India: People Keen to Learn Falun Dafa on International Yoga Day

(Minghui.org) People from all parts of the world adopt different methods to relax and find inner peace. June 21, 2023, is International Yoga Day, celebrating this ancient system of physical, mental, and spiritual practices. To help observe the worldwide event, Falun Dafa practitioners across India held classes to introduce Falun Dafa. Indians from all walks of life expressed an interest in learning more about this mind-body practice from China. Many people tried the exercises and said they felt strong, positive energy.

Mumbai Student: Falun Dafa Helps Boost Our Spiritual Strength

Practitioners in Mumbai took part in several local events. At Vesawa Vidhya Mandir School in Versova, more than 100 ninth and tenth-grade students, as well as six teachers, attended a 90-minute introductory class held in the morning.

Students at Vesawa Vidhya Mandir School doing the fifth Falun Dafa exercise – the meditation.

Practitioners showed students and their teachers the five sets of exercises and explained the benefits of practicing Falun Dafa. The participants were quick to grasp the exercise movements. Practitioners also explained the main principles taught by Falun Dafa – Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance.

A student shared her thoughts after finishing the sitting meditation. She said, “I would like to thank practitioners for showing us the exercises. It was a great experience, because Falun Dafa improves our physical and mental wellbeing. However, what’s more important is that it boosts our spiritual strength.”

A student at Vesawa Vidhya Mandir School thanked practitioners for coming to the school to demonstrate the Falun Dafa exercises.

To make it easier for teachers and students to continue practicing Falun Dafa, practitioners donated informational materials on the practice, and books on the teachings in English as well as Hindi to the school library.

After the introductory class, the principal and staff thanked practitioners for coming to their school. They also invited them to come back to hold another class for teachers and staff as well as a separate session for students in the Marathi language secondary school located on the same school grounds.

Students at Vesawa Vidhya Mandir School learn the second set of Falun Dafa exercises.

Mumbai Metro Employee: We Want to Practice Falun Dafa to Understand Your Selfless Spirit

Practitioners also held two introductory sessions for employees of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC).

The first session was held in the head office at Bandra Kurla Complex. Forty staff members attended the class, including senior executives such as Mr. Bhatt, the chief advisor, Mr. Kulshresth, civil affairs advisor, and Mr. Pathak, a finance manager.

The MMRC staff learned the five sets of exercises and received fliers during the one-hour introductory class.

Employees at MMRC learn the second Falun Dafa exercise at the head office.

Afterward, Mr. Bhatt thanked practitioners for organizing the class. He said, “This practice is very good. Please share the meditation link with our office internet panel and share the online workshop link to our office’s social media groups, so we can send it out to more employees in the organization.”

Employees at MMRC doing the sitting meditation

The second introductory session was held at one of MMRC’s branch offices in Hallmark Plaza, also located in Bandra Kurla Complex. Around 20 employees attended the 90-minute session to learn the exercises.

Employees at MMRC doing the sitting meditation at the Hallmark Plaza office. 

A female employee was astonished to learn that there was no cost to learn such a wonderful form of cultivation practice and that practitioners volunteered their time to show people the exercises.

“No one does anything for free in today’s world. It’s astonishing that practitioners are teaching this completely for free,” she said. “We want to practice Falun Dafa to understand this kind of selflessness.”

Nupur, a staff member, said, “This practice is amazing. It can help children be more focused and calm down.” She asked if practitioners could go to a school in another city around 500 km from Mumbai to demonstrate the exercises. She said that there are 1,000 students at that school. The practitioners gladly accepted the invitation and wrote down her contact information.

Promoting Falun Dafa by the Seaside in Mumbai

On the morning of June 21, another group of practitioners in Mumbai did the exercises together near the beach. The peaceful exercises complemented the great ocean and formed a beautiful scene.

Practitioners do the exercises near the beach in Mumbai.

Several hundred people attended International Yoga day activities that day and many were drawn to Falun Dafa. Many passersby picked up fliers to read. Police officers patrolling the area stopped to find out about Falun Dafa and learned about the persecution in China.

Passersby took photos of practitioners doing the exercises and of the display boards. A yoga teacher stopped to learn the exercise movements and said she planned to purchase Dafa books.

Local visitors at the beach in Mumbai take fliers about Falun Dafa.

Falun Dafa Welcomed in Bhopal

In Bhopal, a city in central India, practitioners held introductory classes at two women’s welfare associations.

Three practitioners organized a session to introduce Falun Dafa at the Telecom women’s welfare organization (TWWO) Bhopal branch. TWWO is an organization established by female employees and family members of telecommunications company Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). 

More than 45 members of the organization took part in the class and learned the exercises. Ms. Sarita, CEO of the TWWO branch company, and her husband, Mr. Rajhans, chief general manager of BSNL, attended the class.

Class participants were amazed by the energy emitted as people did the exercises. Mr. Rajhans asked practitioners to hold similar classes more often. Practitioners told him classes are also occasionally held online.

Two other practitioners held a class at Agrasen Mahila Mandal BHEL, another women’s society. Nisha Gupta, president of the society, helped to organize the class on short notice.

Fifteen women and three children attended the session that day. During the one-hour class, practitioners demonstrated the exercises and handed out information. Everyone seemed to love doing the exercises. The children said they thought the movements were simple and easy to learn. The society hopes practitioners can return and hold another class.

Members of Agrasen Mahila Mandal BHEL learn the Falun Dafa exercises during a one-hour introductory session.

400 People At a School in Aurangabad Learn Falun Dafa

Practitioners in Aurangabad introduced Falun Dafa at Vinayak Patil School on International Yoga Day. Around 30 staff members and more than 400 students from kindergarten to high school took part. Many participants said that the exercises were simple and easy to learn and they felt relaxed after doing them.

Students and staff members at Vinayak Patil School in Aurangabad are shown the Falun Dafa exercises.

College Professors in Pune Find the Way to Inner Peace

Bharati Vidyapeeth University engineering faculty welcomed practitioners to teach students, staff and faculty the exercises at the campus in Lavale on the outskirts of Pune city.

Students at Bharati Vidyapeeth University learn the second set of exercises.

Five practitioners in Pune gave a brief introduction to Falun Dafa before showing around 50 teaching staff the exercises. They explained the health benefits of practicing Falun Dafa and donated English as well as Hindi copies of Zhuan Falun and Falun Gong (a more introductory Falun Dafa book) to the college’s library.

Students at Bharati Vidyapeeth University try the sitting meditation exercise.

Despite a busy exam schedule, Professor Sagar Deshmukh found time to participate in the class. He said, “This was a very different experience. I want to learn all the exercises well.” He also said he hopes to organize another Falun Dafa introductory session at a student camp in December.

Professor Shikha Bharadwaj is the head of the college’s Department of Engineering Science. She attended the class that day as well. She said it was the first time she tried to do the Falun Dafa exercises. She said she felt peaceful and tranquil while doing them and was glad she tried them.

Professor Jyoti Dhanke praised practitioners for their efforts to promote Falun Dafa. She said, “Doing the exercises was a special experience,” noting that she became very calm after the exercises.

Media Reports on Practitioners’ Activities in Nagpur

Nagpur, a city in central India, holds activities every year to celebrate International Yoga Day. This year, an event was held in Yashwant Stadium drawing around 7,000 to 8,000 people from all walks of life.

Practitioners took part in the popular event, handing out fliers and talking to people about the benefits of practicing Falun Dafa.

Mehra Rohan became interested in Falun Dafa and the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance after talking to practitioners. He said he was eager to embark on his own journey of self-improvement and inner cultivation through practicing Falun Dafa.

Practitioners also participated in an event organized by Kamgar Kalyan Kendra, a welfare association for workers in Nagpur. Many organizations took part in the event. Twelve practitioners showed members of the organization, local residents, school students and athletes the five sets of exercises. 

Members of the welfare association for workers in Nagpur learn the meditation exercise.

Besides demonstrating the exercises, practitioners also told people about the persecution in China. Participants were shocked to learn that the persecution is still going on in the country of Falun Dafa’s origin.

Practitioners demonstrated the sitting meditation at the welfare association for workers in Nagpur.

DD News Sayadhri conducted a live telecast of practitioners introducing Falun Dafa. The Marathi-language newspaper Aajcha Dainik Bahujan Saurabh also reported on the event.