(Minghui.org) Prisons in China are terrifying places with all kinds of people held there. However, there are still people there that need to be saved. I have gained some understandings through my experiences of trying to help people learn the facts about Falun Gong in prison while I was illegally detained there, and would like to share them with fellow practitioners.
We should be trustworthy first and foremost
It is only when people trust us that they will then listen to us sincerely, which gives us the opportunity to clarify the facts to them. The Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) lies and propaganda have poisoned the thinking of many sentient beings, and given them deep misunderstandings about Falun Gong practitioners.
People may think that we practice Falun Gong because we are frustrated and unsatisfied with life and society, or we do not know right from wrong, or because we want to overthrow the CCP and gain power, or any other fabrication that has been used by the CCP's propaganda.
If we become emotional when we talk to sentient beings or say something that they may not understand, they may think that we are strange and that the CCP's view of Falun Gong is correct. Therefore, we should let people know, from what we say and do, that we are rational, capable and responsible people.
Some practitioners are too eager to tell people about high level Fa principles and immediately talk about other dimensions, Fa-rectification in the human world, quitting the CCP to save your life, miraculous occurrences in their cultivation practice, or trying to persuade them to practice Falun Gong right away. We need to simply tell people the facts about Falun Gong and the persecution. It is part of our cultivation and is done to help Master rectify the Fa. It is very serious.
How and what we are going to talk about has to follow Master's requirements. Only then are we blessed by Dafa's power and can truly save people. It does not work if we talk about whatever we want or whatever the other person would like to listen to.
Master said:
“When I was just speaking about “the truth,” a great deal was encompassed by that term. When we use it nowadays, we’re referring to how we tell people about the evil’s cooking up lies in order to persecute Falun Gong; to what the wicked CCP is really all about; to why Falun Gong is being persecuted; and then there’s the topic of what exactly Falun Gong is, which people are talking about, and this truth is hard for people to grasp.” (“2012 International Fa Conference at the U.S. Capital”)
I got along with many inmates in prison who are still kindhearted, and we looked after each other. They treated me as their good friend, with whom they could talk about anything they wanted. With that foundation, when I clarified the facts to them, they were very receptive. One of them said, “We used to watch the TV programs and thought Falun Gong practitioners were irrational. Now that I know you, I understand that practitioners are very rational and clear-minded.”
We should pick a good starting point
Master has asked practitioners to focus on the things that are unresolved in everyday people's minds. That is our starting point when we clarify the facts to people.
Some people have the opinion that the CCP is very powerful, and that no one can overthrow it; some people think that their quality of life has improved a lot under the CCP's rule, and only want to focus on how to live their life well; while some people think that the CCP is not as bad as before, or that Falun Gong has nothing to do with them. There are many reasons why people don’t want to get involved.
Some practitioners think that we should tell people everything in the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party when we clarify the facts. It is like they are reciting an essay. However, sentient beings do not have to know everything in so much detail and on such a deep level.
It is like a doctor who is treating a patient or a teacher who is teaching a student. A doctor does not expect their patients to be very knowledgeable about medical science. Neither is a teacher expecting their students to know as much as they do. Their methods of informing and way of teaching has to be individualized.
Master said:
“And you should find out what in their minds is unresolved. Once you work those things out everything can be resolved. Under normal circumstances when you clarify the truth, don't think about having people learn the Fa right away and the results will be better.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York”)
There was one person who remained silent after I talked to him about Falun Gong. Later on, he told me, “I heard that Falun Gong practitioners can make rice in a tank.” I asked him, “Where did you hear that? Is it from a Falun Gong practitioner?” He replied, “No. From someone else.” When I spoke to him more about Falun Gong and the persecution, he agreed to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations.
From what this person said, I can tell that there are all kinds of nonsense and slander about Falun Gong in society.
We should clarify the facts gradually
Clarify the facts to people can be a long process for anyone whose misunderstandings have been formed by the CCP's lies and propaganda. Some people do know the wicked nature of the CCP, but are fearful of it.
Some practitioners can't understand these people, and thus find it hard to save them. Maybe some of these people still have hope in the Party or are concerned about their own safety. There also could be other reasons, which they do not want to tell us. As Dafa practitioners, we should take steps to open their hearts and find out what is unresolved deep in their minds. We should not give up on them so easily.
There was man who used to be rich and famous, and had gained a lot of benefits from being in the Party, but was imprisoned on financial charges. I spoke with him about the CCP's crimes many times, but he refused to quit the Party, even though he agreed with what I told him. He thought that he had already been kicked out of the Party when he was imprisoned, and that that was the same as quitting the Party.
Just before I was released from prison, I asked this man again, “Do you want me to help you quit the CCP?” He replied firmly, “Yes!” He had changed his mind because he had recently been cheated by a Party director. His last piece of hope in the wicked CCP had vanished.
We should do things properly
Master said:
“And this is the reason Dafa disciples are to clarify the truth. The goal is to get rid of the evil’s lies, to enable people to see the CCP’s true face, to clear away the sins committed by people against Gods and Buddhas, and to thereby save the world’s people.” (“The Ultimate Objective of Clarifying the Truth”)
If someone announces publicly that they want to quit the CCP and apologizes to Dafa for the wrongdoings that they have done when they did not know the facts about Falun Gong, that person has already given themselves a bright future. However, it is not something we must push people to do. It depends on their will and the situation they are in.
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