(Minghui.org) A Western practitioner residing in India has been traveling to the country’s far-flung regions to introduce Falun Dafa to some of the country’s most remote areas. Her journey recently took her to Mirik, a small town located in the lap of the Himalayas in the district of Darjeeling, West Bengal, at an altitude of 1,495 meters, where the local language is predominantly Nepali.
Introducing Falun Dafa to Schools
During her stay of over a month, she and other practitioners visited 13 schools and held around 24 Falun Dafa instruction sessions. The teachers and principal at each school expressed their gratitude in a letter, and one school even presented her with a token of appreciation.
The Green Lawn School in Mirik issued the practitioner a certificate and a token of appreciation. The principal wrote in the certificate, “Your dedication to instilling the values of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance in our young learners is truly admirable. It was a pleasure to witness the enthusiasm and excitement that your sessions brought out in our students. … The students were able to not only understand the importance of these values but also learn how to apply them in their daily lives.”
Later on, whenever the school’s teachers and students spotted the practitioner on the streets of Mirik, they often called out to her, “Falun Dafa” or “Falun Dafa is good!” As more and more sessions were organised in schools, these auspicious words echoed in Mirik almost every day.
During her time there, the locals from all walks of life frequently asked her, “When will you come back?”
The practitioner said that during these sessions, there are always some children, both very young and teenagers, who appear as if they had done the five exercises of Falun Dafa their whole life as they are so focused from the very beginning to the end. Often teachers and other adults also showed the same heart to learn the exercises.
Though some children are restless, talkative, or disturbing others, she said, “Yet, it is unbelievable that every time during the fifth exercise of Falun Dafa (the sitting meditation), the kids are all totally quiet and so focused. It is always pindrop silence.
“With some people, it truly feels as if we were meeting again after being long lost. At times, this feeling is beyond any doubt, and mutual—a kind of deep and unbreakable friendship.”
After the conclusion of one of the sessions, a shy little girl stood for a long time at the door to the principal’s office and repeatedly tried to say something to the practitioner, who then asked another person to find out what this little girl was saying. The person said the girl was saying, “Don’t go now.” The words, spoken from the heart of a young child, nearly moved the practitioner to tears.
Yet another time, the practitioner offered a Falun Dafa bookmark to a girl sitting in a shared car, going home after school, and the girl said, “You are a very sweet woman.”
During all the sessions, the students and teachers were told not only about the beauty of Falun Dafa but also about the 24-year-long persecution and heart-wrenching human rights atrocities in China. Posters like “Why?,” “Come back Daddy,” “Unmovable,” “Homeless,” and “Sit by my side” helped present deeper concepts, such as good and evil having consequences; the importance of being a truly good person; the ability to forget, forgive, and tolerate in tough situations; and the help and protection of divine beings. The children and other attendees also learned to cherish the opportunity to live in a democratic country where freedom is honored.
Change in a School Principal’s Attitude
While visiting the first school in Mirik and showing photos and appreciation letters from previous schools to the principal, the practitioner was bombarded with questions and skepticism. The principal remarked that at times, “fraudsters come to the school.” It was rare but not the first time that the practitioner heard such remarks. Nevertheless, the principal agreed to have a Falun Dafa session for all students the next day.
After experiencing Falun Dafa’s compassionate energy during the session, the principal said he was very touched and organised for photos to be taken with teachers and students. “He expressed his profound gratitude for holding a Falun Dafa session in this remote area. He even took the initiative to help connect me to another school’s principal to arrange sessions there,” the practitioner said.
Session Near a Tea Garden
There are many tea gardens in and around Mirik. Many years ago, the practitioner had the deep wish to one day hold Falun Dafa sessions inside a tea plantation for the workers and their children. Amazingly, after a couple of successful Falun Dafa sessions, the principal of the third school asked the practitioner if she would like to accompany her the next day to her school’s branch located in the middle of a tea garden. The practitioner felt her dream was finally coming true.
“As happened in other schools in other parts of India, in Mirik also, the principals and other residents of their own initiative talked about holding Falun Dafa sessions in their respective schools and on social media. It’s as if they were all waiting for Falun Dafa,” she said.
Dafa Materials Displayed Almost All Over Mirik
The practitioner was surprised to see 2023 Falun Dafa calendars, posters, and even fliers put up on noticeboards by non-practitioners, including even the municipal noticeboard. Posters in English and Hindi were put up in shops, restaurants, and at several places across the town. Neither the police station in Mirik nor the police station and district court in Darjeeling were missed.
Town, school, and college libraries also accepted Falun Dafa fliers, bookmarks, books, and magazines from the practitioner. Later on during her brief stay in Darjeeling, the staff of the district library were happy to accept a variety of Falun Dafa informational materials and shared these with a college librarian who happened to be there when the practitioner visited.
Most of the schools in Darjeeling had exams during that week, yet a girls’ school, where in 2022 a Falun Dafa session had been held, agreed to hold another session. Many girls and teachers remembered last year’s session, and a photo session with all participants was held at the end.
The practitioner realised her wish of a boat ride on the town lake on the very last day. She carried a banner saying “Falun Dafa Is Good” while two locals helped her take photos of the memorable ride.
Just a few days before leaving the town, displays were organized for two weekend days at a square near the lake.
Tourists from cities all over India like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Siliguri, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu saw the displayed information and received fliers and Falun Dafa amulets. Some people from the city of Nagpur said, “Falun Dafa is practiced everywhere in Nagpur.”
Chinese version available
(Clearwisdom)
