My Understanding of What It Means to Be Kind As a Falun Dafa Disciple

By a Falun Gong practitioner in China

(Clearwisdom.net) A cultivator and a non-cultivator have fundamentally different understandings on what it means to be kind. Non-cultivators make judgments on whether a person is kind based on selfishness. A non-cultivator perceives you as a kind person if you satisfy his requests or provide him with benefits in your speech or actions. Additionally, he may call you unkind if you disagree with him or fail to satisfy his requests.

Since the persecution began on July 20, 1999, Falun Gong practitioners have gone to Beijing to seek justice for Falun Gong, have tried to reverse the false accusations against Teacher, and have clarified the truth to high-level government officials in Beijing and in their hometowns, townships and to their village leaders who participate in the persecution, as well as police officers and people in forced labor camps, detention centers, forced brainwashing centers and police stations. They all share one thing in common -- accusing Falun Gong practitioners of being "unkind." They have also sarcastically accused Falun Gong practitioners of being selfish and being unthoughtful of others. Even those practitioners who have enlightened along an evil path have said so. Worst of all, the persecutors have used this psychological warfare to upset Falun Gong practitioners and to put them on the defensive. Once practitioners start talking while under duress, they sometimes say things that disrupt their own thoughts and invade their line of psychological defense, which can result in some practitioners denouncing the practice. For the past seven years, the evil's psychological warfare of accusing practitioners of being unkind has caused a number or practitioners to enlighten along an evil path, to turn against Falun Gong, or to give up cultivation practice all together. Each time I see these former fellow cultivators and their behavior after they have enlightened along an evil path, I feel sorry for them and my heart is in agony.

Then, what does it mean to be kind as a Falun Gong disciple?

The following is my personal understanding. We are Falun Dafa (Falun Gong) disciples in the Fa-rectification period. In the human realm, we are assisting Teacher in His Fa-rectification by saving sentient beings. During the journey of saving sentient beings, we cultivate ourselves. As a kind cultivator, we should have a peaceful manner. In addition, we should exhibit an uncompromising, righteous, noble and dignified spirit. With our righteous thoughts and righteous actions, we should inspire those policemen, hired thugs, and deceived people who participate in the persecution to change themselves and head in the right direction.

Shortly after the Chinese Communist Party started persecuting Falun Gong, leaders from my township and village came to my home and asked me to "cooperate" with them by turning over all of my Falun Gong books to them and by denouncing Falun Gong in writing. I declared, "If I cooperate with you, I would be doing a bad thing to you. You might be able to answer to your boss, but you would lose the fundamental principles of being a decent human being. If you act against your conscience, persecute a good person for the sake of petty benefits and work, undermine the great Falun Buddha Fa and fail to tell right from wrong, you shall suffer karmic retribution for everything you are doing to me during the Fa-rectification in the human realm." They were furious and refuted, "Aren't you Falun Gong practitioners cultivating kindness? Aren't you trying to be good people? If you want to be a good person, you must think of our benefit." I told them, "Being a good person does not mean following everything you say or following your wishes. To be a genuinely good person means to be thoughtful for people's futures and to be responsible for them. You are now doing something that violates the principles of the universe, Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance. You are doing a bad deed. If I cooperate with you, wouldn't it be like assisting the evil with its crimes?"

At forced labor camps and forced brainwashing centers, those policemen, deceived people and former practitioners that have enlightened along an evil path will call you a "nice person" or a "kind person" if you cooperate with them and renounce Falun Gong. This is such an absurd point of view and is truly the theory of an evil cult, but it has become the most common tactic to attack and persecute Falun Gong practitioners, as well as to exploit the kindness of practitioners.

A few days ago I was illegally arrested and taken to a brainwashing center. I immediately started a hunger strike and refused both food and water to protest the persecution. Those disciplinary staff members, people from the 610 Office and former practitioners who have enlightened along the evil's path and have renounced Falun Gong, told me that I should be kind because I am a cultivator. They accused me of being unkind and not acting like a cultivator. I told them solemnly, "I was abducted and brought to this place. I have lost my freedom and work. I am now on a hunger strike to protest your violation of my most fundamental and basic right of survival. This is also a great act of righteousness for the purpose of awakening your paralyzed conscience and twisted, degenerated minds. You are committing crimes. I am enduring physical pain to stop you from committing more crimes. It is not that I am unkind. On the contrary, you are twisting what it means to be a genuinely kind Falun Dafa disciple. I am telling you the truth: If you stop participating in the persecution against Falun Gong, you will be saved. Withdraw from the evil Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Abandon the evil and embrace the good. Be responsible for your own futures. This is what it means to be a genuinely kind Falun Dafa disciple."

My speech and actions deeply moved their hearts. They didn't give me a hard time. On the contrary, they allowed me to practice the Falun Gong exercises and send forth righteous thoughts. It is true that some of them did not know the truth about Falun Gong. For some of them, I was the first Falun Gong practitioner that they had ever talked to. It is imperative that we exhibit righteous thoughts and righteous actions at all times, which will determine if people will obtain Teacher's salvation and how they understand and perceive Falun Gong.

Compassion is a display of kindness. Only Dafa practitioners in the Fa-rectification period will be able to understand and manifest different levels of kindness at different levels of cultivation practice. To be kind is not to give in to the evil or to compromise our beliefs. To be kind is not to be a "pushover" that agrees with everyone and to everything. Kindness is a pure and righteous manifestation of a cultivator assimilating to the characteristics of the universe. Kindness is a basic characteristic required of each and every cultivator.

This concludes my personal understanding, which is limited to my present cultivation level. Please kindly correct anything inappropriate.

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