BW: Do you think the whole world can live this way?
IL: That would be really great if it could happen. I do not mean it is impossible. I believe everyone has a Hong-ik nature and a Hong-ik brain. Have you ever read the Brain Declaration? It states five principles of philosophy and vision, and at the end there is a declaration: I declare that my brain desires peace. I truly believe that our brains want to be peaceful.
The problem is that there are not many people who have that awareness. So, “brain education” is necessary. We need an education to help make us aware of the limitless potential of our brain. Education is essential if we are to recover our responsibility and spiritual self-consciousness — the self-awakening that the future of the Earth depends upon: how we live in this moment.
For a long time, I have been stating that when 100 million “earth-humans” awaken, the future of humankind will be changed. One hundred million earth-humans are about 1.5 percent of the planet’s current population. If one out of 100 earth-humans awakens, and helps others to have such an awakening, then humankind will experience an amazing transformation and improvement of consciousness.
BW: What do you think the world would look like if everyone lived his or her life as art?
IL: We can imagine several important changes. First of all, the conflicts and strife caused by the struggle for possession and control would decrease, because people would value completion over success. The world would be much more peaceful than it is now. Respecting and caring for each other would be a more common form of human relationships, rather than dominating and controlling. Harmony would be more valued. We would have less conflict in terms of obtaining more natural resources. We would spend more time thinking about how we can distribute benefits more fairly and widely to the public. Above all, it would be easier to see smiling people. You would see them more often and in much greater numbers.
BW: What are the biggest challenges we face in creating such a world?
IL: I think that many people lose their passion and hope for a beautiful future of the Earth and humanity. It is impossible to create things without that passion and hope. If we lose our passion and hope, we might easily become unconcerned or sardonic about the future we will create. Moreover, many people still have the belief that matters of the Earth and other human beings are not their problem.
Unless we all, as individuals, are conscious of our responsibility for the future of humanity and take action, the future we desire will not come to us.
We know that humanity cannot stay on its present course. We know we need to make changes. So why don’t we make as many changes as we want? I can only assume that we have negative beliefs that interfere with making such changes.
No matter how serious the problems facing humanity and the Earth, if we do not accept the problems as our own responsibility, how can we create change? If so many people are laden with cynical minds and lethargy, how can hope grow? It is also hard to come up with strategies and plans for practical changes among people who have optimistic views without seeing the need to take action — thinking that things will work out on their own. Many people are absorbed in self-interests and do not care about the lives of others; such people do not take others into account when considering their world. In the face of such selfishness, we cannot create changes that promote common health and peace for the community of Earth.
These are negative beliefs that take root in us. However, there are not just negative beliefs in our brains. All people are ultimately concerned with the future of the Earth and of humanity, and want conditions to be better. The mind comes from a spirit that exists alone in us, a spirit of nobility and greatness. We should tend to the seed of public benefit, and grow it with sincerity, passion, and hope that peace is possible.
BW: The International Brain Education Association has been actively working with the United Nations. What is your goal?
IL: We all well know the problems that can be created by national self-interest. However, a nation cannot help thinking and acting based on its self-interest. Therefore, the role of international organizations such as the United Nations is important, because they are concerned with the global community and putting their efforts toward finding solutions for global issues.
The role of the United Nations is crucial to achieving an ideal and peaceful society. More people need to take heed of the work done at the United Nations. The influence of the United Nations in the world should become much greater, and it should play an even stronger leadership role on global issues, to obtain the resources needed to solve the Earth’s problems.
I have long been thinking that the United Nations needs a training institute — an institute that will be able to publicize, facilitate, and educate people about the spirit of the United Nations. I bought a training institute near New York City that covers 300 acres and is able to accommodate 500 people. I’ve been actively developing this institute. Eventually, as this institute is developed more, I plan to donate it to the United Nations.
No single person, nation, or group can achieve world peace. The United Nations should be at the center of the movement for world peace because it can act in the interests of the Earth, without being beholden to differences among nations, races, cultures, and religions. Peace is not possessive; it is not about domination. Peace is something that we create all together, ourselves. I hope the United Nations will be able to build and strengthen the power of peace. I pledge that I will do as much as I can to support the United Nations in this goal.
*Hong-ik: Hong means “wide” and Ik means “benefit.” Hong-ik, if directly translated, means “benefit widely.” It stems from Hong-ik In-gan, which means “widely benefit all of humanity,” or “the person who practices the spirit of widely benefiting all of humanity.” This was the spirit that founded the Korean nation. Benefiting oneself is the normal human impulse. Benefiting others is not as easy, but still possible. However, widely benefiting the whole of humanity is beyond what most people are capable of, even if they can understand the meaning intellectually. It requires wisdom from deeper insight and a wider perspective than a normal egocentric mind can accommodate. It also requires compassion and a genuine understanding of other people, with a pure intention to be helpful. This level of insight, perspective, and compassion is believed to be the property of enlightenment. Traditionally, developing this character was the primary goal of education in Korea. This educational approach was based on the understanding that the human brain has the innate capacity for Hong-ik. This is how the spirit of Hong-ik is related to modern brain education, because brain education primarily seeks to develop the human potential for creating a healthier, happier, and more peaceful world.
This article was originally published in the Spring 2009 issue of Brain World Magazine.
