(Clearwisdom.net) (Continued)
Founding a practice site in Yangmingshan with help from practitioners in Mainland China
After returning to Taiwan, Zheng and his wife did the exercises at home. Two practitioners from Beijing often wrote letters to the couple to exchange ideas and encourage them to spread Dafa in Taiwan. From April 27, 1995 on, Zheng and his wife started doing the exercises behind a waterfall in Yangmingshan Park in Taipei. Many people asked them questions and asked to learn the exercises. The couple taught these people free of charge, in accordance with Master's instructions. The couple printed many flyers to introduce Dafa and distributed them to help more people learn about Dafa.
The first practice site in Taiwan: Yangmingshan Park | The first practice site in Taiwan: Yangmingshan Park |
On rainy days they did the exercises in the parking lot behind the park. |
Many people were drawn by the elegant music and learned the exercises. A new practitioner who just had lung surgery and needed help dressing himself did the first set of exercises, which required lots of stretching. His wife was concerned and tried to help him. Before she could touch him, she saw that he was able to stretch his arms on his own. She was quite surprised and said, "Falun Gong is amazing!" Her husband said, "I feel great doing the exercises!"
In the early stages [of this practice site], they only had the revised version of China Falun Gong and Mr. Li Hongzhi's lecture tapes recorded in the city of Jinan. They passed the Dafa materials around. All these practitioners benefited from Dafa and introduced it to their family and friends. The number of practitioners grew quickly. The book and tapes were copied in large quantities but they still ran short. Mr. Zheng wrote a letter to practitioners in Mainland China to ask for help.
The book Zhuan Falun was also short in supply in Mainland China at that time. Practitioners in Beijing donated over a hundred copies and sent them to Taiwan in January of 1996. The Beijing Falun Dafa Research Association invited practitioner Nie Dazi to go to Taiwan to help teach the exercises and hold a nine-day class. Each session consisted of morning and evening classes, and each class had about 40 students. The practitioners enthusiastically taught the exercises and downloaded Zhuan Falun to let people read the book. They also donated Zhuan Falun to libraries and asked local TV stations to broadcast the lecture tapes. From then on, Dafa quickly spread in Taiwan.
"Those who hear about it are looking for it. Those who have obtained it are delighted with it. The number of cultivators is increasing daily and becoming countless." ("Seeking Discipleship With Teacher" from Essentials for Further Advancement)
In the early phase of Dafa's dissemination in Taiwan, many people from different counties came to learn the exercises, but most of them had serious illnesses. Many of them experienced significant health improvement within a short period after they started practicing Falun Gong, and the phenomenon caught the attention of qigong teachers of several disciplines. Mr. Hong, a former deputy secretary of the Yangjia Tai Chi Association, had studied Tantrism and yoga for 21 years. He had gone to Switzerland in 1993 and 1994 to attend expensive classes entitled The Art of Living that were designed to teach breathing methods. On April 24, 1996, a colleague introduced him to Master Li's nine-day lecture tapes. On the first day of class he said, "I found it!" Despite numerous difficulties, he never missed a single lecture.
Mr. Wu, who also studied qigong, used to have many questions about the universe, human civilization and the formation of the earth. After the lectures he said, "Teacher Li revealed the characteristics of the universe, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance; he spoke of the most minute particles and atoms, neutrons, the human body and the solar system, the Milky Way and the whole universe; he also explained how the Truth is embodied in astronomy, geography, natural sciences, medical science and philosophy. I am overcome with awe!"
Many professors from Taiwan University also attended the nine-day class, including Professor Ye, who suffered from headaches, stomachaches, constipation, insomnia, diabetes and other illnesses. His health had improved greatly six months after he started practicing Dafa.
On September 5, 1999, the Taiwan Falun Dafa Research Association was founded; these professors were the ones who initiated the process.
Teacher went to Taiwan to give lectures
Teacher visited Taiwan in November 1997 and gave lectures in central Taiwan and Taipei. Nearly 1,000 people attended the lectures. Although Falun Gong was not well known in Taiwan at the time, this first group of practitioners became the seed of spreading Dafa in Taiwan.
Mr. Li Hongzhi gave lectures at Sanxing National Elementary School in Taipei | Mr. Li Hongzhi gave lectures in central Taiwan |
On the day after his lecture at Sanxing National Elementary School, Teacher remained in Yilan County for over one hour and visited Mr. Zheng's home. Teacher asked the couple about how they taught and introduced the practice in Taiwan. Mr. Zheng's wife recalled, "Teacher also asked us whether we had the videotape of his lecture in the United States. We are very grateful to Teacher for his concern for his students."
Numerous tribulations on the path of cultivation; faith in Teacher and Dafa helped them pass the test
In September 2001, Mr. Zheng and his wife participated in a walk around Taiwan that had the theme of "SOS! Urgent rescue of persecuted Falun Gong practitioners in China," hoping to attract the world's attention to the Jiang regime's brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. After registering for the walk, Mr. Zheng's feet swelled up and he could barely get his shoes on. With much difficulty he dragged himself to the practice site for several days. He knew in his heart that Dafa practitioners' truth clarification and exposure of the perpetrators are the most righteous deed and cannot be interfered with in any form. Because of his firm righteous thoughts in Teacher and Dafa, on September 11, the day the walking trip started at the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, the swelling subsided and the couple successfully completed the 13-day walk.
One day in 2004, their son suggested, "We haven't been to Yangmingshan for a long time; let's go there and visit the veteran practitioners." The next morning the couple went to the old practice site. They all studied Master's teachings, including Lunyu. Shortly after they started, Mr. Zheng felt weak and eventually fell unconscious. Mr. Zheng's body was very hot, his pants were wet and he was very weak. Mrs. Zheng recognized this as interference and encouraged everyone to continue studying the Fa. The next morning when he got up, he was near normal and dressed himself, made his bed and went out to do the exercises. The couple again validated the mighty power of Dafa.
In 2004, Mr. Zheng found one of his feet was swollen again. He could barely put the foot into his shoe. The following day his other foot also became swollen and as a result he could not walk. He rode a bike to the practice site. The third evening his hands swelled up, his body was cold and he could not speak. It was very hard for him to move around, so he used a wheelchair. Mr. Zheng was in such pain that he passed out. His wife and son played Teacher's lectures and helped him to sit in front of the computer and listen to the lectures. The fourth morning the swelling on his feet subsided and he could move around freely.
Benefiting from Dafa practice, actively spreading Dafa and clarifying the truth
Starting in July 1999, Jiang's group has been persecuting the more than 100 million Falun Gong practitioners who follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Jiang's group fabricated lies about Falun Gong practitioners committing suicide and murder. They used the entire state machinery to persecute the practitioners. As of the writing of this article, at least 2,377 practitioners have been tortured to death. Practitioners around the world have acted with righteous thoughts and righteous actions. They have clarified the truth to the whole world through various channels and as a result many people have learned the truth about the persecution.
Mr. Zheng and his wife benefited from Dafa practice, and they actively spread Dafa in Yilan County. They took part in the "Fa Rectification Photo Exhibit" signature collection to rescue Lin Xiaokai, joined the youth bicycle trip for rescuing persecuted children, and participated in the "Falun Gong Teachers' Summer Study Camp" every summer and winter break. They also appeared in community events involving Falun Gong, school sports events, hospital celebrations, the Su-Ao Cold Spring Festival, the E-land Green Festival, holiday Falun Gong exercise demonstrations, as well as introducing the exercises at tourist sites in the county.
The person in front on the left is Mr. Zheng | The person in the front row sitting on a chair is Mr. Zheng |
Mr. Zheng and his family participating in the International Children's Day and clarifying the truth about Dafa | Doing the exercises and introducing Dafa at Qinshui Park near the Dongshan River |
Doing the Dafa exercises in front of the Yilan Culture Center during the "Fa Rectification Photo Exhibit" | Attending the 2003 Washington, DC Fa Conference in the USA |
Mr. Zheng is now 84 years old, and he uses the Internet to send and receive messages to clarify the truth. He and his wife went to the 2003 Washington DC Fa Conference in the United States and again listened to Teacher's lectures. Mr. Zheng, his wife and practitioners around the world hope that more people will learn the truth about Falun Gong; they call on kind-hearted people to work together and end this brutal persecution.
Category: News & Events