Sweden: Introducing Falun Gong to a Spiritual Association in Eslöv

When a practitioner introduced Falun Gong and the persecution against practitioners in China to a colleague at her workplace, a colleague said that she used to be a member of a spiritual association in Eslöv. She said that this association would definitely be interested in learning about Falun Gong. She gave the practitioner details of a contact person in the association.

The practitioner called the contact person who immediately said they were welcome to come but the diary was already booked up until April. However, he also said that once a week they had an open night where anyone could spontaneously visit to talk about something. We decided that we would take this opportunity to visit the spiritual association in Eslöv.

There were about twenty people in the association’s premises and everyone who sat there was interested in spirituality and methods for relaxation. When we came to the room, it was noticeable that many people were expectant and curious of what we were going to talk about. One practitioner began by sharing his own experience of practising Falun Gong and how he eventually started to understand what cultivation was about. Another practitioner related how powerful and comfortable he found the five exercises to be, along with how they cleanse the body and bring one inner peace.

We went on to tell them about the ongoing persecution in China and how millions of innocent people have been subjected to torture, violence, beatings, imprisonment and violations of their human rights. The audience listened attentively and learned how brutal this on-going persecution really is. One Chinese practitioner shared her own experience of living in China and how qigong was part of everyday life there, which made it easy for everybody to understand how Falun Gong quickly rose in popularity after it was introduced in 1992 and was practised by 100 million people by 1999. We also told them how the concept of cultivation of one’s mind and heart is deeply rooted in China’s 5000 year-old civilisation and many people listened attentively. People asked questions and at the same time condemned the persecution.

Finally, we demonstrated the five sets of exercises and at the same time explained some of the core principles of the practice. During the demonstration of the exercises people in the room felt the powerful energy and in a short while they became warm with rosy cheeks. One woman joked with us, “With three Falun Gong practitioners here we don’t need a radiator!”

The practitioners offered to return to Eslöv to run a free exercise class and show the nine-day lecture series given by Master Li Hongzhi on which Falun Dafa’s main book, Zhuan Falun, is based. The evening concluded with material, such as leaflets and newspapers, about Falun Gong and the persecution, along with little paper lotus flowers which the practitioners had made themselves, being given out to the association members. The introductory book Falun Gong is now in their library.

Many signatures were added to a petition appealing to the Swedish Government to take action in calling for an end to the persecution. The members of the spiritual association thanked us for a pleasant evening and told us we would be welcome to come again.