Focus In: Falun Gong
Ebony Baker
Staff Writer
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Falun Gong, (pronounced fah-luhn goong), means "the Practice of the Wheel of the Dharma." Falun means law wheel and gong means the cultivation of energy and capabilities. Dafa means Great Law or universal principles. Falun Gong refers to five sets of exercises, done to Chinese music that involves lotus postures and hand movements. Falun Dafa is the spiritual movement that practices Falun Gong.The movement itself is increasingly being called Falun Gong.
The Falun Dafa movement is one tradition within Xulian. These are ancient Chinese methods to cultivate mind and body as a means of keeping fit and healing oneself. Falun Dafa incorporates Buddist and Taoist principles and combines them with exercise and body cultivation.Individuals are drawn to Falun Gong because of the beneficial impact produced by its practices and exercises.
Founder Li Hongzhi (Master Li) made the movement public in China in 1992. It is now available to anyone. It has a membership of 70 million in China and 30 million elsewhere in the world. They deny being a religion, cult or sect. There is no leader; there is no form of worship or rituals. Falun Dafa is not involved with politics or against any government. Falun Dafa is viewed as ìa network for transmitting information and practices, in which people may dip on an incidental basis or more regularly."
The Falun Dafa symbol is circular and is composed of a central, counterclockwise-pointing swastika, a symbol of the Buddha School. It is surrounded by four smaller swastikas, two red/blue Yin-Yang symbols and two red/black Yin-Yang symbols. It represents a miniature model of the universe. Some advanced practitioners are believed to see the symbol revolving. When Falun rotates clockwise, it can automatically absorb energy from the universe. An internal clockwise rotation offers salvation to oneself while an external rotation offers salvation to others.
Falun Gong consists of a set of five exercises that promote one's cultivation.
Membership is open to anyone and they are free to come and go. Information is available on the Internet, without charge. There is no paid staff or clergy, just volunteers. They do not maintain a list of members' names and other data.
The Chinese government is concerned about the popularity of the Falun Dafa. The number of Falun Dafa practitioners exceeded the number of people in the Communist Party. In fact, Falun Dafa included many party members. The government refused them permission to join any other association and they have no legal protection in China. The Chinese government has relentlessly worked to suppress Falun Dafa. The government appears to fear any national group that is capable of organizing its followers into direct action.
In suppressing the Falun Dafa, the Chinese government has adopted much of the terminology of the Western anti-cult movement. (ACM) targets new religious movements that engage in psychological manipulation, deceptive recruiting practices or simply expect a great deal of commitment from their membership. According to the anti-cult movement, cults are said to ìdisobey the law, upset social order, and create a menace to freedom of religion and social stability.
Under the pretense of religion, kindness, and being non-political, they participate in political activities. Some of them even practice criminal activities such as tax evasion, fraud, drug dealing, smuggling, assassination and kidnapping. The Chinese government has described the Falun Dafa as a dangerous "cult." Some of their claims include: the group brainwashes its members, practitioners worship
About 10,000 Falun Dafa members engaged in a peaceful gathering outside the Communist Party headquarters in Beijing in 1999.On May 9, 1999, three students were fired from a university in Dalian City, China for practicing Falun Gong. One student was expelled. In subsequent months, practitioners were harassed in various areas of the country, as they were performing group exercises. Some practitioners were told that their phones were being monitored and that if they continued, their retirement pensions would be terminated. Police and other officials started to break into practitioner's homes and confiscate Falun Gong material. Some followers have been arrested and have disappeared from sight. The government accused followers of "spreading fallacies, hoodwinking people, inciting and creating disturbances and jeopardizing social stability." In December of 2001, the Chinese government detained over 100,000 persons for the "crime" of practicing Falun Dafa. Over 20,000 people were sent to labor camps without trial.
While Beijing has arrested and imprisoned hundreds of Falun Gong members since the movement was outlawed in 1999, followers continue to protest around the world and in Hong Kong where the sect is still a legally registered society. The debate surrounding Falun Gong's status as a harmless organization or evil cult continues with the Chinese government.
Information courtesy of: HYPERLINK "http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2002/falungong/" http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2002/falungong/, http://www.religioustolerance.org/falungong.htm
