(Minghui.org) A Falun Dafa Symposium was held at Sanjeev Kumar Auditorium, Surat on July 27, 2024, the was the first time such an event was held in India. More than 400 people from all walks of life attended, including students, professors, doctors, politicians, industrialists, businessmen, and homemakers. 

Audience members were able to learn about Falun Dafa and the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution of the practice. Many attendees expressed their support for practitioners’ efforts to speak up for their fellow practitioners in China and expose the persecution. 

A Falun Dafa Symposium was held at Sanjeev Kumar Auditorium, Surat on July 27, 2024.

Conference attendees read about Falun Dafa.

The symposium formally began with the guests of honor lighting lamps, which symbolize the power of divine light over darkness. The guests of honor included influential members from all aspects of society in Surat and in India: Aneel Hegde, former Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha; Padmashri Mathur Savani, Chairman of Kiran Hospital; Vijay Mevawala, renowned industrialist and the president of the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and Manhar Jeevan Sanspara, chairman of Euro India Fresh Foods. 

Several community leaders in Surat attended the symposium as audience members, including Ashok Goyani, a leading diamond trader; Ashok Gujjar, a motivational speaker; Anu Tejani and Jasmat Vidiya, co-chairmen of A & J Associates; Manish Vaghasiya, a motivational speaker and consultant; and Dr. Vijaykumar Radadiya, an associate professor at AURO University. 

Guests of honor were invited to light lamps to begin the event.

Guests of honor (from left to right): Mr. Ashok Goyani, Mr. Ashok Gujjar, Mr. Vijay Radadia, Mr.Anu Tejani, Mr. Jasmat Vidiya, Mr. Vijay Mevawala, Mr. Aneel Hegde, Padmashree Mathur Savani, Mr. Lalji Dharmanandan, Mr. Manhar Sanspara, Mr. Manish Vaghasiya, Mr. Suren Rao.

Falun Dafa practitioners set up informational displays, gave introductory presentations, and demonstrated the exercises. Attendees were invited to learn the exercises.

Practitioners demonstrate the five sets of Falun Dafa exercises at the Falun Dafa symposium.

Audience members learn the Falun Dafa exercises.

Practitioners describe the CCP’s persecution.

The symposium ended with practitioners sharing their real life testimonies and positive experiences they enjoyed after taking up the spiritual practice of Falun Dafa and how they benefited from following Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.

Practitioners describe their cultivation journeys.

Former MP: “We Must Raise Our Voices for Falun Dafa”

Several guests of honor made speeches at the symposium and explained the practitioners’ cause. In his speech, former Member of Parliament Aneel Hegde said he first heard about Falun Dafa in 2002. He strongly condemned the brutal persecution of practitioners in China, and demanded that it immediately end. 

Aneel Hegde (left) received a book and lotus flower from the president of the Falun Dafa Association of India, Suren Rao (right).

Aneel Hegde condemns the brutal persecution of Falun Dafa.

Mr. Hegde is the first person in the Indian Parliament to speak against the persecution of Falun Dafa. He said many governments do not take a stand on this issue due to diplomatic reasons, but he was determined to raise this issue in Parliament. 

On December 6, 2023, Mr. Hegde spoke in the Indian Parliament about the cheap labor available in China, which allows it to sell its goods in India at extremely low prices. He said Falun Dafa practitioners and other prisoners of conscience were forced to do unpaid labor during their arbitrary sentences, and their organs were forcibly taken and sold to profit the CCP. 

“Through these human rights violations, labor law violations, and environmental violations in China, they are able to produce cheaper goods,” he said. “We must raise our voices about these issues. I’m proud that I spoke about this issue in the Indian Parliament.”

Vijay Mevawala (right) with a Falun Dafa practitioner (left)

Famous industrialist Vijay Mevawala addressed the gathering and said there’s a lot of stress in today’s fast-paced life. He said practicing Falun Dafa practice can help people maintain peace of mind, and is beneficial to everyone. 

Surat Community Leaders Encourage More People to Learn Falun Dafa

Ashok Goyani (left) with a Falun Dafa practitioner (right)

In addition to the guests of honor, many influential members of the Surat community commended Falun Dafa and offered to support practitioners. 

Ashok Bhai Goyani, owner of Crystal Diamonds, was happy to see Falun Dafa introduced to Surat. He said Falun Dafa is very beneficial for personal health and the overall well-being of society. “It’s sad to hear that somewhere in the world this practice is oppressed,” he said.

Mr. Goyani said he’s begun studying Falun Dafa and understands some of its positive effects, such as how the moral teachings can help people stay calm in any situation. “I’m starting to learn this practice and I hope everyone will learn it as well. It can help us improve, which in turn leads to improvement in our environment. Nothing can be better than this!” he said. 

“If today we have planted the seed of Falun Dafa, tomorrow, surely a large tree will flourish. It’s fortunate that Falun Dafa is being introduced in our city of Surat. In the future all the people of Surat will definitely benefit from it,” added Mr. Goyani. He expressed his full support for Falun Dafa and said he’s willing to help practitioners in every way possible.

Ashok Gujjar, a youth motivational speaker from Surat, praised Falun Dafa for its inspirational qualities. “Falun Dafa is a good practice,” he said. “It’s one of the many practices which helps us connect with our higher self, which in turn helps maintain good health and makes us more connected to nature.” 

He echoed Mr. Goyani’s sentiments, saying that more people should learn Falun Dafa. “Everyone should learn about it, practice it, and, if possible, follow it,” he said. 

Educators: Learning About Falun Dafa Is a Success

Several educators also attended the symposium, and some brought their students. They said in Falun Dafa they saw a way to teach their students good habits for mental and physical health. 

Dr. Vinod Patel, principal of Navyug Commerce College, Surat, said it was an “achievement” and “success” for his students to learn about Falun Dafa, since the practice not only promotes good health but also society’s overall well-being. Many students from his college volunteered to help manage the symposium.

Dr. Patel condemns the ongoing persecution of Falun Dafa in China. “We hope that this injustice does not continue,” he said. “Human society should move forward and raise our voices against this persecution. We must give our full support to the ones suffering this persecution. This is our hope.”

Rachna Dubey, Principal of PP Savani School, said she was greatly impressed by Falun Dafa and she encouraged her students to learn it. Some of her students agreed, and said they would continue learning the practice. 

Meet Baman (center) and his friends described their experiences when they did the Falun Dafa exercises.

Meet Baman, one of the PP Savani students, said that he wanted to introduce the exercises he learned to his family. “I really felt good,” he said. “When we did the exercise, I felt very relaxed and all my tiredness vanished.”

Students and Falun Dafa practitioners exclaim, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good!” 

Attendees Plan to Tell Others About Falun Dafa

Other audience members said that they were inspired to share the information they learned at the symposium with their respective organizations and the general public. 

Jay Prajapati runs an NGO in Surat to save people from committing suicide. He said he found Falun Dafa very simple and easy to learn, and he felt the practice was positive. “It was a pleasure to hear from Falun Dafa practitioners how they had their illnesses resolved and to listen as they described their cultivation journeys. I will definitely tell people about Falun Dafa and encourage them to learn it, since it spreads positivity,” he said. 

He added that he thought Falun Dafa could help the clients of his NGO maintain mental health. “[Falun Dafa] will help people in our NGO to change their thought process from negative to positive,” said Mr. Prajapati. 

Rasik Patel (left) invited practitioners to introduce Falun Dafa to Surat residents.

Rasik Patel from the Surat Municipal Corporation, had heard about the symposium through Surat’s mayor, Daxesh Mayani, who recommended that he attend. This was the first time Mr. Patel had heard about Falun Dafa.

“We received information about Falun Dafa, which helps people to heal naturally and is taught free of cost around the world. We really like it,” he said. 

Mr. Patel wants more people to know about Falun Dafa and said he’d spread the word, starting with his family. “I’ll learn the practice and introduce it to my son and daughter who are doctors in Sydney, Australia,” he said. 

He invited practitioners to introduce Falun Dafa at Surat’s Municipal Corporation and Education Committee, and to adults and children in the city.