Word: gongs
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Banning the fastest growing religious group in modern Chinese history may be a risky move for Beijing, but letting it flourish may have been even riskier. That appears to be thinking behind a government decision Thursday to declare the 70-million strong Falun Gong religious cult illegal. The move came as protests continued in Beijing and other major cities against the arrest Wednesday of thousands of members and leaders of the group. "The government fears that Falun Gong, as a nationwide movement with more members than the Communist party, could become a lightning rod for the political frustrations...
...Falun Gong (or "Law of the Wheel Breathing Exercise") blends a series of traditional Buddhist beliefs and simple exercise routines into a package that its followers believe promotes spiritual and moral well-being, and cures illness. Although many of its practices are simply a variation on the age-old Chinese Qi Gong belief, the authorities may be particularly threatened by the practitioners? fierce loyalty to the group?s New York-based founder, Li Hongzhi. The Communist party presents itself as the country?s supreme moral authority, and isn?t about to tolerate competition ?- particularly from a group whose leader believes...
Most formidable is Li's. In an interview weeks before the Beijing demonstration, he explained to TIME that he began studying Qi Gong at age 4 with masters "in the mountains," probably in Manchuria. In 1992 he went public with an amalgam of Qi Gong, Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism aimed at moral rejuvenation and a spiritual "cultivation," culminating in supernatural powers and "freedom from the worldly state." (Asked if he is a human being from earth, Li replied, "I don't wish to talk about myself at a higher level. People wouldn't understand it.") His regimen, promoted through books...
...party, inevitably, took note. It repeatedly refused to approve Falun Gong conventions, and a year ago, Li left China at the apparent urging of authorities. He was hardly friendless upon arrival in the U.S.: in 1996 Houston's mayor proclaimed a Li Hongzhi Day--and there are Falun Gong chapters in eight countries and 21 American states. Li's finances seem robust, although it's unclear how much control he has over his organization...
...Wednesday the government seemed to opt for a fairly hard line. It stepped up surveillance on Falun Gong members and called the demonstration "completely wrong." For now, Li's followers' decision to take to the streets appears to have backfired, and aliens had nothing to do with...