Academic views on Falun Gong

Template:Wikify-date There are several criticism and controversies about Falun Gong.

Falun Gong and homosexuality

Li has made negative statements against homosexuals and homosexuality. Because of these statements, critics of Falun Gong have called the teachings "homophobic." Defenders of Falun Gong dispute whether statements made by Falun Gong's founder are fairly interpreted.

It is also a matter of dispute whether homosexuality as a practice (or "orientation") is compatible with Falun Gong.

Teachings that are seen as homophobic by critics

Though not central to the beliefs, homosexuality is regarded as not meeting the standard of being human [1]. Li states: "A lot of people have done many bad deeds. Things such as organized crime, homosexuality, and promiscuous sex, etc., none are the standards of being human."

Considered to be an act that brings bad karma upon oneself, Li states in Volume II of Zhuan Falun that "The disgusting homosexuality reflects the dirty mental abnormality that has lost ability to reason at this time."

Also taught is the idea that if it were not for Li’s “upright Fa to keep human beings in check” homosexuals could expect to receive a particularly harsh punishment from the Gods. [2]In Switzerland, Li stated that by renouncing their sexual behavior homosexuals could experience a different outcome. Responding to a question asking why homosexuals are bad people, Li said: "Let me tell you, if I weren’t teaching this Fa today, gods’ first target of annihilation would be homosexuals. It’s not me who would destroy them, but gods.” As an example, Li talked about a similar phenomenon that happened in ancient Greek culture. According to Li, that culture no longer exists “because they had degenerated to that extent, so were destroyed.” [3]

Li further elaborated, "When gods created man they prescribed standards for human behavior and living. When human beings overstep those boundaries, they are no longer called human beings, though they still assume the outer appearance of a human. So gods can’t tolerate their existence and will destroy them." [4]

Continuing his answer, Li explained that events such as “wars, epidemics and natural and man-made disasters” happen in order to remove karma. There are degrees of karma accumulation, however. Li explains that while some sinners “can have their karma eliminated trough the death of their flesh body and suffering” and then go to reincarnate, some people have accumulated too much karma for them to reincarnate again. Instead, “the fundamental elements of their existence will be implicated and destroyed.’ Li is clear that homosexuals definitely fit into this category and although he may have other categories of sinners in mind, he does not give other examples in his answer. He goes on to describe the special kind of destruction homosexuals and possibly others with ”too much” karma will experience:

That kind of destruction, however, isn’t just about disappearing after they’re annihilated. That person is annihilated layer after layer at a rate that seems pretty rapid to us, but in fact it’s extremely slow in that time field. Over and over again, one is annihilated in an extremely painful way. It’s terribly frightening. [5]

In Frankfurt (1998) Li stated that homosexuals could still practice cultivation, provided they give up their bad behavior: "You are wantonly indulging your thoughts. Your thoughts, like the ones I just mentioned, are not actually you. The mentality that makes you homosexual was driven by postnatally-formed bad things. But you yourself were numbed by them and went along with them and wallowed in the mud. You need to find yourself again and stop doing those filthy things. Gods view them as filthy."

Li lists "homosexuality, licentious desires" as one category in his poem The World’s Ten Evils (a direct translation from Chinese):

Humans without kind thoughts / Human against human as enemy.

Destroying traditions / Culture turning decadent.

Homosexuality, licentious desires / Dark heart, turning demonic.

Gambling popular, drugs popular / Following whims and desires.

Lifting restrictions, promiscuity / Leading to evil and wickedness.

Sinister gangs. treacherous factions, / Politicians and bandits, all one family.

Acting on one’s own decisions, deranging the masses / Against heaven, betraying Dao.

Blindly believing in science / Mutant mankind.

Publicizing and revering violence / Fond of audaciousness, competing at ruthlessness.

Religions turned evil / Money seekers, politicians

July 7, 1998 [6]

Homosexuality in the context of Li's teachings on karma

As in many traditional practices, lust is thought of as something that hinders a person's progress in cultivation. Pointing to this fact, practitioners say Falun Gong practice itself is not homophobic because when Teacher Li speaks, he speaks to practitioners and not to non-practitioners and non-practitioners can do whatever they want and nobody can say whether it is right or wrong.

Difference between Falun Gong and Qi Gong

In Falun Gong, a practitioner is able to accumulate De (德, dé, virtue) through his or her own cultivation efforts, but needs the direct intervention of the master in order to evolve the De into cultivation energy. In Zhuan Falun, Li states: “Cultivation practice depends upon an individual himself while the transformation of Gong is up to the master. The master gives you the Gong that develops your Gong, which will be at work. It can transform the substance of De outside of your body into Gong.” [7]

Li as a savior or supernatural entity

At the beginning, Li introduced himself to the public as a Qigong master. Interviewed by Time magazine in May 1999, Li Hongzhi was asked to name his teachers. In response Li stated, "I do not wish to have their names known. I had masters in two schools." [8]

While Li himself has never claimed to be God, he has spoken of himself as the exclusive savior of mankind in this “Dharma ending period.”[9]

"Age of the Law’s End" doesn’t only refer to Buddhism—a lot of dimensions from a very high level on down have gone bad. And "Law’s End" doesn’t just have to do with the end of Law in Buddhism—it’s about how the world goes when it doesn’t have the restraint of the Law in people’s hearts to sustain morality.

In Zhuan Falun [10] he states “If I cannot save you, nobody else can do it.” If a Falun Gong practitioner were only to do the exercises, but fail to follow the requirements of the Fa, that person would not be considered a Dafa disciple. Falun Gong practitioners are promised the possibility of becoming "Gods" as long as they safeguard and uphold the Dafa. In 2003, Li Hongzhi said: [11]

"I have truly borne for you the sins you committed over hundreds and thousands of years. And it doesn't stop at just that. Because of this, I will also save you and turn you into Gods. I have spared no effort for you in this process. Along with this, since you'll become Gods at levels that high, I have to give you the honors of Gods at levels that high and all the blessings that you need to have at levels that high."

Included in the idea of Li’s supernatural status is his claim of having numerous Fashen (spiritual Law bodies) which protect his practitioners from harm. These Law bodies “exercise great supernatural power." They surround practitioners at all times and know everything that is on their minds.[12] Li Hongzhi states in the Zhuan Falun  : “If you can really cultivate in the right way, nobody dares to touch you rashly. What’s more, you are under the protection of my Law bodies, so you will never be in any danger.” [13]

While protecting practitioners, the Master’s Law bodies also cure the illnesses for those who practice at the Falun Gong exercise sites. However practitioners are warned that if they fail to follow the requirements of the Fa, bad consequences will result. In Zhuan Falun [14] Li Hongzhi states that if a practitioner does not follow the requirments of the Fa, his "body will be reset to the level of everyday people and the bad things will be returned to you.”

In addition to providing disease-curing benefits, it is believed that cultivation practice will actually prolong one’s life. In Zhuan Falun [15] Li Hongzhi states that when a practitioner continually practices cultivation, his life will be prolonged. However, there is a criterion "that the life prolonged beyond your predestined time to live is completely reserved for your practice. If your mind goes wrong a little bit, your life will be in danger because your lifetime should have long been over", referring to old people whom he claims should have died already, according to his conception of their predestined life span.

Claims about preventing catastrophes and cosmic explosions

In 2002, Li claimed that after spreading Falun Gong for ten years, some of humanity's predestinations had been averted, including a "comet catastrophe" and "the third world war." [16]

In Zhuan Falun, Li explains that catastrophes “which destroy everything in the universe” are recurring events in the history of our universe. He claims he “made a careful investigation once and found out that mankind has been through the state of complete annihilation eighty one times.” [17]

In a speech in Boston in 2002, Li reported that scientists have discovered that the observable universe “is expanding faster and faster, and the speed of the expansion keeps accelerating.” Explaining that “something only expands before it explodes,” Li told his audience that he and the immense force of Fa-rectification have so far been able to avert an explosion:

Although the universe is expanding, I’m doing things at an extremely fast speed, and I can definitely catch up with it. If I don’t catch up with it, I can tell you, the final disintegration would make everything in the surface dimension cease to exist. If I do catch up with, everything is resolved. Not only will I catch up with it, but I will also surpass it, and that's when the Fa rectifies the human world [18]

Fa-rectification: Li’s version of the apocalypse?

Whether Li’s teaching that his Dafa (great law) is judging all sentient beings amounts to an apocalyptic prediction is a matter of some debate. Practitioners strongly reject the apocalyptic label, while commentators generally come to an opposite conclusion. Maria Chang (2004) writes:

Just as human civilizations had been destroyed in the past because of immorality, like the followers of the White Lotus and the Eight Trigrams in Chinese history, Li is convinced that the moral decadence of our times is leading to another apocalypse. His writings and speeches are replete with references to the “Dharma-ending period” of “the apocalypse,” the “Great Havoc,” and the “end times” (mojie)….With the end days approaching, Li has set about disseminating Falun Dafa so as “to provide salvation to mankind….in this final period of the Last Havoc.”

In Li Hongzhi's earlier teachings the focus was on an individual practitioner reaching consummation (enlightenment). But more recently, Li has emphasized the role practitioners must play in saving sentient beings while his Dafa judges all mankind. In “Further Comments on Superstitions,” Li Hongzhi warned about the consequences of wrong thinking during this judgment process:

Mankind! Awaken! The vows of Gods in history are being fulfilled. The Dafa is judging all beings. What path a person takes in life is his own choosing. One thought a person has might determine his future.[19]

Underlying this prediction is the teaching that the entire cosmos is undergoing a process called “Fa-rectification” – a kind of renewal of the cosmos into the most original, purest state of being. "The purpose of my doing this is Fa-rectification. All of the cosmos’ beings have strayed from the Fa, so they have to be rectified with Fa", stated Li in Switzerland (1998). This process is said to affect all sentient beings (as well as matter) in the universe: they are being repositioned according to their moral goodness or xinxing. Those who have taken the side of the Chinese Communist Party in persecuting the Buddha Law are said to perish by the natural force of this process "when the Fa rectifies the human world", meaning, when this process breaks through from the microcosm, while all others will be provided benevolent resolutions.

In 2001 [20] Li Hongzhi made clear that this Fa-rectification would target people based on their moral qualities:

Moreover, when an Enlightened Being descends to the world, it is usually at a time when people’s morals are declining day by day, when people’s sins and karma are enormous, or when people’s morality is degenerate. Once the saved ones have attained the Fa and left, the dregs of humanity and the degenerate world that are left behind will be weeded out.

There is controversy over what Li means by the "dregs of humanity and the degenerate world". But it is clear that Li demands that his followers work to save ordinary people as a condition for their own salvation at this time:

If you only care about your own salvation, will that do? How could that be called being a “Dafa disciple”? What is a “Fa-Rectification Period Dafa disciple”? Have you validated the Fa?....Why are Dafa disciples clarifying the truth and saving beings? Because that is Dafa disciples’s duty. That is the kind of being that I, Li Hongzhi, want, and a Dafa disciple is that kind of cultivator.” [21]

In Li’s earlier teachings, it was clear that the “dregs of humanity and the degenerate world” who would be eliminated by a cataclysmic event included homosexuals and others who “have done many bad things.” [22] In other lectures, Li seems to suggest that the “dregs of humanity and the degenerate world” can still be saved, as long as they do not interfere with the Fa-rectification process:

In the Fa-rectification, Master is actually saving all beings, not just the good ones; evil ones are of course included as well. I have often said that during the Fa-rectification I don't hold the past faults of any sentient being against him, and that I look only at a sentient being's attitude toward Dafa during the Fa-rectification. In other words, no matter which beings they are or how huge the mistakes and sins they committed in history, as long as they do not play a negative role with regard to the Fa-rectification, I can give them benevolent solutions and eliminate their sins and karma.

In 2003, Li spoke about the SARS epidemic as “the first round of cleansing,” and predicted that his Fa-rectification would eventually “target the whole world”:

You must have seen the epidemic that’s come along in China now, right? Hasn’t a huge epidemic arrived? To put it in human terms, it’s Heaven punishing people. What it’s targeting, we Dafa disciples know full well: it’s targeting those who don’t deserve to be saved, who are impossible to save while Dafa disciples clarify the truth, and who aren’t useful to the evil rotten spirits. This is the first round of cleansing. Heaven is punishing the evil, yet China is still lying to cover up the number of deaths, and I’ll tell you, it’s huge, and it hasn’t peaked yet. People find it scary, but in fact, the truly horrible thing hasn’t begun yet. This isn’t the real, big cleansing when the Fa starts to rectify the human world. It’ll be even more horrifying when that big cleansing arrives, and it’ll target the entire world. When the vicious people go crazy they don’t fear anything, but, when the calamity really descends on them they’ll be stunned. Wait and see, this is going to be an eventful year. A lot is going to happen. [23]

Allegations of elitism and intolerance in Falun Gong ethics

Falun Gong lays emphasis on its interpretation of good moral nature. Practitioners are required to emphasize virtue (de), be a good person in all environments, and always think of others before doing things.

Critics of the Falun Gong have pointed out that aspects of Li’s system of morality can be considered elitist and intolerant. In discussing principles of moral conduct, Li often criticizes the state of modern society’s supposed moral degeneration. In Zhuan Falun Li states that the sole criterion that distinguishes good from bad is said to be the unchanging characteristic of the universe: Zhen-Shan-Ren (Truthfulness, Benevolence and Forbearance). In Zhuan Falun, Li states:

“As a practitioner, one must then conduct oneself by following this characteristic of the universe rather than the standards of everyday people. …. As a human being, you are a good person only if you can follow this universe’s characteristic of Zhen-Shan-Ren. A person who deviates from this characteristic is truly a bad person [24].

Li further states that ordinary people (non-practitioners) “cannot detect the existence of the characteristic of Zhen-Shan-Ren in the universe because all ordinary people are at the same level. When you reach beyond the level of ordinary people, you will be able to detect its existence.”

Critics who see the Falun Gong as elitist point to what they see as a strong “us-versus- them” ethos in Falun Gong teachings. According to Rahn (2000), one of the potential effects of this ethos “is the possibility of isolating practitioners from family and friends as well as non-practitioners in general. It can also help create a feedback loop system where practitioners only relate to other practitioners, thereby mutually reinforcing belief in the teachings, identification with the group, and eradication of any conflicting or alternative views.” [25]

In a speech in Los Angeles (2006), Li Hongzhi spoke for the first time about what he sees as a big problem—cultivators not accepting criticism well. He also suggested that practitioners may be too focused on making judgments about others:

"If you always reject reproaches and criticism, always point your fingers at others, and always refute others' disapproval and criticism, is that cultivating? How is that cultivating? You have grown used to focusing on other people's shortcomings, and never take examining your own self seriously." [26]

Li’s teachings on the importance of racial purity have provoked considerable controversy. Critics opine that Li is intolerant of racial differences, while supporters argue that he does not hold mixed-race parents or their children to blame. In one of his lectures, Li states that the mixing of races is a chaotic phenomenon that has manifest only in the“Dharma Ending Period" and that different races bear the image of the gods that created them; that each race of people on earth have their own cosmic paradises but people of mixed race lose this connection. In 1996, he said that “Mixed races have lost their roots, as if nobody in the paradise will take care of them. They belong to nowhere, and no places would accept them.” [27] In 1997 Li Hongzhi further explained, "People of the yellow race have people of the yellow race up there, and people of the white race have people of the white race up there. He’s lost this thread.” [28]

Speaking in Sydney in 1996, Li Hongzhi said:

"If you are an interracial child, it is, of course, neither your fault nor your parents' fault. Anyway, it is just such a chaotic situation brought about by mankind, in which such a phenomenon has appeared. The yellow people, the white people, and the black people have the corresponding races in heaven. Then, if one is not from his race or does not belong to his people, he will not take care of him….. All interracial children were born in the Dharma-ending period. People are not to be blamed for it, because everyone is drifting in the tide, and nobody knows the truth. This is the way they have come through. If you want to practice cultivation, I can help. As for which paradise you will go to, we will need to look at your situation. I will assimilate more of whichever portion that is better preserved. Anyway, you should concentrate on your cultivation and should not concern yourself with these things."

Critics have also questioned whether Li Hongzhi himself lives up to the principles of benevolence and forbearance when it comes to dealing with his critics. Maria Chang (2004) comments: “Despite its professed commitment to tolerance and forbearance, Falun Gong has displayed a disturbing penchant for bullying its critics and for vindictiveness.” Using the example of Chinese journalist and cult-critic Sima Nan, Chang reports that for his efforts to expose religious frauds Sima was viciously denounced by the Falun Gong and cursed by its founder. As reported by Christopher Hitchens in The Nation, Sima claims that Li predicted that he would be “punished by lameness and blindness” and have a law wheel secretly inserted in his abdomen “that revolves in the wrong direction.” [29] However, Falun Gong practitoners argue that the origin of such statements are dubious: they aren't found from any of Li's lectures or interviews. In addition, Li teaches that the law wheel revolves in both directions, meaning that there is no "wrong direction".

Debatable significance of Falun Gong awards and recognitions

There is some controversy about how meaningful Falun Gong’s many municipal awards and recognitions are and how they are used to promote the Falun Gong. Patsy Rahn (2000) states they “are documents routinely obtained by groups from public officials in the US for public relations purposes” and may be used to mislead people in China into believing “that the American government supports Master Li and his Falun Gong practitioners.” [30] Citing one example from Tampa, Florida, Noah Porter (2003) argues that these awards are not always easy to get and can require an involved process of dialogue between practitioners and officials. [31]

In 2006, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was asked to pass a resolution condemning "persecution" of Falun Gong practitioners. Given San Francisco’s long tradition of tolerance and the Falun Gong’s teachings on homosexuality, there was controversy about the exact wording of the resolution. As reported in the Sing Tao Daily (2/1/2006), four of the supervisors, when asked about the resolution, stated “that they either don’t understand the Falun Gong belief system or do not support it; in addition, they feel uncomfortable about the Falun Gong’s homophobic positions.” The Chinese supervisor who had co-sponsored the resolution, and worked to amend it in committee, was quoted in the Bay Area Reporter [32] :

"I am concerned about these homophobic teachings. It is a good thing these were called out. I don't think people understand the Falun Gong. So to the extent it is educating the community, it is a good thing."

Aware of these teachings, the sponsors of the resolution amended the original draft language to include a disclaimer. As a result, the Board passed Resolution 66-06 [33], condemning the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, while also stating that “the views expressed by Falun Gong practitioners are not officially sanctioned by the City and County of San Francisco” and that the resolution “in no way encourages the practice of any particular faith, philosophy, religion or belief system, including but not limited to Falun Gong.”

There are also reports of politicians being persuaded to support awards or recognitions for Li Hongzhi without knowing all the facts about his teachings. According to a San Jose Mercury News article, American politicians have been caught in the middle in the battle between the Chinese government and the Falun Gong. In January, 2001 four US representatives from northern California—Representatives Tom Lantos, Anna Eshoo, Zoe Lofgren and Pete Start—signed a letter to the Nobel Peace Prize praising Li Hongzhi for promoting the “highest humanitarian values.” When asked whether they knew about Li’s teachings on homosexuals and race before they signed that letter, three of the representatives said no. Representative Anna Eshoo, who subsequently rescinded her nomination, stated: "Obviously I wouldn’t recommend to the Nobel Institute someone who’s anti-gay, because that’s a human right. ... Mr. Li has made statements that are offensive to me and are counter to many of my core beliefs." [34]

Allegations of Making money from Falun Gong

According to the Falun Gong, Li Hongzhi has not financially benefited from his teachings. “He is not accorded special treatment, nor does he accept money or donations from students of Falun Gong.” [35] Li stipulated that promoting the Falun Gong could never be done for fame and money, practitioners must not accept any fee, donation or gift in return of their voluntary promotion of the practice. Addressing his Falun Dafa assistants in 1994, Li made it clear that only his Falun Gong Research Society could get involved in managing the money aspect of Falun Gong and that they would always have to get his approval before making any financial decisions. [36] According to the Falun Gong, Li's insistence that the practice be offered free of charge caused a rift with the China Qigong Research Society, the state administrative body under which Falun Dafa was initially introduced, and Li withdrew from the organization. However, according to the statement issued by China Qigong Research Society on November 6, 1996, the Falun Gong was expelled because its “publications and activities” seriously violated the regulations of the organization.

In an interview in Sydney on May 2, 1999, Li revealed his poor financial status in the following statement: “In mainland China I published so many books, but added together, they haven't exceeded twenty thousand Renminbi (equivalent to US $ 2,469). This is what the publishing company gave me. When publishing books in other countries of the world, you know there is a rule, which pays 5 or 6% royalties to the author, so each time I can only get a little bit, a few hundred, or a few thousand dollars.” [37]

According to a Wall Street Journal report American Dream Finds Chinese Spiritual Leader, published November 1, 1999 [38], "in June 1998 his [Li's] wife bought a residence in a quiet Queens neighborhood for $293,500...Another house (which cost 580.000) was purchased in the name of Mr. Li's wife Li Rui, in May, (1999)." Until Mr. Li left to begin his spiritual teaching in 1992, he and his wife each earned less than $500 a year at a state-owned grain company in northeastern China's Jilin province.

After the WSJ article was pubished a follower of Li, John Sun, published a rebuttal letter on a Falun Gong website asserting that he bought the New Jersey house for Li's family, but that the gift was refused by Li [39][40], which was verified on public computer records updated on Oct. 22, 1999.

According to critics, Li also collected fees for treating patients from 1992 to 1994. A report titled “Exposé of the swindler Li Hongzhi” done by eight of Li’s first students in 1994 states that Li treated patients at home and collected money by using a donation box where patients would put in any where from ten to hundreds of Chinese dollars at a time.

In the third talk of "Zhuan Falun" on "How Falun Dafa Students Should Spread the Practice" [41], Master Li stated that "After a lot of our students go back home, they think this practice is great and they want to share it with their families and friends. That’s fine, you can do that—you can pass it on to anyone. But there’s something I need to make clear. We give you so many things, and you couldn’t put a price on them. Why do we give them to you? For you to cultivate! We can only give you all this when you cultivate. Then what this means is that down the road when you pass on the practice to other people, you can’t use these things to go make a name for yourself or benefit yourself. So you can’t give classes like I do and charge money. We have some costs since we need to print books and materials, and we have to travel a bit to spread the practice. What we charge is the least in the country, but what we give is the most. " There were fee-charged lectures between 1992 to 1994 in China. Each new student was charged forty Chinese yuan (less than $5) and each old student was charged twenty Chinese yuan (less than $2.5) for an about ten-day session. The fee was the lowest among all Qigong lectures in China at that time. All Falun Gong publications are free online and all lectures given since after 1994 have been free of charge.

Is Falun Gong a cult?

Critics of Falun Gong in the West argue that because of the relationship of dependency that Li Hongzhi establishes between himself and his followers, using what they say are a variety of manipulative techniques, the Falun Gong should be thought of as a cult rather than a new religious movement or metaphysical qigong. A number of American cult experts, including Rick Ross, Margaret Singer and Steven Hassan, have claimed that Li Hongzhi meets their definition of a manipulative cult leader. While cult experts have not reached a consensus definition for a cult, they often focus on what is considered the coercive behavior of the group leader as an indicator for the potentially damaging aspects of a particular group. In a New Times article (March 23-29, 2000) cult expert Margaret Singer stated: “Some will say it’s not but Falun Gong looks like a cult to me. My criteria is a self-appointed person with secret knowledge to share, who gets his followers convinced he is the pipeline to the eternal good life. Doesn’t that sound like Master Li?”

Different theories of what constitutes thought control have also emerged, but again without consensus. American psychologist and exit counselor Steve Hassan has “grave concerns about the personage of Li Hongzhi, head of the Falun Dafa and his organization.” [42] In his 2002 book Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves, Hassan describes the BITE (Behavior, Information, Thought and Emotion) model, which explains mind control as a combination of control over behavior, information, thought and emotions. Hassan believes that Li Hongzhi “comes very much out of the cult extreme, the authoritarian stereotype” [43]. On his website [44], Hassan states:

As far as the controls exerted by the group on individuals, I am not convinced that this group (Falun Gong) fulfills my BITE model in its entirety. I have not had an opportunity to interview any individuals who have been very involved with this group and decided to leave. I do have a strong impression that Thought control and Phobia indoctrination (emotional control) is very much used. People are made to feel that the only "true" path is by following Li Hongzhi, and that to fail to do so would result in serious physical health problems manifesting.

However, opinions within the scientific community are notably varied. According to Philip Jenkins (2000) (quoted by Porter 2003), along with fringe religious groups almost always came movements to denounce or even eradicate them; the definition of a cult was not created in a vacuum, but rather is "a prefabricated script some centuries in the making, incorporating charges that might originally have been developed long ago against a wide variety of movements". Porter points out that supernormality was already a part of qigong before Falun Gong was introduced, as was moral guidance. Also, "Falun Gong does not force practitioners to sign contracts, threaten physical or economic harm for apostasy, or any other such coercive methods that are often attributed to cults. If someone tried Falun Gong and disliked it for any reason, they would have nothing to fear from practitioners. Also, it is interesting to note that practitioners are cognizant that Falun Gong does not fit neatly into categories like qigong or religion, and some are looking for more accurate ways of describing it to non-practitioners." Porter also opines that it is unfair to make comparisons between Falun Gong and cults such as People's Temple and Branch Davidians; "such statements irresponsibly leave the impression that Falun Gong has similarities to these violent groups, when in fact Falun Gong practitioners have consistently refused to use violence against those who persecute them."

The "thought control" theory greatly divides scholars. The scientific evidence on such phenomena remains inconclusive. For example, in 1984 the American Psychological Association (APA) requested Margaret Singer to set up a working group called Task Force on Deceptive and Indirect Methods of Persuasion and Control (DIMPAC). In 1987, the committee submitted its final report to the Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology of the APA. On 11 May 1987 the Board rejected the report. In the rejection memo is stated: "Finally, after much consideration, BSERP does not believe that we have sufficient information available to guide us in taking a position on this issue." [45]

Sociologist Susan Palmer's field notes and a preliminary research report on Falun Dafa practitioners were released in the Nova Religio journal (nr. 4, 1 October 2000). The article states: "When I first decided to embark on studying Falun Gong, I hoped to crack the surface within a month and expected to find an efficient core group behind the scenes, masterminding the missionary programs. I had researched other new religions whose leaders were in seclusion... But Falun Gong does not behave like other new religions. For one thing, its organization - if one can even call it that - is quite nebulous. There are no church buildings, rented spaces, no priests or administrators. At first I assumed this was defensive, that they had established guerrilla-style cells to fend off an intolerant Communist Party. By now, I'm beginning to think that what you see is exactly what you get - Master Li's letters on the Net on the one hand and a global network of practitioners on the other. Traveling through North America, all I dug up was a handful of volunteer contact persons. The local membership (they vehemently reject that word) is whoever happens to show up at the park on a particular Saturday morning to do qigong."

Chinese authorities and Falun Gong

In 1999, Falun Gong was banned in China. Mass arrests were made, and between 900 and 2,000 deaths reported. Chinese authorities and Falun Gong supporters dispute the cause of the deaths, variously attributed to "suicide" or "torture". There are also disputes arising over whether the ban was justified in China was justified.

Attitude toward traditional medicine

These critics point to what they see as dangerous consequences in practicing Falun Gong, including alleged health risks from abandoning traditional treatment when practitioners are sick