In My Fantasy

Helena Bae

April 17, 2013 - Change 

 I woke up early in the morning to get ready to leave for Sedona, Arizona. Even though I had a standby ticket, I was lucky to find a window seat on the airplane.  Overlooking the mountains, the sea, and the clouds lazily flowing, I felt free and easy.

  When I arrived at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, I met with members of Valley Dahn Yoga Center. We had lunch together at a cafeteria called ‘Chelsea’.  Then we headed to Sedona by shuttle.  As soon as I saw the pink hued mountains, I could breathe deeper and my heart started to beat faster.

 We arrived at the Sedona Mago Garden Retreat Center and were greeted by an abundance of beautiful purple orchids, reminiscent of Van Gogh's painted gardens.

 I checked in at the Welcome House and was assigned to room number seven. My roommates were Dahn Master Hae-An and a young lady named Linda, an YEHA member.  It was very comfortable in the room and we became very good friends right away.

 I feel very lucky to know Master Hae- An. Though she is a mother of two little children and also works as a pharmacist, every Saturday morning rain or shine, she teaches yoga in a park for the past number of years. She is gentle, kind and has been a great inspiration to me.

 The first place I went to see was the ‘Healing Garden'.  With a glad heart, I opened the latch of a closed gate.  A weeping willow greeted me. This time, I started to walk from the left side of the lake instead of my usual way to the right side just to make some changes.  I went across the bridge, to a small island in the middle of the lake. Suddenly, my heart burst open like spring water. The 'Healing Garden' was truly a place of healing.

In the evening, about 200 people gathered in the Earth Hall. The film, Change, was newly released and we were one of the first groups to see it. The poster was wonderful, depicting the Life Particle Sun, a shape of a human eye and two hands reaching. It was a masterpiece.  You can change the world with your mind and good intentions. It conveyed a message of hope to the people; definitely a strong alarm sound of 'the era of spirituality' that is starting now.

Thursday, April 18 - Rainbow Bridge

I have heard of Lake Powell a lot and finally had a chance to go there today. Even though the lake was man made, it was very beautiful and enormous. We passed many red rock islands on a boat for a couple hours before we arrived at the final destination. The end of the lake, which is referred to as the ‘womb of the earth’, I could feel the Earth's secret ecstasy. In resounding symphonies of life, yulryeo, the ecstatic moans of the earth were bursting with life’s energy.

 There was the Rainbow Bridge standing on the cliff edge. The earth and the heaven, the flesh and the spirit, love and hate, all those conflicting things met together in harmony on the spot like a ring stand. Tens of thousands of years built up, layer upon layer of  great sculptures, nested like the flesh of the Earth. Lake Powell and Rainbow Bridge was a diary containing the breath of Mother Earth.

Someone played a flute, we watched, locked in meditation for a while there. In stillness, I closed my eyes and relaxed. At the mother's bosom, under the rainbow bridge, I prayed to the Mother.

 Finally, we headed back to our temporary home, Mago Garden. The heavens drew a pastel-like picture of blues, pinks and purples. “Painted Desert”, the signs of the impressive art gallery, captured my attention. Suddenly I remember the soul of Georgia O'Keefe. The peaceful, serene silence of the desert darkness fell.

April 19, Friday - Mago Castle - In heaven, one day

Today is a day in my life that will not be easily forgotten.  We visited Mago Castle, the highest point in Sedona. Nine Red vortexes, including Bell Rock, Cathedral Rocks, and Airport Mesa, surround this precious palace. It represents the symbol of yeouiju, the beads that help you achieve whatever you want according to ancient Buddhism. It was the sacred place of dreams of all humanity.

 There we met Manwol Dae-Sunsa Nim, a very precious lady with a divine aura. She was very gentle and loving.  We enjoyed listening to her telling the story of Mago Castle.

 We could see the whole panoramic view of nine red vortexes spread out like nine dragons through the window of the castle, the house of Mother Mago. While meditating in front of the statue of Mother Mago, I felt like the old world I have lived in disappeared. Feeling like I was in heaven, the tears began to flow endlessly.  There I was met with a phenomenal world and fantasy, the Palace of Creation.

 For lunch I ate a salad named after Bell Rock and bought a cowboy hat in Downtown Sedona. We stopped by the Bell Rock, which I had wanted to see for such a long time. I had a chance to talk to my beloved rock there.  We also took time to sit near the flowing water along the greater Cathedral Rock. I also had a healing experience while meditating there. I built a small stone tower and bowed to it wishing for everybody’s happiness.

Saturday, April 20 - Juniper Ceremony

 We attended the ‘Juniper Ceremony’ in the morning. You can have your own tree as a symbol of your everlasting life. Some people made a conscious pledge under the tree with the desire to return to the universe. Death is only for the body, but the spirit and soul live forever. What a beautiful ceremony it was!

 There was a Bubbok Ceremony in the afternoon. The newly appointed Dahn Masters, they all seemed happy and bright. They are the people who give hope to others, and who have the self-determination to become a preacher of hope for the restoration of humanity and the earth. They were glowing with enthusiasm.

Sunday, April 21 – In My Fantasy

The return morning, there was a lecture by Great Master Ilchi Lee. The theme of the lecture was, change. A child-like mind will make everything possible.  If you have difficulty in making your dreams come true, then you should ask a child, “Why not?”.  Then you will get an answer. Unceasing love of wisdom has been detected from the enlightened one.

Sweet sorrow and tears of joy came upon me with the softly flowing music of 'Nella Fantasia'. I do not know the source of my tears, maybe it is in a language that cannot be expressed. What could be more valuable and precious?

In my fantasy

In my fantasy I see a just world

Where everyone lives in peace and honesty
I dream of souls that are always free
Like clouds that float
Full of humanity in the depths of the soul

In my fantasy I see a bright world

Where each night there is less darkness
I dream of souls that are always free
Like clouds that float
Full of humanity

In my fantasy exists a warm wind

That breathes into the city, like a friend
I dream of souls that are always free
Like clouds that float
Full of humanity in the depths of the soul