(Minghui.org) My hometown is in Hebei Province, which is known as the “old liberated area.” This refers to its having been completely controlled by the Communist Party after Japan surrendered in 1945, four years before the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) seized power in 1949.
My Father Was a Victim of the CCP
My father had a rebellious nature, and he embraced communism when he was very young. Influenced by the CCP’s atheist ideology, he smashed the village temple.
His mother sent him to the city to work at his uncle’s small factory. During the Party’s class struggle movement in China, my father and his cousin reported on their uncle, and accused him of exploiting them. As a result, their uncle was classified as capitalist, while my father and his cousin were classified as the working class. Thus, I was born into a working class family.
My mother passed away when I was eight years old, and my father remarried. He was the sole breadwinner for our family of eight, and we lived in extreme poverty. My father also paid off a large debt to the factory for my aunt’s medical treatment. She contracted a strange illness when she was in junior high school, and my father borrowed the money for her treatment. When she died after her 30th birthday my father hadn’t finished repaying the loan when he passed away at 48.
I saw how the CCP’s atheist ideology deeply harmed my father.
The First Half of My Life Was Steeped in Party Culture
I was born in the early 1950’s. Since my family was manual laborers, a celebrated class according to the CCP, I was nurtured by the CCP’s teachings and raised to be an atheist. I was still in elementary school when the Cultural Revolution started. My youth was wasted in those years of uncertainly and violence. I followed the revolution wholeheartedly. I wrote many articles and I was obsessed with class struggle. I worked in political offices, did secretarial work, and other jobs. I followed the slogan, “I will do whatever the Party tells me to do.”
I am a law-abiding person, honest and conscientious in everything I do. I did every job I was assigned thoroughly and with attention to detail. My work ethic earned my supervisor’s trust.
In the 1980’s, I switched to the business department. I worked as a statistician and later as an accountant. I treated my job with seriousness and honesty. However, atheism was still deeply rooted in my heart. I thought Gods, Buddhas, and spiritual cultivation were fantasy.
The first half of my life was completely was immersed in Party culture, which later became a huge obstacle for me.
Finding Falun Dafa
A family member told me about Falun Dafa and gave me a recording of Master’s audio lectures in Jinan. I never heard anyone speak like that. I felt Master was teaching people to be good. Since I considered myself a good person, I continued to listen. My relative suggested that I try doing the exercises. I told him I was hesitant because I felt I could not do them.
Every single sentence Master said resonated deeply within me. The more I listened, the more I wanted to hear. I found an exercise site near me. The atmosphere was righteous, and everyone held themselves to high standards. My heavy body felt light after I did the exercises. I felt especially happy in this environment, and the relationships between people were harmonious. It was as if we escaped society’s polluted environment and I felt wonderful every day.
I felt a happiness I hadn’t felt before. My body and mind gradually improved—I felt I found a safe harbor far away from the corrupt world.
I told the people I met about Falun Dafa whenever I had the chance. However, I was doing so within the framework of Party culture. The way I spoke was laughable. I told people that CCP members have to be model workers; however, Falun Dafa practitioners are not only good workers, they are also good people even when no one is looking. I believed that CCP members are good people and Dafa practitioners are good people too. The CCP doctrine was still deeply embedded in me, which had a profound impact on me when the Party began persecuting Falun Dafa.
Upholding Falun Dafa
When the persecution started, my habit of adhering to: “Listen to the Party, and do whatever the Party tells you to do,” affected me. It seemed perfectly normal for me to think, “If the Party doesn’t allow me to practice, then I won’t.” The day the CCP’s defamation of Dafa aired on TV, I visited my relative who is also a practitioner. I asked him what I should do. He said calmly: “Just keep doing what we always did.” I decided not to give up cultivation.
However, the mindset of “Listening to the CCP and doing whatever the CCP tells me to do” still lingered in my mind. I always watched the evening news on TV, which only broadcast the CCP censored programs and propaganda. I watched it every day, including the news that slandered Falun Dafa. Some practitioners felt we should not watch this. I was not afraid of it.
I live where practitioners gathered on April 25 to appeal for Falun Dafa, and I saw the entire event. On the news, the local police chief declared that they did not arrest a single person. He lied. There were many witnesses and victims that day. Yet, he dared to lie. If no one saw what happened, who knows what else he would claim.
The evening news broadcasts completely shattered my faith in the CCP. The CCP tells lies and Falun Dafa teaches Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. If the choice is between what is true and what is a lie, of course, I choose the truth—it’s the normal thing to do. I often tell people: “It was the CCP who pushed me to the side of Falun Dafa.”
The Truth Is Indestructible
A day or two was not sufficient for me to erase the influence of decades-long CCP indoctrination. The atheist ideology occasionally surfaced in my mind, like a battle between true and false. I struggled: “What is wrong with practicing Falun Dafa? If wanting to be healthy and good is wrong, then what is right?” Fortunately, I had the lectures Master gave abroad. I repeatedly watched them, pondered them deeply, and the battle between good and evil within me began to change.
This state of hesitation lasted for nearly three years. It was due to Dafa and the help of fellow practitioners that I overcame it. Otherwise, I would have lost my battle with thought karma, and lost this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Since the CCP seized power in China, people’s thinking has become completely distorted; normal thinking and logic is no longer possible. People regard the CCP as a red line that cannot be crossed. The CCP uses taxpayers’ money to openly harm Falun Dafa practitioners, who strive to be good people and live according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The CCP treats persecuting good people as a profession, and they feel perfectly justified in doing so. When practitioners clarify the truth about Falun Dafa and the persecution, the Party claims it’s an “Anti-CCP” crime, and punishes practitioners.
For the past 27 years, the persecution suffered by Falun Dafa practitioners is unimaginable. Throughout history, the Communist Party has been able to overthrow anyone it wanted, but it has not been able to destroy Dafa practitioners. Why? Because once a person understands the truth, nothing can destroy them. This is the power of virtue and shows how great Falun Dafa is.
The persecution has gone on for 27 years, and it has caused moral degradation and led to the current chaos in society. I now understand the meaning of Fa-rectification and the greatness and difficulties of Fa-rectification. I also understand the difficulties we face and the mission we are undertaking. I am no longer trapped in thoughts about what is right, what is wrong, or whether something is true or not. I only believe in Master and the Fa. I will follow Master to help him with Fa-rectification, fulfill my vow, and cultivate well.
Seeds of Goodness Are Gradually Taking Root Across China
During the past 27 years, I experienced a lot, learned many lessons, and walked a winding and torturous path. I made mistakes, took detours in my cultivation several times, and faced the evil head on. There were regrets, but I eventually made it through under Master’s protection, including overcoming sickness karma.
As many of my family members gradually age, they notice my vigorous spirit and youthful appearance compared to my peers. They now look at Falun Dafa with new respect. Although they are afraid to speak of it in public, deep down they know Falun Dafa is good—something those in power cannot comprehend. These seeds of kindness are gradually taking root and sprouting across China. Moreover, inspired by the principles of Dafa, my friends and family strive to be good people in their own environments. They are helping to slow down the speed of moral decline. Isn’t it better to have more good people?
Although the persecution of Falun Dafa is still going on in China; although some of our fellow practitioners are still suffering in prison; although some practitioners are going through various types of tribulations, Dafa is unstoppable. The changes in the celestial phenomena are unstoppable. The inclination of people towards goodness is unstoppable. The restoration of light to heaven and earth is unstoppable, and the Fa-rectification of the human world is just around the corner. Let us closely follow Master, do the three things well, and fulfill our mission of assisting Master in Fa-rectification.
