Hi Kwayde,

Actually it's very rare that Teacher speaks about himself and from what I have seen / understood I can say that he doesn't boast himself at all, while other masters a lot less 'competent' do.

From my experience, I think that every time he talks about himself, it's just because it's useful for our cultivation, or because we ask it. Teacher said a lot of things in his lectures, and I think all those things are for our good.

Many times he strongly discouraged worshipings / adulations at him :)
Well, it's possibile that, when you start, some statements may seem exaggerated to you. That's because Falun Dafa is an high-level cultivation practice..it's not like the common qigong.
To give you an example: have you ever seen / heard of a qigong practitioner that reached the level of a famous buddhist monk / christian saint? Most qigong practice just give you some benefits to health, maybe you will learn some qi skills and nothing more than that :)

The best way to start Falun Dafa is to read "Falun Gong" (or "Zhuan Falun"). Other books are not ideal to start with.

Hope I helped you in some way :)

Be well, friend.