Experience Sharing with Practitioners Recently Released from Forced Labor Camps and Prisons

By a Falun Dafa practitioner from China

(Clearwisdom.net) A few days ago while I was reorganizing some articles regarding the persecution of practitioners, I noticed that there were some practitioners who persisted in practicing Falun Dafa despite having been detained in a forced labor camp for three years. Within four months of being released, I noted that these practitioners were re-arrested and illegally sentenced to forced labor for another two and a half years. After some experience sharing with other practitioners, we realized that there were many similar cases in nearby areas. Thinking back to my mental state after I left the forced labor camp with righteous thoughts last year, I felt that I should write down my experience so that other practitioners may benefit from it and be able to save the sentient beings more effectively in this pressing period of time.

At the end of 2003, I was illegally sentenced to three years in a forced labor camp. However, with righteous thoughts, I was released fifty days later. During my time in the labor camp, I recited the Fa everyday and felt that my righteous thoughts were really strong. After I was released, I began to encounter a lot of interference. Such interference manifested in many forms, such as having distracting thoughts while studying the Fa and sending righteous thoughts, as well as sleepiness, family problems and many other problems. Although I tried my best to study the Fa for about two to three hours everyday, my mind was not focused, so it was the same as not studying the Fa at all. Even when I was sending forth righteous thoughts, because I could not focus during the first five minutes, the effects of sending the righteous thoughts were less than desirable.

I did not realize the seriousness of this interference, nor did I know the root of the problems. I was very worried, because I wanted to save sentient beings and felt that there were so many things that I could do to achieve that, but I also felt helpless because I did not know how to do them. Because I had learned Falun Dafa by myself by reading Zhuan Falun, I did not know many other practitioners. Moreover, I rarely had any opportunities to share my cultivation experiences with the practitioners that I did know at that time. I was in this undesirable state for a month before I was illegally caught again. Nevertheless, I was released again.

This time, some practitioners came to look for me and encouraged me to help out at the Dafa material sites. Half-heartedly, I decided to help out. Due to my strong attachments, I experienced severe interference while working at the material sites, and this made me tired physically and mentally. Seeing me in such a state, a fellow practitioner pointed out that I should stop working and try to study the Fa well. It was only at this moment that I realized the root of my problems.

I stopped working at the Dafa material site temporarily and sincerely settled down to study the Fa. After a period of studying, my righteous thoughts slowly recovered, and I began to work at the material site again. During this time, I constantly studied the Fa and shared my cultivation experiences with other practitioners. I also constantly sent forth righteous thoughts and began to notice that the interference was starting to decrease. Even my work improved and became more organized.

I enlightened to the fact that, while I was in the labor camp, in that "nest of evil," my main consciousness was very strong and clear at every moment. Moreover, I was able to deal with every problem and situation with righteous thoughts.

After I was released from the forced labor camp, I did not have the strong and pure righteous thoughts that I had before. I relaxed mentally. Even now, the leftover evil is still closely watching. As soon as our righteous thoughts are impure, they will take advantage of our omissions and cause interference. Because the interference manifests in many subtle forms, it is difficult for practitioners who have just been released from captivity to notice it. When comparing such interference with the evil of the labor camp, this group of practitioners tends to view these subtle interferences lightly. If practitioners cannot settle down and study the Fa, then they will not be able to handle small problems properly and will think that they are natural. In such a situation, the evil manages to cause interference in studying the Fa, in sending forth righteous thoughts, on how to perceive problems with righteous thoughts, and in many other ways. Due to continuing interference, the loopholes will get larger, and the evil will finally use this as an excuse to persecute the practitioners again.

From studying the cases of practitioners who have been repeatedly persecuted, I noticed that a large number of them focused too much on clarifying the truth while neglecting Fa study or not truly settling down to study the Fa. Moreover, this group of practitioners always perceived themselves as being powerless in this persecution and endured it passively, without negating it. This implies that they did not understand Master's Fa well enough and were lagging behind in the current of Fa rectification. The only way to prevent such things from happening is to constantly study the Fa, study more of Master's lectures and new articles, and share experiences with fellow practitioners. At the same time, they should look inwards and search for their own shortcomings to understand well the requirements of a practitioner in this period of time. Other practitioners should also help to create a suitable environment for Fa study and experience sharing for them, and should not encourage them to do too much Fa rectification work right away.

Master said that the three things that practitioners should do are interrelated, and each complements the others. Even if one of the three things is not done well, practitioners will not be able to reach the standard of the Fa rectification. It is not solely due to clarifying the truth that practitioners will reach the standard. Especially for practitioners who have been just released from prison, forced labor camp or a so-called "brainwashing class," they should spend some time studying the Fa and should emphasize sending forth righteous thoughts. They should not be impatient to clarify the truth, even though that specific area might be shorthanded. We should always remember that it is not ordinary humans who are doing Falun Dafa's work, it is Falun Dafa practitioners. In this way, the results will be pure and more effective.

Validating the Fa does not depend only on the amount of work done for Falun Dafa. Doing every single thing with a pure heart and righteous thoughts while at the same time constantly cultivating and improving is what today's Falun Dafa practitioners should achieve.

Settle down to study the Fa, treat everything with righteous thoughts, and every path we walk will originate from the Fa.

My understanding is limited. I hope that we constantly remind each other of our understandings and shortcomings. If there are any mistakes, please point them out compassionately.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2005/3/15/97390.html

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