Fourth India Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference Held in Bangalore

(Minghui.org) A Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Bangalore, India on May 13, 2023. Dafa practitioners from India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, the United States, France and Germany, gathered at the Samrat International Hotel to participate in the meeting. This was part of a series of activities held in India to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day.

This was the fourth large Falun Dafa experience sharing conference held in India. Twenty-five practitioners shared their cultivation experiences. Mr. Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Dafa, sent a congratulatory message to the conference.

Practitioners talked about their cultivation experiences during the India Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference on May 13, 2023. 

A photo of Master Li and pictures of the Falun emblem were hung above the podium. Seventy-two handmade lotus flowers were placed on the podium to celebrate Master’s 72nd birthday.

During the conference, practitioners talked about how they followed Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance and overcame challenges in their personal lives.

Facing a Series of Misfortunes With a Positive Attitude

Archana Thakeria said that in 2016, she experienced a series of hardships: Her husband was transferred to another place, her mother-in-law had a stroke, her mother passed away, her father was bedridden and depressed, and her sister was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis and needed a liver transplant.

Because she practices Falun Dafa, Thakeria was able to face these difficulties with strength. She read the Fa (Dafa’s teachings) with other practitioners to help her maintain a positive mental state.

“Looking back, it was a major emotional grind for me,” she said. “During this period, group Fa-study online and sharing with fellow practitioners allowed me to focus on cultivation and strengthen my endurance.”

Truly Understanding the Principles

Anupam Maji started practicing Falun Dafa in 2020, but because he had many preconceived notions about self-cultivation and spirituality, he found it a challenge to grasp the true meaning of Falun Dafa’s teachings.

He said, “My capricious mind wobbles and comes up with all these ridiculous thoughts. I think: ‘Maybe (it’s) a fairy tale or a myth I read as a child or heard a general belief from other people in society.’ All of these presented huge obstacles to my practice.”

Eventually, however, Maji was able to let go of these preconceived notions and grasp the core of Falun Dafa: That one must truly change one’s thinking in order to reach a higher state. Although he wasn’t sure if he could write about his cultivation experiences, he found that the process of writing helped him look inward, and he also discovered a new self in the process. Maji said that he was grateful for the opportunity to practice Falun Dafa, and promised to persevere in cultivation.

Believing in Dafa and Getting Out of Sorrow

Bhavani Odatt was distraught when her successful life abroad crumbled. Her career and family life were falling apart, and she was looking for a way out. This is how she found Falun Dafa.

Soon after she began practicing Odatt became healthier, more confident, and more tolerant. She also learned to let go of her attachments and follow Falun Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.

But life has its ups and downs. In 2021, Odatt’s life changed again. “On October 4, 2021, I received a call saying: ‘Your son died of a heart attack.’” 

She was devastated to learn that her son, who was only 19 years old and a student majoring in design in Australia, passed away. She recited “On Dafa” [the preface to Falun Dafa's main book, Zhuan Falun] and gained solace from it. She was soon able to step out of her sorrow.

Learning to Look Within

In August 2015, Avinash Gedam started introducing Dafa in a school. He believes that by distributing leaflets and truth-clarifying materials to the students, their families will also learn about Falun Dafa and have positive thoughts about Dafa.

For him, this was also a process of improvement. “Promoting Dafa in various schools has also improved my xinxing and revealed many attachments, such as resentment, anger, jealousy, lust, seeking fame, and upholding my reputation,” Gedam said. He also learned to look inward for his own problems and address them, and he became better at taking criticism.

Overcoming the CCP’s Interference

Dimal is from Sri Lanka. He just took over as president of the Sri Lanka Falun Dafa Association. When local practitioners signed up to take part in a book fair, the organizers were pressured by the Chinese Embassy.

Dimal recalled, “We were interfered with by the Chinese Embassy at the 2022 Colombo International Book Fair. We had to close our booth on the last day of the fair.”

The Chinese embassy pressured book fair organizers to drive Falun Dafa practitioners away from the event. However, practitioners did not give up. They went to the organizers to clarify the truth and cleared up their misunderstandings about Falun Dafa. “They understood why Falun Dafa was persecuted in China, and they all bought Zhuan Falun after that,” Dimal said.

On May 14, practitioners held a rally indoors to tell people about Falun Dafa and the CCP’s persecution. Actor and activist Prakash Belawadi, the local first female police officer Jija Singh, and Jyothi English Medium School-JEMS International School president Akhil Scaria attended the rally and spoke in solidarity with practitioners.

Actor and activist Prakash Belawadi from Bangalore spoke in support of Falun Dafa practitioners’ activities. 

Practitioners’ Family Members Inspired 

Practitioners also showed a short film titled “May 13”, which explains why this date is significant to Falun Dafa practitioners around the world.

Many practitioners’ relatives attended the Falun Dafa Day events. A number of them said they were inspired by the values of Falun Dafa and how the practitioners they knew had become better people through practicing Falun Dafa.

Trupti Petkar’s mother and older brother also practice Falun Dafa. After they started practicing, she saw positive changes in her family. “Since my mother and older brother started practicing Dafa, the atmosphere at home has been very good,” Petka said. “Everyone treats each other better.”

Sarika Gupta, a housewife, and her husband have been practicing for fourteen years. She said that her husband inspired her to follow the values of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance in her life.

Remarking about the various difficulties shared by the practitioners at the conference, Gupta was deeply impressed by their strength. “I think that in difficult situations, one has to learn to be calm and speak up when appropriate,” she said. 

As part of the Falun Dafa Day celebrations, practitioners did the exercises together.