THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Falun Gong, a spiritual system denounced in China two decades ago, is slowly making its presence felt in Kerala. Falun Gong or Falun Dafa, which advocates meditation as a means to attain overall well-being, had gone underground in its birthplace China following a crackdown by the government in 1999, terming it as a heretic cult.
Initially propped up by the Chinese government, Falun Gong managed to sway millions of people into its fold, but with the state reversing its stand, what followed were human rights violations on a massive scale, with thousands thrown behind bars, say reports. More than 3,000 people died in prisons, while numerous instances of alleged organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners were also reported. Still, the system thrived in other parts of the globe.
In Kerala, Bhavani Odatt, a 64-year-old housewife from Thrissur, spearheads its activities. In a first concrete step towards sensitising people about the system, Bhavani has translated Zhuan Falun, the most comprehensive book authored by the movement’s founder Li Hongzhi, to Malayalam.
Apart from Zhuan Falun, Li’s other seminal book Falun Gong has also been translated into Malayalam by another Keralite, Jose Johny, who is based in Bengaluru.
The two translation works were published this January. Bhavani was introduced to the system by her son. After enduring setbacks in her business, Bhavani turned towards spirituality 11 years ago. Since then, she has been practising Falun Gong and claims to have made several physical and mental benefits.
Though Falun Gong has been a victim of political vendetta, Bhavani said the practitioners focus on spreading positivity through the ancient meditation system. “There is a lot of negativity going on around all of us. Chaos is prevalent, and immorality is raging like wildfire. We want a release from that toxic environment,” Bhavani said.
“Our intention is to bring in a change in mindset, as the purest of thoughts alone can usher in positivity among people. Ours is a small effort towards that objective,” she added.
Bhavani said there have been encouraging responses from the readers of the two books that were published in January but added that Falun Gong is yet to find immediate traction among Keralites because “of the presence of a lot of atheists and Communists in the state.”
Falun Gong training basically incorporates four standing and one sitting exercise, with the mentioned objectives being opening up of energy meridians within the body and linking up with the cosmic energy. All the training of Falun Gong, Bhavani said, is free of cost, and there is no centralised hierarchy within the movement, nor is there any active membership.
Falun Gong draws its philosophy from Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian principles, and the instructions are given by local assistants or veteran practitioners free of cost at training sites in various cities. Apart from offline training, the new inductees can also use online materials for reference.