(Clearwisdom.net) Two practitioners in my area recently encountered tribulations at about the same time.
The first practitioner discovered that a hospital had been treating his critically-ill relative with a medication that had passed the expiration date. The practitioner kept the container as evidence and planned to take legal action. Fearing that they would lose the lawsuit, the hospital made the first move and notified the police that the individual was a Falun Gong practitioner. The local police and the County Public Security Bureau hired more than twenty thugs to go to the hospital to beat the practitioner to unconsciousness. The police then put him in a detention center.
The second practitioner graduated from college and received a job assignment. His work unit instructed him to obtain a statement from his local police station certifying that he had no criminal record. They needed this in order to comply with the Chinese Communist Party's policy that disqualifies Falun Gong practitioners from enlisting in the army, taking college entrance examinations, and obtaining job assignments. This practitioner was devoted to saving sentient beings and took fame and wealth lightly. But to protect his rights and privileges, he went to the local police station on two occasions to clarify the truth and to ask for the statement. The police chief refused, saying that he needed to follow his superior's orders. He also said that even individuals whose parents practiced Falun Gong were ineligible to receive job assignments. The practitioner considered giving up his job but later thought to himself, "I'm going to report for work even if the police refuse to give me the statement. I deserve that job. Besides, I'm going to the work unit in order to clarify the truth." When the practitioner reported for his first day of work, a clerk asked, "Did you bring the police statement?" He replied, "What police statement?" The clerk responded, "Don't worry if you didn't bring it. Just bring the things you need for work." In this way, the practitioner started his new job.
Of the two practitioners, one wound up in a detention center while the other turned out fine after seeing the light. Both encountered tribulations, yet each experienced a different result. Why do we come to this human world? It is for the sake of assisting Teacher in the Fa-rectification and saving sentient beings.
As beings who assist Teacher in the Fa-rectification, we have come to this human world with vows, missions, and responsibilities. At the present time, saving sentient beings is an extremely important task, and so all we think and everything we do on the path we follow should be focused on saving people, saving people, saving people. When we follow Teacher's words and walk on the path that Teacher arranged, any arrangements made by the evil cease to exist and have no effect. When we save sentient beings with a pure heart, Teacher is the one who determines anything and everything that happens around us. In addition to the practitioner who obtained the job, haven't many other practitioners--haven't all practitioners--witnessed the miracle of Dafa?
When our minds are no longer focused on saving sentient beings, however, we forget our vows and stop fulfilling our missions and responsibilities, and that is when we encounter tribulations. The reason is that we have strayed into areas that are ruled by evil, which drags us into its swamp. The evil has arranged this for us and watches us carefully and attentively. Too many fellow practitioners have taught us the extremely hard lessons they learned from their own personal experience: when our thoughts and actions deviate from assisting Teacher in the Fa-rectification and saving sentient beings, that is when tribulations befall us.
On our cultivation path, we will run into many unexpected things. Some will be good, and some will be bad. But they will all be opportunities to clarify the truth and save sentient beings, and so we can actually regard them all as good things. The key is that we must handle ourselves well, not forget our responsibilities, and not enter everyday people's fights.
The above is my personal understanding. Fellow practitioners, please correct me if it contains anything improper.