(Minghui.org) I understand that the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) “zero-out” campaign in mainland China is the old forces’ persecution of practitioners who they look down on and are unwilling to let cultivate to consummation. As long as Dafa practitioners have righteous thoughts and actions and are within the Fa, there is no test we cannot pass.
Different Attitudes
I saw different attitudes among mainland practitioners towards the “zero-out” campaign, such as fear, avoidance, signing a renunciation and then writing a solemn statement to nullify it, asking another to sign on their behalf, letting the police and community officials come to their door and then clarifying the truth to them, going to the community office and the police station to clarify the truth, and sending forth righteous thoughts to eliminate the persecution.
I also saw some more recent understandings about it. One is not to acknowledge the old forces and not consider this as an opportunity to clarify the truth, but instead to deny the persecution and send forth righteous thoughts. Another is from the perspective of altruism–to clarify the truth, send forth righteous thoughts, and disintegrate the persecution.
In order to understand the perspective of altruism, I reflected on my own cultivation. I have been cultivating for over 20 years, and it was only recently that I discovered I did not truly cultivate. I realized that I either used the Fa to measure others and only saw others’ shortcomings when conflicts occurred, or I went to the extreme of being very strict with myself–not letting myself have any human notions, insisting that I eliminate all human sentiments, and paying attention to my thoughts all the time. It made me very nervous or even scared, and I did not truly eradicate my competitive mentality, jealousy, and showing off.
CCP Indoctrination: Changing Others and Not Oneself
I realized I did not have a good understanding of the Fa, and it was a manifestation of not completely believing in Master and the Fa. It seems contradictory that two such opposing notions coexisted in me, but actually it is not. It comes from being indoctrinated by the CCP.
The evil CCP also requires its students to “selflessly dedicate themselves and think of others first” in their textbook. Why is no one able to do that? Because the CCP requires others to selflessly devote themselves to the CCP and to put the CCP first, while the CCP kills and persecutes people at will. Thus, those who live in the society controlled by the evil CCP learn to be cunning, protect themselves, maximize their personal gain, and package themselves as selfless and occupying the moral high ground. The CCP goes against the laws of heaven, destroys people’s moral standards, and will be eliminated by heaven.
In the past, I felt Falun Dafa is good, but in a sentimental way. Fundamentally, I wanted others to treat me with Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and I always wanted to change others. Of course, by doing so, I could not truly cultivate myself to a high level.
Meanwhile, the Fa is also compassionate. It is not true that if I made a small mistake or had some human notions, I would not be able to cultivate. I thought I must be strict with myself at all times; otherwise my cultivation would be over. This was wrong. Early in my cultivation, I even thought about going back to being a regular person and not continuing cultivation because of this wrong notion. The Fa is compassionate to sentient beings and to Dafa practitioners. We need to be strict with ourselves in cultivation and look within when conflicts occur, instead of not having fun at all or not eating well.
When I was in my 20s in mainland China before the persecution, I sometimes went out to swim at noon in the hot summer. Some older practitioners criticized me, saying a practitioner should not be afraid of heat and should not swim. When I saw them watching the CCTV’s news every day, I felt that was a real attachment since practitioners do not need to watch the CCP’s news and propaganda.
Imposing One’s Own Understanding on Others
When the older practitioner did not want to swim, she criticized the younger practitioner for swimming, saying it was an attachment. On the contrary, isn't watching TV also an attachment?
I read a Minghui article about a practitioner who did not have any attachment to food and did not cook good food for her children. She also complained about other practitioners who gave her children delicious food. When her children grew up, they felt that cultivation is difficult and gave up their cultivation. I feel the practitioner forced her children to act in this way since she did not have an attachment to food herself. She may also have imposed her own ideas on her children in other ways, which in the end pushed her children away from cultivation.
I have a relative who is a practitioner. She did not allow her husband to apply an anti-itch cream on his foot. Her husband did not cultivate Dafa. And her action pushed her husband completely out of Dafa. These practitioners did not understand the Fa well and were not truly selfless, considerate, and tolerant of others.
If some practitioners do not have attachments to comfort or food, should they also ask others to do the same? This is not cultivating oneself; they are trying to cultivate others. I think this is focusing too much on formality. There are so many other attachments to get rid of, such as showing off, jealousy, a competitive mentality, zealotry, fear, and lust, as Master pointed out in Zhuan Falun. If we don’t truly look for and eliminate these attachments in ourselves, or if we even avoid them, we cannot truly cultivate well and become selfless.
Therefore, I agree we should not acknowledge the “zero-out” campaign. But what should we do to truly deny it? Is only sending forth righteous thoughts enough? I understand that only when we eliminate any fear through cultivation, truly consider what is good for sentient beings, and be truly kind, can we completely eliminate any persecution and interference. Selflessness and altruism can truly deny the old forces’ arrangements.
I actually hesitated to share my thoughts, since I did not explain my points very well, and I may even offend some people after taking the time and effort to write this sharing article. Moreover, it may not get published on the Minghui website. However, I realized it is not right to be afraid of hard work. Maybe some of my experience sharing can help other practitioners or get them to think things over.
[Editor’s note: This article only represents the author’s current understanding 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
