(Clearwisdom.net) Greetings, revered Master! Greetings, practitioners in the world!
I was lucky and attained Dafa in March 1997. During the past nine years, I have stumbled along my path, and although I sometimes may not completely understand the Fa principles, due to my firm belief in Master and Dafa, I have continued the practice. Here I want to write down some of my experiences in order to validate the mighty power of the Fa. Please point out anything improper.
Master considers everything for his disciples
When Master's article "Towards Consummation" (June 17, 2000) was published, I tried several printing shops and finally found one that accepted my order. The next day I distributed the articles to fellow practitioners in the city. It was late when I left my home in order to distribute the article to a another practitioner. I forgot to add water to the kettle on the stove and forgot to take an umbrella.
I rode my motorcycle to the other practitioner's home and then quickly rode back. It started to rain, but it only rained behind me and in front of me. I didn't get wet at all. Arriving home, I saw the kettle on the coal stove with white smoke coming out of it. There was no water left inside, but the kettle was not damaged. The fire had gone out and I thought that it would be nice if it was still on. Then I began studying the Fa. Soon, the fire rekindled itself. I thanked Master in my mind. Master considers everything for his disciples.
Validating Dafa in police custody
1. Facing brutal torture with righteous thoughts, I recovered from scabies
On May 13, 2001, in the Xinhua Forced Labor Camp, Sichuan Province, more than ten practitioners decided to celebrate Master's birthday together. At noon, several of us were tortured with electric shocks. When the electric baton hit my lower back, I cried out loudly due to the pain. A guard yelled, "Cry out! Cry out!" I then thought that I am a Dafa practitioner and I should control myself and not moan. When this thought appeared, I didn't feel pain any more when the guard shocked me again.
He shocked me everywhere on my upper body. When he asked me if it was painful, I calmly looked at him and said, "You can find out if you try it on yourself." He stopped shocking me. I had suffered from scabies for several months. They are extremely itchy, so I often scratched and was unable to sleep at night. In the morning, I often found my fingers covered with a thick layer of bloody pus. After they shocked me with the electric baton and I had righteous thoughts, that night I didn't feel itchy any more. Several days later, I recovered from scabies. Master suffered the pain and tribulation for me.
2. Evil retreats when practitioners persist
In August 2001, the guards tried to force many of us to give up our belief in Dafa. We were forced to stand straight like a soldier from 7:00 a.m. until 11:30 a.m., then after lunch from 12:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m., and after dinner from 7:00 p.m. until midnight. In August, it is very hot in Mianyang City. Even though we wore shorts and short sleeve shirts, we were still soaked with sweat. We did not receive any breakfast in the morning and had to stand the entire day without any water. We were beaten when we tried to drink the dripping water in the restroom. After ten days of suffering from this torture, my feet were swollen. I looked inward and realized that I had not studied the Fa with a calm mind in those days because the guards and inmates kept bothering me. I always thought with my human side and listened to what others said.
Realizing this shortcoming, I decided to recite the Fa with a calm mind. Every morning, I first recited Lunyu and then the table of contents of Zhuan Falun. Then I would try to recall every section. Next day, I recited Master's new articles and Hong Yin. I persisted in reciting the Fa. Through reciting the Fa, I realized that I did not understand the Fa clearly, therefore I didn't completely deny the guards' words. When I recited, "If you still are not fundamentally resolute in the Fa, everything else is out of question." ("For Whom do You Practice Cultivation?" in Essentials for Further Advancement) I suddenly understood that I must firmly believe in Dafa and Master. After that no one came to talk to me and no one interrupted my Fa study.
Soon after, some inmates started to interrupt my Fa study again. They pushed me with the excuse that I didn't stand according to the standard. I recited the poem:
"In life, nothing sought,
In death, regretting naught;
Washing away all wrong thought,
Buddhahood, with less
adversity, is wrought."
("Nothing Kept" in Hong Yin, translation version A)
and realized that I must give up the attachment to life and death. No matter how badly the guards torture me, I must practice Dafa to the end. After I found my attachment, the situation changed. The tortures they inflicted upon me ended a few days later.
3. Good things come to those who treat practitioners with kindness
There was an inmate with the nickname "Monk." He suffered from a disease that made him foam at the mouth and lose consciousness. Several times, he picked up empty water bottles, filled them with water and gave them to practitioners to drink. Once a bad inmate noticed this and beat him. However, since that time, his sickness never returned and he became quite energetic. He was released half a year early. Other inmates felt that his case was very dramatic. Master is benevolent to every living being.
4. Safeguarding Dafa at mass gatherings
At the end of 2001, the guards held mass gatherings in the labor camp where so-called "reformed" people made fun of Falun Dafa. I felt very sad. I wanted to share this with fellow practitioners who persisted in Dafa but I didn't have any chance. Everyone was watched by two inmates and we were not allowed to talk to each other. Although some inmates might allow us to speak a few words to other practitioners, if the head of the inmates found out, they would suffer beatings. Unable to talk with other fellow practitioners and without knowing how to stop these evil deeds, I felt very sad.
Once they conducted such a gathering with more than 2000 prisoners lined up in an orderly fashion on a concrete pad in an open field. Many guards in black uniforms stood along the surrounding high wall. Guards from different divisions stood next to the prisoners they were in charge of. Guards brandishing sticks in their hands and wearing metal helmets patrolled the area in groups of four. They barked at the prisoners with a megaphone. The entire scene was terrifying.
I felt very sad and thought: "Why are those who used to be my fellow practitioners now berating Falun Dafa and Master. Why do they no longer acknowledge Master?" I remembered Master's teaching,
"I said: what is a Buddha? 'Tathagata' is what human beings call someone who's come with the truth and the power to do what he wants, whereas real Buddhas are guardians of the cosmos and are responsible for all righteous elements in the cosmos." ("Teaching the Fa at the Western U.S. Fa Conference" in Guiding the Voyage)
I thought, "I am a Dafa disciple, a life created by Dafa. The evil persecutes Dafa and defames Master. I will never allow such evil to exist."
When this thought appeared in my mind, I felt my body becoming warm and expanding quickly. This powerful energy eliminated all the evil. I stood up and called loudly, "Falun Dafa is good! Falun Dafa is a righteous Fa!" Several people pushed me down. I continued, "Return Master's flawless reputation!" I hadn't finished these words when someone covered my mouth with his hand. However, I heard clearly that one by one, more and more people were calling out, "Falun Dafa is good! Return Master's flawless reputation!" Everybody flared with excitement. The righteous thoughts of fellow practitioners appeared. We were then taken back to the cells.
At dinnertime, practitioners kept encouraging each other hand gestures. I knew that the other practitioners worried about us and wondered whether we were tortured with electric shocks again. I didn't think about it much and just wondered, "There are only nine practitioners standing up. Wouldn't it be really great if all fellow practitioners would stand up. If so, then the evil will never dare again to hold such a gathering." Later, they extended our prison terms by 20 days. When I studied the Fa at home after I was released, I realized that I had not denied the old forces arrangements. I had thoughts of: "If we do not cooperate with the evil in the labor camp then we will be shocked, punished or have to endure extra prison terms." At that time, we did not know anything about the old forces and did not know about sending forth righteous thoughts.
5. Eliminating the evil in an instant
About ten days later, labor camp officials were preparing for a provincial inspection. Many graphics and banners with slanderous words hung in the division conference room. When we were called to gather in the room, in a twinkle, practitioners took down all the graphics and banners. When I had just stepped onto the second step, everything on the wall had disappeared. No one said a word but we encouraged each other with eye contact. We are the protecting gods of the new universe.
6. Resisting persecution as one body
On New Year's Day 2001, nine fellow practitioners were held in four different teams. I was held in the No. 4 team. When the team officials came to talk to me, I took the opportunity to expose the tortures I had suffered while in the No. 6 Division. The guards were scared and ordered two prisoners to watch me and to force me to read the books that slandered Dafa. I firmly resisted and was punished by having to stand for a long time. Ten days later, three team officials talked to me separately. I told them that the writings in the books were deceiving people. I asked them, "Why do they not allow you to read the original books? You are being deceived. They use you to persecute and torture practitioners. When you do this, you are committing a crime." They no longer asked me to study their books after that.
Two months later, another practitioner arrived. At night, guards instigated several prisoners to beat the new arrival. Just after 11 p.m., when I was doing some cleaning, I heard the practitioner screaming--prisoners were beating him. The guards on duty ignored it and did not intervene. I stood in the hallway and started to call out loudly. Three other practitioners joined me. The guards on duty had to come and see what was happening, so they had to stop the beating. Acting as one body, we helped to stop the torture of fellow practitioners. Our environment improved quickly, and 11 prisoners who learned the truth were released early. The team head often played chess with us. When an inmate noticed that I studied Master's new article, the guards did not give me any trouble. I passed around the new article to other practitioners.
7. Miraculously passing around Master's articles
It was difficult to pass around Master's articles in the labor camp since there were prisoners assigned to watch us all the time. It was relatively easier to pass them around within the same team but not among the different teams. However, Master always helps us in critical moments. For example, it was always very crowded at dinnertime and the stairways were always very congested. This provided a good opportunity to pass the articles to other teams. Once, a fellow practitioner was only two or three meters away from another to whom he wanted to pass an article when the traffic started to flow near the stairs. The fellow practitioner just ran up to him. When I saw him running, I thought, "No evil interference! No one will see it." He was successful and when he turned around, we looked at each other and smiled with understanding.
Once at the exercise field, a prisoner saw two practitioners passing around an article. He immediately called out. All fellow practitioners helped to send forth righteous thoughts. The guards came but couldn't find the article.
I experienced many happy surprises, excitements, and wonders during my nine years of cultivation, which manifested after giving up my postnatal notions. I did not do well in some areas because they were caused by my postnatal notions and human attachments. I enlightened to what Master said,
"Its broad and immense, profound inner meaning can only manifest itself to, and be experienced and understood by, practitioners who are at different levels of true cultivation. Only then can one truly see what the Fa is." ("Broad and Immense" in Essentials for Further Advancement)
As a matter of fact, if we have a wish, Master will make the essential changes. I really appreciate Master's teaching and protection. As a disciple, I am unable to repay Master for what he has endured, but I can do the three things well, not disappoint our revered Master, and live up to his expectations.