Bill Text: NY J01115 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Commemorating the 20th Annual World Falun Dafa Day celebration, to be observed May 13, 2019

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 37-22)

Status: (Passed) 2019-05-07 - ADOPTED [J01115 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-J01115-Introduced.html

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Senate Resolution No. 1115

BY: Senator METZGER

        COMMEMORATING the 20th Annual World Falun Dafa Day
        celebration, to be observed May 13, 2019

  WHEREAS,  This  Legislative  Body is justly proud to commemorate the
20th Annual World Falun Dafa Day Celebration, to  be  observed  May  13,
2019; and

  WHEREAS, Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, is a self-improvement
practice  rooted  in  ancient Chinese culture based on refining the body
and mind through meditation and four gentle exercises; and

  WHEREAS,  Practitioners  of  Falun  Dafa  strive  to  live  by   the
principles  of  Truthfulness,  Compassion and Tolerance to improve their
moral nature, and in turn, to experience remarkable health benefits; and

  WHEREAS, The practice of Falun  Dafa  goes  beyond  the  pursuit  of
health and fitness to the goal of greater wisdom and enlightenment; and

  WHEREAS,  The  Falun Dafa philosophy espouses the idea that when the
heart is pure, the mind balanced, and the  body  energized,  health  and
happiness  are  a  natural  outcome;  individuals have been empowered to
leave behind addictions and bad  habits;  families,  to  live  in  peace
together;   and   communities,   to   embrace   what   is  virtuous  and
life-affirming; and

  WHEREAS, The effectiveness of Falun Dafa  in  improving  health,  as
well  as  the  principles  upon  which  it is founded, have proven to be
immensely popular throughout the world; and

  WHEREAS, Falun Dafa is a practice which has  brought  better  health
and inner peace to millions around the world; and

  WHEREAS, Today, Falun Dafa is practiced and cherished by millions of
people in more than 70 countries with 41 languages and has received over
3,000 awards; and

  WHEREAS,  May  13th observes the day Falun Dafa was first introduced
to the general public in 1992, in Changchun, China, by Mr.  Li  Hongzhi,
who then traveled around China lecturing to the public; and

  WHEREAS,  The  impact  Mr.  Li's  lectures had on the society was so
profound, that the practice spread very rapidly by word of mouth  alone;
by  1999, it was estimated that 100 million people were practicing Falun
Dafa; and

  WHEREAS, To the people of China, Falun Dafa  provides  a  source  of
strength  in  the face of oppression; although the practice is banned in
the land of its origin, practitioners persevere in the pursuit of  their
spiritual beliefs, risking imprisonment or worse; and

  WHEREAS,  In  1996,  Falun  Dafa was introduced to New York, and has
since grown to include  hundreds  of  practitioners  who  can  be  found
throughout  the  tri-state  area  offering  workshops in senior centers,

corporate offices, health clubs, private residences and police  stations
at no cost to the participants; and

  WHEREAS,  World  Falun  Dafa Day Celebrations of all types have been
held in the State of New York and around the world each  year  to  honor
the  occasion,  to  celebrate the benefits of Falun Dafa in the lives of
practitioners, to introduce Falun Dafa  to  more  people  and  to  raise
awareness  about  persecution  faced  by  practitioners  in  China; now,
therefore, be it

  RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its  deliberations  to
commemorate  the  20th  Annual  World  Falun Dafa Day Celebration, to be
observed May 13, 2019; and be it further

  RESOLVED, That copies of this  Resolution,  suitably  engrossed,  be
transmitted to the Falun Dafa practitioners of New York State.