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Falun Gong Basics

The teachings of Falun Gong were developed by Li Hongzhi in Changchun, China.

Falun Gong is also known as Falun Dafa (Law Wheel of the Great Law). Both names can be used to reference the entire teachings and practice. The main teachings of Falun Gong is said to be found in the book Zhuan Falun . The teachings of Falun Gong is said to be a full “cultivation practice” of both mind and body designed to allow a human being to reach “consummation” or “enlightenment.” It can be separated into two parts, Cultivation and Practice.

In Falun Gong “Cultivation” refers to the upgrading of ones “Xinxing,” (mind nature and moral quality), which Li Hongzhi, (called “teacher”, or “master” by students) states happens when one gives up human attachments to things like, greed, selfishness, anger, lust etc. A high Xinxing is said to be is imperative for a human being to enlighten to higher truths. Li says a person can do so by following the principles set forth in Zhuan Falun.

The “practice” refers to purifying ones body by the practice of 5 sets of Falun Gong exercises said to open up all energy channels in the body and purify and strengthen ones body in every dimension. The exercises are split up into two forms, a set of four standing exercises which take approximately one hour to complete, and a sitting meditative exercise which also takes approximately one hour to complete. Both exercises are taught to be performed with a conscious mind and without the adherent slipping into any form of trance or visualization.

File:5 sets of Falun Gong exercises.jpg

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Li states that the cultivation aspect of Falun Gong is most important where the exercises are secondary, but also important for the completion of cultivation of both mind and body.

Zhuan Falun, the Main Book of Falun Gong

The teachings of Falun Gong are captured in two main books written by Li: Falun Gong and Zhuan Falun. “Falun Gong” the book, is an introductory book that discusses Li’s view of qigong, introduces the principles of the practice of Falun Gong and provides illustrations and explanations of the exercises.

“Zhuan Falun” is said to be the main teaching and most comprehensive and essential work of Falun Gong. It is seen by students as a compilation of Universal principles to guide students to reach their final goal of “consummation” or complete enlightenment. It is taught that by reading Zhuan Falun over and over again a person will assimilate to the fundamental characteristic of the Universe which Li states to be Zhen 真, Shan 善 and Ren 忍, “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.” Falun Gong students have taken these words to also be the basic principle and slogan for Falun Gong.

Zhuan Falun is organized in the form of nine lectures and explains topics including: Zhen 真, Shan 善 Ren 忍 is the Sole Criterion to Discern Good and Bad People, the Celestial Eye, Buddha School Qigong and Buddhism, Supernormal Abilities, Loss and Gain, Transformation of Karma, Upgrading Xinxing (Mind nature and moral quality), Practicing Evil Cultivation, Cultivation of Mind and Body, Demonic Interference in Cultivation, The Issue of Killing, Cultivation of Speech, The Issue of Eating Meat, The Issue of Treating Illness, Enlightenment etc.

Since 1992, Li has written other papers (called Scriptures by his students) that address the teachings of Falun Gong. However, he states several times within those scriptures that only Zhuan Falun should be viewed as the main guide to help practitioners reach their goal. In 2003, 2005 and again in 2007 Li answered students who asked what they should read more, Li’s new articlers or Zhuan Falun. Li answered, “What I’ve said recently in different periods is supplementary to Zhuan Falun. Just remember their relationship, and that what you should study frequently is Zhuan Falun.”

Zhen 真, Shan 善 Ren 忍, The Fundamental Characteristic of the Universe

Practitioners of Falun Gong believe that the fundamental characteristic of the Universe is Zhen 真, Shan 善 Ren 忍, or “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.” These three words are believed by the students to be synonymous with each other and one in the same. Therefore it is not three principles but one principle, as each can be found within each other and they all represent the intrinsic nature of the Universe and everything within it. In Zhuan Falun it states that the characteristic, Zhen-Shan-Ren, is in the microscopic particles of air, rock, wood, soil, iron and steel, the human body, as well as in all matter. “In ancient times it was said that the Five Elements constitute all things and matter in the universe; they also carry this characteristic, Zhen-Shan-Ren.”

Practitioners are to assimilate their thoughts and actions as close to these principles as possible in order to be allowed to see higher aspects of the mysteries of the Universe and life. “A practitioner can only understand the specific manifestation of the Buddha Fa at the level that his or her cultivation has reached, which is his or her cultivation Fruit Status and level.”

The Goal of the Practice

Li states that a human life is not created in ordinary human society but in the space of the universe. The space of the universe is benevolent to begin with and embodies the characteristic of Zhen-Shan-Ren. At birth, one is assimilated to the characteristic of the universe. However, Li also states that beings in the Universe developed selfishness and gradually their levels were lowered until, in the end, they reached this level of human beings. A practitioner must also be able to endure hardships and tribulations in every day modern life in order to reduce “Karma,” which is seen as a very bad, black substance that blocks people from enlightening to spiritual truths. “De” (virtues) is said to be a white substance that is gained by doing good deeds and forbearing through hardships and will be transformed into “gong” energy which is said to be the everlasting fundamental energy a human spirit possesses and what ultimately dictates where ones spirit goes after death.

Li states that one of the most important aspect of his system is that it cultivates the Main Spirit of a human being. Li states that a person is made up of a Primordial Spirit which is said to be a makeup of the Main consciousness or Main spirit (called “Zhu Yuanshen”) and the Para consciousness or Para spirit (also called “Fu Yuanshen.”) Traditional Chinese thought believes that many spirits exist in the human body, some of which govern the process of the body, i.e.: the liver etc. Li states that upon death the Main spirit is what dictates our future lives and is the spirit that we should cultivate the Gong energy for in order to ascend to higher levels. In Zhuan Falun it states that upon death both spirits split from the body and go their own ways. The Para spirit will reincarnate into another body to continue cultivating, where the Main spirit, or what we know as our selves, will be left with nothing and upon reincarnation, will not remember a single thing of its past cultivation and will be left to live life locked in this dimension in delusion. Li also teaches that other practices that teach trance and mantras and visualization only focus on the Para spirit.

Li states that a teaching that can offer someone a chance to return to their original true selves is called “salvation of all beings.” “In the Buddha School, “salvation of all beings” implies bringing you out of everyday people’s most agonizing state to higher levels. You will no longer suffer, and will be set free— that is what it implies. Didn’t Sakyamuni talk about the other side of nirvana? That is the actual meaning of salvation of all beings.”

Enlightenment

In Zhuan Falun Enlightenment does not equate with being clever. Instead, enlightenment means the ability to let go human attachments and various desires on the path of cultivation in order to achieve consummation. Li teaches that through cultivation practice one will constantly move up and one’s gong will also constantly grow until the final step in cultivation practice when he or she can see the truth of different dimensions, the forms of existence of different matter and different time-spaces, and the truth of our universe.

Karma and the Cycle of Rebirth

Much like Buddhism and Taoism, Falun Gong teaches that the soul or spirit of a person is forever locked in the cycle of rebirth, also known as Samsara in the Buddhist circles, due to the accumulation of “karma” taught in Falun Gong to be an accumulation of a bad black substance in other dimensions accumulated by acting out bad deeds and thinking bad thoughts throughout ones lifetimes. It states that Karma is the reason that one suffers in this life time and that karma ultimately blocks one off from the Universal characteristic and the attainment of enlightenment. It is also the cause of ones continuous rebirth and suffering. The premise is that due to the accumulation of this karma the human spirit upon death will re incarnate over and over again until the karma is paid off or eliminated through true cultivation, or the person himself is destroyed due to the bad deeds he has done.

Cultivation Practice

Li calls Falun Gong a “cultivation practice.” He teaches that Falun Gong can guide one who desires to walk a path of true cultivation by teaching the principles of the Universe and life at different levels. He believes that by cultivating ones mind nature and moral quality to assimilate to the intrinsic characteristic of the universe, and by enduring through tribulations and hardships that one can slowly eliminate Karma accumulated over lifetimes and enlighten to higher truths of human existence. The person will then elevate to finally break through the cycle of Samsara to return to his or her own true paradise or what western religions call Heaven.

Li teaches that in order to raise Xinxing, one must relinquish human attachments, as human attachments are what lock a human being from awakening to the true path of enlightenment. In Zhuan Falun attachments refer to, jealousy, competitive mentality, fame, showing off, pursuit of material and spiritual gain, anger, lust, etc. To explain the issue Li uses the story of a man who wants to reach the realm of Buddha hood, but is laden with human attachments: “If a person, with all kinds of human sentiment and desire among everyday people, is allowed to ascend and become a Buddha—think about it—is this possible? He may have a wicked thought upon finding a Bodhisattva so beautiful. This person may start a conflict with a Buddha because his jealousy has not been eliminated. How can these things be allowed to take place? What should be done about it, then? You must eliminate all ill thoughts among everyday people—only then can you move up.”

In Zhuan Falun it is repeatedly stated through out the book that the fundamental act essential to the path of “cultivation” is the ability to look within ones self for the cause of tribulation instead of competing and fighting with others to benefit ones self. Li also states that students should be thoughtful towards others in all circumstances. “You should always be benevolent and kind to others, and consider others when doing anything. Whenever you encounter a problem, you should first consider whether others can put up with this matter or if it will hurt anyone. In doing so, there will not be any problems. Therefore, in cultivation practice you should follow a higher and higher standard for yourself.”

Sharing’s on the teachings of Falun Gong and the understandings of “cultivation” by Falun Gong students around the world can be found on the Clearwisdom website.

With respect to materialism Li explains that having the material itself is not the problem. The problem lies in the attachment to such things. “In our school of practice, those who practice cultivation among everyday people are required to practice cultivation precisely in ordinary human society, and to fit in among everyday people as much as possible. You are not really asked to lose anything materially. It does not matter how high your position ranks or how much wealth you own. The key is whether you can abandon that attachment.”

Li also states that Loss and Gain in ones life is not the measure of the loss of money or the gain of comfort, rather it is the measure of how many human attachments one can loose and how much one can enlighten in the course of cultivation practice.

In regards to cultivation practice, Zhuan Falun teaches that cultivation is more than just doing some exercises, sitting in meditation, and learning some incantations. Li tells his students that the most important aspect of cultivation is not the exercises, but the focus on changing ones heart and mind. “Only when you are studying the Fa and cultivating your heart and mind in addition to the means of reaching Consummation—the exercises, and truly changing yourself fundamentally while improving your xinxing and elevating your level—can it be called true cultivation practice.”

The Clearwisdom Website

The / Clearwisdom website is a site created and run by Falun Gong students for Falun Gong students. It is a compilation of daily articles that “provide insights into Falun Dafa cultivation practice, expose the harsh persecution in China, and report the news of Falun Gong activities around the world.” The website is an open view into the thoughts and actions of Falun Gong students around the world.

Fa Rectification

A general recurring understanding and theme prevalent in the sharing of Falun Gong students are that they believe that Fa rectification is an important process in this time in history where a new Universe is being born and the “Old Cosmos” which carries the fundamental characteristic of selfishness is being destroyed.

It is described as a battle between evil and righteous where the evil is fighting to remain and the good are trying to awaken others to position themselves on the right side. Falun Gong students see themselves as the righteous and they believe that the Chinese communist party is the evil that is possessed by an evil entity who, rather than help the new Universe, wants to hold tight to the old Cosmos’ principles so it attacked Falun Gong and its principles of Truth Compassion Forbearance. In turn it also blocked human beings from supporting the righteous and enlightening to the changing of the new Universe.

Although their fight is with the communist party, and many critics see Falun Gong as political, Li teaches that Falun Gong’s goals are not political. On their internal sharing website Clear Wisdom not one sharing among thousands of Falun Gong students available on can be found that advocates the overthrow of the communist party for the pursuit of power or for a political motivation. Instead, Falun Gong students believe that those who side with the Chinese communist party’s persecution of Falun Gong either for selfish personal interest or by being deceived by the propaganda are harming their own future and the future ability of their souls to ascend.

Clarifying The Truth

Part of the goal of Falun Gong practitioners after the persecution started in 1999 is to “clarify the truth” to the worlds people about the persecution of their members.

Falun Gong students believe in what is called “karmic retribution.” In other words, they believe that when one does something wrong or hurts another person, they will ultimately have to pay retribution for that wrong deed. As well, when one does something good. They also believe there will be reward for that good deed. Because of this, Falun Gong practitioners believe that those who are persecuting Falun Gong or are participating in or supporting the persecution of Falun Gong, due to being deceived by what Falun Gong students see as propaganda and lies about Falun Gong spread by the Chinese communist regime, are hurting themselves and the future good of their spirit.

Clear Wisdom website defines 'clarifying the truth' as "explaining to the public the facts about Falun Gong and exposing the persecution." The goal of clarifying the truth is to help people understand Falun Gong, to dispel what Falun Gong students believe to be lies of the communist regime against Falun Gong and to raise public support to end the persecution.

Although, clarifying the truth is not part of Falun Gong student’s goal of “cultivation”, it is part of their belief and creed. In 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference Li states: “For Dafa disciples, cultivating and validating the Fa today are first and foremost. Dafa disciples must validate the Fa. For you, clarifying the truth and saving all beings are first and foremost.”

Falun Gong and Qigong

Falungong is known by many as a form of Qigong. Qigong is known predominantly in the west as a Chinese form of alternative exercising for health and fitness. Qigong (literally, “working qi-energy”) refers to an energy force a student can capture through specific movements in order to improve health and fitness.

However, in the book Zhuan Falun, Li states that the Qigong is actually a profound and ancient form of “cultivation practice” used by human beings to attain enlightenment and ascension of the human spirit. The term Qigong was coined in the early 1950’s as an alternative label to past spiritual disciplines, like Buddhism, Taoism that promoted the belief in immortality and the pursuit of spiritual transcendence as a human beings true purpose and goal. The danger of association with past practices labeled “superstitions” during the Mao era would surely result in social embarrassment if not persecution. "

In the 1980’s after the Cultural Revolution and the death of Mao, qigong was tolerated by the Chinese regime because it carried no religious or spiritual implementations which could take peoples minds away from the communist ideology. Millions of people inside China’s spiritual vacuum flocked to qigong, as a way to improve health and fitness. In turn Qigong rapidly became a social phenomenon of considerable importance.

In China thousands of “masters” started to promote alternative methods of Qigong to the public, sporting cure all methods to heal illnesses to teaching supernatural powers, and also teaching others how to become Qigong masters themselves in order to make money by healing others. Estimates stated the number of registered Qigong organizations were in the thousands as Official and unofficial sources put total membership of people who practiced Qigong between 60 – 200 million in 1990.

In 1992 Li Hongzhi debuted Falun Gong into the public and his mix of technical and historical elements of qigong along with his view of science quickly became a success across China. Falun Gong was welcomed into the government controlled Scientific Qigong Research Association, which sponsored and helped to organize many of Li's activities between 1992 and 1994 including 54 large-scale lectures given throughout China. In 1992 and 1993 Li Hongzhi won government awards at the Beijing Oriental Health Expos as the “Qigong Master most acclaimed by the Masses.”

In 1999 several western media outlets reported on Chinese government estimates that Falun Gong has attracted upwards of 70 million members in China. Including The Associated Press, that states: "But with more members than the Communist Party -- at least 70 million, according to the State Sports Administration -- Falun is also a formidable social network linked by mass loyalty to its founder, Li Hongzhi, a martial arts master who lives in New York."

Falun Gong and Religion

Falun Gong comprises a system of beliefs and practices which comport with Western definitions of “religion,” which has also been characterized as a “path of cultivation,’ similar to “the way” that is familiar to students and disciples of Taoism. Like Taoism, Christianity, Buddhism and virtually all other religions and spiritual paths, the tenets of Falun Gong embrace a belief in a metaphysic that is largely unseen, including a belief in deities, reincarnation, karma and a multi-dimensional world. Falun Gong also acknowledges the existence of such deities as Jesus Christ, Yahweh, Bodhisattva Guanyin, and the Buddha (known in China as Sakiumuni).

However, Li teaches that Falun Gong is neither Buddhist nor Taoist and is not a religion because it does not follow the formalities and tangible formats found in institutionalized or organized religions. In Falun Gong there are no denominations, clergy, monasteries, membership, or hierarchical structure. There is also no rituals or worship of the teacher.

Li goes further to explain that Falun Gong is a full cultivation practice of mind and body and is unlike Buddhism because the founder of Buddhism, (known as Sakyamuni in China) only focused on the cultivation of mind and did not focus on the cultivation of the body as he taught his disciples to discard all human attachments including the attachment to the human body in order to reach enlightenment by following the path of Nirvana, which means that when a monk dies his primordial spirit will ascend with his cultivated energy upon enlightenment as he leaves his body behind. .

Li also details that his Falun Gong is not like Taoism because Taoism focused more on techniques and how to cultivate life. It also only selects chosen high level disciples to be taught the true teachings and does not offer its true essence to all beings.

It is interesting to note that in Zhuan Falun, the main teachings of Falun Gong it makes reference to the teachings as the “Buddha Fa,” Fa meaning law or way. Li explains that there are only two schools of cultivation practices in the universe, the Buddha school and the Tao School and all orthodox religions fall within these two categories. Li goes further to state that there are over 84,000 cultivation ways in the Buddha school alone. His Falun Gong falls within the Buddha School and therefore he terms his teachings through out to be the “Buddha Fa,” or simply “Fa.”

In a Human Rights court in Canada, following a review of evidence in a case against a Chinese seniors association for discrimination of an elderly Falun Gong adherent, the court found that although the Falun Gong states it is not a religion, the practice of Falun Gong constitutes a form of creed based on its moralistic teachings and the beliefs held by its students and therefore it is worthy of protection from discrimination under law.

Further reading

• Listing of Falun Gong books available in PDF and DOC formats

• Clearwisdom website