(Clearwisdom.net)
Greetings, Master!
Greetings, fellow practitioners!
I began Dafa cultivation in 1996. After I finished Zhuan Falun in one breath, I understood the true meaning of life. From that point on, my belief never wavered. After the persecution began on July 20, 1999, I was persecuted numerous times: I was interrogated six times, my home was raided five times, I was sentenced to a labor camp for two years, which was extended for 114 more days; and I served another five-year sentence. I spent a total of seven and a half years in the dark den. But I firmly believed in Master and Dafa, used the standard of a Dafa practitioner to measure myself, searched inward whenever a problem surfaced, cultivated well, and did the three things well. I will summarize my experience and share with you all.
Negating the persecution by clarifying the truth about Dafa
My wife and I went to appeal for the right to practice Dafa in 2000. Before we left, I told her that we should prepare ourselves since we might not come back, so we brought necessary items with us. In actuality this thought was already acknowledging the persecution. Most of our fellow practitioners had similar thoughts, and we were all taken advantage of by the old forces. We were all arrested and held in a detention center. I thought, “If you will not let me appeal, I will verify Dafa wherever I am.”
As soon as I got to the detention center, the inmates attempted to “teach me a lesson.” Everyone that came to the place had to go through that. It was considered light treatment to be beaten by everyone and slapped with plastic shoes, otherwise there could be much more severe punishments. Before they taught me a lesson, they asked, “ How did you get here?” I replied, “I was arrested while appealing for Falun Gong.” They were curious: “What is Falun Gong?” I answered, “Falun Gong is an advanced cultivation system that teaches people how to be good.” They stopped. The head inmate was a college graduate, he knew about the June 4 Tiananmen Massacre. After he heard my story, he treated me like an honored guest.
The next day, the official took me to his office to “talk.” I told him what Falun Gong was, how I benefited from it, why I continue practicing Falun Gong, and why I spoke out for Dafa. He was deeply moved and said, “I respect your belief, but you have to obey the rules and regulations here: 1) You cannot do the Falun Gong exercises here; 2) You cannot talk about Falun Gong here; 3) You cannot the teach inmates here.” I smiled. When he asked why, I said, “I came here precisely because I seek an exercise environment. If you stop me, didn't I come here in vain? Plus, Falun Gong teaches people to be good and obey the principle of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. This will benefit society, individuals, and even you, who manages inmates. What is wrong with promoting Falun Gong?” He thought for a while and said, “All right, I will give you some space. You can exercise here, you can talk about Falun Gong, but you cannot teach others.” I said, “OK, but you have to tell them.” He agreed. I thought, “He agreed with the first two conditions, but the last one was not up to him. As long as people wanted to learn, I will teach them.” After our meeting, he announced to everyone: “1) No one is allowed to disturb him when he exercises; 2) You should listen to him when he teaches you how to be a good person; 3) No one is allowed to learn his exercises. Do you hear me?” “Yes.” I thus had an exercise and a truth-clarifying environment.
There were predestined people in my cell. I wrote out Master's Hong Yin and Lunyu, and the inmates got rid of many bad habits. By the end, all of them had learned the exercises, and they could all sit in the full lotus position with both legs crossed! A month later, my wife and I went home.
I left home in 2001 because I refused to be held in a brainwashing center. I was later arrested. Because I refused to give up my belief, I was sentenced to a labor camp for two years, which was later extended by another 114 days because I refused to “transform.”
When I arrived at the labor camp, I thought that a Dafa practitioner should be a good person wherever he was, so I was very active in doing the forced labor. One night, the team leader told me that I worked well. I suddenly realized, “Didn't I cooperate with the evil? Master asked us not to cooperate with the evil under any circumstances. I should not be taken advantage anymore.” I decided to stop working the next day. I told the team leader my decision and why: “I did not commit any crime; I was sentenced because I cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.” I told them not to cooperate with evil in persecuting Falun Gong, that it would be bad for them. They said that they understood and supported me.
The next day I made my announcement. The guard on duty came over to try to persuade me and said, “You need to go with the others, but you do not need to work.” I told him, “It has nothing to do with that. I should not be here in the first place. You do not need to worry about me—just report my situation.” When the rest of the guards came on duty, the team leader who was responsible for Falun Gong came screaming at me, “Do you know where you are? You need to know the consequences of this kind of behavior!” I replied, “Yes, I know this is a labor camp that holds inmates who have committed crimes, but I did not commit any crime, this is not a place for me, why should I work here? You'd better stop yelling. I am against Jiang Zemin, who launched the persecution. This is not directed at you or your guards, you cannot make a decision on this matter; it has nothing to do with you. Just report it.” My righteous thoughts overcame him, and he went to report me. After half an hour, he came back with a good attitude. He even apologized to me, “Sorry for my attitude earlier. If you do not want to work, you may rest.” He asked me to talk to him, and we talked over two hours. I told him about Falun Gong, my enormous changes after practicing Falun Gong, and the damage brought to sentient beings by the persecution. From that point on, he hardly ever gave me a hard time.
Only by letting go of human emotions can you clarify the truth about Dafa well
I was arrested again in 2005 and sentenced to five years in prison. I recited “Don't Be Sad” from Hong Yin II over and over in the detention center, reflecting on my cultivation over the last few years, and I found my fundamental attachment. I was often invited by fellow practitioners for experience sharing, to help fellow practitioners solve certain problems in cultivation. In the process, it exposed my numerous attachments: the mentality of showing off, competitiveness, jealousy, and a deeply seated filthy habit of verifying myself. The lesson was serious, the purpose of the old forces was to drag down Dafa practitioners and destroy sentient beings. I thought that as long as I was here, I would use the environment to do the three things Master asked of us, learn the Fa with a tranquil mind, clarify the truth about Dafa, and save people.
I was held in a transition room. Everyone had to go through here to learn the rules and regulations. I was able to meet more people and tell them the facts. I understood Master's enormous compassion even more here: Master can overlook any mistakes a sentient being has made and only looks at how he or she views Dafa.
An inmate, a repeat offender who had smuggled two kilograms of illegal substances, was sentenced to death, but he was appealing his case. He wanted to live a few more days, but he seemed to have already quit living. He looked gray from head to toe. When we were let out for fresh air, I told him the facts about Falun Gong. He regretted what he had done and said he had no hope. I told him, “Only our Master can save you. From now on, sincerely repeat, 'Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are good.' You still have hope.” He replied, “I am already in this situation. No matter, what I will repeat those words.” He began saying, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are good.” One day he told me about a dream he had. He was fighting ghosts that night, and he won the battle and killed all the ghosts. I told him that he would be saved. Initially he did not believe me and said I just wanted to make him feel better. Two days later, the superior court changed his death sentence to probation. As his shackles were removed, he told me, “I totally believe what you said now.” I said, “You need to thank our Master who saved you. From now on you should not do anything that damages Dafa, otherwise you are still in danger.” He replied, “Yes I know. I will do good.” The suspension of his death sentence stunned all the inmates and the guards. I told them, “Whether you believe it or not, this is the result of sincerely saying, 'Falun Dafa is good! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are good!'” More people began repeating sincerely, “Falun Dafa is good! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are good!”
Eleven months later, I was transferred to prison. The guards listed the rules and regulations for me to follow. I told them, “Practicing Falun Gong is not a crime; I am not in prison for committing a crime; your rules and regulations have nothing to do with me; I will not acknowledge or guarantee anything.” They asked me, “Why are you here then?” I replied, “I am being illegally held here by the 610 Office and the police department. I am here to tell you the truth about Falun Gong.” From that point on, whenever the guard introduced me, he would say, “He is not here to serve a sentence.” Two inmates monitored me. I viewed them as my orderly and my messenger. They respected me very much, found for me a large desk and paper and pens in the study. I had all sorts of paper. I studied, copied, and memorized the Fa on a daily basis. Whoever came in, I told them the truth about Dafa. Guards and inmates all visited me voluntarily.
One year, representatives from the local 610 Office and the police department came to prison. They swore that if they could not “transform” us, they would not leave. Initially I thought, “The 610 Office is extremely evil. They even come to the prison to 'transform' us. How should I fight them?” I told them, “It is illegal for you to come to prison to attempt to 'transform' people. What kind of organization is the 610 Office? Who gives you the right to come here and give orders? I practice Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and did not do anything wrong. What do you want me to 'transform' into? To become wicked, deceitful, and violent?” I told them, “Since we are able to meet each other, I consider this a predestined relationship. I hope you stop talking about 'transformation;' otherwise the relationship will be over, and that would not be good to you or your family.” The 610 Office agent did not talk the rest of the day. Later a deputy director of police department came. I told him, “If you want to 'transform' me, you can stop right now.” He said, “I just want to talk to you heart to heart.” I said, “A heart to heart talk, of course. But your duty is keep peace and safety for your district. Why come to prison to talk to me heart to heart?” After a short while, he left. The first day, most of those who came to “transform” me left without getting anywhere.
The next day, they took me to an “intensive training” site and attempted to 'transform' me using force. I had to stand under the baking sun. I began to search inward, “Why did they treat me this way? What kind of problem did I have?” After a deep search I found that I had the attachment of showing off. Being persecuted, I still tried to show them how firm I was. On the other hand, I categorized all those who participated as being evil and did not use compassion in talking with them. That was my loophole that was taken advantage by the old forces who intensified my persecution. I thought again that this so-called “transformation” was not just to check whether I was firm or not in my belief; this was also to help me to get rid of my human emotions, so I should use this opportunity to save people.
After I found those human emotions, the situation changed. The prison doctor came and told the guard that I had hypertension and should not do vigorous movement or be exposed to the sun for long periods of time, that it would cause trouble for the prison. Another one also said that I had fainted in the past (it was a story he made up). This scared the guard. I calmly and kindly told him the truth about Falun Gong and told him that treating Dafa practitioner this way was not good for him, that people should use kindness to discern good from bad and be responsible for themselves. I also told him that from the police station to the labor camp, from physical abuse to torture, nothing would work on me, unless they killed me: “If you want to 'transform' me for you to achieve some goal, it is useless.” I told him to get rid of any idea of “transforming” me, that it was not a good idea. He quickly stopped the intense effort to “transform” me. During this time, the 610 Office gave orders to pressure me to write a statement. They said that if I was not cooperative, they could deprive me of sleep or use force, but those who monitored me refused to follow the orders, and I was fine.
From this event, I understood deeply that, whatever situation we encounter as a Dafa practitioner, it is caused by our human emotions. As long as we are able to search within, there will be no tribulation or difficulty that we cannot pass. Master said:
“When disciples have ample righteous thoughts
Master has the power to turn back the tide” (“The Master-Disciple Bond,” Hong Yin II )
When we truly search within, that is when our righteous thoughts come forth, and any problem can be solved.
Having benevolent thoughts when clarifying the truth will achieve good results
In the evil environment we had to face demonic guards and irrational criminals. When we were persecuted, we would regard any persecutors as “the evil.” But actually, the factors behind him played their roles. When we were treated unfairly, we had to look inward to see if we still had any attachments. When we were persecuted, we sent forth righteous thoughts. This act itself was to negate or not admit the old forces’ persecution. If we could also look within and improve our xinxing, we were doing what Master had arranged for us then. The improvement of Dafa disciples is most crucial. Master said:
“It is known to all that when we truly practice cultivation, we want positive messages and assimilation to the characteristic of the universe. Shouldn’t you practice Shan? In order to assimilate to the characteristic of the universe, Zhen-Shan-Ren, one must practice Shan.” (Zhuan Falun).
Whatever we do, we must consider others first and must treat sentient beings with compassion.
One thing we have to be clear about. When someone does a bad deed, they might still be saved. Because ordinary people are in the maze of ordinary society, they seek self interest. Driven by self interest, they are taken advantage by the evil and do bad things. But they themselves don't know the truth. Master said:
“Thus I continually gave opportunities to such people, for among them there really were some with good foundations and who were excellent people in their previous lives; some were beings who came down from high realms. So I couldn't deny them salvation just because they were secret agents in this lifetime.” (“Eliminating the Evil”)
If we want to suppress or end the persecution, we should first clarify the truth with benevolent thoughts and let people know the truth. If we can save him, then we save the beings in his world. If we destroy him due to our attachments, then we destroy beings of a whole world. So we have to measure our every thought and deed with Fa principles instead of human notions. We should not give up on any predestined people. Dafa disciples can save those who persecute us. This is the mighty virtue of Dafa disciples.
I didn't acknowledge inmates who monitored practitioners. I treated them as guards or orderlies. I considered them first. One day when I came out of the public bath, the inmate who was monitoring me was not there, so I waited for him. A fellow in the same workshop said to me, “What are you afraid of? Just go by yourself.” I said, “I am not afraid of anything. Our Master tells us to consider others first in whatever we do and to think about whether I will hurt anyone if I do something. If I leave here by myself and a guard finds out, he will not give my any trouble to me but he will get after the inmate. He will curse him and deduct points from him. This then will affect the length of his sentence. Then the inmate will get angry and be hard on me and might got to extremes. Wouldn't he then do bad deeds? To put it seriously, he would be not able to pay it back if he commits bad deeds against cultivators. He may be ruined by this incident.” The person was very moved and said, “You Falun Gong are really good people.”
Human beings have qing (sentiment). As a practitioner, we have to let go of qing. But we still have to get along well with people. When sending forth righteous thoughts, Dafa disciples have dignity. The word “eliminate” will disperse the righteous thought to all the universe. But in everyday life you still have to consider ordinary people and think of them.
One day when they tried to “transform” me in the cell, I went on a hunger strike to protest the illegal acts of the 610 Office. But I did it in a calm manner so that I would not hurt those who were deceived by the evil. Before I went on a hunger strike, I first explained to the inmates why I decided to go on a hunger strike and they understood me. Inmates said to me, “I support you. If you are hungry, please feel free to have something to eat. We will not report you.” I said to them, “Thank you for your kindness. But I cultivate 'Truth-Compassion-Forbearance.' I will not cheat.” Then I said to the guards in the cell, “In this environment, in order to protect my belief, I will do everything possible.” I also told them that my hunger strike would not last more than three days. When I clarified the truth to them, one of the guards cried. I then wrote to the cell leader and explained the reason why I was going on a hunger strike. I said to them clearly, “I an going on a hunger strike because of the persecution of Falun Gong and the illegal actions of the 610 Office.” I wrote to the 610 Office and explained to them how I understood the “transformation.” I exposed their illegal acts and let them know of my firm belief in Truth-Compassion-Forbearance. I made an appointment to see the prosecutor and wrote to the relevant departments and let them know about the illegal torture and human rights' violations in the cell. Because I clarified the truth all the time and acted with righteous thoughts, within three days while I was on my hunger strike, the efforts to “transform” me quickly came to an end. I validated the Fa with my action and helped many people have a further understanding of Falun Gong and let them position themselves. One of the guards said to me, “You have shown me Falun Gong's realm.” Another guard said, “I admire the spirit of Falun Gong people in seeking the truth.” After that he gave up many bad behaviors. He began to read stories of gods and Buddhas and abandoned atheism.
Clarifying the truth with wisdom and saving more people
In the environment of persecution, it was difficult to clarify the truth. The guards were full of the crooked Party theories. They claimed that they represented the “government” and “if one is against the prison guards then one is against the government.” They became violent easily. I acted according to Master's teaching:
“Validate the Fa with rationality, clarify the truth with wisdom, spread the Fa and save people with mercy—this is establishing the mighty virtue of an Enlightened Being.” ( “Rationality” from Essentials for Further Advancement II).
I clarified the truth with wisdom and righteous thoughts and also according to people's attachments and achieved good results.
The inmates hated one guard leader and were afraid of him. He didn't accept what I said to him. I found out that he loved his three-year-old son. Then I talked about his son first and about how, according to traditional culture, children should be taught and how the current education failed in teaching those lessons. While I was talking on and on, he said, “You talked about Falun Gong again.” I said, “Yes, Falun Gong talks about 'Truth-Compassion-Forbearance.' This is a universal value. We Falun Gong people are good people, aren't we? If I didn't practice Falun Gong, I would have behaved like you—alcohol, gambling, whoring, and overeating . I would dare to do anything bad. Falun Gong saved me and my family. So what's wrong with Truth-Compassion-Forbearance?” He kept silent. Then I wrote a poem for his son with a writing brush: “Three true words in the heart, dispel all evils and overcome all hardships; follow life's journey with ease, return to your original self with predestined relationship.” He expressed his thanks again and again. Later I went to see him and talked about how to deal with everyday life and how to do management. I said to him, “Whatever we do, we have to do it kindheartedly. Don't follow others and behave without conscience.” Ever since then he changed a lot. He didn't curse inmates for ever little thing and looked after them. Inmates said he was more like a human being now. He confided to me whenever he had problems and concerns. He said, “It is strange that all my anxiety disappeared after I talked to you.” I told him that this is what our Master told us: “The Buddha-light illuminates everywhere and rectifies all abnormalities.“ (Zhuan Falun). I said, “It is a Dafa disciple's compassionate field that dissolved the bad substances around you.” One day he said to me, “Our superiors demand that Falun Gong practitioners be 'transformed.' But I think it is a matter of belief. Whether you want to be 'transformed' or not is up to you. We will not force you.” I said, “You have done a good deed. You have chosen a bright future for yourself and our family.” Indeed I didn't see any guard in my cell force practitioners to be “transformed.” One practitioner wrote a “transformation” statement. The guards didn't say anything. Later on this practitioner wanted to practice Falun Gong again. The guards didn't say anything then either, as if it never happened. Many guards and inmates said that if they came across anything that made them unhappy, they would come to see “Masters” (they call practitioners “Masters” respectfully) and they would feel better for sure.
In this special environment, I could only contact a limited number of sentient beings. In order to clarify the truth to more people, I tried everything I could think of. I clarified the truth to anyone I came across, including people from other cells who came to our warehouse for parts and from outside factories. I told them to recite, “Falun Dafa is good and Truth-Compassion-Forbearance are good” repeatedly and they could be blessed.
One inmate had been suffering from neurosis for four or five years. He was only able to sleep for three or four hours every night and was very anxious. I clarified the truth to him and told him that if he could keep saying “Falun Dafa is good and Truth-Compassion-Forbearance are good” to himself, I guaranteed that he would recover from his illness. At first he didn’t believe it and asked if he could achieve anything by following what I said. I said, “If you say it from your heart, I guarantee that you will sleep all through until tomorrow morning, even if you only say it three times. And you will not wake up until somebody wakes you up.” The next day when he saw me, he said to me in front of many inmates and the guards, “You know, the prescription you gave me yesterday was so good that I almost slept in as you said yesterday.” People asked what prescription. I said, “Heavenly secrets cannot be given casually. It can only be passed on one by one. I will tell you one by one.”
Besides clarifying the truth face to face, I also wrote letters to officials at all levels of government, to newspapers, and to magazines. I wrote to the Party secretary, the president, the chairman of the NPC standing committee, the chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and to provincial leaders, related departments and the prison guards. I wrote almost a hundred letters. One guard said, “You write in vain because they will not mail the letters.” I said, “I will continue writing even though they will not be sent out. The guards violate the law if they don’t mail them. Besides, someone has to read the letters when they examine the letters. Even if only one person reads the letters, I didn’t do it in vain.” From a cultivator’s perspective, whatever Dafa practitioners do, they will not do it in vain. In other dimensions, everything Dafa disciples have done is remarkable and is saving sentient beings.
I also took advantage of the prison’s promises to make appointments to see people. I made appointments and met the prison Procurator and prison leaders. There was a “Heart Bridge Hotline” (a psychological counseling program). I asked to make phone calls to the hotline. I talked about one and a half hours on the phone. I talked about how I had benefited from practicing Falun Gong and how good Falun Gong is. I talked about some basic facts, stating that the prison violated the laws to deprive Falun Gong practitioners of some basic human rights. The listener was very sympathetic. Finally she told me that in order to get my calls, she had prepared for a whole week, but the preparation was irrelevant anyway. I said to her, “If you want to talk about whether Falun Gong is right or wrong, what you will say would be those lies from the newspaper and from your superiors. What I told you is my personal experiences, which cannot be denied. Everyone should be allowed to judge for him or herself, based on the facts.”
I also took advantage of my writing and drawing skills. They asked me to help with the wall newspaper. So I wrote and edited articles and did graphic designs for them. I wrote a poem entitled “Step Back – Sea Vast, Sky Boundless” The poem read: “Step Back, the sea is vast and the sky boundless; Fighting with each other, both parties get hurt. Considering others in doing everything, shows breadth of mind.” Though I didn’t mention Falun Gong, everybody knew I was talking about Truth-Compassion-Forbearance and was teachig people to be good.
I was also ready to write letters to inmates' families for them, even love letters. Whoever asked me to write for them, I never refused. I helped inmates to complete the task of writing reports for the prison newsletter and helped the guards write their graduation essays. In the essays I told them about traditional culture and Dafa principles that everyday people can accept, such as being sincere in everyday life, treating people kindly, considering others in doing everything, and when in conflicts, they should look inwards, and to be tolerant of others.
One day a meeting was to be held to criticize inmates who violated the prison rules and fought each other. One inmate asked me to write his speech. At first I refused him and said, “I don't want to be involved in such a matter.” But on a second thought, nothing I came across was accidental. Wasn't it a good opportunity to clarify truth and tell them to be good and kind? So I agreed. In the speech I didn't use the Party language to blame somebody, but wrote in a calm manner. By telling traditional stories, I explained to them that we should look inward in conflicts, consider others first when doing things, step back and you will find the sea vast and the sky boundless, treat people sincerely, and be tolerant and good to people. The inmate was very touched after reading what I had written. He showed it to the guards in the brigade and in the cell. They all said, “This is so good. It is peaceful and touching.” When they learned that I had written it, they said, “Only Falun Gong practitioners can write such articles.” Though the speech they gave at the meeting was a bit different from the one I wrote, it still achieved a good result.
One day an inmate asked me to write a letter to her daughter who was going to graduate from a health school. I spent a whole week writing the letter. I told her how to be a good person according to Truth-Compassion-Forbearance, which is a universal value; to follow nature’s course; to not compete with others; and to treat others well. I read out this letter in front of over ten inmates in the cell. Everyone listened quietly. Some started to cry. One inmate who had bashed Dafa practitioners (he was previously a gang leader) came to me and said, “This is the best article I have ever heard. The letter is so touching.” This inmate changed a lot afterward. He no longer monitored me. I realized that the skills and knowledge we have are actually to be used to save sentient beings. As long as you have the heart, Dafa will give you extra abilities, and possible paths will be unfolded for you. Personally, I realized and experienced the omnipresence of our compassionate Master's protection.
It has not been easy to walk this far through hardships during the past 12 years. When I do well, it is Master who guides me. It is the result of good Fa study. When I didn't do well, it was because I didn't do according to Master's requirements and didn't enlighten from the Fa perspective or lacked righteous thoughts. During the years in prison, though I studied the Fa, I didn't study it systematically. Because I was not with other practitioners, I didn't do well in self cultivation and saving sentient beings. After reading Master's recent articles “Be More Diligent” and “What is a Dafa Disciple?” I feel more the urgency of time and the responsibility of saving sentient beings and the importance of looking inward. In the final phase of the last leg of cultivation, we should study the Fa a lot more, study the Fa well, let go of human notions and attachments, help Master to rectify the Fa, save sentient beings, and fulfill our prehistoric vows.
Please kindly point out anything inappropriate.
