A: The principles are Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance, but on a more deeper level, they believe in a lot of weird conspiracies. They believe that they themselves are Gods here to rescue humanity from reincarnation. They believe that illness is a test, and that if you take medicine, then you are failing that test. There's a book called The Turning Wheel. I remember my mom, she introduced me to The Turning Wheel when I was five years old, and she opened up to the first page, which was this chubby little Chinese man. And she said, “this is Master Li. He has all the superpowers. He has Law Bodies that look after us. Law Bodies are projections of Master Li, so he's with us in spirit. Can you see him? ” And I looked around the room, “No, I can't see him. Where is he? ” And she says, “that's because you're not supposed to see him. But he can see you. He can see everything that you do. So you better behave. You better not lie to me because Master Li knows everything, like Santa Claus. ”

LIZ: Except this guy doesn't come down a chimney. No, he's just in your room chilling, sitting on your bluey chair, watching you at all times. He's a pedophile's dream.

ANGELA: At the time I was five, so I wasn't really creeped out by it. I already had imaginary friends, but now I had one that had all these cool superpowers and he can read my mind. So I used him as a little mental diary, so I would talk to him in my mind.

TYLER: So this mysterious, creeping, peeping Tom with superpowers, known as Master Li, is Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Gong.

ANGELA: Master Li is a very mysterious man in my eyes. He was very hush-hush about his past. People asking about where he came from or who his parents were and he would be like, “we don't talk about that.” He had so called great healing powers and a lot of people flocked to him to treat illnesses. Master Li started Falun Gong in 1992. There was a huge boom in Qigong practice in the 1990s. 

LIZ: I think it was huge. I'm sure it was huge. If they're saying it's huge, it's huge. The people are there and they're doing spiritual things. I'm sure it was big. And I think it was in China. And I'm pretty sure we're in China (Here the host is imitating Trump's tone).

TYLER: I've spoken to the biggest crowds. Nobody's spoken to crowds bigger than me.

ANGELA: But it seemed like Falun Gong was taking over China. And of course, the Chinese government can't have that. So they outlawed Falun Gong.  Falun Gong have hacked into TV channels and set balloons adrift. When I was seven, my parents took me to Santa Monica, the Palisades Park. That's where we hold a lot of the protests, actually every week on Sunday.

TYLER: I believe all of it.

LIZ: I do too.

LIZ: So these followers of Falun Gong call themselves “practitioners”.

ANGELA: So we believe that if practitioners were very good, they could have powers as well. A lot of practitioners could levitate and see into other dimensions too. I've never seen anybody levitate, and I was really disappointed. But of course, they had a way to explain that away. Like, “oh, people who levitate will never show you that they levitate, because otherwise it would be too easy for you to believe in Falun Gong.” “You need to pass that test first and then you will levitate, and then you will understand not to show people that you levitate.” I believed in it. I was like, “wow, that's so deep.” I guess I'll never levitate because I would want to show everybody.

TYLER: But getting to the point where you can levitate, isn't easy for Falun Gong members. You must do everything that is required.