(Minghui.org) Practitioners participated in the Orléans Multicultural Festival on August 24, 2024, where they introduced Falun Dafa and demonstrated the exercises.

Practitioners told people about Falun Dafa and demonstrated the exercises at the Orléans Multicultural Festival on August 24, 2024.

According to its social media page, the festival is a celebration of Orléans cultural diversity and community. Attendees not only enjoy delicious food, singing and dancing, but also have the opportunity to learn about a cultivation practice from China called Falun Dafa.

Organizer: The Harmony and Elegance of Falun Dafa

The event organizer introduced Falun Dafa on the festival's social media page like this: “...excited to welcome Falun Dafa from China to the Orléans Multicultural Festival! Witness the harmony and elegance of this ancient practice as they share their rich cultural heritage.”

This is the second time Falun Gong practitioners have been invited to participate in the festival. Practitioners demonstrated the five sets of exercises and introduced the practice at their booth. Many attendees learned the exercises or asked where they could learn.

Event organizer Yvette Ashiri thanked practitioners for participating in the festival.

Event organizer Yvette Ashiri said that this was the third Orléans Multicultural Festival, and an estimated 20 groups and companies participated in this year’s event. The objective of the event was to bring the community together, discover different cultures, and get to know local suppliers. It is an opportunity for the community to come together to learn from one another and celebrate their different cultures.

Yvette thanked the practitioners for attending the festival. She said, “It’s always a pleasure to see Falun Dafa. This is the second year they’ve participated in the Orléans Multicultural Festival, and we appreciate them.”

She praised the exercise demonstrations, “I think the exercise demonstration is good because it gives us time to just rethink, reflect, be calm, and just pause for a moment. So it’s very important to have that time. It’s relaxing and very important for me because we’re always rushing.”

It was the first time that many local residents saw the Falun Dafa exercises. They were keen to find out more.

This was the first time many residents talked to practitioners or saw the Falun Dafa exercises, and some learned the movements.

Mr. Pierrot Mpunga who works in customer service was interested in the exercise demonstrations. He watched practitioners as they did the exercises and said it made him feel relaxed. He said he wished to learn more about Falun Dafa.

Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance are Important Values

Not only were people drawn to the exercises, they also praised Falun Dafa’s principles – Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance. Yvette Ashiri said these were very important. “I really believe in them, especially compassion. I think a world, a world where there’s no compassion, a world where there’s no truthfulness is a world that can collapse. So we need to be authentic, we need to trust one another, we need to be compassionate. And I believe those values, they are very, very important. They are important in my life, and I carry them along every day.”

Pierrot Mpunga said, “Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance are values widely accepted by people all over the world. Our lives would be better if we just practiced Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance.”