(Clearwisdom.net) During the recent decade, more and more non-Chinese speakers have started to learn Chinese because they practice Falun Gong. Falun Gong, rooted in Chinese traditional culture, has drawn considerable attention around the world.
Falun Gong is also known as Falun Dafa. It was made public in 1992 by Master Li Hongzhi. So far about 100 million people in more than 100 countries around the world practice it. Falun Gong books have been translated into 39 languages. As these books were originally written in Chinese, many non-Chinese Falun Gong practitioners have started to learn Chinese in order to better practice Falun Gong, introduce it to their fellow citizens, or explain the facts of the persecution of Falun Gong to Chinese people.
Mr. Thomas, who is from France, started learning Chinese for this reason. He said, “When I started to practice Falun Gong, there was no Zhuan Falun book available in English, not to mention French. After practicing for one year, we did the exercises, exchanged experiences with local Chinese practitioners, and went to different places to spread Falun Gong. But we only knew the principle Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and the exercises. When I got a book of Zhuan Falun in English, I quickly read it.
“I planned to learn Chinese as I could not read many Falun Gong books or other relevant information, which was all available in Chinese. Thus I became determined to learn Chinese.”
In early 1999, Mr. Thomas, who was in his twenties, went to Changchun, Jilin, China. He said, “I learned Chinese at Northeast Normal University. In the morning, I went to Jilin University to participate in group practice. I taught English in a private school affiliated with Normal University. The students were 15-20 years old. I was the only foreign Falun Gong practitioner there. Thus I needed to quickly learn Chinese. I read Zhuan Falun in Chinese with Chinese practitioners in a study group. After returning home, I read the book in English and French. I knew it was impossible to completely translate a book from one language to another. I had a great time there.”
Another Mr. Thomas, from Poland, started reading Zhuan Falun in summer 2003. He was eager to learn foreign languages when he was a kid, and he is proficient in several languages. His experience made him believe that one can learn any language. After practicing Falun Gong for a while, he decided to learn Chinese by himself using his method of learning other languages, reading until understanding. At the beginning, he read the book word by word, paragraph by paragraph, with assistance of a dictionary and Chinese spelling. After reading the entire book once, he read it again. After two months, he could read the book easily in Chinese.
At that time, the book Zhuan Falun in Polish was in a stage of proofreading for several years, but did not reach the level of publication. Along with his learning of Chinese, he thought that he could help to translate the book from Chinese to Polish. Through the efforts of him and other practitioners, the book in was published in Polish and a premiere was held in Warsaw in September 2007.
The non-Chinese speakers learn Chinese language very fast after practicing Falun Gong. On November 20, 2001, 36 foreign Falun Gong practitioners held a protest on Tiananmen Square against the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong, shocking the world. American practitioner Leeshai Lemish was an undergraduate student in Los Angeles at the time. Though he had practiced Falun Gong for only ten months, he had a deep understanding. After he studied Chinese language for only three months, he could communicate with Chinese practitioners in Chinese at a rate of about 80%.
Peter Valk from Holland started practicing Falun Gong in 2003. In order to read Falun Gong books in Chinese, he started learning Chinese in 2004. In 2005, he went to China to travel and improve his oral Chinese language skills. He also wanted to expose the persecution of Falun Gong to the Chinese people. Because he explained the fact of the persecution, he was arrested by Chinese police and deported.
Under the current situation, those non-Chinese speakers who practice Falun Gong cannot go to China to learn Chinese, as the Chinese Communist regime continues persecuting Falun Gong.
“Traditional Chinese is used in Taiwan and the traditional culture is not affected by the CCP.” said Hedges, a UK practitioner who came to Taiwan to learn Chinese in 2008.
Robertson, a 23 year-old Australian practitioner, went to Taiwan to learn Chinese in July 2008. he said, “I feel a broader and deeper understanding of Zhuan Falun while reading it in Chinese, because it was written from Master's lectures. I sometimes felt strong energy, a feeling that can't be expressed with words.” He mentioned his experience of reading the book with local practitioners in Taiwan. He said he obtained a clearer understanding for some parts that could be expressed well in English.
A practitioner from Belgium, 19 years old, has a Chinese name Debang Fan. He could speak English, French, Dutch, Spanish, and Chinese. He went to Taiwan in August 2009. His motive to learn Chinese was to read Zhuan Falun in Chinese and explain the facts of the persecution to Chinese tourists. His oral Chinese was not very fluent. He participated in exercise practice at tourist scenery sites, “To let Chinese tourists see that it is a fact that Falun Dafa has spread to more than 100 countries. Once I went to Sun Moon Lake to practice the exercises, I heard many Chinese tourists said gently in surprise, 'True or false?' In Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, I felt many camera flashes while I was practicing the exercises. Some people took photos of me. Therefore, I know I can do more.”
