Increasing numbers of people in mainland China want to go on record as expressing their gratitude to the founder of the spiritual practice of Falun Gong, even at great risk to themselves.
Since 2001, Falun Gong adherents in and out of China have each year sent tens of thousands of custom-made greeting cards during the Chinese New Year to the founder of the practice, Li Hongzhi.
In addition to these greetings come ones from individuals in mainland China who haven’t taken up Falun Gong but feel the need to give thanks to Li—despite the Chinese regime’s persecution of the practice. An expert on totalitarianism says these greetings are “very meaningful,” simultaneously delivering a blow to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and encouraging the people of China to speak up for themselves.
Li first taught Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) in 1992 in Changchun, China. The practice involves doing meditative exercises and living according to moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. Falun Dafa spread rapidly and in early 1999 an official in the Chinese National Sports Commission suggested 100 million had taken up the practice.
The greetings from those not practicing Falun Gong examined by The Epoch Times primarily thanked Li for his “compassion and kindness.” They were emailed and mailed to a Falun Dafa website by people from all walks of life, from children and college students to professionals and seniors.
The well wishes came from as far north as the Greater Khingan Mountains by the China-Russia border, and as far south as the historic city of Shaoguan in Guangdong Province. Some of the cards have computer-generated graphics, while others include original calligraphy and drawings, or just a simple note.
Gratitude
“Master Li, thank you for all your hard work,” relatives of a Falun Dafa practitioner in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong said in their greeting message, which was posted on the Falun Dafa website minghui.org. “For more than a dozen years, we have witnessed with our own eyes the beauty and marvel of Falun Dafa. At the same time, we have also witnessed the cunningness and deceitfulness of the Chinese Communist Party.”
“The compassion and selflessness of the Falun Dafa practitioners have touched all those around them. They have allowed more people to learn of the true situation … choose the compassionate and good side, and allow us to see China’s future. Thank you, the compassionate and great Master Li!”
