(Minghui.org) Practitioners held activities in the center of Brussels on May 9, 2026, to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day (May13) and send birthday greetings to the founder of the practice Master Li Hongzhi. They also shared the benefits of practicing Falun Dafa and the universal values Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance with passersby who stopped to watch.

It was a sunny day, and there was a constant flow of people passing through the busy commercial district. In stark contrast to the hustle and bustle around them, practitioners in yellow “Falun Dafa Is Good” T-shirts did the slow, fluid exercises to the soothing music, while huge “Falun Dafa Is Good” banners created a backdrop for the event.

Practitioners in Belgium celebrated World Falun Dafa Day on May 9.

Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance Bring Hope and Kindness to People

Chérine Layachi (first on left) was interested in learning about Falun Dafa.

Chérine Layachi, whose job is related to international partnerships, stopped to watch practitioners demonstrate the exercises. She said it was the first time she’d come into contact with Falun Dafa and learned that Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance were the principles of the practice.

She did not realize so many people in Belgium practiced Falun Dafa and said, “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are universal values. Especially in such a multicultural city like Brussels, they are particularly important.” She gained a deeper understanding of Falun Dafa and said, “Thank you for making me realize these things.”

Boog, who works in a European Union organization, said she was drawn to the peaceful atmosphere. She said what impressed her the most was how the practitioners remained focused and calm despite the noise around them.

She said, “I sometimes feel under a lot of pressure in crowds but they [practitioners] look so peaceful.” She thought Falun Dafa’s principles were applicable to everyone: “These are common values of the whole human race. I try to be tolerant in my daily life, too. If more people followed these principles, society would become better for sure.”

Eleftheria Pfilippou said she sensed pure, calm energy around the practitioners.

Eleftheria Pfilippou, a teacher of classical literature from Greece, stood quietly, observing practitioners do the exercises. She said she felt a strong yet peaceful energy flowing from the scene and saw practitioners emit pure, white energy.

She gave the practitioners a hug and told them her name means “freedom” in Greek. She taught classical Greek literature for years and was interested in Chinese culture. When practitioners mentioned Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, she said, “These are universal values.”

Sibylle Honore said if Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance became widespread, the world would be a better place.

Sibylle Honore approached practitioners after reading the information. She said the Falun Dafa exercises were peaceful. “I didn’t know China had such a spiritual practice. It looks very beneficial,” she said.

She was surprised to learn that Falun Dafa is now practiced in over 100 countries and regions. “If Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance were accepted by more people, everyone would become kinder and benefit from it. The world would become a better place. The whole world would benefit.”

Nabila Shrif from Tunisia was drawn to the sight of the peaceful exercises and said that watching them made her feel relaxed.

She also mentioned that the practitioners’ yellow T-shirts were striking and that the whole event made her feel “relaxed yet peaceful.”

People Hope the Persecution Ends Soon

Many passersby signed the petition to call for an end to the persecution.

Ms. Veronique Bruneau and her daughter were particularly thrilled to see the activities. She said, “I am glad to meet you. It seems like a coincidence, but I think there are no real coincidences.”

She recalled watching a documentary on ARTE, a German-French public TV station, three years ago about how the CCP persecutes religious groups. The documentary mentioned detention and live organ harvesting. “I was so shocked,” she said. She began to search online for more information after watching the documentary, and she bought Falun Dafa books. She taught herself the exercises by watching online videos.

“I learned the exercises by myself at home. It was a great help to me during the lowest point in my life.” She said reading the teachings helped her regain inner peace: “Those books gave me a lot of strength.”

She also said she initially planned to join a group exercise site in Brussels, but she ran into practitioners that day. It made her even more sure “everything happens for a reason.”

Sofia, a biology scholar, stood in front of a display board for a long time. She said she was shocked by the information on how brutally the CCP persecutes Falun Dafa practitioners, so she signed the petition to call for an end to the atrocities and to express her concern and support.

She said, “As someone with religious faith, I believe the Creator would like people to have these qualities [of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance].” she said.

She said it was unacceptable that such a group of people would be persecuted, “Live organ harvesting is absolutely not acceptable.” She emphasized that, regardless of the country “a government persecuting its people” cannot be tolerated.

When she learned that Falun Dafa has been taught publicly for 34 years, she said, “I wish you health, and I hope you persist and that this persecution ends soon.”