(Clearwisdom.net) The Lindenau District in the famous German City of Leipzig is an economic center with a long history. Many businesses are located here, with buildings standing row after row. In June every year, the district organizes a large-scale community celebration. This activity not only attracts the participation of many local residents, it also attracts large numbers of people from other areas. Every year Falun Gong practitioners set up an information stall, providing people in the community with the important information about the beauty of Falun Gong, as well as the human rights violations committed by the Chinese Communist regime against the practice in China.
The European "Coming for You" Chorus performed
The lotus flower grows out of mud but is not contaminated by the mud. The Lotus Dance is often performed by Falun Gong practitioners across the world, symbolic of practitioners in China persisting in their belief under brutal persecution.
Celestial Maiden Dance
Young practitioner Marios from Berlin has been practicing with his mother since he was little. Now he can do the sitting meditation.
The 2007 celebration was even more special than previous years because the mayor of Leipzig attended and gave a speech. Falun Gong practitioners not only had an information stall as before, they also had permission to give large performances on the stage and to hold an outdoor "Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance" art exhibition. They hoped that the mayor and all the visitors would be able to personally witness and feel the beauty and peacefulness of Falun Gong. Practitioners also wanted to show people that even though the Falun Gong cultivation group has been brutally persecuted by the Chinese Communist regime for eight years and the persecution is still continuing, practitioners are still actively bringing the benefits of the practice to the people.
Because some officials were misled by the Chinese Communist regime's defamatory propaganda against Falun Gong, the Falun Gong application to attend the celebration encountered some difficulties initially. This sudden situation became an excellent opportunity for the practitioners in Leipzig to clarify the truth about Falun Gong to government officials. In the letter to government officials, practitioners not only exposed the brutal persecution encountered by Falun Gong practitioners in China over the past eight years, they also explained what Falun Gong is and discussed the spiritual and physical benefits that the practice brings to the people.
In this year's activity, using the beautiful medium of traditional Chinese dancing, heart-felt singing, and peaceful Falun Gong exercise demonstrations, practitioners brought the beauty of Falun Gong to the people and were warmly received by the audience. At the end of the activity, several people who were initially misled by the Chinese Communist Party's lies and had misunderstandings about Falun Gong and were against the practitioners' participation in the activity, changed their view and happily accepted materials about Falun Gong and chatted with practitioners.
There were many touching stories during the celebration activity:
A German woman came to read the display boards. After she learned of the inhumane treatment by the Chinese police against innocent Falun Gong practitioners, she felt very sad that so many good people in China who believe in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" could not live freely like her. She said, "These policemen are worse than animals. Animals hunt out of their natural instinct. However these policemen are worse than them."
During the Falun Gong exercise demonstration, a middle-aged woman came onto the stage and stayed to learn the movements from the beginning to the end. After the demonstration, a gentleman grabbed a practitioner's hand and said excitedly, "It is such a wonderful cultivation method, where can I learn it?"
The Falun Gong practitioners' performances were scheduled at optimum times during the celebration, and included the starting and ending performances. At the end of the celebration activity, the person in charge of the activity walked onto the stage holding a practitioner's hand. He explained to the people about the unhappy incident of the interference encountered by the practitioners' application to take part in the celebration and apologized to the practitioners. He jokingly asked the age of the practitioner and said to the audience with admiration, "Have a look. He is so young and healthy. It seems that Falun Gong is indeed an excellent cultivation method. It is truly beneficial to people's health."
http://www.clearharmony.net/articles/200706/39960.html
