The first Ilchi Museum of Brain Education in the world opened at the Sedona Mago Retreat Center in Sedona, Arizona, with a Grand Opening ceremony, on April 17, 2009. The new museum was named in honor of Ilchi Lee, president of BR Consulting, and in recognition of his development of the field of Brain Education.

The ceremony was attended by 240 people. Most attendees were at the retreat center participating in Ilchi Lee’s ChunHwa Meditation Suhaeng training. Approximately 50 were Brain Education Instructors from nearby Sedona, Phoenix, and Los Angeles. Jong Geun Han officiated the ceremony, and Ilchi Lee gave a speech of appreciation.

All in attendance practiced Brain Wave Vibration as part of the ceremony, and were led by Arang Park and a team of drummers in a traditional Korean walk and chant called “Jishin,” which asks the spirit of the earth for good luck and prosperity for a new building. Another traditional Korean touch to celebrate Brain Education’s roots was the giving of rice cakes at the end of the ceremony. The rice cakes, which had beans and nuts in them, are often offered to neighbors and friends at the start of a new business to demonstrate gratitude.

Seven VIPs who donated over $10,000 for the project, or who contributed a lot of time to it, cut the ribbon before all present entered the elegant new space.

The Ilchi Museum of Brain Education contains a history of Ilchi Lee’s life and of Brain Education. It also features experiential elements such as a Brain Wave Vibration room, an earth meditation room, and a room where one can meditate to a recording of Ilchi Lee’s brain blood flow. This recording is the first of its kind on the world, and was taken while Ilchi Lee was in a deep meditative state. Listening to the sound of his brain in this state is thought to help another person’s brain achieve the same state.

The largest of the many flat screens in the museum loops a video that gives an engaging synopsis of Ilchi Lee's life thus far. You can watch that video here and gain a better understanding of the nature of the new museum:

One main room is dedicated to an ancient Asian text containing 81 characters known as the “Chun Bu Kyung” or Heavenly Code. The Chun Bu Kyung describes the underlying philosophy of Brain Education. Visitors can buy Chun Bu Kyung and Brain Education-related products at the Museum's gift shop.

The remodeling of the building that now houses the museum was accomplished in three months with the help of donations large and small from many Brain Education practitioners, and a team of 11 construction workers, project manager Eun Sook Kim, and senior architect Geun Woo Yung from Los Angeles.

The most impressive and difficult part of the remodeling was installing a 9’ x 6’5” x 3” wall of Sedona red rock, which was then overlaid with glass illustrating Ilchi Lee walking amidst the Sedona landscape. This 1,440-pound slab was installed by backhoe driver Kyung Soo Lee with the help of a truck, forklift, and nine other persons. The installation took almost a full day.

Several well-wishers from Dahn Yoga Centers and retreat centers around the United States, and even Germany, expressed their congratulations by sending flower centerpieces.

The Sedona Mago Retreat Center will hold two more grand opening ceremonies for the museum. The first, which will take place on April 25, 2009, will be open to people staying at the retreat center for other programs. The second, on June 6, 2009, will be held for local VIPs and the general public.