(Minghui.org) With the start of a new school year, many community association forums were held throughout the various districts of Paris and surrounding cities. These forums introduced culture, sports, and other community activities to local residents. Falun Dafa practitioners participated in these forums in the 18th, 19th, and 10th arrondissements, as well as in Antony, a southern city of France, on September 5-6, 2026. Practitioners introduced Falun Dafa and demonstrated the five exercises to residents.
Many residents were attracted to practitioners’ activities. Some asked about local practice sites to learn more about Falun Dafa, and others said they wished to attend the nine-day teaching class.
Municipal Officials Help Practitioners Find an Exercise Site
Practitioners set up a booth and demonstrated the exercises in the 18th arrondissement on September 5, 2026. When municipal officials visited their booth they learned that the practitioners were searching for a suitable practice site, and they offered to help. They left their cards and asked practitioners to contact them via email.
Practitioners demonstrated the Falun Dafa exercises during the community forum in the 18th arrondissement. (Minghui.org)
Officials from left to right: Kévin Havet, first deputy mayor of Paris’s 18th Arrondissement; Gabrielle Siry-Houari, special adviser to the Mayor of the 18th Arrondissement and Paris City councillor; and Serge Dupont Tsakap, deputy mayor of the 18th Arrondissement. (Minghui.org)
Kévin Havet, first deputy mayor of Paris’s 18th Arrondissement told practitioners that Rachmaninoff Garden was his favorite park, and he felt the peaceful environment there made it an ideal place to meditate and practice the exercises.
A middle school principal stopped by and expressed interest in Falun Dafa. He said that society these days is full of stress and worry, and people need the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance so they can experience inner peace.
Several performers from the Atel'art Musique music association talked with practitioners and said they agreed with Falun Dafa’s principles.
Residents of Paris’s 19th Arrondissement Ask About Local Practice Sites
Practitioners participated in another forum in the 19th arrondissement that same day. Over 300 associations participated in this activity. After practitioners demonstrated the five exercises at around 11 a.m., they were invited to demonstrate them again before the activity ended.
Locals visited the Falun Dafa practitioners’ booth during the event in the 19th arrondissement on September 5, 2026. (Minghui.org)
The practitioners’ booth attracted locals who were interested in learning about Falun Dafa. Many people said they’ve seen practitioners in parks, and wanted to try the exercises. They took informational flyers and asked which day and what time practitioners did the exercises at Buttes-Chaumont Park.
A man who once practiced martial arts explained why he was interested in the Falun Dafa meditation, “I wish to become calm and get to know my physical and mental state better by practicing meditation. I’d like to go to the practice site this weekend and learn the Falun Dafa exercises.”
Another man stopped by the booth because he was interested in improving his health. He told the practitioners that a doctor suggested he avoid vigorous physical activities, so he was searching for something that wasn’t strenuous. After he watched practitioners demonstrate the exercises he wished to learn more about the practice.
A woman chatted with a practitioner for a long time and said she felt relaxed after watching the exercise demonstration and listening to the music. She wanted to learn more about Falun Dafa.
A Brief Encounter in China Twenty-Seven Years Ago
Falun Dafa practitioners participated in a community forum in Antony on September 6, 2026. (Minghui.org)
Antony, a commune in the southern suburb of Paris, hosted a community forum on September 6, 2026. Falun Dafa practitioners and nearly 200 associations participated. Many residents and people who work in the city expressed an interest in practicing Falun Dafa and asked about the practice site’s location and when practitioners met.
Gilbert, who hosts a local martial arts association, was interested in Falun Dafa and asked where the practice site is in the 13th arrondissement.
Van-Hac, a member of an association in Antony, wrote down the schedule of the local practice site and took some informational materials to share with other members of the association.
A woman from Antony recalled a brief encounter she had 24 years ago, and said she saw people practicing the exercises in China in 1999. Out of curiosity, she approached them to learn more. A Chinese practitioner who spoke French told her, “This is Falun Dafa.” Upon learning that she was from France, the practitioner also told her that there were Falun Dafa practitioners in France.
Though the encounter was brief, it remained in her memory for more than two decades. Twenty-four years later, at a community forum in Antony, she once again met Falun Dafa practitioners.
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