The untold story of Falun Gong
Master Li, the founder and leader of Falun Gong introduced his teachings to the United States in 1996. Since July, 1999 the group has received a great amount of media coverage because of its ban in China. However very little is known to the American public about Li and his core teachings to this day, as our media focuses solely on the group being victimized by an authoritative regime. This paper inquires into the origin of Master Li, the core of Falun Gong’s belief system and the rationale for the ban. In an effort to provide a fair and accurate analysis, this paper relies mainly on information found on Falun Gong’s own literature and websites.INTRODUCTION TO FALUN GONG & FALUN DAFA
Racism:
According to the New York Times, Li Hongzhi said that: "...interracial children are the spawn of the 'Dharma Ending Period,' a Buddhist phrase that refers to an era of moral degeneration. In an interview last year, he said each race has its own paradise, and he later told followers in Australia that, 'The yellow people, the white people, and the black people have corresponding races in heaven.' As a result, he said, interracial children have no place in heaven without his intervention." Beliefs about homosexuality:
The Falun Gong movement appears to treat homosexuality -- presumably homosexual behavior not homosexual orientation -- as a degenerate behavior, on a par with sexual promiscuity:
Founder and current leader Li Hongzhi delivered a lecture in Sydney, Australia in 1996. 7 In it, he made a passing reference to homosexuality: "...the morality of human society has altogether declined. The moral values in people’s hearts have been corrupted. When there is no righteous mind, it means that the Fa [law, principle, way] is no longer effectual. When the Fa is no longer effectual in human society, mankind will decline. ...The change in human society has been quite frightening! People would stop at nothing in doing evil things such as drug abuse and drug dealing. A lot of people have done many bad deeds. Things such as organized crime, homosexuality, and promiscuous sex, etc., none are the standards of being human." (Emphasis ours).
In New York City during 1997, he said during a lecture: "I often say that humankind has gone through different historical periods before arriving at this day. In other words, many, many times humankind was wiped out after experiencing catastrophes at different points in history. ...Some people talk about how great Greek culture was, but where did those people go? Today something from Greek culture can be found: The elements of Greek culture that have been left are definitely from the final period of Greek civilization’s development, and we’ve found that there was homosexuality in it as well, along with promiscuous sex, and in addition, life was really extravagant and wasteful, corrupt, and terribly degenerate; we can see that humankind had already deteriorated terribly....Aren’t humans in a dangerous state? Your government permits something, your country permits it, your nation permits it, and even you approve it in your thinking, but it isn’t necessarily good. That’s why if you look at today’s society you can see that drug use, drug trafficking, drug making, sex changes, homosexuality, sexual freedom, organized crime, etc., emerge in an endless stream. Selfishness and desires have made people enemies of one another and without any righteous thoughts. All kinds of phenomena of a degenerate human society abound." (Emphasis ours).
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9 comments:
I fail to see what this hateful, authoritarian nonsense has to do with Buddhism or Taoism. Seems more like the Moonies to me.
The have appropriated the languange and symbolism of Taoism and Buddhism to justify the cult of personality of their leader. Not unlike the Chinese Communist Party and their reinvention of Confucian rule.
Hi Eugene,
I started practicing Falun Gong about 4 years ago, and since then I have experienced many great benefits in my life, and I always strive to become a better person and not harm other people, that's why I decided to also tell you my perspective on Falun Dafa.
You claim Falun Gong is a "fascist cult", and from your comments and the quotes you have put on the blog it seems your proof is Falun Dafa practitioners are forbidden to marry between races and so in a way I get the impression you are implying their lives are being dictated.
As an investigative journalist, I think you should look at the matter more in depth, rather than just the surface. You should go out and actually look at the life of Falun Gong practitioners and do some in-depth research. There are so many Falun Gong-practicing families who, for example, the husband is Caucasian and the wife is Chinese, or vice versa. I myself am a Middle eastern, and I absolutely have no problem with marrying with a Caucasian, Asian, or Black.
Falun Gong practitioners understand the real meaning of those statements you have posted because we have studied the books of Falun Dafa in depth, and understood what is the real implications behind them. What we believe in the most is Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. If you read the book, all along it says that whenever a problem comes up, we should correct ourselves, instead of yelling at other people, and we should be good people to everyone, do our jobs well, and don't harm anyone and be compassionate towards them.
If we for example look at Christianity, we can tell it is a good religion because it teaches compassion, and says you should be good to your neighbor, not kill, steal, or lie. These are all good things that we all human beings can agree on, and any good person would not dispute with these teachings.
But when it gets to some principles in Christianity, like for example about Jesus turning water into whine, or the effects of holy water and wine, etc, some people do believe them to be true, while others don't. These are things that each person chooses for him or herself to believe or not to believe. One side cannot make the other side convinced if they debate for even years or decades, since this goes back to your personal beliefs and understanding.
Likewise, on the issues of the origin of human beings on earth, and how each race was created by a different god, etc., there are some teachings in Falun Dafa. I choose to believe in them because it makes sense to me, while they might not make sense to you. We are both entitled to our opinion, and none can force the other that your idea is wrong and mine is good. The only time we should get concerned is if one side's opinion gets forced on the other side, as it is in a theocratic country like Iran, with the government "forcing" people to go to "heaven", or in China where the communist regime forces people to put the communist party above all.
About the issue of homosexuality, again I must emphasize it is about an issue of personal choice.
Many religions in the world, including Christianity, Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, Judaism, the Bahai Faith, say that you cannot be a homosexual if you follow their religions.
When it comes to cultivation, what you are trying to do is achieve a peaceful mind, that is free of attachments, which include attachments to hurting other people to benefit yourself, attachment to desires such as lust, etc. If someone is always thinking of sex, be it straight or gay sex, he/she would be unable to achieve a calm mind, and also would not qualify to advance in cultivation, a way of life followed by many throughout the entire history of human kind.
However, Falun Dafa never dictates what people should do or how they should live their life, everyone is free to do as they wish. It only points out that when you want to cultivate, you should try to eliminate lust, but that is all up to you.
As an example, a fellow Edmontonian, who was in fact a bisexual at one time, became a Falun Gong practitioner for a few years and always came out and practiced the exercises with us. After 4 years of practice, he decided he no longer wanted to practice, and he went back to his old way of life. I am still good friends with him and we go out for lunch once in a while. I choose to live my life one way, while he chooses to live his life in a different way.
I think the reason people might hold negative views about Falun Gong is because of the lies the Chinese communist party (CCP) has spread about this peaceful practice. If it wasn't for them, no-one would be saying oh there might be something wrong that the government of a country is persecuting them. However, if you look at the history of the CCP, you'll see that they have often killed people and have persecuted religions or any spiritual movement since coming into power; they publicly humiliated and murdered many monks and Christians and destroyed their temples and churches, as they believe the Communist party is above all and no-one can believe in anything else. I strongly encourage you to read the 'Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party' which goes in detail about the history of the communist party in China and the crimes they have done over the years in power (ninecommentaries.com).
Please take a deeper look into this issue, and as a journalist, do not only look at the surface. For examples, talk to people who have practiced it, look at the changes they have experienced since they started practicing, and talk to their colleagues, neighbors, and family members.
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/11422/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/13209/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/13167/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/14764/
Do you believe in Buddhas, Daos and Gods? Do you believe that there are universal laws that we have to follow? I've been practicing Falun Dafa for 6 years now and I've found it to be nothing but good.
Of course, athiests don't believe that it's good to go back to living with a moral structure like "Little House on the Prairie." Athiests don't believe in universal laws. They essentially believe that they can do whatever they want and there will never be any reprocussions, and they don't want others to believe in Higher Beings either. In the 1930s China was the last place that Europe didn't have control over. The way I see it mao was a puppet for hitler, and was Europe's doorway into China and from that point on they've been systematically destroying the Chinese language, culture, and the people. In 1999 1 in 10 people were practicing Falun Dafa, because Falun Dafa works! But only 1 in 20 were members of the communist party at that time, so while Jiang Zemin was in France, on July 20, 1999, he made a declaration (through a french newspaper in france, La Figaro) that he was going to destroy Falun Gong in 3 months. If you ask me it was Europe that was afraid of loosing control of China that sparked the crackdown on Falun Dafa.
I earnestly want to tell you to be careful, because I truly believe that there are Higher Beings in the universe, and I truly believe that they are watching each and every person and evaluating them.
Sincerely,
Jasper Seren
Eugene;
Great blog, but I am a little disappointed that you allowed those two very stupid Falun Gong drones (possibly the same person?) to pollute your blog with their insipid comments.
omid said…
I started practicing Falun Gong about 4 years ago, and since then I have experienced many great benefits in my life, and I always strive to become a better person and not harm other people, that's why I decided to also tell you my perspective on Falun Dafa.
Spoken like a true cult member!
omid:
You claim Falun Gong is a "fascist cult",
Because it is!
omid:
There are so many Falun Gong-practicing families who, for example, the husband is Caucasian and the wife is Chinese, or vice versa.
Bullshit! After all, Falun Gong preaches a racially segregated heaven. Heavens for Whites/Caucasians, heavens for Asians, heavens for persons of Black-African origin, no place for mixed-race children! There is no way that individuals open to interracial relationships would want to follow a sick racist cult like Falun Gong. And any Falun Gong cultists in such a relationship would be condemning any children they have to “mixed-race limbo” according to their beliefs.
omid:
I myself am a Middle eastern, and I absolutely have no problem with marrying with a Caucasian, Asian, or Black.
I call bullshit again! It is obvious that “omid” is a liar or a moron. He could be both, the two are not mutually exclusive. But I guarantee he is not “a Middle eastern.” He is almost certainly a Chinese troll pushing his Falun Gong cult. First of all, “Middle East” is an exonym, a geopolitical term coined by White Europeans out of convenience. I would expect a real “Middle Easterner” would identify by her/his nationality or ethnicity, not some nebulous construct. Second of all, I find it very suspicious that a “Middle Easterner” of all people would fall for some Chinese cult, especially a rather new age one.
Not to mention, you claim to have absolutely no problem marrying a Caucasian, Asian, or Black. (“Me? I’m not racist! No way! No how!” Gee, good to know omid, if we can believe that…) First of all, you imply that “Caucasian” is an “other” and that hence Middle Easterners are not Caucasian. Whether or not “Middle Easterners” are “White” is debatable, and depends on what kind of Middle Easterner you’re talking about. By definition they are not considered “European”, but the people of the Middle East are almost entirely “Caucasian” (or Caucasoid). As an alleged “Middle eastern” you ought to know that. Second of all, if you have no problem marrying outside your race, what are you doing with a racist cult like Falun Gong? You don’t need some stupid “guru” to lead a better life but if you join that movement, then you may not produce offspring with your spouse of a different race lest you condemn them to “mixed-race limbo.” Speaking of which, seeing as Middle Easterners are apparently not Caucasian (at least according to omid) and hence not one of the Three Races, which “heaven” would they go to according to Falun Gong?
[Note: the racism of the Falun Gong cult, though deplorable and utterly loathsome, is ultimately a moot issue because Falun Gong is really an ethnic religion and is only “for” Chinese people. This goes with Li Hongzhi’s true agenda, namely to undermine the People’s Republic of China and the ruling Chinese Communist (in name only) Party, and make a big buck in the process. In light of the fact that Falun Gong is nothing more than a subversive cult (in the vein of the Taiping movement) non-Chinese converts are irrelevant. Of course, they would welcome foreign converts as it creates useful idiots outside of China, and expands sympathy for that sinister cult, not to mention lines the guru’s pockets with cash, but foreign adherents are non-essential.]
omid:
Many religions in the world, including Christianity, Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, Judaism, the Bahai Faith, say that you cannot be a homosexual if you follow their religions.
The above supremely ignorant comment proves that omid knows precisely fuck-all about any of the religions he listed. It is true that the big three Semitic monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) forbid homosexual conduct (that is sexual behavior, but nothing about merely “being” a homosexual, as regulating internal thoughts, or attempting to, is generally reserved for totalitarian cults like Scientology, or say, Falun Gong). I think omid’s inclusion of the Baha’i faith is a little odd. I do not know what their attitude regarding sexuality is, but unlike omid I will not make myself look like an idiot by pretending to be an expert on things I know nothing about.
And regarding Buddhism and Daoism, it is obvious that omid knows neither jack nor shit about either one. [Maybe he is not Chinese after all? His dubious claims to be “a Middle eastern” almost seem credible now. Then again he is probably some Chinese mainlander ignorant about his own culture and history owing to the Cultural Revolution and subsequent attempts by the CCP regime to “bury the past.”] As for the Chinese religions, Buddhism and Daoism (well actually, Buddhism was originally Indian), neither of them are or were traditionally homophobic. Daoism makes no judgment regarding sexual orientation. Neither does Buddhism, at least not as an aggregate, though individual Buddhists or Buddhist sects might condemn same-sex relations. (Case in point: His Unholiness the Dalai Lama.) Incidentally, Chinese homophobia originated primarily with the Communists, who declared homosexuality symptomatic of “capitalist decadence.”
omid:
If it wasn't for them, no-one would be saying oh there might be something wrong that the government of a country is persecuting them.
Actually, no. Falun Gong would still have to answer for their racism, homophobia, cultish devotion to the figurehead, opposition to modern medical treatment (believing qigong to be sufficient for all needs), and various loony Scientology-esque beliefs. Or the fact that it is all fucking bollocks, very new, made up over night! Probably all just a cynical pyramid scheme to make money. Falun Gong beliefs run the entire gamut from laughable to loathsome.
omid:
However, if you look at the history of the CCP, you'll see that they have often killed people and have persecuted religions or any spiritual movement since coming into power…
Spare me the history lesson! I am aware of the atrocities committed during the Cultural Revolution. However, you are utterly unaware that the China of today is NOT the China of the 1950s or ‘60s. China’s recent (as in post-1949) history on religious freedom has been atrocious, but in the case of Falun Gong, they fully deserve oppression and persecution. Whatever Falun Gong cultists are subjected to in the PRC is too good for them! “We are peaceful, good and moral people, blah-blah-blah-fuckity-blah!” No, you are a bunch of brainwashed fools doing the bidding of some maniacal guru. And funny you take issue with “the lies of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)” but uncritically swallow the lies of the Epoch Times.
Jasper Arthur/Seren:
I've been practicing Falun Dafa for 6 years now and I've found it to be nothing but good.
More publicity for the cult… Glad to hear that selling your brain to a cynical cult worked so great for you, but I will pass on your snake oil.
Jasper:
Of course, athiests don't believe that it's good to go back to living with a moral structure
Typical of cult members, attack any and all members of the out-group (“we’re not insane, you’re insane!”). In this case, libel or slander atheists.
Jasper:
In the 1930s China was the last place that Europe didn't have control over. The way I see it mao was a puppet for hitler, and was Europe's doorway into China and from that point on they've been systematically destroying the Chinese language, culture, and the people.
You fail history forever! This is the historical knowledge of a Falun Gong imbecile. (1) Europe DID have control over China before the 1930s. Throughout most of the 19th century, European powers slowly encroached on China via the Opium Wars, the Unequal Treaties, they confiscated Chinese territory. It all came to a climax with the Boxer rebellion. The Chinese Empire under the late Qing Dynasty was partitioned into spheres of influence by the early 20th century, and this continued into the Republic, though European proxy rule was undermined by provincial warlords (whom even the native Chinese government could not reign in). (2) Mao was a puppet for Hitler? Could anyone seriously be that stupid? Mao was a Communist in league with the likes of Lenin and Stalin, not fucking Hitler! Perhaps if Jasper read an actual work of history rather than Epoch Times propaganda he would know better.
Jasper:
In 1999 1 in 10 people were practicing Falun Dafa, because Falun Dafa works!
Do you have a source for that claim? (And please no Epoch Times horseshit, an actual, reputable source. And even if it were true, that would not prove that Falun Gong “works” only that they are competent at deluding the masses.)
Jasper:
If you ask me it was Europe that was afraid of loosing control of China that sparked the crackdown on Falun Dafa.
Do not make me laugh any harder! If anything, the reverse is true. Falun Gong is a subversive movement used by “the West” (but NOT Europe this time, more so the USA) to undermine China. Li Hongzhi wants to undermine and destroy the ruling regime in China and apparently doesn’t care if the Chinese nation falls with it in the process. One wonders if Li Hongzhi is some sort of “self-hating Chinaman” given his disregard for anything beyond attaining money, power, and influence, even at the expense of his country. The ruling regime RIGHTLY views Falun Gong as a threat, just as the Taiping Rebellion was a threat.
In reality, Falun Gong is un-Buddhist, un-Daoist, utterly un-Chinese. It is a largely foreign (in ideological origin) cult that cloaks itself in Buddhist and Daoist jargon all the better to dupe gullible supporters. Funny that dumb-fuck Jasper blames the Chinese crackdown on Falun Gong (now “Falun Dafa”) on Europe. Especially, given that the CIA exploits Falun Gong to undermine China, and uses the Epoch Times newspaper as a virtual mouthpiece.
Jasper:
I earnestly want to tell you to be careful, because I truly believe that there are Higher Beings in the universe, and I truly believe that they are watching each and every person and evaluating them.
WHOO! Spooky! More tinfoil hat paranoia from a cultist! Big Brother is watching you. Jasper, what else do you believe? You know, besides “Higher Beings” spying on us. Can you share whatever else the voices in your head tell you?
THE BOTTOM LINE...
What do we know about Falun Gong, A.K.A. "Falun Dafa" other than the fact that their membership is composed of paranoid liars and idiots?
Interesting fact: the foundation of Falun Gong is qigong. Though qigong has ancient precedents it is in fact modern. Qigong was actually invented by the Chinese Communists and endorsed by Mao Zedong himself!
That's right, Falun Gong's religious practices were developed by the very communists that they so hate and seek to destroy. Also, ironically enough, the CCP attempts to bulldoze traditional Chinese culture through the course of the Cultural Revolution, coupled with state domination of education and "historical rewrite" via Party-approved historiography has left mainland Chinese so ignorant about their own history and culture that obviously-foreign ideologies have been able to disguise themselves as "authentically Chinese" and few would know better. Thus, Falun Gong owe Chairman Mao thanks for praving the way to their success, and the Chinese leadership are struggling against blowback from their own party's past actions.
As for Li Hongzhi, the guru himself, he can be summed up in a few choice words:
Bigot, homophobe, racist...
Charlatan, con, crackpot, crank, fake, fraud, hack, huckster, kook, phony...
Criminal, crook, subversive, terrorist...
Liar
Maniac
Li Hongzhi is what you get when you combine Hong Xiuquan with L. Ron Hubbard.
Thanks SuperSam for your anti troll campaign. As of 2020 the Falun Gong cult and its paper the Epoch Times are now embroiled in legal battles in the USA
for financial and ethical breaches I of course am shocked.
Larry is correct about Taoism, Falun Gong is a Moonie like cult. I will disagree about Buddhism as we have seen right wing ethno genocide by them in Myanmar and Thailand and the main form of Japanese Buddhism practiced in the West is Nationalistic and Militaristic (as well as being vehemently if not violently anti Tibetan Buddhism)
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