Canada: Practising Falun Gong in Toronto's Milliken Park for 15 Years

Milliken Park in northeast Toronto is a beautiful place, with a lake and lawn. Many local people come to exercise or play. It is one of the sites where Falun Gong practitioners in Toronto do the exercises together.

Practising Falun Gong in Milliken Park

Fifteen years ago, Falun Gong practitioners started practising the exercises as a group in this park while offering free instruction to newcomers. Outdoor practice sites like this one have been the most common way that Falun Gong has spread around the world.

On the Falundafa.org website, there is contact information for Falun Gong practice sites in 33 cities in Canada; the Milliken Park site is one of the larger ones in Toronto. Practitioners meet there every Saturday and Sunday morning.

Mr. Gu and his wife started practising Falun Gong in 1998 and have been volunteer assistants since then, when the original assistant moved away. Their son and daughter also practise Falun Dafa.

Mr. Gu and his wife practise the Falun Gong exercises in Milliken Park

The volunteer assistant is in charge of providing the exercise music and sitting mats. When someone comes to learn Falun Gong, the assistant makes sure that person receives instruction. All instruction is free of charge. Ms. Gu said, “Over 13 years, I have taught the exercises to at least 300 people.”

Ms. Gu (middle) teaches the Falun Gong exercises in Milliken Park

Coordinating a practice site is not easy. One needs to arrive at the park on time every weekend and make sure the practice of two hours and instruction for beginners run smoothly.

Ms. Gu said, “No matter the weather, we arrive at the park early. There is no list of participants, and we don’t know who will come that day. Sometimes people come from far away to join the practice, so we have to be there consistently and on time so as not to cause others inconvenience.”

For 13 years, the couple have gone from using a large CD player that needed eight D batteries to the current tiny MP3 player. They bought these players with their own money to provide music for the site.

In the past 13 years of Ms. Gu's participation in the site, many people began practising Falun Gong and became regular participants at the site.

Linda Zhang started practising Falun Gong ten years ago. She came to participate in group practice for the first time and met Mr and Ms. Gu. When she practised the sitting meditation, marvellous scenes in the other dimensions appeared in front of her eyes. She was encouraged and gained confidence to continue the practice.

Mr. Mai has been walking 25 minutes to this site for practice since last March. He said he was encouraged to be more diligent when he saw others at the site. He said, “One can share experiences after the practice. It is helpful to improve one's understanding and moral character.”

Mr. Mai had been suffering from severe insomnia for ten years. After learning the practice he was able sleep very well for 6-7 hours every night and he quit taking sleeping pills.

Mr. Chen, 40 years old, was impressed with the Gu couple as they are careful and responsible in teaching the exercises. He learned all of the exercises at the park in two visits. He said, “Falun Gong practitioners are warmhearted and willing to help. When you have any question, they will answer it patiently.”