Ilchi Lee Dahn Hak Yoga

On June 20, 2008, the International Brain Education Conference was co-sponsored by sections of the United Nations (UN), and focused on how to incorporate Brain Education’s understanding of the brain into meaningful educational reform.

Within the brain lie the causes and solutions to the major problems that the UN and humanity care about. The premise of the Conference was that we must focus on the brain itself, and how to use it well, to create an authentic culture of global well-being, peace and prosperity.

Here are the distinguished speakers at the conference:
Antonio Damasio, M.D., Ph.D, Director of the Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California, author of Descartes’ Error (Neuroscience, Education and Culture)
Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D., author of My Stroke of Insight, recognized by Time Magazine as one of the world’s 100 most influential persons (How to Use the Brain Well)
Ilchi Lee, President, University of Brain Education and IBREA (Brain Education – Our Hope for the Earth)
Eran Katz, Regional Coordinator for IBREA Israel and author of Secrets of a Super Memory (Unlimited Potential of the Brain)

Jessie Jones, Ph.D., Co-Director of the Center for Successful Aging, California State University, Fullerton (Brain Education for Successful Aging)
Dong-geun Seul, Commissioner of Education, Busan, South Korea (Character Education and Brain Education)
Warrington Parker, Jr., Ph.D., Vice President, IBREA USA (Brain Education in U.S. Schools)
Helene-Marie Gosselin, Director, UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, New York Office (Education for a Culture of Peace)
Hanifa Mezoui, Ph.D., Chief, NGO Section, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, UN (UN Millennium Development Goals).

From Ilchi Lee’s book In Full Bloom 

Negative thought patterns spring from memories of unhappy events that you have clung to in your mind. They exert influence on your brain, leading to unproductive habits of thinking, preconceptions, even biases, all of which all have negative effects on health. Brain Refreshing helps you release the traumatic events of the past and clear your mind of burdensome memories.

The result is deep emotional and spiritual healing - a renewal of your ability to look at life in a positive, healthful way. Gradually, you erase the negative neural pathways that were deeply dug into your brain like ruts in old roads. You create new highways to courage, inspiration, and serenity. This is very much a renaissance of the mind - a rebirth of the emotional freedom you experienced when you were a child.

Here’s a great quote from Einstein about the brain…
Reading, after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking.

You can ask Dr. Ilchi Lee questions on ilchi.com and he posts replies on the site. Here’s an example of a recent question…

Ideal Jangsaeng Walking

Q: Can you give me any pointers on how to improve my Jangsaeng walking technique? I have difficulty tucking in my tailbone, and I am not sure that I am leaning forward at a one degree angle.

 

A: Because you have a lifetime of habits built into your body, it can be difficult to keep the proper Jangsaeng posture at first. If you have trouble tucking in your tail bone, it is probably because you are holding a lot of tension in your lower back, hip joints, and intestines. You may want to practice some stretching exercises daily in order to gain more flexibility in your lower body. In the mean time, try focusing on pushing your pelvic bone out. In reality, you can not move your pelvic bone independently, so try to move your entire pelvic area, not just your tailbone. You will know you that you are in the right position when you feel a slight tension and heat in your lower abdomen.

 

As far as the one-degree tilt is concerned, you do not have to try too hard. When in the proper position, you should only have the slightest perception that you are tilting forward. Just focus on keeping your head slightly ahead of your toes, and try not to push your abdomen out. You can think of it as walking with a very proactive, deliberate attitude. Keep practicing and soon this will all seem very natural.

Here’s some tips I picked up over at ilchi.com

Does sitting at the computer for hours make your body achy and mind tired? Do you feel languid and drowsy when you sit at your desk after lunch? Do long meetings have you worn out and feeling drained of energy?

Ilchi Lee, president of the University of Brain Education (South Korea) and founder of Dahn Yoga, recommends, “Try a few simple energy-restorative exercises. They can generate vitality in the body, bring clarity to the mind, and develop the mental stamina for long periods of clear thinking.”

According to Lee, “Our brains need an adequate supply of quality oxygen for their health. Mental activities such as thinking and creating are taxing to both the brain and the entire body. Physical movements stimulate neural circuitry throughout the body to awaken and develop the mind’s work.”

Lee offers four Dahn Yoga exercises that are just right for releasing the mental stress and physical tension that office work produces.

1. Abdominal Breathing. Take deep breaths with your abdomen to provide the entire body, including the brain, with a sufficient supply of oxygen. Tension is released from the spine, and the central nervous system becomes relaxed. This exercise fills the brain and entire body with vitality, so it will facilitate digestion and enable you to shake off your drowsiness. Place both hands on your abdomen. Exhale in short, sharp breaths. Repeat until your lungs feel completely empty. Once you think you have exhaled all of the air in your lungs, start to inhale again slowly. Keep breathing in deeply until your abdomen feels full. Breathe in until your lungs are completely full, hold your breath for a moment, and then start breathing out again. Repeat this at least three times.

2. Exhaling through the Mouth. Only after we have adequately exhaled the air in our lungs do we increase in the amount of air we inhale and deepen our breathing. In exhaling we release stagnant energy, and our bodies and minds relax. Sit comfortably in a chair. Straighten your lower back and relax your shoulders. Close your eyes and exhale through your mouth. Begin by breathing naturally, without worrying about whether your breath comes out heavy or light. Inhale normally and focus on exhaling at a comfortable pace. When you think you’ve completely exhaled all of the air in your lungs, continue exhaling and count to yourself from one to five. As you repeat this, you will be able to feel your breathing becoming calmer and the stream of air in and out gradually narrowing. Make your exhalations as long and narrow as possible. Repeat this for about five minutes, focusing awareness on your chest.

3. Spread Arms to Open Chest. The longer you sit at your desk, the more your shoulders will start to feel stiff and your head will feel hot. This means that energy, unable to circulate through the whole body, is stagnating in the head. With this exercise, you will feel energy passing through your chest and spreading evenly to your whole body, so that new vitality will fuel your brain. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Extend your arms to the front with your palms facing each other. Spread your arms apart as far as possible to open your chest fully. Maintain this posture as you focus your awareness on places where you feel a pulling sensation. Return slowly to your original position. Inhale as you spread your arms, pulling them toward your back, and exhale as you bring them together toward your front. Repeat this at least six times.

4. Neck Stretch. Neck and shoulder stiffness hinders the upward flow of blood and oxygen to the brain, keeping you from having a clear head. This exercise will refresh your neck and spine, and stimulate your central nervous system by helping the flow of spinal fluid. Do sitting or standing. Keep your spine straight and relax your shoulders. When the exercise is done in a standing position, it’s good to have the feet shoulder width apart. Hold your right shoulder with your left hand and turn your head to the left as far as possible. With your head turned as far as possible, maintain this posture and focus your awareness on places where you feel a pull. As you exhale, return to your original position. Now do it in the opposite direction. Hold your left shoulder with your right hand and turn your head to the right as far as possible. Repeat this exercise at least twice. Inhale as you start the movement, hold your breath for a short time while you hold the posture, and exhale as you return to the starting position.

Learn more about Dahn Yoga, or get answers at Ask Ilchi Lee.

Being a music lover, I found this interesting…

Brain Tips: When the Music Stops

Music can help you pay attention

The cocktail party effect is not, as its name suggests, the term used to describe alcohol-induced lack of judgment. Rather, to the contrary, it is the term used to describe the auditory phenomenon by which we are able to focus on one conversation in a room full of conversations.

According to a research team from Stanford University’s School of Medicine, hints at the cause of the cocktail effect may lie in the music of eighteenth-century composer William Boyce. Brain images of people that listened to Boyce’s short symphonies showed that the music engaged two areas of the brain: the area that helps us pay attention and the area that allows us to make predictions and update events in our memory. However, when the music stopped, the brain did not.

The study examined the process of event segmentation, using eight symphonies with well-defined transitions between short movements—transitions spanning only a few seconds. According to the researchers, the brain used the short breaks to update working memories.

“Music engages the brain over a period of time, and the process of listening to music could be a way that the brain sharpens its ability to anticipate events and sustain attention,” stated Jonathan Berger, PhD, associate professor of music and co-author of the study.

Just don’t listen to the music too loud. The next time you’re in a crowded room you want to make sure you can actually hear what your brain is allowing you to pay attention to.

This sharing is given by Francoise Healernim from the Sandy Springs center. The training was held in January.

Dahn Foundation Outreach Training Sharing

From ilchi.com

Data gathered by Centers for Disease Control show that 65% of Americans are overweight and 31% are obese — and both rates have doubled in the past 25 years.

According to Ilchi Lee (http://www.ilchi.com), president of the University of Brain Education (South Korea), “Our stressful lives and poor diets have been bad for our digestive system and therefore for our health. People are experiencing a build up of waste in their intestines, which negatively affects all our vital functions — including the brain — and has an unfavorable mental-emotional impact. One common result is putting on weight. Once this happens, a lack of proper exercise often keeps the weight on.”

Lose Weight, Gain Health — with 5 Dahn Yoga Exercises

Dahn Yoga (http://www.dahnyoga.com) was founded by Lee to provide people in the U.S. and around the world with the tools to regain and maintain their body-mind fitness. Based in the principles of several thousand years of Asian health practices and modern brain research, Dahn Yoga classes (stretching, breathing and meditation) and individual healing sessions are ideal for weight and health management.

When asked why Dahn Yoga works, Lee explains, “When practiced diligently, this approach increases the circulation of fresh, oxygenated blood to your internal organs and throughout your entire body, allowing it to burn fat more effectively from the inside. This eliminates your accumulated toxins, especially in the digestive tract, caused by stress and tension.” It also restores the body’s sense of what foods it needs and how much is right for each person. The outcome is losing weight naturally and learning what is required to keep it off.

What can people expect from doing the full range of Dahn Yoga exercises? Many testimonials report these results: Pounds melt away as strength and flexibility increase. People improve their digestion and normalize their elimination. Their abdomens and thighs became tighter and firmer. They feel lighter, breathe easier, and look healthier and more attractive, which in turn builds confidence and self-esteem.

Lee recommends five exercises that have the specific benefit of decreasing weight and improving general health:

1. Abdomen Tapping. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, with the knees slightly bent. Lengthen and relax your spine, shoulders, neck and arms. With your palms, tap your abdomen in a rhythmic, striking motion, focusing on the feeling of inner vibration it creates. Do it at least 100 times a session, 2-3 sessions a day.

2. Intestinal Exercise. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, with the knees slightly bent. Lengthen and relax your spine, and relax your shoulders, neck and arms. Place your hands comfortably on your abdomen, with your two thumbs pointing toward the navel and your two index fingers touching each other to form a triangle. In a rhythmic pace, push your abdomen out as you inhale, and pull it toward your back as if you want it to touch your spine. Breathe comfortably. If your feel any pain in your intestines, stop and with your palms gently rub your abdomen in a clockwise circular motion. Start with 100 times a day, working up to 500 times.

3. Rocking the Spine. Sit on the floor, pulling your knees to your chest, feet together. Clasp your hands and lock your fingers around your shins. Keeping your chin tucked at all times, roll back on your spine and extend your legs toward the floor behind you. Start with 30 a day, working up to 100 times. Afterwards, pull your knees to your chest and rock from side to side to massage your spine.

4. Fish Exercise. Lie on the floor, with your arms and legs extended. Lace your fingers and stretch your arms up, while relaxing your neck and shoulders. Keeping your feet together, sweep your upper body and lower body in the same direction, toward the right and then the left, feeling your torso being stretched and stimulated. Do 30 repetitions, 3 times a day.

5. Shaking the Extremities. Lie on your back, and lift your arms and legs straight up from the body. Relax your entire body. Rapidly shake your extremities so that your entire body vibrates. Keep breathing slowly in and out of your abdomen. Do this exercise for 2 minutes, 3 times a day.

Lee points out, “Besides exercising regularly, it is important that you do two other things: First, modify your diet to ease the burden on your digestive system and absorb maximum nutrition and energy. And second, release the emotions that contributed to the weight gain, and access the inner resources needed to support the emergence of the new, thinner you.”

For January 2008, certain Dahn Yoga Centers in the U.S. are offering free, open classes in weight loss and health gain. Find out their locations and schedules (http://www.dahnyoga.com/general/news_view.asp?id=445).

Here’s a great excerpt from ‘principles of Brain Management’ by Ilchi lee,

As you move toward your goal, remember that no one is going to hand success to you on a silver platter. It will only come through diligent hard work and continuous refinement of your character. These things, in a way, are more important than achieving the goal itself.

A diamond is just a lump of coal until it is turned into a diamond through constant pressure. You also can be transformed by the pressures you face. Rather than becoming discouraged or destroyed by them, let them shape you into a stronger, more refined human being. Like a diamond, you can gain amazing durability while also remaining pure.

In fact, true greatness in life is really a matter of character. Many people have achieved fame and fortune of some sort. But what makes a person truly great? What makes a Mahatma Gandhi or a Martin Luther King Jr. stand out among people? If you look closely, you will see that the only significant difference is character. On the bodily level, they were no different than ordinary people. They were composed of ordinary flesh and bone, and they did not possess any special superpowers. Even their brains were just ordinary brains. But they used those brains with an astounding level of pure conviction that transformed their characters beyond the ordinary plane of human existence.

To use your brain to its fullest potential, you must develop a similar level of conviction about what you want to contribute to the world. Then, like a cut diamond that sparkles from every angle, you will radiate pure light to everyone you meet.

 Great quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.