(Minghui.org) To maintain their arrangements, the old forces keep interfering with Master’s Fa-rectification: they’ve defamed Master and Dafa, persecuted us, and seriously interfered with our efforts to save lives. In reading the Fa and cultivating during difficult times, most of us, as practitioners, have come to a clear understanding of what has happened and clearly understand our mission.
Master said,
“I do not recognize this persecution, of course.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2014 San Francisco Fa Conference”)
“This persecution is something forced upon us by the old forces, and it’s not something that the Fa-rectification needed.” (“Teaching the Fa at the Western U.S. International Fa Conference”)
“It is not to have you simply become a hero among everyday people in counteracting the persecution. Rather, it is to have you validate the Fa while negating the old forces’ arrangements and opposing the persecution, and to, through this, progress towards godhood.” (“Master's Fa Taught in the International Teleconference,”The Essentials of Diligent Progress III)
“We're fundamentally negating all of their things, and all of, and only, the things you do while negating and getting rid of them is mighty-virtue. It's not that you're cultivating amidst the ordeals they created. Rather, you are to walk your own path well while not acknowledging them, not even acknowledging the elimination of their ordeals' manifestations. (Applause) So looking at it from this angle, what we need to do is completely negate the old forces. Dafa disciples and I don't even acknowledge the manifestations of their last-ditch efforts.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. IV)
Why Does the Persecution Happen
I often read articles on the Minghui website about the old forces’ persecution of practitioners. More often than not, the persecution was so severe, evil, and brutal that those facing it were shocked. I often wondered, “Why was the persecution so bad? Didn’t we often send righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil? Didn’t we deny the persecution? Why does this keep happening?”
The cultivation environment in our area was easier than in some other areas. The people in our area are used to us telling them the facts about Falun Gong and the persecution and handing out brochures. We were rarely reported. When it did occasionally happen, we were usually released that same day or, at worst, in a few days. After we started filing criminal complaints against Jiang Zemin, the former head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for initiating the persecution, people with the police, the procuratorate, and the legislature came to our homes to harass them, but they just followed routine procedure and left after making a few comments.
Trapped in the Situation
Last year, practitioners in our area were harassed in the so-called “Knocking on Doors” and “Zero Out” campaigns. However, the harassment did not escalate. Then, at the beginning of this year, we heard that the Party planned a joint operation to escalate the persecution in our area. We all understood that we must deny it, but it still happened. I am now sharing what happened and some of my personal understandings so that we can learn from that experience and do better with less loss in the future. Please correct me if I have a biased opinion.
The operation started with the deception of our family members. They don’t like being harassed, so CCP personnel lied to them, saying that if the practitioners in their families signed the paper, they would not be bothered anymore.
Deceived by the lies, some family members pressured us to sign the paper and some grabbed our arms to force us to give our fingerprints. Some family members opened their locked door to let the CCP personnel in. Many of us shouted for help, but we were still not able to stop the evil from succeeding.
We wondered why the persecution escalated. After sharing our thoughts, we came to understand that we were not able to fundamentally deny the persecution and were trapped in the situation.
Using Ordinary Approaches Instead of What Master Arranged
For example, some practitioners might have followed the evil arrangements after becoming upset hearing about the persecution. They did not look at the situation from the perspective of a cultivator and dealt with it using an ordinary approach.
If we started thinking about what we should do when the authorities arrived, we then followed the old forces’ arrangement and trapped ourselves in the situation of opposing the persecution while being persecuted.
Many practitioners suffered the hardship of the persecution and spent a lot of energy and time. They not only exhausted themselves both physically and mentally but also caused the officials, manipulated by the old forces, to commit crimes against Dafa practitioners. Every such event had a negative influence on the people involved and on the sidelines and made it more difficult for them to be saved.
If we could deny the persecution fundamentally, truly deny it from the depths of our souls; if we could negate the persecution messages imposed on our minds and be determined to only take the path arranged by Master; and if our fellow practitioners could all do the same, could the evil still exist? Without the harassment, we would suffer no losses, all lives would accept the truth, and Dafa would save them. I think that should be the way Master arranged it.
Many of us have, more or less, relied on ordinary people to end the persecution for us. In fact, if we can all truly deny the persecution, obliterate it from our minds, we will then truly end the persecution! If we can truly understand this and truly deny the persecution in our minds, Master will help us!
I want to single out a practitioner in our area as an example. He filed a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin using his real name and talked to people face-to-face about Falun Gong and the persecution for a long time. He has never been harassed. I believe that this is a manifestation of his denying the persecution with strong righteous thoughts, firmly believing in Master and the Fa, and conducting himself with righteous thoughts, righteous enlightenment, and righteous action.
Don’t Be Trapped in the Situation
The following is my personal experience. A fellow practitioner’s sharing benefited me in this round of persecution. She said that we should “not be trapped in the situation.”
When the persecution started, I kept the following thoughts in mind all the time: “The persecution has nothing to do with me, evil can’t overcome righteousness, the evil is afraid of me. I am a Dafa practitioner—no one dares to persecute me and no one can persecute me.”
When some practitioners told me about what was happening, I was occasionally moved but I rejected this thought quickly. When I heard that the authorities had taken a fellow practitioner to a hotel for several days, I did worry about what could happen to me—I also rejected that thought and denied the persecution quickly. When I heard that the evil threatened to implicate my family, I began to worry. I was about to consider “what if,” but I immediately denied that thought, realizing that it would acknowledge the persecution.
I felt that I had two sides in me at the time: when one side had incorrect thoughts, the other side denied it right away. It was like a battle between good and evil inside me. I told myself, “I am Master’s disciple. I only follow Master’s arrangement and I don’t want anything else.” And I did not follow the mindset of opposing the persecution while being persecuted.
Master helped me and eliminated the tribulations. When officials went to my home, I was never there. When these people called my family members, my husband, who had always accused me, turned around and gave them a dressing down. My other family members also gained righteous thoughts and said that they would never be afraid of them again.
I came to understand that, as long as we do the right thing, Master will help us to resolve the difficulties. As long as we act in an upright manner, our family will stand by our side and resist the persecution with us.
Master said,
“...No matter who you areYou are all waiting for the Creator’s salvationGods are each waiting to be chosen by HimHumankind must together make the effortTo resist the red demon Satan’s evil forceUntil the divine path is extended to you”(“If You Believe in God, Then Do as God Says,” Hong Yin IV)
Editor’s Note: This article only represents the author’s understanding in their current cultivation state meant for sharing among practitioners so that we can “Compare with one another in study, in cultivation.” (“Solid Cultivation,” Hong Yin)
Views expressed in this article represent the author's own opinions or understandings. All content published on this website are copyrighted by Minghui.org. Minghui will produce compilations of its online content regularly and on special occasions.
Category: Improving Oneself
