Perhaps the following will help clear up some understandable confusion about what Falun Gong really is. Falun Gong is not a cult.
Cults dominate all aspects of their member's lives, controlling their minds and bodies.
Members surrender all material goods, both to enrich the cult itself and to render the cultists completely dependent. Cults typically live communally, with members being deprived of sleep and food, all the while being brainwashed with the cult's doctrine. All Falun Gong activities are free and entirely voluntary. Practitioners are never asked for money. They live normal lives, with their own families, holding ordinary jobs of all kinds.