Falun Dafa

beans

Evening all,

I was wondering if anyone has any stories, opinions, personal reflections etc on the Falun Dafa movement, known to you and me as Falun Gong

I'm of the opinion that it's basically just Tai Chi, meditation, a philosophy of tolerance and quite a bit of goofy mysticism thrown in for good measure; a good friend of mine has become rather taken by the whole movement, and i'm a little bit worried

Are my fears justified, or do i need to learn more?

oscarBravo

Originally posted by beans
I'm of the opinion that it's basically just Tai Chi, meditation, a philosophy of tolerance and quite a bit of goofy mysticism thrown in for good measure; a good friend of mine has become rather taken by the whole movement, and i'm a little bit worried

Out of that list, what is there to worry about?

sanvean

I guess it all depends on your definition of a cult movement. the Chinese government, however, aren't noted for their tolerance in religious affairs. but then, you have a protestant evangelical group in america labelling Roman Catholicism a cult.

i think it all depends on whether the group are subversive to the existing social and political order. are they brainwashing their members? are they scamming them for financial rewards? are they isolating them from friends and family?

not too sure about the falun dafa/gong though. I think the only thing you should worry about re your friend is him turning into one of those western people 'influenced' by buddhist teachings.

AngelofFire

Im go to falun gong classes myself now and again in trinity college. the college has its own society for falun dafa. it is anything but a cult. classes are free its a great form of relaxation and is known to help prolong life. its based on the 3 main energies of the universe truthfullness compassion and tolerance

Its a form of relaxation that is brutally persecuted in china.thousands of people in china have been killed for being a member of the falun gong society. Many are tortured and abused in forced labour camps. Chinese dictator jiang is obsessed with his own self preservation and has wasted over 25% of china`s rescources on "eradicating" falun gong which he belives is taking peoples focus away from the communist party. unfortunately this tyrant has not yet been brought to justice by the international community which is an absolute disgrace.

RampagingBadger

:mad:

Chinese dictator jiang is obsessed with his own self preservation and has wasted over 25% of china`s rescources on "eradicating" falun gong

China is the most populous country in the world with huge, huge resources. It think you misread. The Average annual income in china in 2001 was $890. Multiply this by 1.3 billion (its population) and you'll get an idea as to the size of the economy. It probably should read 0.000000000000000025 %. I agree that the movement has been unjustly cracked down upon in a really awful way but spouting out made up bullsh1t statistics will not win any followers to your cause.

sanvean

its based on the 3 main energies of the universe truthfullness compassion and tolerance

I didn't realise truthfullness, compassion or tolerance could be classed as energies, let alone the 'three main energies'.

I'm also wondering how falun gong lengthens lifespan. any (non-biased) links?

Redleslie

Originally posted by sanvean
I think the only thing you should worry about re your friend is him turning into one of those western people 'influenced' by buddhist teachings.

Why do you "think" that exactly?

beans

Originally posted by beans
I'm of the opinion that it's basically just Tai Chi, meditation, a philosophy of tolerance and quite a bit of goofy mysticism thrown in for good measure; a good friend of mine has become rather taken by the whole movement, and i'm a little bit worried

---

Out of that list, what is there to worry about?

I'm worried about the facts
- the complete turnaround in his character over the past 6 months
- the fact that he planned to marry his chinese gir after knowing her for a month
- the fact that he now only reads Master Li's 'bible' - this is the only source of information he receives, and that's not healthy

I'm also worried about the 'what-ifs'...
- he goes and immolates himself on tienemin sq to make a stand
- his chick is only after her citizenship
- he believes that Master Li's wheel :rolleyes: that ticks around in his belly will actually remove any illhealth , hence not go get treated for something, hence end up in a bad way

I've no issue with the taoist elements of the practice :ninja: , i'm just worried about all the fanatical aspects. He's a happy bunny, very happy in fact, and it'll probably come to nothing - i just want to be forewarned and forearmed so that when i see something happening that should trigger a danger-flag i recognise it

any (non-biased) links?

that's the reason for my original post, i'd like to hear it from the horses mouth - everything google throws up is either written by practitioners or another presentation of the facts, but nothing about individual experiences for the good or bad

Kone

Originally posted by sanvean
I think the only thing you should worry about re your friend is him turning into one of those western people 'influenced' by buddhist teachings.

And what exactly is wrong with that?

AngelofFire

Originally posted by RampagingBadger
:mad:

China is the most populous country in the world with huge, huge resources. It think you misread. The Average annual income in china in 2001 was $890. Multiply this by 1.3 billion (its population) and you'll get an idea as to the size of the economy. It probably should read 0.000000000000000025 %. I agree that the movement has been unjustly cracked down upon in a really awful way but spouting out made up bullsh1t statistics will not win any followers to your cause.

Im quoting it from a pamphlet i have. im taking the figure at face value. with all the money invested in labour camps, secret police, propaganda through the media etc it wouldnt suprise me if it was 25%

davros

Originally posted by beans
Are my fears justified, or do i need to learn more?

I think you are right to feel concerned. Falun Gong is filling peoples' heads with all sorts of crazy nonsense. Their revered master, Li Hongzhi, claims to be able to levitate, see through walls and "emit gamma rays and thermal neutrons 80–170 times greater than the radiation of normal matter". And that's only scratching the surface. You can read his works online to find plenty more examples.

When people believe crazy things, there is no telling what they will do. As you suggest, they might forgo needed medical treatment. They might even commit suicide to achieve a new plane of existence. Now I don't believe Falun Gong teaches people to kill themselves but it has happened, most spectacularly when a group of followers self-immolated in Tian'anmen Square a few years ago, including a 12-year old girl.

Unfortunately, the situation with Falun Gong has been muddied by political issues. The Chinese government cracks down on the movement because it senses a threat to its own power. And their methods have been heavy-handed, to say the least.

But they can also be legitimately concerned about an organisation that is turning millions of Chinese minds to mush. And so should we. This is not some political movement looking for freedom of expression. This is a cult.

sanvean

Originally posted by Redleslie
Why do you "think" that exactly?

because most of the (irish or american) buddists I've met tend to either take what they like from the religion and disregard the rest. or, they only have a vague notion what they're talking about. and yet they talk and talk and talk about it.

not too sure why you have 'think' in inverted commas. doesn't really make much sense.

AngelofFire

Originally posted by davros
I think you are right to feel concerned. Falun Gong is filling peoples' heads with all sorts of crazy nonsense. Their revered master, Li Hongzhi, claims to be able to levitate, see through walls and "emit gamma rays and thermal neutrons 80–170 times greater than the radiation of normal matter". And that's only scratching the surface. You can read his works online to find plenty more examples.

When people believe crazy things, there is no telling what they will do. As you suggest, they might forgo needed medical treatment. They might even commit suicide to achieve a new plane of existence. Now I don't believe Falun Gong teaches people to kill themselves but it has happened, most spectacularly when a group of followers self-immolated in Tian'anmen Square a few years ago, including a 12-year old girl.

Unfortunately, the situation with Falun Gong has been muddied by political issues. The Chinese government cracks down on the movement because it senses a threat to its own power. And their methods have been heavy-handed, to say the least.

But they can also be legitimately concerned about an organisation that is turning millions of Chinese minds to mush. And so should we. This is not some political movement looking for freedom of expression. This is a cult.

OMG i cannot believe your ignorance. the world organistion for falun gong does not endorse self immolation. that was purely the acts of dissadent members of falun gong. it was unfortunate and i remember reading an article written by LH himself condemning the self immolation as immoral. secondly you talk about the chineese government as if they are some democratic organisation. they are not. Jiang is a tyrant who will go to whatever lenghts possible to preserve his own image. Falun gong draws the attention of the people of china away from the communist party. therefore Jiang is bent on eradicating it.

Tinamen square was a peaceful protest. Jiang manipulated a few soldiers from the far west of china into thinking that the protesters were trying to overthrow the government. The soldiers who killed all the students were blindly following Jiang`s orders.

Calibos

because most of the (irish or american) buddists I've met tend to either take what they like from the religion and disregard the rest.

In the same vein Angelof fire, do you believe all of the teachings or do you cherry pick the sensible stuff like tolerance,compassion and the meditation, exercise etc and disregard the levitation gamma rays etc or do you believe it all in which case.........."OMG i cannot believe your ignorance"......of common sense, logic and rationalism.

PS I assume your ying and yang life force energies have been rebalanced by having the furniture in your home aligned with the dragons back(Feng Shui)...."Hey mister, can I pay you a few hundred Euro to tell me which way my armchair should be pointing?" :rolleyes: :D:D

davros

Originally posted by AngelofFire
the world organistion for falun gong does not endorse self immolation.

Yes, I said that above. No argument from me.

secondly you talk about the chineese government as if they are some democratic organisation.

No, I don't. Did you read my post? I'm under no illusions as to why they have banned Falun Gong and I do not agree with their methods.

I'm extremely familiar with Chinese politics and China in general, having lived there for several years in the 1990s. (Jiang Zemin, incidentally, is no longer President, though he still holds a behind-the-scenes office.)

You illustrate the point I made - that Falun Gong has become inextricably linked with Chinese politics. But we should not let that blind us to the nature of Falun Gong itself.

Lex_Diamonds

Like all religions this cult is simply a breeding ground for ignorance and misinformation (my opinion). However, it remains to be seen if people have been negatively affected through membership of this cult (any documented examples would be appreciated). Obviously excluding those who have been persecuted for being practitioners.

I would certainly share the concerns you have for your friend, but as has been said, if his life and those of his friends/family isn't being impacted negatively then I would say dont broach the subject.

ReefBreak

Originally posted by AngelofFire
Im quoting it from a pamphlet i have. im taking the figure at face value. with all the money invested in labour camps, secret police, propaganda through the media etc it wouldnt suprise me if it was 25%

Sounds to me like your brain is already turning to mush if you actually believe a pamphlet that states that the government of the world's most populous country is spending 25% of it's resources on eradicating a religious sect. No, China is most certainly not spending that kind of money on destroying Falun Gong.

...and if the pamphlet is spreading that kind of muck, what might the rest of it say?

beans

Thanks for the replies

I met the chap in question for a meal and a chat the other night, he seems to be in very good form, genuinely happy and not at all strange or obsessing on points of the religion - i'm going to watch and see what happens, but at the moment it seems all ok

there have been some tales of irish lads getting totally immersed in Falun Gong, becoming very secretive and marrying their chinese partners behind their families backs etc - the great thing about this is that to mix races is totally against Master Li's teachings, he's quite clear on this point! some devotees...

anyhoo, i'd still like to hear any first-hand accounts, and good to see so many getting their 2c in