SANTA MONICA—On May 13, practitioners of the spiritual meditation group Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, observe World Falun Dafa Day. The holiday is also the birthday of Falun Gong founder Mr. Li Hongzhi, who turns 64 this year.
Falun Dafa practitioners strive to live by the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, and they practice five sets of meditative exercises to enhance their well-being.
On Sunday, more than 200 Falun Gong practitioners and their families from the greater Los Angeles area held a grand celebration at the Santa Monica Pier to commemorate the holiday. The pier is a popular tourist attraction on the Santa Monica State Beach near Los Angeles that welcomes more than six million visitors from around the world each year.
In the morning, the group gathered to practice the Falun Gong exercises together. Their peaceful presence caused many visitors to stop and take pictures or pick up leaflets for more information about the practice.
Members of the group in colorful costume later began a variety of short performances for visitors, including drums, dances, martial arts, vocalists, flute and violin solos, and exercise demonstrations. The music created a festive atmosphere at the bustling Santa Monica Pier, overlooking the sand and sea.
Memories of an Early Falun Gong Practitioner
85-year-old Wang Xiulin is from Changchun, China. He said he attended Mr. Li Hongzhi’s original teachings three times in China, and he’s seen many examples of miraculous recoveries from grave injury and illness over the years.
He had a colleague whose wife’s back was broken, and she could not get up out of bed. The colleague’s family carried her on a stretcher to see Mr. Li Hongzhi, who instructed the family to bring the woman onto the stage. He asked the woman to roll over, then sit up, and a short while later to fully stand up to great applause from those in attendance.
Wang’s own wife, who was paralyzed, was able to recover in less than six months after learning about Falun Dafa.
“Thank you, Master, for your compassion to save people,” said Wang.
Now in 100 Countries Around the World
85-year-old Wang Xiulin is from Changchun, China. He said he attended Mr. Li Hongzhi’s original teachings three times in China, and he’s seen many examples of miraculous recoveries from grave injury and illness over the years.
He had a colleague whose wife’s back was broken, and she could not get up out of bed. The colleague’s family carried her on a stretcher to see Mr. Li Hongzhi, who instructed the family to bring the woman onto the stage. He asked the woman to roll over, then sit up, and a short while later to fully stand up to great applause from those in attendance.
Wang’s own wife, who was paralyzed, was able to recover in less than six months after learning about Falun Dafa.
“Thank you, Master, for your compassion to save people,” said Wang.
Mr. Li Hongzhi began to teach Falun Gong publicly in 1992 in China. Today, the practice has spread to more than 100 million people in over 100 countries in the world.
However, in July 1999, the Chinese Communist Party began a brutal persecution campaign against Falun Gong practitioners, using state-run media to spread horrific lies about them. Since then, thousands have been confirmed tortured to death, and hundreds of thousands have been imprisoned in labor camps and brainwashing centers. Others have been forced to quit their jobs or leave their homes.
Many Falun Gong practitioners from China have been granted asylum in the United States, and they tell other people about their experiences at events such as Sunday’s celebration.
Li Hailun, one of the organizers of the event, said this year compared to previous years, many more people came to learn about the benefits of Falun Dafa, and also about the persecution taking place in China.
The group told visitors about the ongoing horrifying human rights crimes committed by the Chinese Communist Party against Falun Gong practitioners, including stealing the organs of living Falun Gong prisoners on demand to sell to Chinese and international patients.
Many visitors added their name to a petition to end the persecution of Falun Gong in China.
Reporting by Liu Fei and Sarah Le
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