Falun Gong was publicly founded in the Spring of 1992, toward the end of China's "qigong boom," a period which saw the proliferation of thousands of disciplines. Li Hongzhi and his Falun Gong became an "instant star" of the qigong movement, and were welcomed into the government-administered China Qigong Scientific Research Society (CQRS).David Ownby, "The Falun Gong in the New World," European Journal of East Asian Studies, Sep 2003, Vol. 2 Issue 2, p. 306 From 1992 to 1994, Li traveled throughout China giving 54 lectures seminars on the practice and beliefs of Falun Gong. Seminars typically lasted 8–10 days, and attracted as many as 6,000 participants per class.Danny Schechter, Falun Gong's Challenge to China: Spiritual Practice of "Evil Cult"? (New York: Akashic Books, 2000), pp. 42. The practice grew rapidly based on its purported efficacy in improving health and its moral and philosophical elements, which were more developed than those of other qigong schools.Scott Lowe, Chinese and InternationalContexts for the Rise of Falun Gong. Nova Religio 6 (2 April 2003)
