Practitioners from Different Countries in New York's World Falun Dafa Day Parade Express Their Gratitude for Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance

(Minghui.org) Thousands of Falun Dafa practitioners participated in a grand parade in Midtown Manhattan, New York, on Friday, May 9, 2025, to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day.

Rain nourishes all things, and practitioners of different ethnic groups braved the drizzle and sometimes heavy rain to celebrate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance to express their gratitude to Falun Dafa’s founder and share the goodness of Falun Dafa with the world.

May 13, 2025, marks the 26th World Falun Dafa Day and the 33rd anniversary of Falun Dafa’s public introduction. The birthday of the founder of the practice, Mr. Li Hongzhi, falls on the same day.

On Friday, May 9, practitioners in the greater New York area gathered in Manhattan to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day.

A Fortunate Encounter with Falun Dafa in the United States

Mr. Xu and his wife Ms. Zhu have been practicing Falun Dafa for six years. Mr. Xu once worked as a department head at a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) controlled media company. He was stressed out by all the unspoken rules his company had to comply with, so he and his wife decided to visit the United States and relax.

During their trip, the couple stayed at the home of a friend who practiced Falun Dafa. When his friend observed him smoking, he gave him a copy of the book Zhuan Falun and advised him to read the book if he wanted to quit smoking.

Mr. Xu had been a smoker for more than 10 years and had tried every conceivable method to quit but had found it impossible to abstain for more than a week. Seeing his skepticism, Mr. Xu’s friend started to tell him stories of miracles encountered by Falun Dafa practitioners. This stirred Mr. Xu’s interest in Falun Dafa. He started reading Zhuan Falun. One day, he felt nauseous as he took out his cigarettes and felt uncomfortable all over after he smoked. This bad experience discouraged him from picking up another cigarette.

Mr. Xu easily gave up smoking without suffering any side effects. He started practicing Falun Dafa and experienced changes that were beyond his expectations.

During his years in China, he suffered from consistently high blood pressure. His doctor had advised him that there was no cure and that he would have to take blood pressure medication for the rest of his life. Not long after he started practicing Falun Dafa, Mr Xu.’s mental state improved and his blood pressure returned to normal. Half a year in, Mr Xu stopped taking his blood pressure medication and saw vast improvements to his health.

His wife, Ms. Zhu, suffered for years from poor health. After to seeing the benefits Falun Gong had on her husband’s health, Ms. Zhu also began practice. The quality of her sleep has improved, and her spirits have been uplifted.

“I feel very lucky,” Mr. Xu said. “I quit smoking and my high blood pressure was cured after visiting the United States. Both my body and mind are improving by the day. I now truly understand why 100 million people around the world continue to practice Falun Dafa. This practice is absolutely beneficial for physical and mental health, so naturally it attracts many practitioners.”

“Unable to tolerate the presence of such a good practice in China, the CCP continues to persecute Falun Dafa practitioners, arresting, imprisoning, and even harvesting the organs of thousands of them for profits. Their actions are so evil, and as a beneficiary of the practice, I have a duty to stand up and speak out in support of Falun Dafa,” Ms. Zhu said.

Father and Son from Australia: Practicing Falun Dafa Has Benefited Us Physically and Mentally

Nicholas Shaka (right) and his son Julius Shaka from Australia. Their physical and mental health improved significantly after practicing Falun Dafa.

Nicholas Shaka and his son Julius Shaka hail from Australia. Having lived and worked in upstate New York for many years, they have become regular participants in each annual World Falun Dafa Day parade.

Nicholas started practicing Falun Dafa in 1999. He encountered Falun Dafa through his twin brother, who had started practicing first. Nicholas had been practicing other types of qigong, but felt his energy slowly diminishing. At his brother’s suggestion, he arranged to meet some of his brother’s friends who practiced Falun Dafa.

He was immediately impressed on their first meeting. “I felt a sense of purity from their energies and knew this was no ordinary practice.”

Nicholas’ physical and mental health saw significant improvement after he started practicing. “I used to suffer from frequent dislocation of my hip joint. I tried many treatments, but nothing ever worked. Then I suddenly realized one day that it had not happened in a while. I used to get depressed, yet after practicing for several months, that also disappeared,” he said.

Nicholas’ son Julius is in high school. Having learned Falun Dafa from his parents when he was young, he made a conscious decision to continue practicing on his own. Growing up in a foreign place had left him stressed and emotionally unstable. “At that time, Dafa bolstered my motivation and spiritual strength, which helped me cope in this unfamiliar environment,” he said.

Julius admitted he had difficulty controlling his occasional bursts of hyper-energy. “But I am able to calm down by practicing Falun Dafa and reading the Fa. This gives me the focus and control needed to manage daily stresses such as homework and pressure from school,” he said.

Chinese American Data Analyst: Dafa Is My Guiding Compass

Brian Yi says Falun Dafa has helped him to cope with difficulties.

Brian Yi is a young Falun Dafa practitioner who was born and raised in the United States. He works as a data analyst for a New York company. He started practicing Falun Dafa with his mother when he was a child. “Falun Dafa gave me the answers to my questions about life early on,” he said.

Falun Dafa served as Brian’s guide as he grew up. “I benefited a lot from practicing it. Falun Dafa is like a compass that continues to guide me in the correct direction as I make my way through life,” he said.

Brian encountered many tribulations after entering college, which tested the extent of his faith. In the end, his experiences only strengthened his belief in Falun Dafa’s principles.

“Whenever I face difficulties, feel down, or find myself unable to make clear decisions, I turn to Dafa’s teachings to help calm down, see things clearly, and reinforce the strength I need to face my problems,” he said.

Brian hopes that more people will come to understand the beauty of Dafa. “Falun Dafa has greatly benefited my life. I am really grateful and sincerely hope more people will come to know about this practice.”