(Minghui.org) Lingyuan, a medium-sized city in Liaoning Province, has historical sites and artifacts that date back five thousands years. The Lingyuan Iron and Steel Workers' Union invited Master Li Hongzhi, founder of Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa), to come to Lingyuan in 1994, to give a lecture series on Falun Gong. The following are recollections of some students who attended the lecture series.
The Lingyuan Iron and Steel Group has over 10,000 employees. As part of an effort to promote employee health, the Workers' Union often organized fitness activities such as qigong exercises and seminars. In 1993, several people from Workers' Union were sent to attend Mr. Li Hongzhi's Fa-lectures at Hefei City, Anhui Province.
They were instructed to learn the exercises well so that they could teach other union employees. After attending Master Li's Fa-lectures, they were so impressed that they wanted to invite Master to give lectures in Lingyuan.
One student recalled the process, “We waited to ask Master Li if he would come to Lingyuan. But before we even spoke, Master seemed to already know what we were thinking and asked, 'Do you have permission from your managers? Is there an auditorium?'”
After contacting officials at the Workers' Union and consulting with the Falun Gong Research Society in Beijing, it was decided that Master Li would give a lecture series in Lingyuan on February 22-28, 1994.
A few days before the scheduled lectures, the Falun Gong Research Society in Beijing called and said Master was giving a lecture series in another city, and wouldn't be back in Beijing until two days before the first lecture in Lingyuang. They asked if the Workers' Union could find a car to pick up Master from Beijing to avoid any possible delays. It just so happened that some officials from Lingyuan were taking a couple of vans to Beijing to catch their flight, and that Master could ride in their van back to Lingyuan.
It was very foggy that day. The Lingyuan officials were worried that they would miss their flight because of fog, and the union workers were worried that they would be late in picking up Master. But a miracle happened. The officials' flight took off on time while all other flights were delayed. The union workers picked up Master on time and drove him to Lingyuan.
Before the lecture series started, Master read through over 780 registration forms from people who wanted to attend the lecture. He picked out three forms and told the staff that those three people should not attend the lectures. Master asked the staff to return their registration fee and advise the three people not to practice any type of qigong. We later found out that each of the three people had some mental issues. Everyone was surprised and wondered how Master could tell just from the registration forms, which asked the same basic information from each person.
Everyone attending the lectures needed to have an admission card. The union officials initially estimated and told the Falun Gong Society that about 200 employees would attend. However, over 700 employees registered, and some of them were worried that there wouldn't be enough admission cards. But Master told them that he had brought over 700 cards – matching exactly the number people who registered. Was it a coincidence?
After he listened to four lectures, one Lingyuan official found it hard to accept what Master was teaching. He criticized the union officials during a company meeting. Right after the meeting, two union officials went to visit Master at the hotel.
Before they could say anything, Master began, “I know that some officials cannot accept what I said during the lectures. Did you run into trouble today? I can show you the certificates proving our legitimacy. Your legal department will be able to verify them.”
The two union officials were very surprised that Master knew what had happened even though the contents of the company meeting were confidential. Master showed them several certifications which prove that Falun Gong was a registered legal organization. Master also give an interview to a local newspaper.
Master told everyone to pay attention during the lectures, but some students still took pictures of Master without permission, despite Master's warning that their cameras wouldn't work. A few people didn't believe it but found out later that indeed nothing appeared on the film.
One morning, Master visited the Hongshan historical site with some students. He told students that the site was the remains of a matriarchal society from 5,000 to 7,000 years prior. He drew a picture of a goddess with a stick on the ground, and described the clothing of people back then and the geography of the region. His knowledge of the area surprised everyone.
Master also told some students that there was a cultivator in the mountains surrounding Lingyuan, and that the person had been cultivating for 3,000 years. The students were very surprised to hear that because it matches a local legend from the older generations in Lingyuan.
During the seven-day lecture series, many students experienced miraculous recoveries of illness, including a woman with second stage breast cancer, a man whose legs were hurt in a bicycle accident, a woman who had been bedridden for years, a student with chronicle bronchiectasis, and a woman who was half paralyzed.
In the eyes of students, Master is so great, yet so approachable. He always thought and acted for the sake of others. He set an example for all students.
During the time Master stayed in Lingyuan, he declined the offer from the Workers' Union to subsidize his hotel stay and meals. He paid for his own hotel and meals just like all the attendees.
One student recalled, “I asked the cafeteria chefs to make some vegetarian dishes for Master. When Master saw the dishes, he told the students not make anything special for him anymore.”
Master also made sure that the Workers' Union collected the right amount of tuition. The tuition for Master's Fa-lectures was the lowest among all the qigong classes in the country at the time. For those who had financial difficulties, the tuition was reduced by more than half.
In order to accommodate the work schedule of some of the students, Master moved the lectures to weekend and weekday evenings. Moreover, Master shortened the length of the lecture series by one day to lessen the financial burden on the students who had traveled from afar. He gave two lectures instead of one on the last day.
At the end of the lecture series, Master wrote the poem “Clear Harmony” for the students.
“With Zhen Shan Ren nestled in the heart,Cultivating oneself, in turn, betters a society.With Dafa never off the mind,Surely you will transcend others in time.”(Hong Yin)
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