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Truthfulness Compassion Forbearance

What is
Falun Dafa?

Both China and the West  have a long history of artists integrating spirituality into their work. Today, Shen Yun's artists follow this tradition, drawing inspiration from the spiritual discipline Falun Dafa.

Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, is a self-practice system that combines ancient Chinese teachings with meditation exercises. The principal text, written by Falun Dafa founder Li Hongzhi, is Zhuan Falun. It teaches practitioners to live by three basic principles: Truthfulness (Zhen 真), Compassion (Shan 善), Forbearance (Ren 忍).

Practicing Falun Dafa is more than just meditation, it is a state of mind oriented towards self-betterment and putting others first. These qualities have taken root in many Shen Yun performers’ daily lives and flow naturally from their artistic expression.
Keep reading to learn more about the practice and why it is such an important part of the Shen Yun experience.

Falun Gong timeline

An Ancient
Practice
Rediscovered

Falun Dafa has a heritage dating back thousands of years  when it existed as teachings passed down secretly from one master to one disciple for generations. It was introduced to the public in 1992 when its founder, Li Hongzhi gave the first series of lectures on the practice in his hometown of Changchun, in northeastern China.

Over the following two years, he traveled across China (and later to France and Sweden) giving similar nine-day seminars over 50 times. Over the next few years, interest in the practice skyrocketed, fueled by word of Falun Dafa’s moral and health benefits; China’s State Sports Administration estimated over 70 million people practiced Falun Dafa.

Persecution

On July 20, 1999, thousands were arrested and official persecution began.   Massive arrests ensued along with the confiscation of Falun Gong-related materials. A nationwide propaganda campaign was launched in synch.

How could such a persecution come about? The then-Chinese Communist Party Chairman Jiang Zemin felt threatened by the sheer number of practitioners. Falun Dafa practitioners did not see their spiritual practice as being in conflict with the government, but Jiang saw them as a threat. MORE >

Left: Practitioners in Tiananmen beaten by plainclothes policemen, dragged into police van.

The Courage of
Conviction

The Party’s goal of eradicating Falun Dafa through violence has proven futile.  
Practitioners in China have responded to persecution with pacifism—holding banners on Tiananmen Square, smuggling letters out of labor camps, sliding leaflets under doors at night. At great risk to themselves, they set out to expose the lies and tell people the truth about the persecution these innocent people face.

Left: Practitioner raises a yellow banner at Tiananmen. The Chinese characters read “Truth, Compassion, Forbearance”
Inspired, Shen Yun’s artistic team is bringing these stories to stages around the world, depicting them through song and dance dramas. It turns out this courage and message of hope has moved Shen Yun’s performers and audience members alike.