From Changchun to the World - Witnessing the Glory of Falun Gong

On May 13th, 1992, Mr. Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Gong, held the first Falun Gong lecture series at the Changchun City Fifth Middle School, Changchun, Jilin Province. He taught Falun Gong to people from all walks of life. There were about 180 attendees. Today, Falun Gong has transcended the boundaries of nationality, race, religion and language, and it is being spread all over the world.

Besides Asia, Europe, Australia, South America and North America, there are Falun Gong practitioners in Egypt, South Africa and other African countries. At the Mid-US Falun Dafa experience sharing conference held in May 2004, one practitioner shared her touching experience in promoting Falun Gong in Egypt, Tanzania and Mauritius. In 2005, at the New York International Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference, another practitioner shared her experience of promoting Falun Dafa in East Africa. She witnessed two local people rapidly recover from very severe illnesses after two or three weeks of practising Falun Gong.

Falun Gong is also welcomed and respected in Eastern European countries, where totalitarian governments were previously in control. There are practitioners in Russia, the Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania and Poland. At the Geneva Fa Conference held in 2003, Russian practitioner Mrs. Tanya shared her experience. She used to suffer from cancer and some of her organs had been removed. As her life was near the end, a nurse in the hospital introduced her to Falun Gong. After practising Falun Gong, her cancer was cured while another cancer patient died. In order to appeal for the end of the persecution of Falun Gong, she went to Tiananmen Square and told people, "Falun Dafa is good."

Falun Gong is also rapidly spreading in the Middle East. In Israel, the number of Falun Gong practitioners has increased a lot in recent years. In big cities such as Tel Aviv, Haifa and Natania, one can see group practise sites with most practitioners being locals. At the Geneva Falun Dafa Conference in 2003, an Israeli practitioner shared her experience in promoting Falun Gong in a town where transportation is not convenient.

Even in countries that are conservative towards foreign beliefs, Falun Gong is welcomed. In May of 2002, Falun Gong was given an award by the Indonesia Kalimantan Provincial Bureau of Health. Falun Gong was invited to a conference held in suburban Jakarta, by the Dagelan Islam Institute. Over three thousand Islamic people, members of the National Assembly and the leaders of Islam attended. In March of 2005, the core text of Falun Gong teachings, Zhuan Falun was translated into Iranian and distributed in Iran, authorised by the government. There are currently numerous practise sites in Iran.

As of this time, Falun Gong books have been translated into over thirty languages and spread to over seventy countries and areas. The practise has gained more than 1,300 awards, over 100 supporting bills, and more than 1,000 supporting dear-colleague letters from government, officials and organisations. Falun Gong has achieved this remarkable recognition in just thirteen years.

For those who do not know much about Falun Gong or who still have misunderstandings about Falun Gong, you may think about it: why can Falun Gong spread so rapidly? Why has Falun Gong taken root in every corner of the world? What force made Falun Gong practitioners so determined in pursuing their belief, even while facing violence and persecution by the Chinese government? If not because of the principles of "Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance," if not because they have been told the true meaning of life and the truth of the universe, if their lives were not touched, who could ever achieve this? Compared to the praise Falun Gong has won in the rest of the world, the brutal persecution launched by the Chinese government has brought such harm to its people. What will it bring to humankind if they continue to persecute such wonderful principles and such kind practitioners?

However, during the six years of brutal persecution, Falun Gong has survived the unprecedented attack, this most forceful and cruel persecution. Falun Gong is becoming stronger and the future is bright. It is truly a miracle in the human world.

History has witnessed, and is still witnessing, the glory of Falun Gong.