Re-evaluation of Li Hongzhi and His "Falungong" -- 25 Years of Banning the "Falungong" Cult in Accordance with the Law (Part I)

Editor's note: In 1996, Chen Xingqiao worked in a state-owned enterprise in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, and concurrently served as the deputy secretary-general of the Buddhist Association of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province. As a person in religious circles, Chen Xingqiao was keenly aware of the social harm of "Falungong" and wrote a long article of nearly 20,000 words, "Falungong -- A Kind of Folk Religion with the Characteristics of Attaching Buddha to Buddhism -- A Commentary on Li Hongzhi <转法轮>and Falungong" (first published in 1997 in the second issue of "Research Trends" sponsored by the Buddhist Association of China), and also edited and published the first publicly published book on "Falungong" "Buddhist 'Qigong' and Falungong" (first edition of the Religious Culture Publishing House, June 1998).

Over the past 25 years, under the sustained and effective administration of the state, "Falungong" has almost completely faded out of people's field of vision at home, but it has continued to commit crimes outside the country, and at the same time, various potential cults and superstitious organizations still covet China's huge market for faith.

Over the past 25 years, as the executive director of the China Anti-Cult Association, Chen Xingqiao has participated in and witnessed many major anti-cult activities. On the occasion of the 25 years since the Chinese Government banned the "Falungong" cult in accordance with the law, I would like to write a little impression on the light of my own personal experience and research, let us learn from history, be prepared for danger in times of peace, and further build a fence against evil cults!

1. The cult nature of "Falungong."

With the surging tide of China's reform and opening up centered on economic construction, the comprehensive transformation of society, earth-shaking changes have taken place in all aspects of culture and art, people's lives and religious beliefs, and new things and new ideas have emerged one after another, including the trend of learning and returning to traditional Chinese culture, and qigong fever and "special function fever" have appeared in all parts of the country for nearly 20 years.

At the end of the 80s of the last century, enthusiasts practicing qigong in Ditan Park in Beijing

Taking advantage of this upsurge and flaunting the banner of qigong and religion, Li Hongzhi cobbled together "Falungong" in 1992.

Compare the definition of a cult organization: "An illegal organization that is established in the name of religion, qigong, or other means, deifies its leading elements, and uses means such as creating and disseminating superstitions and heresies to confuse others, and develops and controls its members." "The following eight aspects of "Falungong" have all shown that it is an out-and-out cult!

(1) Cult leaders invariably fabricate an unverifiable but miraculous experience and falsely use the name of religion, qigong, and so on to establish their own organizations, thus giving themselves and their organizations a status in the inheritance of religion or qigong. Li Hongzhi's story in this regard is particularly bizarre.

Li Hongzhi, born on July 7, 1952 in Gongzhuling City, Jilin Province (formerly Gongzhuling Town, Huaide County), from 1960 to 1969, successively studied in Zhujiang Road Primary School, No. 4 Middle School, and No. 48 Middle School in Changchun City, and graduated from junior high school; from 1970 to 1978, he successively worked in the Bayi Military Horse Farm of Unit 201 of the General Logistics Department. From 1978 to 1982, he worked as a waiter in the guest house of the Jilin Provincial Forest Police Corps; from 1982 to 1991, he transferred to work in the security department of the Changchun City Grain and Oil Company; in 1988, he began to come into contact with qigong, first in a qigong class called "Zen Secret Gong" for two periods, and then learned "Nine Palaces Bagua Gong", and later combined these two exercises and added some body movements to piece together "Falungong," and in 1991 he was suspended from his post and engaged in "Qigong" In May 1992, "Falun Gong" was disseminated.

Judging from Li Hongzhi's above-mentioned secular experience, he has no religious inheritance and is only a rising star in the qigong world. But in order to make a name for himself in the qigong and even religious circles and attract more followers, he had to make up an alternative resume. "Falungong" said in "The Biography of Li Hongzhi" that at the age of 4, Li Hongzhi was personally taught by Master Quanjue, the 10th generation of the Buddha's sole transmission of Dafa, and cultivated the highest characteristic of "truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance...... At the age of 12, he began to accept the teachings of the Taoist master "Eight Extremes Zhenren", practicing fists and feet, swords, guns and swords, and practicing internal and external skills; at the age of 21, he joined the work and accepted the "True Daozi" teaching of Changbai Mountain; at the age of 23, he learned Buddhist principles and exercises from a female Buddhist master; and later learned from many Buddhist or Taoist masters.

For the time being, there is no way to verify whether Li Hongzhi has those so-called "kung fu" or not, but for those who believe in it, there is no doubt that he has real magic power! Obviously, Li Hongzhi is well aware of this, and he said to the disciples around him, "The bigger you go, the more people will believe." Therefore, we have seen that Li Hongzhi was later blown bigger and bigger, and packaged himself as the only "Lord Buddha of the universe" who can save people, with boundless "Dharma body" and mana, and not only many "Falungong" addicts believe in it frantically, but even Li Hongzhi himself "believes" it.

Regarding the term "qigong," Li Hongzhi said: "Actually, it is not called qigong, but what is it called? ...... Qigong is just a new term coined to conform to the ideology of modern people. He said in "Solving the Fa for Falun Dafa Counselors in Changchun": "As you know, when we ran classes in Changchun in the early days, I also spoke very highly. However, it is always about qigong. Today, because we have uploaded the work to a higher level, we won't talk about this. It is also a process of gradual recognition. In this way, Li Hongzhi not only used the name of qigong but also belittled qigong as a low-level thing, thus leading "Falungong" to a religion that transcends all qigong sects.

Buddhism and Taoism are the two major traditional religions in China, and they are very revered religions in the qigong circles. Li Hongzhi said: "Our base point is Buddhism, and it is Buddhism in terms of its main theories and characteristics. But this Dharma is beyond the Buddha and beyond the Tao. In this way, "Falungong" not only falsely uses the name of Buddhism and Taoism, but also overrides Buddhism and Taoism and does not accept the constraints of Buddhism and Taoism's canons and traditions.

Li Hongzhi played this hand quite skillfully, and he can be called a giant treacherous and cunning, and to this day, he still confuses many people.

(2) Cult leaders will distort and use traditional religious scriptures, religious terms, or popular books on body, mind, and soul cultivation to fabricate some fallacies and heresies that come out of their hearts, constituting "classics" that brainwash followers and control their minds. Cults in China's history usually used the names of Buddhism and Taoism, but most of them were sideways and feudal superstitions.

The same is true of Li Hongzhi and his "Falungong"; in addition to being attached to Buddhism and Taoism, they are also full of sideways, possessed by demons and immortals, and even manipulated by aliens. He edited his "Meritorious Work Report" and "Lectures" in various places into a series of books such as "Zhuan Falun". These books flaunt that "Falungong" is not ordinary qigong but the "Falun Dafa" of high-level people, boasting that "Falun Buddhism" is "the most esoteric and extraordinary science of all doctrines in the world," that it is "a ladder to heaven left by him -- 'Zhuan Falun'", and that "Falun Buddhism" is "the only correct Fa that can save people."

Li Hongzhi also attaches great importance to and constantly deified these books, saying: "Every word in my book is a Falun at a superficial level, and at a deep level, it is my Dharma body. For this reason, he asked the counseling stations in various localities to organize believers to copy and study every day, and boasted that not a single word in the "Zhuan Falun" could be changed, and the intensity of his brainwashing was unparalleled! He did not really understand Buddhism, but he distorted and used a lot of common Buddhist terms to construct his own fallacies and heresies, and in fact there were many fallacies.

As long as we study it thoroughly, we will find that the "Falungong" books are full of fallacies and heresies that "belittle Qigong under the banner of qigong, distort and use Buddhism under the banner of Buddhism, and violate science under the banner of science." However, it is very difficult for ordinary people to discern this, and as for those who believe in it, they will take the initiative to rationalize it and enshrine it as a "holy decree." It is precisely because of this that "Falungong" was able to deceive and deceive so many people, including quite a number of high-ranking intellectuals, for a while, and thus became one of the more active cult organizations in contemporary China.

(3) Cult leaders will deify themselves and engage in personality cults in a big way, so as to expand their organizations and facilitate their own exercise of spiritual control over their followers.

Li Hongzhi has also made great efforts in this regard, and he is good at deifying himself and engaging in a cult of personality. He first used the name of qigong to "get rid of illness and keep fit" as a bait to attract some people to come into contact with "Falungong." As more and more obsessed believers grew, his cowhide became bigger and bigger, and he not only said that he had four special functions, but also had countless "Dharma bodies." He said: "In the human society at the end of the Dharma period, the enlightened beings have left it alone, and they are not allowed to take care of it. Not only did human society leave it alone, but their situation in the last tribulation was also very difficult, and they couldn't take care of themselves. ......In August 1993, Li Hongzhi, together with Li Chang and others, set up a national organization in Beijing called the "Falungong" Research Association, and bluffed to seize the opportunity to develop the "Falungong" organization throughout the country. At the same time, he published books such as "China's 'Falungong,'" "Zhuan Falun," "Zhuan Falun (Volume 2)," "Falun Dafa's Interpretation," and "Divine Power Dafa -- Li Hongzhi and China's 'Falungong'," gaining fame and fortune.

(4) Cult leaders are mostly good at acting in disguise.

Li Hongzhi attached great importance to his image of practicing and meditating, and specially put on a set of costumes, and shaped his meditation image into a photo of himself wearing a robe and sitting on a lotus pedestal, and posted it everywhere. He even changed his birthday to the eighth day of the fourth lunar month of Shakyamuni Buddha's birthday, hoping to attract Buddhists to worship him as a "new Buddha".

(5) Cult leaders will emphasize and increase their followers' sense of guilt, fear, and dependence, so as to exercise mental control over their followers and urge them to remain loyal to themselves and the cult group, and to obey their words.

Li Hongzhi's method of intimidating people is very unusual, he proclaims that he has the function of destroying the earth, and he said that the life span of the earth is set by him, his master, and his master, and "I set the time of the earth's explosion this time, and it was too dead at that time, and I could only push back the explosion time by 30 years with all my might." He often used the terms "end of the world" and "annihilation" to intimidate opponents or believers. I remember that in 1994, one of Li Hongzhi's disciples advised me to study "Falungong," saying that in two or three years, great calamities would occur in the world, and only those who studied "Falungong" would be spared. Li Hongzhi said: "If there is a high-level corrupt life doing bad things, then the Fa itself will destroy it with our Dharma Protector or other high-level beings. If our disciples are doing bad things, and this god comes and kills everyone, everyone will admit that this Fa is so powerful, and they won't dare to make trouble for the Fa anymore, and they won't be able to cultivate...... In the course of our cultivation, we are in society and different people who cause us trouble in all aspects, and we can all maintain Dafa well for different situations. "Now this human race is really full of evil, if people slide down again, they will face destruction, complete destruction, that is called: the form and the god are completely destroyed!" After "Falungong" was banned, there were still a large number of "Falungong" followers who could not get out. A former "Falungong" follower once came to me in the editorial office and said that he had stopped practicing "Falungong" for a long time, but he felt that Li Hongzhi had always come to harass him.

Disease is a natural phenomenon caused by factors such as the natural environment, social environment, physiology and spirit, as well as genetics and familial factors. Qigong is ineffective for most diseases, and this is especially true for the "Fagong" treatment by qigong masters. Li Hongzhi knew this well, so he often refused to treat people's illnesses and avoid showing off his stuff, so he threw out the "theory of the karma of being sick." However, he was also worried about the loss of followers, so he threw out the "Theory of Practicing Gong to Eliminate Karma" and the "Doctrine of the Dharmakaya": "A person's illness is the retribution of the debt owed by the 'karma' in the previous life", "There is a cause and effect between birth, old age, sickness and death, and it is the karma that arises from the bad things that a person has done in the past that causes illness or suffering, and suffering sin is the repayment of karmic debts." "If you practice and take medicine, you don't believe in practicing functions to cure diseases", "If your heart is correct, you believe that you can practice functions well, stop the medicine, don't take care of it, don't treat it, someone will treat you." Li Hongzhi also said: "Our practice field is better than that of any other exercises, and as long as you practice in our field, it is much better than your conditioning." My Dharma body sat in a circle, and there was a cover in the sky above the practice ground, and there was a Dafa wheel on it, and the Dafa body was covered on it to watch the field. "Every student has my Dharma Body behind them, and there is more than one. "I already have too many Dharma Bodies to count, let alone these students, I can manage any more. The implication is that as long as the believers sincerely believe in him and "Falungong," he will help the practitioners "take away" their illnesses in "another space," thus openly intimidating the disciples to "choose sides" and encouraging them to refuse to go to the hospital for treatment when they are sick. As for whether the disciples have stepped into the "Yellow Spring" because of this, they can only "ask for more blessings"!

Li Hongzhi often paints "big cakes" for his followers, saying that people have done bad things in heaven and have fallen into the cosmic garbage dump of the earth, and that only by practicing "Falungong" can they return to the "kingdom of heaven" and live a complete and eternal life. He also claimed that he could install a "Falun" on the abdomen of believers, and he was able to absorb energy to save himself and drive away evil spirits in reverse, and he was doing long work 24 hours a day. Moreover, those who practice "Falungong" are protected by their "Dharma Body" 24 hours a day. In the qigong craze of those years, his heresy did harvest a large number of people who did not know the truth. The Chinese and foreign media have exposed a large number of extreme manifestations of "Falungong" followers, such as those who died of illness and refused treatment, or who were disemboweled to find the "Falun" that Li Hongzhi had placed for them, or who killed their parents and children as devils, or who set themselves on fire in order to achieve "consummation," and so on. By the time the Chinese Government banned it in July 1999, the number of deaths caused by practicing "Falungong" had reached 1,404.

(6) Cult leaders and their cult groups are extremely exclusive and closed, prohibiting their followers from learning about other religions, doctrines, and information, doing everything possible to cut off their normal contacts with society and even their relatives, and not accepting any criticism from the outside world. The exclusivity and closedness of Li Hongzhi and his "Falungong" are particularly conspicuous.

For example, Li Hongzhi did not allow his followers to come into contact with Buddhism and other information, and could only specialize in "Falun Dafa" and distorted the Buddhist term "Fuji Fa." He said: "I have talked about the only way, and if we can't cultivate Dafa exclusively, we won't be able to complete our Dafa. "In today's human society, no religion can raise people's hearts and morals...... At present, all Orthodox Christianity is no longer under God's control, and people in religion are fighting for money and status. "The current religions, Buddhism, Christianity, Catholicism...... I can't save people, it's a low thing. "I can bring the whole human race into the world of light, and I am a savior higher than Shakyamuni, Lao Tzu, and Jesus. He said that "Falungong" is practiced among ordinary people, so don't go to temples and churches, as for other qigong schools, they are even more low-level things, and most qigong masters are possessed by spirits, let alone learn to practice.

Li Hongzhi and his "Falungong" are very good at using Internet technology to carry out propaganda and liaison, and in the course of organizing their followers to storm the news media and party and government departments, they have been able to gather thousands or even tens of thousands of followers without even realizing it; even though they have been banned for many years, they still use the Internet from time to time to remotely control believers in China, and believers in various parts of the world can even gather and demonstrate at the same time at specific points in time.

(About the author: Chen Xingqiao, former executive director of the Buddhist Association of China, executive director of the China Anti-Cult Association, and former deputy editor-in-chief of Fayin magazine)