Looking at Hunger Strikes from the Perspective of Saving Sentient Beings

By a practitioner from China

(Clearwisdom.net) In recent issues of Clearwisdom Weekly, I have read some well-written articles on the issue of hunger strikes. They pointed out many problems resulting from improper hunger strikes, and are beneficial to fellow practitioners who have the attachment of going on hunger strike. I have the following understanding on this issue.

I enlightened from Teacher's Fa that going on hunger strike is a principle formed during the history of the old cosmos. It is not a principle of Falun Dafa.

In earlier historical periods, society respected and cherished life. Life was treated with the utmost respect. No power or thing was more important than life. In such a moral environment, when someone was wronged, he could express the person's wrongdoing and achieve the effect of awakening his conscience through hunger strike. In an environment of higher morals, one could show someone's wrongdoing simply by saying "I was wronged."

However, nowadays, morality has been undermined-- especially in China, where people's consciences have been destroyed by atheism. People treat life lower than power, money, or lust. They may kill for any of these reasons. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been killing Falun Dafa practitioners under the pretext of defending its power. In China, millions upon millions have been killed for opposing the CCP. The CCP treats life as nothing and kills without restraint. During the so-called "Three-Year Natural Disaster" [China's Great Famine shortly after the CCP's "Great Leap Forward" campaign, 1959-1961] millions of millions of people starved to death. But the CCP has never cared. After each campaign of killing ends, it begins another. How could it be possible for it to care if several people died from a hunger strike? In its official reports, it even includes those who are beaten to death as suicides. Under such circumstances, expressing someone's wrongdoing through hunger strike does not work, nor does saying, "I have been wronged."

Some practitioners have achieved their purpose by going on hunger strike. What they faced, though, were lives that still had a bit of humanity. Falun Dafa practitioners clarified the truth to them through hunger strike and awakened their reverence for life. Although their awakened righteous thoughts are minor, they are enough to break through the control of the evil. After learning the truth, they never persecute practitioners again.

Therefore, hunger strikes confine practitioners' righteous thoughts and power. Likewise, their effect in validating the Fa and saving sentient beings is limited.

The above is my personal understanding. I welcome practitioners to point out any shortcomings.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/9/2/161830.html

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