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Cultivation Insights while Clarifying the Truth in Hong Kong
By a Falun Gong practitioner in Nantou, Taiwan
(Clearwisdom.net) I am glad to have the opportunity to share my humble
insights about clarifying the truth in Hong Kong. While I am
delighted to share my limited experiences with fellow practitioners, I am aware
that there are many areas in my cultivation that need improvement. 1. Clarifying the Truth to My Family and Friends In order to travel to Hong Kong to clarify the truth about Falun Gong, I
needed to have my family and friends understand and support my efforts. Now they
all understand and accept why I need to go to Hong Kong for 2-4 weeks every once
in a while to clarify the truth about Falun Gong. It has become clear to me that
their attitude has to do with my daily cultivation state, performance at work,
as well as my efforts to clarify the truth to them and sending forth righteous
thoughts. Because I typically stay in Hong Kong for two to four weeks each time, it
becomes all the more important for me to explain the reason for my trips to
them. It can be very difficult for some people to relate to the reason why I
must go all the way to Hong Kong. I explain this to different people with
different approaches. For instance, I explain to my younger relatives and
friends that people from China have no way of learning the facts about Falun
Gong because of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) firewall. To older friends
and relatives, I tell them that I am doing a kind deed to expose the facts about
the persecution of Falun Gong and those fellow practitioners have become younger
and healthier when they clarify the truth about Falun Gong in Hong Kong. This
may be from a heavenly reward for their good deeds. I find that elderly people
tend to relate well to doing good deeds and heavenly rewards from doing good
deeds. For those who find it difficult to accept my efforts or those who I
haven't had enough opportunity to explain the facts to, I tell them that it has
been my lifelong dream to help others. No matter how my relatives and friends respond or comment on my efforts, I
should not allow their words to interfere with what I am doing. Teacher said, "There's talk of how ordinary people have certain opinions on this,
but what about that? Ordinary people have all kinds of opinions. You
are the ones saving them, so you need to be clear on what you are doing
and working toward." ("Fa Teaching at the 2008 New York
Conference") 2. Doing What I Am Supposed to Do Teacher said, "That is why doing the three things well is cultivation, while doing
only one of the three isn't--that's how it is, and you won't be able to
improve that way. So Dafa disciples must do them well." ("Teaching
the Fa in San Francisco, 2005") Since I realized the importance of clarifying the truth, I have been looking
for ways to do better. I have tried clarifying the truth by chatting with people
in China in Internet chat rooms, calling people in China and traveling to Hong
Kong's tourist sites. With Teacher's help, I always meet practitioners to teach
me or help me get started, or opportunities to clarify the truth present
themselves to me. In my many trips to Hong Kong, I have learned the importance of keeping a
pure and clean mind. Every time I ran into obstacles, I would always identify
hidden attachments that were the root cause. In February 2008, my electronic
application for visa was rejected. It woke me up, like a blow to the head. I
realized the root cause was that I had become complacent in my cultivation and
less motivated to clarify the truth. Once I had identified the root cause, I
sent forth righteous thoughts more frequently, negated these wrong notions and
reapplied for the visa. Soon I was granted a visa to go to Hong Kong. Before I had worked for my company for one full year, I took a week off to
clarify the truth to Mainland Chinese tourists at Alishan National Scenic Area
in Taiwan and took another two weeks off to clarify the truth to Chinese
tourists at Hong Kong's tourist spots. My boss granted both requests. Two months
ago I planned to change jobs. I also decided to go to Hong Kong for a few months
before my job search. I was surprised when my boss told one of my colleagues,
"If she needs to go to Hong Kong often, it'd be better for her to keep this
job! After all, it is easy for her to take time off here. She might not be able
to do so at a different company." I smiled when my colleague relayed these
words to me. It was like a hint from Teacher. As long as I am determined to
clarify the truth, Teacher will make necessary arrangements for me. After my
performance review in May 2008, I told my boss I planned to go to Hong Kong for
two to three months. My boss said, "Two to three months is a long time. How
about one month?" I thought that would do, too. I thanked Teacher for the
arrangement. Once I arrived in Hong Kong, I felt one month was too short. I
searched inward and realized it was because I wasn't motivated or determined
enough to save people. In July when I returned to work, I had no idea when I could take time off
again to go to Hong Kong. Although I hoped to make another trip in the near
future, I felt embarrassed to make the request. I thought I'd wait for a while.
Little did I expect that one day when I was chatting about Hong Kong with my
boss and colleagues, my boss suddenly said, "She might fly to Hong Kong
again in about two months." I was shocked to hear these words. I realized
that my present condition allows me to clarify the truth, but it is my human
notion that obstructs me from taking actions. Teacher said, "[...] carrying the Fa in your mind, doing whatever needs to be done,
and doing whatever you wish to do, as long as Dafa needs it. Don't go to
extremes with anything; do things rationally and with a clear head. That
is the mighty virtue of a Dafa disciple." ("Teaching the Fa at the
Fa Conference at the U.S. Capital") 3. Let Go of Baggage and Save Sentient Beings When I clarify the truth or distribute truth-clarification materials in Hong
Kong, I sometimes will run into Chinese people who are hostile to me.
Afterwards, fear would arise when I distribute the materials to stores and
businesses on the streets. I feared rejection, but I felt I had to persevere and
overcome this fear. In terms of vanity, Teacher said, "You like it when other people say that you're good. You like it when
other people praise and flatter you. You like it when other people respect
you. And you are afraid of anything that damages your image. All of which is
developing the mentality that is vanity. It's an attachment. The human desire
to save face is very strong. In fact, when you set your mind at ease and don't
carry so much baggage, you will cultivate faster." ("Teaching the Fa
at the Fa Conference in Australia") I reminded myself that distributing truth-clarification materials is saving
people and will not damage my image. If I fail to believe in the Fa, I will not
be doing it in a righteous manner and I will feel embarrassed. How can I clarify
the truth well with this type of mentality? Since then, I always remind myself
to wear a smile and think of saving people. As I let go of fear, I feel my mind
becoming increasingly righteous and relaxed. I even feel less personally injured
when people are not receptive. It may be time efficient to make phone calls to China or chat with Chinese
people on the Internet, but clarifying the truth to Mainland Chinese tourists
face-to-face in Hong Kong has a lot of impact as well. Displaying
truth-clarification posters, distributing truth-clarification materials and
sending forth righteous thoughts at Hong Kong's tourist spots have powerful and
tremendous effects. I hope that fellow practitioners will help join in these
efforts as well. |