(Minghui.org) On May 13, 1992 Mr. Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Dafa, began to teach the practice to the public in China. Over the next 32 years, people in over 100 countries and areas embraced the practice. In May 2024, practitioners from around the world celebrated the day and expressed their gratitude to Master Li.

Several practitioners in Germany and Austria shared their stories in honor of the occasion.

Falun Dafa practitioners in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and other European countries celebrated World Falun Dafa Day on May 11, 2024, in Munich, the capital of the state of Bavaria, and wished Master Li Hongzhi a Happy Birthday.

Falun Dafa Is the Only Way to Return to One’s True Self

Harale said he gained peace by practicing Falun Dafa and thanked Master Li.

Harale, a mechanic in Germany, searched what it meant to be spiritual by reading all kinds of religious books and scriptures. He said that nothing he read ever answered his questions about life until he found Falun Dafa. He met several practitioners on August 8, 2018, in Augsburg in southern Germany, and since then he’s been reading the book Zhuan Falun, Falun Dafa’s main teaching, and doing the exercises. He realized that following the principles of the practice, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, is the only way he could change and return to his true self.

“I thank Master for giving me the opportunity to learn this Great Law and practice with a group of fine practitioners,” he said. “Without Master and Falun Dafa, I’d have no way to have a peaceful mind. I feel so lucky. No words can properly express my gratitude to Master.”

Knowing the Book by Heart

An thanks Master Li for protecting her.

An came from Vietnam. A friend suggested she read Zhuan Falun in 2017. As soon as she heard the title of the book, she felt like she’d always known it. “When I heard the words Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, I cried for no reason. I felt emotional and knew that the practice was what I had been waiting for,” she said.

After she began practicing Falun Dafa, she realized that the practice could help her improve her character and that she could help others by introducing them to Falun Dafa. Her two daughters thought highly of Falun Dafa because they saw the positive changes in her. She was in good health and could finish her work quickly. A few months later, she no longer needed eyeglasses. Her daughters started to practice Falun Dafa because of her. “I want to thank Master for protecting me since the day I started the practice. He gave me a chance to improve and help others. Without his salvation, I couldn’t live the way I do today. My life has changed completely for the better,” she said.

An wanted to say something to the Chinese people who believe the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda that has slandered Falun Dafa for the past 25 years of persecution. She hopes that they can make it a point to learn more about Falun Dafa. If they knew the truth, they would not side with the Party in the persecution of Falun Dafa, and they would have a good future.

Family of Four Immersed in Falun Dafa’s Grace

Veronika (left) and her daughter

Veronika Pasdar and her family live in a small town in Austria. Her entire family practices Falun Dafa. It all started with her husband Reza, who’d tried to find spiritual guidance for years but with no success. He gave up and sold all the books he’d purchased. When he found Zhuan Falun online and read On Dafa, the preface, he understood that it was a teaching with profound meanings, and he began practicing.

Influenced by her husband, Veronika started to read Zhuan Falun. The couple traveled to Zurich many times to learn how to do the exercises from the practitioners there. Soon after they’d learned the exercises, they started a local exercise site in Austria. At that time their children were seven and ten, and they brought their classmates to the site to learn the exercises.

Veronika said that by reading the book repeatedly and doing the exercises, “I felt my health improve and my mind became more and more peaceful.”

As a high school teacher, Veronika deals with 10 to 16-year-olds every day. “It’s tough to teach the children nowadays,” she said, “Many of my coworkers became irritated, and some quit.” The school workload has increased in recent years, and many teachers became exhausted and felt helpless. For Veronika, however, it was a completely different experience: “My patience and persistence kept getting better, and I felt no pressure. No doubt that this was a result of my faith in Falun Dafa’s teachings,” she said.

A few years back, as she was working on a Falun Dafa truth clarification project, she ran into situations that made her angry and she had negative thoughts. She realized that she couldn’t go on with such negative emotions, so she chose to better herself. “I studied the teachings and did the exercises more frequently and examined myself for my shortcomings. I let go of selfishness.” She decided to continue in the project.

“When I was able to let go of my attachments, I could look at things from a different angle. Things may not be what they appear on the surface. This was an important lesson for me. Since then, I know that, if I run into tribulations, the best solution is to do the things Master asked us to and improve myself.”

Her daughter Anahita has been a practitioner since she was seven. “I started to read Zhuan Falun when I was seven—my mother helped me read it because I was so young,” said Anahita. She knows that she’s benefited from practicing: “I was able to handle conflicts with my friends and classmates since I was little. I never felt the urge to yield to peer pressure when I was a teenager.”

She was thankful that she was born into a family of practitioners. “Falun Dafa is the pillar of my family, the greatest thing Master taught us. I clearly feel Master helping me, and I couldn’t be more thankful.”