In the last couple of decades, there has been an upsurge in the number of people turning to alternative therapies and different forms of meditation to reduce stress and promote overall well-being. Here is one group of Greek Australians who have taken on an ancient meditation practice that originated from China.
Road to Recovery
After going through months of suffering, one day, Bill decided to contact a friend named Antoni, who was also from Greece and resided in Sydney. Bill then told him about his hardship he was going through. However, little did he know that the conversation would pave the way to something that would end up changing his life.Bill was aware that Antoni practiced Falun Dafa, as he had tried to learn it before.
“I liked the things [Antoni] was doing and the way he was acting,” Bill said. “That got my attention. But due to my poor English, I could hardly understand when reading anything in the English language, or people talking in English, so I had to stop.”
However, this time, Bill decided to give the spiritual practice another try.
Mental Health Benefits
Apart from the improvement in physical health, Bill told Neos Kosmos that the practice helped boost his mental health and also elevate his moral character as he began to constantly strive to follow the teachings of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance in his daily life.“Like the Ancient Greeks said ‘Healthy mind, healthy body.’ I believe the mind does a lot of things, major things,” Bill said. “With truth, compassion, forbearance, exercise, meditation, calming your mind everything is happier.”
To illustrate this further, Bill shared an example of how he used to be a “very, very edgy driver” in the past but it all changed after he took up this spiritual practice.
“A decade ago, I remember, I was driving and very calm,” Bill recalled. “It took me a little bit longer to go from A to B, but it felt like a very short distance. The day after, it clicked, and I realized that when I am calm and cool, even if takes me a long time, I feel like time is passing very quickly.”
Not long after he took up the practice, Bill’s colleagues and family started to notice the changes in him. Now, his entire family practices Falun Dafa, including his wife and two daughters, aged 10 and 13.
“I have two kids, and honestly sometimes it’s scary to watch the news; Falun Dafa is a kind of hope,” he said.
Spreading Hope
In fact, the Thodoris are not the only ones who have credited Falun Dafa for changing them. Sofia, who also originally hailed from Greece and now lives in Australia with her husband, said the practice changed her from being a strong and aggressive person to one with patience. It also helped her to quit her gaming addiction.“I played the games again after I started practicing Falun Dafa, but I found this time my addiction wasn’t that strong, and gradually I lost interest in them,” she said. “If I played again, I would feel a sharp pain in my eyes, and my body felt terrible. I decided to quit playing them altogether.”
Having benefited from the practice, Sofia told her family in Greece about it, including her father, whom she had not talked to for years after their parents got divorced.
“Our relationship has returned to normal,” Sofia said. “I have given up all the painful memories, and no longer hate anyone.”
Just like Sofia, who hoped her family could learn about Falun Dafa, Bill also aspired for his community to know more about the practice that has helped change his life.
“See when you think something is good, it’s selfish just to take and not to give.”