May 13th, 2001
[Minghui Net] May 13, 2001, was the second observance of World Falun Dafa Day, and also the 9th anniversary of Master Li's introduction of Falun Dafa. The nine years of widely spreading Dafa have been full of glory and hardships. Human beings, for the first time, are able to know the true principles and law of the universe. Therefore, celebrating World Falun Dafa Day is not only the common wish of all Dafa practitioners around the world, but also an inevitable part of history. In the period of nearly two years from July 20, 1999 to the present, Jiang Zemin [Chinese President], through manipulation of the Chinese government, has been staging the most base, malicious, and brutal suppression on Falun Dafa, and Dafa has experienced unprecedented tribulations in Mainland China. Dafa practitioners in Mainland China, in the face of the evil forces, demonstrated their lofty spiritual realms and have established the eternal mighty virtue for Dafa. At this very historic time when Dafa is rectifying the universe, celebration of World Falun Dafa Day has become more creative. The 2nd World Falun Dafa Day celebration activities in New York City were centered on showing people the mighty virtue and glory of Dafa. The main activities were centered in three areas: a photo exhibition showing the spread of Dafa in the past nine years called "The Journey of Falun Dafa," an Asian Culture Festival; and World Falun Dafa Day parade. The entire celebration was permeated with a warm atmosphere of solemnity, harmony, and dignity.
The Asian Culture Festival "The Journey of Falun Dafa" Photo Exhibition The Falun Dafa Day Parade
1. The Asian Culture Festival
On the early morning of May 13, 2001, several hundred Dafa practitioners and their family members in the New York area came to Battery Park in New York City, where the greatest and most special festival in the human world, The 2nd Annual World Falun Dafa Day, would be celebrated. On this day nine years ago, our great and compassionate Teacher revealed for the very first time the law of the universe [Dafa] to mankind. Ever since, the good nature of human beings has been awakened and human morality has been uplifted. Today, nine years after Teacher introduced the law of the universe, Falun Dafa, like sunshine, rain, and dew, is nourishing the souls of tens of millions of people on five continents of the Earth.
To celebrate this great day together with the people of New York City, New York area Dafa practitioners held a unique gathering -- an Asian Heritage Cultural Fair in Battery Park. To introduce Falun Dafa to the public, they set up booths showing photos, documents, a collection of Dafa literature, and materials showing the health benefits of Falun Dafa and the exercises, and played video recordings. They also had booths exhibiting Chinese and Asian cultural styles of calligraphy, paintings, paper-cut arts, floral arrangement, traveling, foreign languages, folk dancing, as well as a booth for children. Since May 13 was on Sunday and also Mother's Day, Battery Park was packed with people. Big banners reading "World Falun Dafa Day" and "Welcome to the Asian Culture Festival" were hung up prominently in high positions. Under many white tents were displayed handicrafts of various colors and numerous golden pinwheels, with Falun emblems in their centers, spinning in the breeze. More and more tourists came to the displays, and they visited every booth with great interest. Battery Park was enveloped in a warm and festive atmosphere.
Some tourists watched the Falun Dafa photo exhibition, while others chose gifts or souvenirs, asked the practitioners to draw their portraits, or enthusiastically learned Chinese-style folk dancing. People found that Falun Gong was, in fact, familiar to everyone, easy to learn, and easy to accept. They found that Falun Gong was absolutely different from what was depicted from the Chinese government's propaganda. The most crowded place was before a booth on the lawn where practitioners were teaching the Falun Gong exercises. From the very beginning to the end of the gathering, there were visitors coming to learn the exercises. Sometimes there were as many as over a dozen people learning the exercises at the same time. One warm-hearted reporter said excitedly, "You really should hold such types of activities! Let people see how well you practitioners get along with ordinary people." Many people from Mainland China took the flyers revealing the truth about Falun Dafa and some of them also asked about the self-immolation incidents. After hearing the practitioners' explanations, they quickly became clear about the government's plot of the entire incident.
At noon, representatives from Falun Gong practitioners warmly read congratulation letters in four languages including Chinese, English, Spanish, and Russian. They also, on behalf of the practitioners in the great New York area, extended their greetings to our great and compassionate Teacher. New York senators and house representatives also sent their congratulations and commendation letters to the festival. Two New York congressmen awarded Falun Dafa and New York Dafa practitioners a "Special Commendation from the New York Congress." The speaker of the New Jersey Senate, who was also the Acting-Governor, declared May 13, 2001 as "New Jersey State Falun Dafa Day."
Afterwards, a dozen young Dafa practitioners, between the ages of 4-12 years, came on stage and performed the five sets of Falun Gong exercises. Their innocent and brilliant performance attracted a large crowd of tourists and reporters. Many of them took pictures of these moving and picturesque scenes.
Dafa practitioners also demonstrated some traditional Chinese folk dances.
Reporters from two well known TV stations and the Free Asia newspaper also came to cover the celebration activities.
This Asian Heritage Cultural Fair ended at 4:00 pm and was a great success.
Photo Illustrations
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| Celebration Ceremony -- Reading the Commendation Letters from the U.S. Governments | Teaching the Exercises | Practitioners Reading the Congratulation Letters in Russian |
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| Booth for Photo Exhibition | Booth Showing Falun Dafa Videos | Booth Showing Dafa Materials |
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| Falun Dafa and Health | Booth for Paper-cut Arts | Booth for Chinese Calligraphy |
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| Booth for Floral Arrangement | Handicrafts | Art of Calligraphy |
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Little Practitioners Performing the Exercises |
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I am Also Practicing Falun Gong |
One Part of the Gathering |
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Folk Dancing |
Western reporters are taking photos of a poster board depicting Ms. Chen Zixiu who was brutally tortured to death by police in China. |
2. From Heaven To Earth We Celebrate Falun Dafa Day Together: Practitioners Parade in New York to Awaken the People
On the second anniversary of World Falun Dafa Day and the ninth anniversary of the introduction of Master Li's teaching of Dafa, practitioners all over the world indulged in the holiday's spirit. On this day, the weather was very sunny, the fragrance of the grass and flowers was flowing in the air, and Heaven and Earth were sharing our happiness!
After an entire day's activity in Battery Park, at 6 pm, we gathered in the largest park in New York--Central Park, and began our Dafa-promoting parade along a half circle of the park.
At first we stood in groups at the front square and did demonstration exercises. A Western practitioner delivered a congratulatory speech. He said, "Today, we are celebrating the second anniversary of World Falun Dafa Day here in New York, and there are practitioners in more than forty countries around the world who are also celebrating on this day, including practitioners in mainland China. They're giving up everything and are still persistently maintaining their right to cultivate Falun Dafa and 'Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance' [the three-word principle of Falun Dafa]. Falun Dafa attracted people from different countries, of different ethnic backgrounds and different social strata. They have greatly benefited both physically and mentally. However, such high level Dafa that directly follows the principle of the universe "Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance" is suffering brutal crackdown from the Chinese government led by Jiang Zemin. Tens of thousands of people including women, men, the old and the young were arrested and ruthlessly tortured, more than 200 practitioners have already been persecuted to death. Yet even to this day, the practitioners are still strengthening their faith with tremendous courage using non-violent means. Their courage and strength have touched the hearts of righteous people and governments all over the world."
The visitors to the park listened with interest and quietly watched. Seeing the peaceful and kind faces and the slow, graceful movements, it's indeed very hard for them, living in a free country, to believe such inhuman atrocities [in China].
Then the parade began. Accompanied by "Pu Du" (Falun Gong music), the group slowly moved forward. Practitioners wore holiday customs, with bright smiles on their faces. What's more, some even wore different kinds of ancient costumes with florid colors that decorated the whole group. The golden pinwheels in everyone's hands resembled spinning flowers. The Falun Emblem [the symbol of Falun Gong] looked very shiny in the light of the setting sun. The colorful balloons that floated in the air made the whole group look like a sea of moving flowers.
When we reached the bustling street corner, we started to perform the exercises on the sidewalk where lots of tourists and cars passed by. We arranged the Dafa banners and colorful flags in a straight line, and immediately all the noise disappeared and peacefulness took over in its place. Many people smiled sympathetically, "Ah, it is Falun Gong." The blue Dafa pamphlets shone in everyone's hands. They were interested, observing, and reflecting; they were choosing their own path.
After the two-hour parade, we returned to the park by walking through the boulevard outside the park. In the evening, after the day's activities were finished, practitioners hurriedly left. Like individual particles, they returned to their own positions.
Nine years ago on this day, Master Li began teaching Dafa and offering salvation to sentient beings. An unprecedented and magnificent symphony echoed in Heaven and Earth. However, right now Master and Dafa are being wretchedly attacked and slandered, and the blinded, ordinary people, who have been misled (by the Chinese government) are destroying themselves.
"Use reason to validate the Fa, use wisdom to clarify the truth, use benevolence to promote the Fa and to save people" [Master's quote with translator's translation]. As particles in Dafa, our practitioners will necessarily work as particles in the great Fa- rectification process of "Assisting Teacher in His Journey in This World" [quoted from Master Li's poem collection, Hong Yin]. We shall clarify the truth and expose the evil, and let the light of the great law of the universe shine on everyone with predestined relationship. We shall use our benevolence to save people.
Dafa is promoted from the heaven to the earth,
People are wakening and the ship is beginning to sail.
How can I ever repay Master's immense benevolence?
Help Master to eliminate the worldly evils.
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Group practice at Central Park |
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Parade around the Central Park, doing exercises |
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3. Speech from New York Area Practitioners: Let History Tell The Future ---Celebrate the Ninth Anniversary of Falun Dafa's Teachings and the Second Anniversary of "World Falun Dafa Day"
On the arrival of the ninth anniversary of Dafa's teachings and the second anniversary of "World Falun Dafa Day", all practitioners in the greater New York area wanted to say to our benevolent and great Teacher, "Master, we wish you well!"
Nine years ago on this day, Falun Dafa was first taught in Changchun City, Jilin Province, China. From then on, kind hearts were awakened, and moral standards rose again. Nine years after, Falun Dafa, like sunlight and dew, has nourished tens of millions of people's hearts on five continents. From the Great Wall to the Rhine River, from the Golden Beach to the Statue of Liberty, from the ancient capital city to the Sun and Moon Lake [in Taiwan], from Capital Hill to the United Nations, the pleasant Dafa music is being heard everywhere, and the peaceful scene of practitioners doing exercises can be seen everywhere.
The nine-year journey has been most extraordinary; it has encountered many hardships and countless difficulties, and it has been the most magnificent.
Numerous lost children found the way home during the nine years;
Numerous lives suffering from illnesses experienced total health during the nine years;
Numerous stained hearts were improved and purified during the nine years;
Numerous confined wisdoms were provoked and sublimed;
Numerous magnificent enlightened beings in the future were created and cultivated during the nine years;
Human beings are about to enter a new epoch of history, the universe is about to flip open a brand new page.
When this page of history becomes the past, people will clearly realize Falun Dafa practitioners' heroic undertaking of firmly upholding the Truth of the Universe in the face of the most evil suppression in history. The future will remember the magnificence and glory of Dafa's wide spreading in human society.
