Honor World Falun Dafa Day

2018; and WHEREAS, Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, is a self-improvement practice rooted in ancient Chinese culture based on refining the body and mind through meditation and four gentle exercises; and WHEREAS, Practitioners of Falun Dafa strive to live by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance to improve their moral nature, and in turn, to experience remarkable health benefits; and WHEREAS, The practice of Falun Dafa goes beyond the pursuit of health and fitness to the goal of greater wisdom and enlightenment; and WHEREAS, The Falun Dafa philosophy espouses the idea that when the heart is pure, the mind balanced, and the body energized, health and happiness are a natural outcome; individuals have been empowered to leave behind addictions and bad habits; families, to live in peace together; and communities, to embrace what is virtuous and life-affirming; and WHEREAS, The effectiveness of Falun Dafa in improving health, as well as the principles upon which it is founded, have proven to be immensely popular throughout the world; and WHEREAS, Falun Dafa is a practice which has brought better health and inner peace to millions around the world; and WHEREAS, Today, Falun Dafa is practiced and cherished by millions of people in more than 70 countries with 41 languages and has received over

3,000 awards; and WHEREAS, May 13th observes the day Falun Dafa was first introduced to the general public in 1992, in Changchun, China, by Mr. Li Hongzhi, who then traveled around China lecturing to the public; and WHEREAS, The impact Mr. Li's lectures had on the society was so profound, that the practice spread very rapidly by word of mouth alone; by 1999, it was estimated that 100 million people were practicing Falun Dafa; and WHEREAS, To the people of China, Falun Dafa provides a source of strength in the face of oppression; although the practice is banned in the land of its origin, practitioners persevere in the pursuit of their spiritual beliefs, risking imprisonment or worse; and WHEREAS, In 1996, Falun Dafa was introduced to New York, and has since grown to include hundreds of practitioners who can be found throughout the tri-state area offering workshops in senior centers, corporate offices, health clubs, private residences and police stations at no cost to the participants; and WHEREAS, World Falun Dafa Day Celebrations of all types have been held in the State of New York and around the world each year to honor the occasion, to celebrate the benefits of Falun Dafa in the lives of practitioners, to introduce Falun Dafa to more people and to raise awareness about persecution faced by practitioners in China; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to commemorate the 19th Annual World Falun Dafa Day Celebration, to be observed May 13, 2018; and be it further RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to the Falun Dafa practitioners of New York State.