Heretical Cult -- The True Colors of Falun Gong

by Zhou Wen

Zhang Zhaoxi, doctoral student tutor and research fellow at the Institute of Theoretical Physics in the Chinese Academy of Sciences, still feels sorry for one of his students. A couple of years ago, the student, a top graduate of Nanjing University, was recommended to study for his Master's degree under Zhang's instruction. One year later, the student became a Doctorate degree candidate because of his excellent academic performance.

Then tragedy surfaced. "I noticed that he began to practice Falun Gong, offer meditating in the office with books on Falun Gong in his hand. When the third school year started, his academic and research development suffered drastically, but I didn't relate this with his Falun Gong practice."

"Right before the New Year's Day of 1998, I found him in a particularly abnormal state. He kept practicing and meditating, and didn't eat, drink, talk, or sleep for several days without interruption. When I persuaded him to stop, he became impatient, angry and fidgety," Zhang said.

After ineffective persuasion, Zhang had to send the student, who was showing symptoms like phonism, to the hospital. The student was diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia induced by Falun Gong practice. He was sent home after several months of medical treatment at a famous mental hospital, and his dream of being a doctor was shattered.

Over the past several years, numerous practitioners like Zhang's student, became spellbound by Falun Gong. Some even lost their sanity, paying a high price for the practice. According to statistics of two mental hospitals in Beijing, nine patients were possessed by Falun Gong in 1996, 10 in 1997, 22 in 1998, and 16 during the first half of 1999.

In recent months, Li Hongzhi, born in Gongzhulinq City of Jilin Province in 1952, and his illegal organization Falun Dafa Research Society have provoked wide indignation in all walks of life in China. Li and his organizations were found to spread fallacies to deceive and confuse people's minds, amassing enormous amounts of money and endangering society in the process.

When Li's dirty tricks were exposed, kind people from all walks of life were stunned. Most of the practitioners were quickly woken up and regretted what they had done. On July 22, the Ministry of Civil Affairs officially banned the Falun Dafa Research Society and Falun Gong organizations in accordance with the law. Li Hongzhi, who has fled to the United States, was put on a most wanted notice issued by the Ministry of Public Security.

Wu Yungui, Deputy Director of the Institute of World Religions under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said: "Viewed from large quantities of facts, Falun Gong is not an ordinary illegal organization, it is a heretical cult."

Wu analyzed that after so many malicious fallacies were made public, there were still a number of people who refused the sound advice of the academic circles and public opinion, and were controlled by Li Hongzhi. Spellbound, they continued to defend and sacrifice for him. Such huge powers of mind control belong only to a heretical cult.

A Cancer Poisoning Society

Wu Yungui was once a visiting scholar to the Center for the Study of World Religions of the Harvard University and the School of Oriental and African Studies of the London University. He said in the religious study, scholars usually divide the subject into two types, namely, the traditional and the newly emerged. The former refers to those with a long history and profound culture, such as Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity and Islam. Newly emerged religions, also called cults, developed in the last two centuries. Many of them are good-intentioned, but some originate with evil objectives and are refereed to as heretical cults.

Wu said that the traditional religions would guide people toward a pure and kind realm of thought. Their devotees all worship detached, non-human holy saints. These saints are regarded as perfect incarnation of all goodness. The founders of the heretical cults, however, are found to be full of evil doings, some even break the law and commit crimes.

Wu recalled that since the 1970s, heretical cult organizations based in America, Europe and Asia have plotted a series of incidents, such as group suicides and attacks on society. These behaviors have shocked the world. For example, the 900-odd followers of the American People's Temple and more than 80 disciples of Branch Davidian committed suicide. The Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo (Supreme Truth) released poisonous gas in the Tokyo subway, causing thousands of innocent deaths and injuries. All these scandals have attracted wide concern and indignation of the international community.

According to Wu, these facts indicate that heretical cults, far from a religious sect Problem, have become an evil force committing crimes and endangering society. Therefore, preventing the evil doings of heretical cults and destroying the "social cancer" is the common responsibility of the international community.

Wang Zuo'an, an official with the Bureau of Religious Affairs under the State Council, said in the long Chinese history there was also soil to breed heretical cults, especially during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. The Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty once said that heretical cults falsely claimed to be a religion and misrepresented the classic doctrine, mixing it with Superstition and pseudo-science. They also would knock together "religious doctrines", deify their leaders, recruit new members through missionary work, fabricate and spread malicious fallacies, and deceive, intimidate and bully their followers. After the founding of the New China in 1949, all heretical cult organizations, superstitious sects, and secret societies were banned. But there is still a long way to go to destroy the hotbed which breeds evil Cults.