Editor's Note: Recently on its 8th Volume, the monthly journal "Church and Heresy" run by Korean Christianity published an article "Recognizing Falun Gong (Its Hierarch Li Hongzhi) as a Pseudo Religion of Occultism", it defines Falun Gong "completely" as an evil cult.
Target of the study: Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Gong, born in Gongzhuling City, northeastern China's Jilin Province
Li Hongzhi`s present residence: USA
Motive of the study: Accessing various information of Falun Gong since 2004.
Materials for the study: Investigations made in both China and Korea, materials on the 6th and 7th Volume of "Church and Heresy" and application of defining Falun Gong as a pseudo religion.
Result of the study: Defining it as a pseudo religion of occultism
Time: At 15:00, July 19, 2007 (Thursday)
Location: Meeting room of the Bureau
Falun Gong (Falun Dafa) and its founder and hierarch Li Hongzhi
In China, everyday from morning to evening, it is a common scene that many people gather in the parks or streets to practice Qigong. "Falun Gong", which was one of them, is no longer seen being practiced. Indeed it has been the biggest Qigong school in China through its practicing ways that focused on both physical exercising and spiritual cultivation were quite attracted.
"Falun Gong" comes to be a focus for its sharp opposition against Chinese government. It was introduced into Korea in 1994 by an employee in the Chinese branch of a Korean company.
It was spreaded in Korea in 1996 with the help of PC communication technology. At present, there are dozens of thousands practitioners in more than 200 practicing stations throughout Korea.
Its founder Li Hongzhi
Li Hongzhi was born on July 7, 1952, in Gongzhuling City (formerly Gongzhuling Township of Huaide County) , in northeast China's Jilin Province. From 1960 to 1969, he studied successively at the Changchun Zhujiang Road Primary School, Changchun No. 4 Secondary School and Changchun No. 48 Secondary School. Li graduated from a jonior middle school. In 1970, Li joined the army, first worked at an army stud farm, and later served as a trumpet player in a band of the Jilin Provincial Forestry Armed Police Corps. From 1978 to 1982, he worked as an attendant at a guesthouse run by the Jilin Provincial Forestry Armed Police Corps. In 1982, Li retired from the military service, from 1982 to 1991, he worked as a security personnel at the Changchun Municipal Cereals and Oils Company. In 1991, Li began to practice "Qigong" by retaining his position as a security personnel of the Company with his salary suspended. He started propagating "Falun Gong" in May 1992.
On September 24, 1994, Li changed his date of birth from July 7, 1952 to May 13, 1951, and acquired a new ID card. On "the registration form of permanent residents" as well as on "the registration form for the security cadres" and "the cadre`s curriculum vitae" of the Cereals and Oils Company, Li Hongzhi changed all his date of birth as May 13,1951. But the date of birth remained July 7, 1952 in the forms he previously filled in for determining his grade on his payroll, as well as "the application form joining the Communist Youth League"; On his ID cards issued on December 31, 1986 and reissued on March 31, 1991 respectively, he used the birth date of July 7,1952.
Why did Li make this change? In the Chinese lunar calendar, the eighth day of the fourth lunar month is believed to be the birthday of Sakyamuni, founder of Buddhism, and May 13, 1951 happened to be such a date. Thus, by changing his date of birth, Li intended to indicate that he is a reincarnation of Sakyamuni.
However, many of Li's former schoolmates, teachers and neighbors, when interviewed, all said Li Hongzhi was no more than an ordinary child obtaining average marks in his studies. In their reaction to his fabricated story of spiritual cultivation, their answers were either nonsense, or impossible, or "I have never seen or heard of that". His superiors and roommates at the military stud farm and the forestry police corps also said he was just an ordinary serviceman in an art troupe. They explained that the full schedule of rehearsals and performances, as well as the strict militarized routine and tight time schedule in the forestry police corps could not possibly leave him any spare time to practice any "Great Law". His colleagues at the municipal cereals and oils company also said that Li Hongzhi knew nothing about the so-called way of practice and spiritual cultivation at all before he joined a qigong training class in 1988.
When Li's early followers asked him why he made up his life story, Li answered, "No one would believe me if I did not exaggerate a little bit." When his disciples asked him to demonstrate the "four great competence", Li answered angrily, "No. How can I demonstrate? You just want me to cut a poor figure in such demonstration! Are you playing with me?"
After founding Falun Gong in 1992, Li established the Research Society of Falun Dafa in Beijing and made himself president. Following that, he set up 39 Falun Gong teaching centers in various provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in China, which in turn had more than 1,900 instruction places and more than 28,000 group exercise areas.
Falun Gong, as a mixture of theory of both Buddhism and Taoism, has put up certain pseudo religion features.
According to Chinese government, Falun Gong was defined as a cult for reasons that its founder Li Hongzhi apotheosized himself as Bodhisattva and spread doomsday theory based cult; treated disease with Qigong, claiming that by practicing Falun Gong disease can by cured without any treatment and prohibiting practitioners from seeing doctors or taking medicine.
Falun Gong spreads to Korea
The present major leader of the Falun Gong organization in Korea is Kwon Hong-Dae, a 50-year-old man. When talked about the spreading channel for "Falun Gong" in Korea, Mr. Choi (42 years old) , a liaison for Korean "Falun Gong" practitioners said, "Falun Gong were introduced into Korea by people such as employee of Chinese branches of Korea companies and exchange professors. Among those people who learned the way of practicing Falun Gong in China and came back to Korea, about ten of them kept contact and started practice Falun Gong in a Chinese restaurant of Seoul in 1996."
Falun Gong set up a website in Korea in 1998. They posted on the website information such location for practicing, name and telephone numbers of the liaisons.
In April 1999, they created the preparation council of Korean Falun Dafa Association headed by Kwon Hong-Dae. They also argued against the allegation of Falun Gong being a cult that, "How could Falun Gong be regarded as a cult religion as it doesn't amass money or require for registration, nor does it has regulations, rules or offices."
Advocacy and fallacies of Falun Gong
"Falun Dafa" is the highest Law of Buddha. It is founded on the base of the most universal features of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance with an aim of cultivating people's spirit. Therefore, they also term Falun Gong as "Falun Practice Dafa". They advocate that on the one hand Falun Gong is a method of Buddhist practicing, while on the other hand is not a religion school. Besides cultivating spirit, they also advocate to anneal people`s life, taking Falun Gong as an intelligential organism.
Falun Gong believes that Qi formed and cumulated through certain means of aspiration will become Gong, and power of Gong will turn into Falun (Wheel of Law) that sustains inner power. Once reaching such a stage, one can have such fantastic powers such as cure disease with special power and even clearly see the organs inside the body.
