Throughout history, humankind has found guidance through spiritual teachings to direct the lost, answer the unanswered, shine light on the good heart in humankind, and to bring people to what is pure, noble, and lofty.

Yet, after 5,000 years, the world's oldest culture found itself atheist. Violent turmoil and social changes wiped out traditional values and practices and left deep scars on the eastern land of China. It was in this environment that the practices of qigong arose. They enabled millions of people to bring healing and fitness to their lives.

While some taught virtuous practices, others saw the opportunity to make profit, and many thieves and con artists created fraudulent practices to gain fame and cheat people out of their money. In a short while, true guidance and deception were impossible to distinguish.

In the spring of 1992, a man from northeastern China, Mr. Li Hongzhi, brought an ancient and secret cultivation practice to the public. He did so for the benefit of humankind, making clear two specific reasons: to reinstate the good reputation of qigong and cultivation practice for future generations and to allow those who truly want to refine themselves towards purity and higher levels to obtain a way of doing so.

This practice is Falun Dafa, which offers a teaching rooted in the universal quality of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The five sets of exercises and meditation that complete the teachings are known as Falun Gong.

From 1992 to 1994, Master Li travelled all over China, giving more than 50 lecture series and teaching Falun Gong exercises to thousands of people from all levels and areas of society.

People old and young, rich and poor, from officials to commoners, began to experience miracles of health, longevity, and profound enlightenment, and many began to share it with their loved ones. At this time Master Li made it clear that it was permitted to pass on this teaching under two requirements: never to add personal things to the teachings, to keep pure for generations to come, and never to charge a penny to those who want to learn the practice.

After two years of tireless travel and lecturing throughout China, Master Li published Zhuan Falun, a compilation of all content lectured on in those two years, which soon became a bestseller in China.

After a short period of travel to teach Falun Dafa abroad, Master Li stopped his teaching of Falun Dafa and published all of his teachings, text, video, and audio on the internet for people to study and learn free of cost, membership, hierarchy, or worship.

Within seven short years Falun Dafa had gone from one man to becoming the most practiced system out of 3,000 qigong practices in China. 100 million people were cultivating in the teachings of Falun Dafa and practicing Falun Gong in China alone. Falun Dafa had spread by word of mouth to over 20 countries around the world.

In the spring of 1999, an article defaming Falun Gong appeared in a magazine. Thousands of Falun Gong practitioners went to the magazine company's office to appeal to them to correct the slander according to the facts. Police came and arrested and beat over 40 people.

Practitioners all over China traveled to their local appeal offices to appeal for the release of the detained practitioners. After being directed to appeal to the central government, many people traveled to Beijing.

On April 25, 1999, over 10,000 Chinese citizens lined up on the sidewalks in an orderly fashion, standing and sitting in silence, across from the national appeal office, near Beijing's government compound. The Premier of the country met with them in person, the 40-odd people were released, the 10,000 practitioners dispersed, and the first meeting in history between Chinese citizens and senior officials concluded peacefully.

Shortly afterwards, the most powerful individual in China used the gathering as an excuse to accuse Falun Dafa of being "subversive," and on July 20, 1999, he began a systematic nationwide campaign to eliminate the practice.

Overnight, the sky fell and people who practised meditation in parks and lived to be good people were facing an attack sustained by the resources of their entire nation. The demonising propaganda, branding Falun Dafa as "evil," was spread throughout China and around the world.

Through the compassionate example and lectures of our teacher, to live for the benefit of others, we continued to stand up for the truth with unwavering endurance and forbearance to continually purify our true nature and assimilate to the universe.

In the face of vilification, degradation, torture, and killing, Falun Dafa practitioners strive to foster virtue in the face of viciousness. We have lawfully, peacefully, persistently, and very actively opposed this persecution.

Inside China, practitioners travelled thousands of miles by plane, car, train, bicycle, and by foot to their capital to make the facts clear to their leaders. Under detention and brutality, practitioners in China have used their last voice and held hunger strikes to appeal for the truth. They have made and used posters, banners, VCDs, pamphlets, and television, all to make the truth clear. They have endured this crisis while using every opportunity, even detention, as a place for people to learn the facts about the deceptive nature of this crackdown so that they may make their own conscious and moral decision in the face of this horrid reality.

Outside China, we travel by plane, car, and train, and have held S.O.S. walks for thousands of miles around the world. We have held public fasts and candlelight vigils to appeal to the international community. Some of us have risked our lives traveling to China to appeal. We use our spare time, energy, and savings to create all forms of media and peaceful means to combat an attack bolstered by all of China's resources.

We do this out of respect for our fellow practitioners, out of respect for this virtuous teaching, out of respect for our teacher, and out of cherishing humanity's sacred right to know the facts and make moral decisions accordingly.

Today, Falun Dafa is practised in at least 60 countries around the world. The individual who began this attempt to eliminate the practice has failed. He is being sued for crimes against humanity, and other officials who have followed him are facing the same fate. The persecution of upright faiths has never succeeded. In this persecution, Falun Dafa has become more popular and more recognised, and through all of this its teachings and exercises have brought -- and are continuing to bring -- health, virtue, meaning, and spiritual guidance to people everywhere.