(Clearwisdom.net)
French policemen change their attitude
On the afternoon of January the 24th, after introducing Falun Gong at Montmartre, two other practitioners and I planned to go to the Concert Hall. We asked people on the way for directions, but nobody could tell us the location. After we arrived at the Arc de Triumph, the Sino-French Cultural Festival parade was approaching its end, and people started to leave one after another. Among them, quite a few were Chinese people. Since we had a lot of truth-clarification materials with us, we decided to distribute them before we found our way to the Concert Hall.
We were clarifying the truth to the Chinese people while handing out the materials. After we distributed nearly half of the materials, suddenly a policeman walked towards us hastily and forcibly grabbed the flyers out of the practitioners' hands. Refusing to listen to any of our explanations, he wanted to take us to a police station. He brought us to a place where more than ten police cars were parked in front of us. The policeman opened a car door and thoroughly searched our bags one after another. Besides a few flyers, there was nothing but some personal belongs in the other two practitioners' bags. The policeman took them out for inspection item by item in a very unfriendly manner. As soon as he found a flyer or CD, he threw it to one side and angrily said some unknown words to us (we don't know French). While searching another practitioner's bags, he stared at the bag in my hand from time to time, which was full of truth-clarification materials. At that moment, I thought to myself: "By no means shall I let him take away these precious materials, nor should I be taken to a police station." (We had to prepare truth-clarification materials for an international conference to be held the following day). Therefore, we reminded each other to send forth-righteous thoughts.
At first, some of our practitioners were kind of nervous because they are good citizens and had never been treated like this in the past; moreover, they were shocked at this occurrence, as Falun Gong has been awarded and commended in many peaceful countries. Nonetheless, through reminding each other, we soon thought of our responsibility as Dafa disciples, our reasons for coming to Paris and the urgent things we should have been doing at that precise moment. Therefore, we adjusted our own mentalities quickly. This French policeman had taken such unfriendly and unreasonable action towards us because the Chinese regime had disseminated a lot of lies to them, and he was deceived by the lies. Therefore, we decided to clarify the truth to him.
However, we didn't speak French, and the police didn't understand our language either. I then asked him (in poor English) whether he understood English. Fortunately, he spoke a little bit of English. One of our practitioners with better English said to him: "The reason why we were distributing flyers is that many kind-hearted people have been persecuted to death in China. Even the elderly and children are no exception. This persecution is still going on at present. Our purpose for handing out these flyers is to let people know the facts, so as to let China stop this persecution...." Even though our English was so poor, we talked to him with a peaceful mind from beginning to end. In the meantime, the other practitioner and I sent forth righteous thoughts.
Gradually this policeman's facial expression became less tense, and his manner and tone became friendlier, as if he had become another person. By then, the other two practitioners' bags had been inspected thoroughly; in other words, it was time to inspect my bag! But to my surprise, the policeman didn't check my bag. Instead, he just closed the car door and seemed to try to explain something to us (we didn't know what he said since it was in French.) Following that, he turned around and left, waving his hand and saying "bye-bye" to us in a friendly manner.
At that moment, I suddenly recalled that there were some flyers and CDs in the police car, which had been confiscated. Thus we called the policeman back before he had gone too far and told him that we wanted to get our materials back. The policeman walked back to us quickly. Upon understanding what we were trying to say, he took some of the materials to return to us. However, he kept some French flyers and English CDs, saying that they were for his superiors. I thought that this was also a good idea because his superiors could come to realize the facts by reading those materials too. We pointed at the flyers and told the policeman: "They are very precious. Please keep them carefully." He expressed that he already knew that. We shook hands with him and said goodbye again, and then we merged back into the crowd.
From the moment we were taken away by the policeman until we shook hands with him and said goodbye to him, a lady in a purplish red outfit continuously watched us from a distance. We suspected that she was a spy. After we left the policeman, a Falun Gong practitioner approached her to hand her some truth-clarification materials, and sincerely told her the facts. Her eyes were brimming with fear as well as regret. She didn't dare to make direct eye contact with that practitioner, as he had righteous eyes and a compassionate heart. She became more and more nervous, and finally excused herself and disappeared behind a long row of police cars after crossing the street. It was just like what Master Li mentioned in Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Midwest-U.S. Fa Conference:
"When your minds are righteous, a special agent wouldn't dare to stay where you are. He only has two options. One is to be assimilated to the righteous field, since the pure and righteous field that Dafa disciples give off purges everything that's bad in a person's mind. The pure, righteous field would disintegrate it, disintegrate everything that's unrighteous in the person's consciousness, and that's another manifestation of salvation and a reflection of compassion. When everything bad in a person's consciousness has been disintegrated and he's only left with a simple, pure mind, then that person will recognize and appreciate what's upright and good. So hasn't he been assimilated? Then the other option is to run away as quickly as he can, because the bad person's thought karma and bad concepts are afraid of being disintegrated."
A European policeman calls his superior and talks about the persecution in China
When a Chinese leader was on a tour of four different countries in Europe, we applied to the city government for a peaceful appeal, but our request was denied. We were told: "Wherever the Chinese leader goes, Falun Gong practitioners are not allowed to be present; otherwise they will be arrested."
As to whether we should go ahead with this matter or not, the opinions among practitioners differed. As a result, a practitioner suggested that we send forth righteous thoughts before making any decision. After sending forth righteous thoughts, we reached a consensus that we should go ahead with the appeal.
When the Chinese leader's motorcade passed us, we unfurled banners reading, "Falun Dafa is Good" and "Stop the Persecution of Falun Gong." At that moment, a car in the back of the motorcade suddenly stopped in front of us, and two plainclothes policemen with livid faces jumped out of the car. They grabbed our banners and began reprimanding us angrily. We were aware that we might be arrested, but we were not frightened and didn't want to argue with them at all. We simply peacefully told them about the persecution taking place in China. The anger faded away from the policemen's faces little by little; moreover, the anger was replaced by sympathy and friendliness. A policeman said: "We already know that, but we have to obey our superiors' orders. Nevertheless, we'll explain your position to them." A policeman talked to his superior over his cell phone for about twenty minutes, and the persecution in China was part of their conversation.
After finishing the call, the policeman returned the banners to us with a smile, and wished us good luck and success.
Policemen who have come to know the facts stand up for the practitioners
In another city, before the Chinese leader arrived at his hotel, Falun Gong practitioners were already waiting there with banners high above their heads. The police didn't arrest us, but monitored us closely as if faced with a formidable enemy. Five empty-handed Falun Gong practitioners were surrounded and watched by several fully armed policemen. The Chinese embassy asked the police to have us step backward. We told the police that a large-scale persecution of Falun Gong is going on in China, we were there to urge the Chinese leader to stop this persecution and that we were peaceful. After listening to us, the policemen's facial expression went from indifference and hostility to kindness, but they still asked us to move five meters backward. Nonetheless, the Chinese embassy didn't give up. They told the police to ask us to move 200 meters backward. That means nobody would see our peaceful appeal! A police officer came over to pass an order to the policemen close to us that the Falun Gong practitioners should move backward 200 meters. However, the policemen who had learned the facts told their superior: "They are peaceful. They are not breaking our laws." But the embassy staff didn't give up so easily and continued to make other attempts to hinder us, one after another. They dispatched seven or eight thugs to try and dissuade us first, and then when that failed they threatened to beat us. At that moment, several policemen came over to tell them sternly: "This is not China, and you should not be so reckless!" Afterwards a policeman told us: "We are a democratic nation with freedom of belief. Please rest assured that we will protect you."
My understanding
Based on the above examples, I perceived that my righteous thoughts were very strong if my mind was pure, without attachments or fear, and that the situation can often be changed unexpectedly under those kinds of circumstances.
In the first example, after learning the facts, a policeman's facial expression transformed from a grimace into a sympathetic and friendly state. Although he said that he had to carry out the orders given by his superior, he talked to his superior with sincerity and a sense of justice from his heart; he consequently changed his superior's attitude and didn't carry out the arrest. On the contrary he wished us good luck and success instead.
In the second example, Falun Gong practitioners' clarifying the facts not only dispelled a policeman's indifferent and hostile attitude towards practitioners, but also encouraged a policeman to take the initiative to help Falun Gong practitioners resist the Chinese embassy's unreasonable demand and the saboteurs' interference.
By the same token, when faced with a police inspection in Paris, we explained the facts to them with kind hearts. The policemen who realized the facts made a good decision, and in the meantime created a bright future for themselves.
All that we encounter during our cultivation in the Fa-rectification period is not accidental. When helping Master Li validate the Fa and save sentient beings, we also let go of our attachments unceasingly. If we simply regard the tribulations we come across as difficulties between human beings, or have the mentality of fear or other attachments, we may only accept them passively and feel we are being treated unfairly, or become filled with indignation or frustration. With that kind of mentality, the words we use to clarify the truth may become criticism or a means of defending ourselves, which makes it difficult to touch others' hearts or bring about fundamental changes in their thinking. Therefore our objective of saving sentient beings could not be achieved. In other words, if we don't have righteous thoughts, the same words may have a different effect. If we can think of things from the others' perspective rather than being attached to the unfair treatment we receive or our own plight, the situation may change. Everybody has a knowing side, and their knowing side will see our compassionate and conscientious consideration for them.
At the same time, we sent forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil restricting them in other dimensions.
I also realized that if we maintain righteous thoughts, we can perceive that during the course of Fa-rectification, on the surface it is the disciples who carry out the specific tasks, but in practice, it is actually Master Li who does it and controls it entirely. If we have attachments, we will be blocked by them and prevented from walking well the path arranged by Master Li, and we may not make good use of this opportunity. It is our Master who presents this opportunity before us so that we can let go of our attachments, harmonize our universe and establish our magnificence.
Let's read part of Teacher Li's New Articles together:
"So when it comes to the issue of clarifying the truth, since it's so important, you should do it even more calmly and level-headedly, and you should have an even better understanding of the different kinds of opportunities, ways of handling things, and formalities that we encounter while doing truth-clarification. It's something you all need pay attention to." (Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conferencej
"...Also, this entire persecution consists of lies, slander, and the most despicable means that can't bear the light of day. They don't dare to let people know, since the world's people will be shocked once they learn the facts. That's why Dafa disciples' clarifying the facts is the most powerful thing. Exposing the evil, exposing this persecution, that's the most powerful way to eliminate and restrain them." (Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Midwest-U.S. Fa Conference)
"The old forces don't dare to oppose our clarifying the truth or saving sentient beings..." (Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Bostonj
"Everything that Dafa disciples are doing today is for the sake of saving people. Otherwise what are you doing it for? Clarifying the truth in an upright and open manner are the very things Dafa disciples should do. I'm also telling you that all beings in today's world came for the sake of the Fa. If you want a being to clearly understand this point, you should go and clarify the truth to him. It is a master key, the key that can unlock that one thing all living beings have had sealed off for a long time and been waiting for more than an eternity" (Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference)
Let us respectfully bear in mind Master Li's teachings, and do a better job in our clarifying the truth and saving sentient beings.
The above is only my personal understanding, and other fellow practitioners' kind comments are highly appreciated.