(Minghui.org) I have watched Shen Yun every year since 2014. Each time, the performances resonate with me—there’s something familiar about traditional Chinese culture that I can relate to and learn from. This feeling grew each time I watched the show.
China’s traditional culture presented in the performances has a universal aspect that appeals to everyone. It’s wisdom is so deep that people from other nations and cultures can benefit and learn from it.
I’m not Chinese, so why do I care about Shen Yun? I’d like to tell you about my experiences and thoughts while I volunteered to help with the show. I live in Poland, and I’ve helped with Shen Yun since 2015. Polish people know the dangers of communism.
Shen Yun’s artists practice Falun Dafa—a spiritual discipline that is based on the tenets of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance, and is persecuted in China by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Some performances show the reality of the persecution in China and thus peacefully appeal for the repressed Falun Dafa practitioners in China.
I believe that thanks to the portrayal of China before communism Shen Yun is appealing for the freedom of all Chinese people—for freedom from communist ideology, which once enslaved Poland, and continues to enslave China. This is a fight for the freedom of the human spirit. There is nothing more important than this. That’s why I feel every human being should care about, and defend Shen Yun.
Shen Yun is the only dance company in the world that revives and showcases the 5,000 years of Chinese civilization. We should therefore care about Shen Yun if we care about universal and timeless values that benefit all humanity. Without such values our life would be devoid of meaning and our souls would suffer.
From my own experience as a volunteer for Shen Yun, I can say that the artists embody these traditional values in their behavior. It’s not only that they portray them during the performances. Throughout the years of my volunteering for Shen Yun I witnessed the artists’ kindness and selfless dedication. Their ability to let go of ego, which is difficult for people living in the spotlight, is inspiring.
This is also why the CCP is so afraid of Shen Yun. It’s because its very existence depends on China’s traditional culture not being revived. It worries me that a company dedicated to presenting the beauty of true Chinese culture, and which is spiritually uplifting and offers mankind hope, is being attacked.
Shen Yun’s mission is beautiful and deep—a mission that I, and countless other volunteers are honored to be part of.
Views expressed in this article represent the author's own opinions or understandings. All content published on this website are copyrighted by Minghui.org. Minghui will produce compilations of its online content regularly and on special occasions.
Category: Cultivation Insights
