(Minghui.org) I recently participated in clarifying the facts in groups with other local practitioners, and I discovered some serious issues that may affect our ability to save people. I would like to share what I observed with you.
Several older practitioners in our area wanted to see how the younger practitioners clarified the facts. So, we formed into small groups and talked to salespeople in clothing shops.
Several of us went to a mall and we divided up into two groups. Practitioner Zhang, and two senior practitioners Bo and Cui were in one group. Two other senior practitioners and I were in the second group. After my group talked to people in the second shop, I noticed Zhang and the other two practitioners were sitting in the rest area. So I went to check with them. Zhang pulled me aside and she looked a bit helpless, “We aren’t cooperating very well. Maybe they can go with you.”
She explained what happened. In the first shop she pretended to be a customer, and as she was picking out and trying on clothes, she clarified the facts with the salespeople indirectly from a third person’s perspective. In the end, the two salespersons gladly quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations. When they were about to leave the shop, Bo suddenly took out a Falun Dafa keepsake, went up to a salesperson, and stuffed it into her hand.
When Zhang clarified the facts, she did not say that she was a Dafa practitioner, so what Bo was doing was counteracting Zhang’s efforts. But Zhang felt that Bo’s intention was good, so she didn’t stop her. When the salesperson refused to take the keepsake, Bo forced it into her hand again. After the salesperson handed it back several times, she got angry and said to Bo, “We have security cameras here and we cannot take customers' goods!” The three practitioners felt embarrassed and left the shop.
Zhang explained, “The reason we pretend to be a customer is that we can approach salespeople casually. We can explain the facts about the persecution while they help us pick out goods. This makes it easier for them to understand because we are not forcing them. Once they understand the persecution and quit the CCP, our goal is achieved. But if we just stuff an amulet into their hands, it may upset them and have the opposite effect.”
Bo nodded. But when they went to the second shop, Bo did exactly the same thing. Again the salespeople refused it. Zhang was a bit upset and again discussed it with Bo.
Then Cui chimed in. She didn’t think Bo was doing anything wrong. She said when she clarified the facts after the other person quit the CCP, she always gave them some booklets and amulets.
After talking about it for a while, Zhang felt that she could not communicate well enough with the other two practitioners, and they would be counteracting each other’s effort if they continued. She just told them to take a break and so they waited in the rest area.
I first shared my thoughts with Cui. I told her, “The way you clarify the facts—giving out booklets and amulets—is very good. However, the people you mostly talked to were elderly people in outdoor markets. They usually have an easier time understanding it because many of them still believe in the existence of the divine. When you clarify the facts to them, you directly tell them you are a Dafa practitioner, and you clarify the facts from the first person’s perspective.
“We are trying to save people in the luxury shops. The shop assistants we talk to are mostly young and are under pressure to make sales. Most of them are affected by modern ideas and don’t have a clear understanding of the divine. So we clarify the facts from a third person’s perspective. We tell them about the facts of the persecution and the evil nature of the CCP, and we ask them to quit the CCP to stay safe. Once they agree to quit our goal is achieved, and we can move on to the next shop. If we get concerned that we have not given out the amulets and we force them to take it, that may seem a little irrational.”
Cui didn’t fully agree with me. Zhang suggested that three of us go to another shop, so Cui could see how Zhang and I usually work with one another, and then we could share with Bo next. So the three of us went to another shop.
We finished and walked out of the shop, and as we talked a young lady suddenly fell to the ground right next to me. She yelled “help” as she fell. Before I could do anything, a group of people came up and helped her to get up. They were the two practitioners in my group as well as Bo.
They asked her how she fell, and she nervously said she didn’t know. When they offered to help her walk to the rest area to take a seat, she looked panicky and declined, “It’s okay.” The other practitioners said, “You don’t have to accept what we said to you. We really meant no harm. Don’t be afraid.”
When the other practitioners walked away, the girl quickly hid behind a pole. She then nervously looked towards the rest area. I walked up to her, but she got more nervous and asked me to not get closer.
I noticed she was carrying a large backpack. She asked, “Do you know those people who helped me up?” In order to find out what upset her, I said I was just a bystander. She looked relieved, “Just now, I saw those ladies sitting in the rest area, so I went up to them to promote my merchandise. They suddenly grabbed my arm and said how bad the CCP was and I must quit it. One elderly lady also stuffed something into my hand. I didn’t want it, but she held my arm and wouldn’t let go. I was scared so I ran. The floor was slippery and I fell.”
I knew that compassionate Master arranged for her to fall right next to me so I could help with the situation. I first comforted her, “Don’t worry. You are okay now. Look, you even forgot to put your mask on.” She pushed her mask back into place and said, “Oh! I forgot about it!”
I continued to chat with her, “Where are you from? Are you still in school?” She said she was from Xinjiang, and she got a job in a local company after graduating from college. Her job was to sell goods. I then clarified the facts to her, “Little sister, I noticed that you are very pretty, and no wonder because you are from Xinjiang! Don’t be afraid. The people here are all very kind. Those people who talked to you just now probably did not have any bad intentions. I don’t know exactly what they said, but one thing they said was right. The CCP is not good. Think about the mass genocide they did in Xinjiang. They forced the native Xinjiang people to give up their language and to only speak Chinese. They also have a concentration camp there to detain and torture Xinjiang people. This is really criminal.” She nodded and said, “Most people there grew up speaking Uighur. When they are forced to speak Chinese, they really don’t know how and they can’t understand it.”
Then, I saw Bo walking toward us, and I think she wanted to come and clarify something. The girl appeared nervous. In order for this incident to not get any worse, I put my arm around the girl and we walked in the opposite direction. Bo walked away.
The girl calmed down after I spoke to her for a while. So I continued to talk to her about the facts of the persecution of Falun Dafa as well as the true reasons behind the CCP not allowing people to have a spiritual belief. She said that she understood why she needed to quit the CCP, and she also told me that the people just now didn’t tell her all this, and they only asked her to quit the CCP while stuffing something into her hand.
I was shocked and I immediately thanked Master for his compassionate protection. If the person talking to the girl after the incident wasn’t me but an ordinary person, maybe that person would have reported us to the police after hearing that a group of “strange people” would not let go of the girl and asked her to quit the CCP.
Once the girl understood the facts, she thanked me and left. But I couldn’t calm down.
I told Bo and other fellow practitioners about my conversation with the girl, and I explained that the way they were approaching people could lead to misunderstandings. Bo’s facial expression became stiff and she just nodded her head.
Another practitioner pulled me aside and said, “Bo is very stubborn. This is causing her many issues. Her husband often curses her and beats her, and he doesn’t recognize Dafa.” Zhang said she told her several times before to not stuff the amulets into salespeople’s hands, but she didn’t listen. I wasn’t sure she would take my suggestions.
As Dafa disciples, we are here to save sentient beings, but instead, the girl from Xinjiang was frightened. Wasn’t this something we should pay attention to? I’m sure that Bo has cultivated very well, but shouldn’t she reflect on the way she clarifies the facts?
At first, I thought Bo’s approach was unique. But I recently received more feedback. When two practitioners coordinated with several senior practitioners to clarify the facts, they noticed that the senior practitioners would just go up to someone, and directly tell them to quit the CCP. They told them that heaven will destroy the CCP and they must quit to be safe. They did not talk about any basic facts such as the Tiananmen Self Immolation hoax or how Dafa is being persecuted. When the person refused, the senior practitioners would follow them, hold them and force them to agree to quit. Some people just wanted to get away, so they just said okay without really meaning it. Other people became angry.
Even worse, one time a fellow practitioner was telling someone how his cancer was cured after practicing Dafa. Just as the person was listening very attentively, another practitioner jumped in, held the person’s shoulder and said, “Did you join the Youth League or Young Pioneers? Quit it now!” The person became upset and left.
Many senior fellow practitioners always go out to clarify the facts, validate the Fa, and save people no matter the weather. They do really well on everything. But there are indeed some senior practitioners who are not clear on the Fa-principles and use a forceful way to ask people to quit the CCP without explaining much.
I feel we have not truly clarified the facts when we only ask people to quit the CCP. We need to change their opinion of Dafa and expose the CCP’s evil nature. Often, these practitioners aren’t sure whether people truly agree to quit the CCP from their hearts. They just cared about recording their names and submitting them to the website, as if they are completing a task. Some people even fight with each other to submit names. This is really an attachment to fame and pursuing how many people one has helped to quit.
We are all cultivators. We must think carefully about the mentality we have when we are doing such serious and extraordinary things—saving sentient beings. We must pay attention to the consequences caused by our mentalities.
Master said,
“The emergence of the Communist Party and the CCP’s real goal is to have people hate Gods and Buddhas, to propagate atheism, to instill a philosophy of “struggle,” and to thereby destroy humankind. 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 saving the world’s people.” (“The Ultimate Goal of Clarifying the Truth,” The Essentials of Diligent Progress Vol. III)
“Whatever day history is to end on, that day cannot be delayed no matter what. There can only be changes made to specific things or what unfolds in the process. Things that are not done well will impact things later on, but this overall time frame cannot be extended.” (“20th Anniversary Fa Teaching,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. XI)
“As I have just said, the “three withdrawals” is not the goal, clarifying the truth to save people is the goal.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2016 New York Fa Conference”)
I hope that we can all learn from these situations, and rationally validate the Fa and save people. Every life is precious and time is limited. It is Dafa disciples’ mission and responsibility to correct our words and actions and fulfill what Master wants.
Editor's note: Views expressed in this article represent the author's own opinions, for which the author is solely responsible. Readers should evaluate the article's merits on their own.