| Revision as of 20:28, 20 January 2006 editColipon (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers25,815 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit | Revision as of 20:32, 20 January 2006 edit undoColipon (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers25,815 editsm →Money and GovernmentNext edit → | ||
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| Many of my friends had similar experiences, and some were forced into purchasing some kind of a practicing carpet (I'm not an expert on Falun Gong, so I don't know what this thing is, it'd help if someone could explain) that's apparently crucial to the spinning of the Falun. Some of these friends then began advertising other Falun Gong related products to me, to all of which, I declined. I later found out that this was basically a money-making scheme for a larger organization, as these people worked for higher authorities. In the Falun Gong video tape that was circulating at the time, I watched a part where Li claimed he was the re-incarnation of the Buddha, following which was a lengthy 60-minute presentation when he droned on in monotone about various moral principles, and correct methods of practicing movements. | Many of my friends had similar experiences, and some were forced into purchasing some kind of a practicing carpet (I'm not an expert on Falun Gong, so I don't know what this thing is, it'd help if someone could explain) that's apparently crucial to the spinning of the Falun. Some of these friends then began advertising other Falun Gong related products to me, to all of which, I declined. I later found out that this was basically a money-making scheme for a larger organization, as these people worked for higher authorities. In the Falun Gong video tape that was circulating at the time, I watched a part where Li claimed he was the re-incarnation of the Buddha, following which was a lengthy 60-minute presentation when he droned on in monotone about various moral principles, and correct methods of practicing movements. | ||
| I guess my personal stories aside, what I'm trying to get at is that the spread of Falun Gong on Mainland China was done in a fairly forced and unconventional manner, especially after 1997, and much focus was shifted from the original spiritual content to economic oppurtunity (similar to ]). Furthermore, although CPC propaganda vilifies Falun Gong as an evil cult in black and white, it would not be unfair to say that Falun Gong had political intentions. Li Hongzhi, the leader, shifting positions to fit whatever situation suited him best, cannot be fairly seen as a legitimate religious (or even spiritual) leader, but rather unfairly used the combination of China's poor human rights record, and the sympathy of the west at the time to continue spreading his word. I wish to make some changes into the article, but to my ability right now I cannot |
I guess my personal stories aside, what I'm trying to get at is that the spread of Falun Gong on Mainland China was done in a fairly forced and unconventional manner, especially after 1997, and much focus was shifted from the original spiritual content to economic oppurtunity (similar to ]). Furthermore, although CPC propaganda vilifies Falun Gong as an evil cult in black and white, it would not be unfair to say that Falun Gong had political intentions. Li Hongzhi, the leader, shifting positions to fit whatever situation suited him best, cannot be fairly seen as a legitimate religious (or even spiritual) leader, but rather unfairly used the combination of China's poor human rights record, and the sympathy of the west at the time to continue spreading his word. I wish to make some changes into the article, but to my ability right now I cannot decide on which ones will be the most appropriate. Please reply, | ||
| ]+(]) 20:28, 20 January 2006 (UTC) | ]+(]) 20:28, 20 January 2006 (UTC) | ||
Revision as of 20:32, 20 January 2006
 | The subject of this article is controversial and content may be in dispute. When updating the article, be bold, but not reckless. Feel free to try to improve the article, but don't take it personally if your changes are reversed; instead, come here to the talk page to discuss them. Content must be written from a neutral point of view. Include citations when adding content and consider tagging or removing unsourced information. |
It is suggested that new readers of this "talk page" read the archived discussion below. It is likely that an issue of concern has already been discussed. As a result, a would-be poster can save the Wikipedian community time and effort spent on otherwise rehashing an issue if this responsbility is undertaken. Please remember that this isn't the place to vent our spleens in condemnation or gush praise for Falungong itself as much as it is to comment on the actual article content. We don't want a puff piece for Falungong or Li Hongzhi, neither do we want to demonise them. If we have an objectively neutral, factual article one hopes the truth will speak for itself, however we may subjectively perceive it. Archived discussion:
- /archive1, 1 April 2003 - 29 May 2005
- /Archive2, 29 May 2005 to 30 July 2005
- /Archive3, 31 July 2005 to 20 January 2006
Money and Government
I realize this is a controversial topic, so before anything I would like to suggest that I don't get dismissed as a staunch CPC propagandist, or anything of that sort. I am somewhat surprised at how much the article covers, but think certain sections definitely need improvement. I lived in China during the time of the crackdown, I've read the article and I've found a few things not being mentioned. For one, it is mentioned in Falun Dafa, the book, that society has a "Falun", just like the body, and increasing instability (and things to the like) contribute to the abnormal function of such a societal Falun, and thus needs "purification". Thus we need to answer the question of whether this is enough to support that Li Hongzhi himself had certain political ambitions, not taking in account what the average Falun Gong practictioner thinks about politics.
Second, I thought it was interesting that Falun Gong's spread in China was described in a few sentences, and somehow Falun Gong ended up with 70 million practitioners by 1999. While not dismissing Falun Gong as any kind of evil cult, my personal experience suggested to me that it was not as pure as it claimed, either. In China, I was approached in 1998, while taking a morning jog, by several people in a park, who led me to a Falun Gong stand nearby with a big banner and a bunch of printed material. The guy asked me to buy the book Falun Dafa, and after politely declining he said he'd "lend" it to me at no cost, as long as I came and returned it to them later. I took the book home, and lost interest after reading about Li's numerous Buddha-related abilities, and a few of his principles. When I decided to return the book, the people in the park dissapeared, and to my knowledge never came back.
Many of my friends had similar experiences, and some were forced into purchasing some kind of a practicing carpet (I'm not an expert on Falun Gong, so I don't know what this thing is, it'd help if someone could explain) that's apparently crucial to the spinning of the Falun. Some of these friends then began advertising other Falun Gong related products to me, to all of which, I declined. I later found out that this was basically a money-making scheme for a larger organization, as these people worked for higher authorities. In the Falun Gong video tape that was circulating at the time, I watched a part where Li claimed he was the re-incarnation of the Buddha, following which was a lengthy 60-minute presentation when he droned on in monotone about various moral principles, and correct methods of practicing movements.
I guess my personal stories aside, what I'm trying to get at is that the spread of Falun Gong on Mainland China was done in a fairly forced and unconventional manner, especially after 1997, and much focus was shifted from the original spiritual content to economic oppurtunity (similar to Chuanxiao). Furthermore, although CPC propaganda vilifies Falun Gong as an evil cult in black and white, it would not be unfair to say that Falun Gong had political intentions. Li Hongzhi, the leader, shifting positions to fit whatever situation suited him best, cannot be fairly seen as a legitimate religious (or even spiritual) leader, but rather unfairly used the combination of China's poor human rights record, and the sympathy of the west at the time to continue spreading his word. I wish to make some changes into the article, but to my ability right now I cannot decide on which ones will be the most appropriate. Please reply,
Colipon+(T) 20:28, 20 January 2006 (UTC)
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