By a Falun Dafa practitioner in Hebei Province, China

(Clearwisdom.net) I continuously corrected my thoughts with the teachings and principles of Falun Dafa. Finally one thought emerged with great strength: I must negate all the arrangements made by the evil old forces and completely eliminate the dark minions and rotten ghosts at the low levels. A Falun Dafa practitioner's path cannot include acceptance of being sent to a forced labor camp, leaving home to avoid persecution, or even awaiting trial while on bail. I must go home openly and in dignity. I must walk the most righteous path. I asked Teacher to help me and strengthen me. Suddenly, I felt strong energy surging inside of my body.

Around 9 o'clock in the morning of October 15, 2004, over twenty police officers from the city police department, district police bureau, and local police station broke into my home and searched the place. At first, I was alarmed by the sudden event, but my mind was clear. I decided not to cooperate with them. So I calmed down and sent forth righteous thoughts continuously. I refused to sign any papers, and denied all their demands.

I looked into their eyes without any fear. They found an article I had written, in which I recounted my experiences of being persecuted since July 20, 1999. The police also confiscated Teacher's photo, new articles, and some Falun Gong truth-clarification CDs. They ordered me to go to the police station with them, but I resolutely refused. I continued to send forth righteous thoughts in close proximity and asked Teacher to strengthen me. After almost three hours, I still resisted with righteous thoughts, and refused to go with them. At noon, when all the Falun Dafa practitioners around the world started to send forth righteous thoughts, the police no longer acted as rampant as before. Their attitudes were also more restrained. At 12:15 p.m., however, they abducted me and took me to the local police station.

I continued to clear my thoughts, and sent forth righteous thoughts at the police station. At around 2:00 p.m., about six police officers started interrogating me. I refused to answer any of their questions or sign any papers. I only told them how I have benefited from Falun Dafa and the truth about Falun Dafa. I advised them to believe that doing good would be rewarded and evil will meet with retribution. I was sent to the city's No. 2 Detention Center at around 6 o'clock in the evening.

Looking back at this painful experience, I found my own loopholes, which led to my arrest. On the surface, I was being followed as I delivered Falun Dafa materials to other practitioners, and one practitioner reported me to the police under pressure. This practitioner also provided the police with two testimonies. Thus the police persecuted me using them as excuses. Searching for the deeper reason, I realized a relaxing and slackening of vigilance occurred as Fa-rectification progressed and a more relaxing environment prevailed. The dark minions thus used this to hinder practitioners in several ways. The evil prevented practitioners from doing the three things well by causing practitioners to not have enough time to study the Fa, be drowsy all the time, lack righteous thoughts, or have impure righteous thoughts. The evil took advantage of my slackening in vigilance. That was because I had deeply concealed my selfishness. When the evil was rampant, I paid close attention to sending forth righteous thoughts. In doing so, I secretly wanted to protect myself using Dafa. The change in environment exposed my attachment. I met my tribulation because the evil took advantage of my loophole. Finding my own loopholes made me realize that the dark minions took every chance to interfere with Dafa practitioners. I became more aware of the seriousness of Fa-rectification and cultivation during the Fa-rectification period. Teacher said:

"At this point only about five percent of the original dark minions are left, and very few of the gods who have played a negative role in Fa-rectification still remain. But they are still playing a wicked role within the mechanisms arranged in the past by the old forces. So in validating the Fa, no matter what the situation is, none of you should let down your guard, and when it comes to what a Dafa disciple should do, you should keep giving your best."

("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Washington DC Fa Conference")

Dafa practitioners must do the three things well no matter where they are. Practitioners clarify the truth about Falun Gong wherever they go because everyone they come across is a sentient being waiting to be saved. Two other practitioners were in the same cell as I in the detention center. We exchanged our understandings and formed one body. We used every opportunity to tell the truth about Falun Gong to other detainees. By the time I left, most of the detainees (over 30 people) understood the truth. Some indicated that they would start practicing once they got out. Some already started practicing, and they recited Hong Yin every day.

When I first arrived at the detention center, those two practitioners asked me to teach them the latest articles from Teacher. But I did not memorize them. I did not memorize any new articles from Teacher, so I could not recite to them. I was very ashamed and regretted deeply not using my time well to study and memorize the Fa. I finally understood how practitioners yearned for Teacher's teaching in this evil environment. With their righteous thoughts and actions, the two practitioners in the detention center had already established an environment in which we could study and practice. They taught me to recite articles from Teacher. We had a fixed time to recite Teacher's articles every day, without any interference. I memorized articles "Stop the Evil Acts with Righteous Thoughts" and "Eliminate the Dark Minions With Righteous Thoughts." I recited them over and over, and I enlightened to how to behave in a prison. Other than reciting the Fa and clarifying the truth everyday, I made an effort to finish all five sets of exercises, and used the rest of my time to send forth righteous thoughts. I increased the frequency of sending forth righteous thoughts, while ensuring the quality when I did it.

"... as long as that wicked person keeps being violent, keep sending righteous thoughts." (from "Stop the Evil Acts with Righteous Thoughts")

While in the detention center, I was interrogated by officials from the city police department and the district police bureau several times. I never answered their questions directly, as they wanted me to tell them the sources of my Falun Dafa materials. I talked with them calmly with gentle expression on my face, but I did not give in a bit. I talked about lessons learned from all the previous political campaigns in China. I talked about the causal relations of doing good versus evil, and I encouraged them to take responsibility for their own futures. One time, some officials from the district police bureau interrogated me. Under a stack of so-called evidence, I saw a document stating that I was to be sent to a forced labor camp. I immediately pointed out to them, "If you are here to interrogate me and want me to provide so-called evidence so that you can send me to a forced labor camp, you won't get a word out of me." Since their plot was exposed, they said I could easily be sentenced to several years in prison, not to mention forced labor camp. I said in my heart, "Whatever you say does not count, only my Teacher's words count." I looked them in the eyes and sent forth righteous thoughts. My thoughts at the time was that I had caused a big loss in Dafa due to my loopholes, and no matter how big the tribulation was, I must maintain righteous thoughts and actions to the end, and I must walk out of the evil den.

I refused to accept any of the arrangements from the evil, no matter if it was being sent to a forced labor camp or being released on bail to await trial. For practitioners during the Fa-rectification period, "waiting for trial" is an insult to Dafa, and "being released on bail" not only means financial losses but also means family members are used as hostages. This is not the path Teacher has arranged for us. Teacher has explained negating the old forces' arrangements on many occasions. In "Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference," Teacher said,

"When you encounter ordeals during your cultivation, you have got to cultivate yourself and look at yourself--that doesn't mean acknowledging the ordeals arranged by the old forces and trying to do well amidst the ordeals they've arranged, that's not the case. We negate even the very emergence of the old forces and everything that they've arranged; we don't even acknowledge their existence. We're fundamentally negating all of their things, and all of, and only, the things you do while negating and getting rid of them is mighty-virtue. It's not that you're cultivating amidst the ordeals they created. Rather, you are to walk your own path well while not acknowledging them, not even acknowledging the elimination of their ordeals' manifestations. (Applause) So looking at it from this angle, what we need to do is completely negate the old forces. Dafa disciples and I don't even acknowledge the manifestations of their last-ditch efforts." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference")

I corrected my thoughts with the teachings and principles of Falun Dafa continuously. Finally one thought emerged with great strength: I must negate all the arrangements made by the evil old forces and completely eliminate the dark minions and rotten ghosts at the low levels. A Falun Dafa practitioner's path cannot include acceptance of being sent to a forced labor camp, leaving home to avoid persecution, or even awaiting trial while on bail. I must go home openly and with dignity. I asked Teacher to help me and strengthen me. Suddenly, I felt strong energy surging inside of my body.

By the time I had this thought, I had been detained for over three weeks at the detention center. Once I had a clear goal, I was more focused, calm, and steadfast when studying the Fa and sending forth righteous thoughts. One day, someone asked me, "Few practitioners who were detained here were able get out. Other than being 'transformed,' most of them were sent to either forced labor camps or brainwashing centers. Do you think you can get out?" I said I could and I was sure. In addition, I enlightened that I would be released before a month was up. On day 30, I started to prepare my belongings and get ready to go home, but I was not released. On the next day, nothing happened. I became a little troubled, but I immediately clamed down and told myself that I could not give up because the evil was eyeing me covetously and a single thought that was not aligned with the Fa could be taken advantage of. Thus I looked within myself for loopholes. As it turned out, I had a strong attachment of pursuing getting out while sending forth righteous thoughts. My thoughts were not pure enough. I asked myself, "Would you send forth righteous thoughts for so long and so frequently if it was not because you wanted to get out?" Teacher said,

"...the person got out of there to expose the evil because she could no longer endure it, and her pursuit of getting out was really an attachment that she wasn't able to let go." ("Master's Fa Taught in the International Teleconference")

Although I did not yield to the evil, I had a strong attachment to getting out and going home. I was using Dafa as protection. Therefore, I let go of my attachment and did well in whatever I needed to do. One day I was not released was just another day I would eliminate evil and validate the Fa here.

"A Great Enlightened Being does not fear hardship
Having forged an adamantine will
And with no attachment to living or dying
He walks his path of Fa-rectification openly and nobly"

("Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions")

When I sent forth righteous thoughts again, my heart became more pure and more steadfast, and my mind was clearer. Not only did I have the thought of eliminating the dark minions and rotten ghosts that were persecuting me, I thought more of completely eliminating all the evil factors that persecute Dafa and Dafa practitioners. Later, with a suggestion from fellow practitioners, I wrote, "Falun Dafa is Good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance is Good" on the walls.

After one month and three days, I was released unconditionally. The agency that handled my case took me home using a police vehicle from the provincial police bureau. I came home in an open and dignified manner. Once again, I experienced the solemnity and magnificence of Dafa, the merciful benevolence of Teacher, and the vastness of the Buddha's grace. I had the personal understanding of what Teacher said.

"Master and Disciple do not speak of sentiment
The grace of Buddha manifests as heaven and earth
With sufficient righteous thoughts from Disciple
Master has great powers to move heavens"

(draft translation of "Grace of Master to Disciples" from Hong Yin II)

After I came home, I learned that many practitioners who knew of my arrest had been sending forth righteous thoughts for me. Especially after the Minghui.org website (the Chinese version of Clearwisdom.net website) reported my situation, there were many practitioners helping and supporting me in silence. I was moved to tears. I felt the power of the whole body of Dafa disciples.

The reason I wrote about this tribulation of mine is to warn my fellow practitioners who have the same problem I had. At this final stage of Fa-rectification, we cannot slacken in our vigilance and allow the evil to take advantage of our weak spots caused by our lack of control. Let us concentrate our energy in better helping Teacher to rectify the Fa and save sentient beings. We should fulfill the vows we made long ago and complete our sacred mission as Dafa disciples.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/12/27/92285.html