the facility, astonishing even Gwang-jae Lee, a local lawmaker who attended on behalf of the National Assembly. He expressed how deeply he was impressed in his remarks to the audience, saying that “even great waters begin with a single spring,” a testament to the pioneering work which began with the great and clear vision of the Dahnhak Kigong founder, Ilchi Lee.

The first day of the Competition included preliminary Kigong competitions among 45 teams from all over the world. On the second day, five teams from United States, United Kingdom and Japan, as well as 10 teams from South Korea participated in the main competition. The grand prize was awarded to the Changjohwashin Team from the Incheon region of South Korea.
The event was attended by the Governor of Jeju, members of the National Assembly and other government officials. It opened with a joint performance of Chun Bu Shingong by the Phoenixi from the United States and Young Earth Human Alliance members from both South Korea and Japan. The participants and members packed the facility, astonishing even Gwang-jae Lee, a local lawmaker who attended on behalf of the National Assembly. He expressed how deeply he was impressed in his remarks to the audience, saying that “even great waters begin with a single spring,” a testament to the pioneering work which began with the great and clear vision of the Dahnhak Kigong founder, Ilchi Lee.

The first day of the Competition included preliminary Kigong competitions among 45 teams from all over the world. On the second day, five teams from United States, United Kingdom and Japan, as well as 10 teams from South Korea participated in the main competition. The grand prize was awarded to the Changjohwashin Team from the Incheon region of South Korea.

Dahnhak Kigong was originally created in 1980 by Ilchi Lee, when he began teaching simple exercises to a paralyzed person in a public park. It has since grown to a worldwide movement with more than 1 million practitioners at more than 500 Dahn Yoga and Brain Education centers in seven countries.

The core philosophy of Dahn Yoga and Brain Education is simply to work together to create a better world, for the benefit of all.

Dahnhak Kigong was originally created in 1980 by Ilchi Lee, when he began teaching simple exercises to a paralyzed person in a public park. It has since grown to a worldwide movement with more than 1 million practitioners at more than 500 Dahn Yoga and Brain Education centers in seven countries.
The core philosophy of Dahn Yoga and Brain Education is simply to work together to create a better world, for the benefit of all.

Ilchi Lee, as the  creator of Dahnhak Kigong, a martial arts sport popular in Asia, sent a congratulatory message to be read to the 16,000 participants in the First International Dahnhak Kigong Competition of Sports for All, Jeju, South Korea, September 15, 2007.

Here are excerpts from Ilchi Lee’s message to the honored guests and participants in the Competition, read at the Opening Ceremony:

The First International Dahnhak Kigong Competition of Sports for All has great meaning in that it has gone beyond South Korea to become an international festival of Dahnhak Kigong shared with the peoples of the world. This is also a sign that the spirit of Dahnhak—working to create a better world for the good of all—is spreading throughout the globe as a spirit of love for humanity and love for the Earth.

Humanity now faces a hopeless crisis of war, famine, and environmental destruction caused by slavish adherence to the interests of nation states and other institutions. Now more than ever the entire world needs a non-zeo-sum philosophy of sangsaeng, of life for you and life for me, of mutual salavation. The answer can be found in the Chun Bu Kyung, an ancient statement of philosophy. The enlightenment that comes from Chun Bu Kyung is found in the brain. This priniciple is the beginning of Brain Education.

Dahnhak is now a for-the-good-of-all Hong-ikphilosophy shared by over a million people worldwide, and it is gaining the spotlight as an approach to mind-body training. Additionally, Brain Education is spreading with the University of Brain Education and International Brain Education Olympiad. Even the United Nations has officially recognizes its value. The Hong-ik Human Spirit and the philosophy of the Chun Bu Kyung are going out into the world through Dahnhak and Brain Education.

I pray that today’s tournament will be deeply meaningful for our fellow Dahnhak Kigong practitioners participating and for our honored guests from around the world. May health, happiness, and peace be with you always.

The Competition is divided into eight martial-arts fields during the September 15-16 event. The goals of the Competition include: Bringing together dedicated practitioners to celebrate the power and potential of Dahnhak Kigong for themselves and hte world. Acknowledging through eight categories of competitive fields the world-class champions of Dahnhak Kigong. Highlighting the universal merits and applications of Dahnhak Kigong for the health, happiness and peace of all people on this Earth.

The origins of Dahnhak Kigong Training go back in Korean history more than 5,000 years. It began as a program to educate the public in how to develop both the body and mind. For 3,000 years the wise leaders of a Korean civilization saw to it that each generation practiced Kigong, a health-enhancing and self-empowering martial art. Then, 2,000 years ago, use of this traditional system declined in Korea. Dahnhak, the study of life-force energy, was developed by Ilchi Lee in 1980 to revive the ancient exercises for our modern life. Today, there are around 600 Dahn Centers around the world. Dahnhak Kigong rests on the philosophy that health-generating energy, or Ki connects the body and mind. This body-mind health connection is part of a larger belief in the unity of Oneness of invisible wisdom, visible Earth, and humanity. The Dahnhak Kigong method involves accepting and controlling Ki-energy through concentration, movements and breath.

Formed by extensive volcanic activity, Jeju is an island of extraordinary beauty in the southern and with the warmest climate in South Korea. The poeple of this self-governing province are known for their gentle, caring and hospitable ways. Called the Island of Peace by Korean, Jeju Island has been designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.