Same Situation with Different Results--What We Can Learn from It

By practitioner Jingsi from Liaoning Province

(Clearwisdom.net) For the past few days I kept thinking about something that happened two years ago, where two fellow practitioners encountered the same situation but came up with different results. Two practitioners went to a rural area to clarify the truth together, and both were arrested. However, one of them was released and went back home, but the other was sent to a forced labor camp to be persecuted. Why? Back then, as their fellow practitioner, I did not carefully think through it based on the Fa. I just knew basically what had happened. It turned out that one practitioner entrusted ordinary people and spent money to be released, but it did not have any effect, and he was sent to a forced labor camp. The other practitioner would not cooperate, did not pay any money, and demanded to go home; he was released and indeed went back home. The practitioner who was sent to the forced labor camp was also pretty righteous before he was sent there and even went on a hunger strike to protest his arrest.

I tried not to think about this incident, which was quite sad, but it has given us important lessons. I tried to eliminate it from my mind but could not. Then I thought, "Maybe it's because Master wants me to enlighten to something from this incident so that my xinxing can improve, and maybe it could also help our local practitioners to improve together as a group." So I decided to write this article. Of course I'm definitely not denouncing anyone here. All I want to do is to learn some lessons from this painful experience, improve based on Fa principles, and enlighten to something.

The beginning of August 2006, two fellow practitioners went to a rural area to distribute truth-clarification materials. As I have mentioned, they were arrested and sent to the county detention center. Once we heard this news, our local coordinator immediately organized everyone to send forth righteous thoughts together to disintegrate the evil factors in other dimensions that were persecuting the practitioners. At the same time, we advised the families of the two practitioners to go to the detention center and demand their release. One family cooperated with us very well and immediately went to the detention center to ask for the release of the practitioner, but the other family entrusted this mission to other people and would not go. The coordinator told them that there was not much use putting their hope in those other people, but the family replied that the people they entrusted usually took care of things well, so the coordinator did not insist that the family go personally. As our local practitioners were sending righteous thoughts, the two practitioners inside the detention center were also helping by clarifying the truth there. After several days, the family that went to the county detention center to demand the practitioner's release told us that the detention center was about to send him to a forced labor camp. The situation became very urgent. At this crucial stage, the coordinator adjusted the strength of sending forth righteous thoughts for the two practitioners and focus was put on sending forth righteous thoughts for this one practitioner only. We kept the thought that we absolutely would not allow the evil to succeed. We strengthened this fellow practitioner's righteous field so that he could come back home immediately; we also asked for help from Master. At the same time, we stopped sending forth righteous thoughts for the other practitioner. We thought that, since the family had already entrusted the case to someone else, he wouldn't be sent to forced labor. We relaxed our focus on disintegrating the evil factors that were persecuting that fellow practitioner.

As the evil was gradually being eliminated, the evil factors were still desperately trying to control the police. The practitioner whose family had gone to seek his release was put into the police car, about to be sent to forced labor. The coordinator and local practitioners were not deluded by this. They solidified the thought that they would not stop sending forth righteous thoughts until that practitioner was released. With strength from fellow practitioners, that practitioner clarified truth to the officers in the police car and told them the principles of good deeds being rewarded and bad deeds receiving retribution. One officer said, "You said there are retributions, but I've been in charge of Falun Gong for several years, how come I haven't received any? I must take you today." The practitioner replied, "Your decision does not count; my Master makes the decisions. I will go home. However, because you are the one driving me there, you will have to drive me back again." It turned out that the forced labor camp officials said the practitioner did not pass the physical examination and refused to accept him. The police couldn't do anything but send the practitioner back home. When he got home it was already past 9 p.m., and the local practitioners were still sending forth righteous thoughts.

But for the other practitioner, the evil somehow seized an opportunity and secretly sent him to a different forced labor camp. He has been persecuted there until this day. We should compare ourselves with Dafa. When tribulations came, what actions did we take? What was in accordance with the Fa and what was not in accordance with the Fa? I'd like to explain what I became enlightened to on this and shared with fellow practitioners.

First of all, as practitioners in the Fa-rectification period, having firm belief in Master and Dafa is our strongest righteous thought that absolutely cannot be swayed. I will reflect on this point: we heard from the family of the practitioner who was sent to the forced labor camp that they were engaging someone they knew, who normally took care of things well, so we did not insist on his family going to demand his release. At that time, did we suppose that, because his family was not going to demand his release, we could relax on sending forth righteous thoughts? Were our minds then driven by ordinary people due to this relaxation? Regarding the practitioner whose family went to the detention center to secure his release but who found he would still be sent to a forced labor camp, the coordinator's adjustment in sending forth righteous thoughts to only this practitioner's dimensional field and our thoughts of having ample time to assist the other practitioner gave the evil the opportunity to manipulate the situation. It should be said that to rely on worldly people is not in accordance with the Fa, but at that time we did not realize this. Therefore, unknown to us at that time, because we did not firmly believe in Master, the impure and evil substances in our minds seized the opportunity to sneak into our dimensional field and grow in our minds. Now when I think back, this is the main factor that caused that practitioner to walk the path arranged by the old forces.

Second, a coordinator's cultivation state, overall consciousness and great sense of responsibility are crucial to the cooperation and improvement within the group. I'm not criticizing the local coordinator. I'm just generalizing that when a tribulation comes, the effect of a coordinator's state of mind can effect the entire coordination of the group.

Master told us, "... just by having your heart unaffected you will be able to handle all situations." ("Eliminate Your Last Attachment(s)") I understand that "heart unaffected" reflects a practitioner's solid cultivation and is not something just to talk about. Otherwise, one will not be able to "handle all situations." Thinking back, when we heard that the police were going to send a practitioner to forced labor, was the coordinator or I able to have our hearts unaffected like Master told us? Not affected at all? No! They were immediately affected. We adjusted our sending forth righteous thoughts for the practitioner whose family assisted and not for the practitioner whose family was relying on others, because the situation of the practitioner facing a labor camp seemed more urgent. When the other practitioner was secretly sent to a forced labor camp, we didn't even know about it. When we heard about it, it was already too late and the evil had already acted. From this we see that, as a coordinator, one's heart really cannot be affected by people, and being able to have one's heart unaffected, as Master said, is indeed really important. Whether or not one is able to have his heart unaffected is the best test for coordinators and practitioners to examine whether their cultivation state is solid and firm. Not being able to do this can affect the improvement of the group as a whole.

Third, as practitioners, for any issues or tribulations we encounter in cultivation, we must unconditionally search within. We cannot look outward. Only by doing so can we do well on the road of validating Dafa.

When tribulations come, if we look for help from or entrust other people, it is looking outward and has deviated from the Fa. This is arranged by the old forces, and that path is not righteous. What the old forces had arranged was just to destroy practitioners and the sentient beings. To entrust these people meant that practitioners were looking outward and it resulted in the practitioner being sent to a forced labor camp. When we look outward and want something, then the reverse of our expectations will happen, just as Master told us. Money was spent, but the practitioner was still sent to a forced labor camp. Because the evil factors have not yet been completely eliminated within our dimensional field, the evil still controlled the police to persecute us and that practitioner. Also, looking for help from other people is not the right thing for practitioners to do. We have been cultivating with Master for so many years and already have a divine side. How could we ask them for help? We are actually the only hope for the world's people to be saved.

Finally, totally negating the evil factors that persecute practitioners economically is also very important.

Once the persecution started, Jiang's gang immediately began to persecute Falun Gong economically. Practitioners were fired, had their salaries cut, were arrested and charged, etc. Then the evil factors used money to attract practitioners who did not have a solid understanding of the Fa. Whenever practitioners were tricked, they would then be persecuted. A practitioner's divine tools for saving sentient beings are truth-clarification materials. If practitioners' money were all taken by the evil through economic persecution, then how could we successfully reach our goal of saving sentient beings? Thus, negating the old forces' arrangement in this respect is also very important.

These are only my personal understandings. My level is limited, so please kindly point out my shortcomings.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/5/8/154318.html

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