(Clearwisdom.net) Not long ago, two practitioners from another city called and asked me to participate in a human rights activity there to expose the CCP by sharing my own persecution experiences.
After arriving, while I talked with one practitioner about the details, I was very surprised to find that although we'd decided over the phone what we should each do to prepare for the activity, they hadn't actually done anything! They were too busy with their jobs and family responsibilities. They'd done nothing beyond thinking that we should participate in the activity; they didn't even have proper clothing! As far as I was concerned, adequate preparations absolutely should've been made, as this was saving sentient beings.
Instantly I was very upset and began pushing the practitioners to get ready. I knew that when I felt upset it was my demon nature at work, and I was hurting others, so I tried to control myself. However, every time I thought about how we might possibly damage our chance to save sentient beings, I couldn't stay calm. I kept going up and down, over and over, just like Teacher said,
"When a problem arises, if it does not irritate a person psychologically, it does not count or is useless and cannot make him or her improve." (from Zhuan Falun)
While we were talking, the practitioner soon became so sleepy that he just couldn't keep his eyes open. I had to let him go to sleep. Then I tried to figure out what we should bring with us the next day.
The next morning we missed our train, and the next train was late. We wanted to notify the organizer of the event that we were going to be late, but we couldn't get through. When we finally arrived at our destination, it was icy cold; the temperature was below -20 oC. While we shivered in the freezing cold, I felt extremely bad. The evil was so rampant because we hadn't done well. Yet, when I thought of the sentient beings who were waiting for us, I clenched my teeth and encouraged myself, "Send forth righteous thoughts and don't let it affect us!"
When we finally arrived at the meeting, my fellow practitioner was first to give his speech. I quietly watched him talk. It was the first time I'd ever looked at him rationally. Suddenly I saw many of his shining qualities and some of his shortcomings. I also remembered that improvement could only be achieved by improving one's xinxing on one's own initiative, while others could only offer advice out of compassion. I realized that I hadn't tried to understand his difficulties. Even if he couldn't be diligent in the maze, it was still a tribulation for him. I should've helped him move up from his current level. Instead, I'd only pressured him out of my understanding of right and wrong. It was selfish. I had only made him suffer without improving, and I myself was so strongly affected that I'd deviated from the Fa. I hadn't done my part well due to a lack of righteous thoughts.
I also remembered the Fa principle Teacher taught us that enlightened beings are "in a state of immense tolerance" (from "Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Boston") and will silently make up for what others haven't done well. My heart was instantly freed and I set myself whole-heartedly to what I should do. I made up my mind that no matter how much he said, I would make up for the rest. I must clarify the truth well.
He spoke for about half an hour, and then it was my turn to speak. I wanted to play a videotape first. I'd learned how to use the projector in about ten minutes the previous night. We'd agreed that when I gave my speech he would handle the projector, but neither of us could make the projector work while the whole audience waited. We tried to get someone to help us in vain. The audience was getting more and more impatient.
All this made me feel like a knife had gone through my heart. I had to use all my energy to send forth righteous thoughts. When I couldn't think of a solution, I tearfully cried out in my heart to Teacher, "Teacher, I must make these people understand the truth even if I have nothing and nobody to help me!"
Suddenly everything changed. I played the video and started talking about my experiences. I observed the response of the audience and thought about how I could do better to attract their attention. Shortly afterwards, people stopped talking to each other and started asking questions. As soon as we broke for lunch, two thirds of the audience gave their signatures to condemn the human rights violations and support Falun Gong practitioners. I felt more and more light-hearted during the rest of the day.
This was in fact a question that had perplexed me for a long time: We must clarify the truth well, but if practitioners haven't done well, how should we look at it?
Initially I'd believed that the standard of the Fa is absolutely unchangeable. Whoever errs must correct himself. However, through the day's experiences I realized that I had been looking at this matter with an everyday person's mentality and manner. That understanding of mine didn't come from Dafa. That was why I had been so affected and tired, and that was why I hurt others. If we can truly treat other practitioners' shortcomings within the Fa, we won't deviate from the Fa. We'll only be kind and care for others instead of hurting them. If practitioners really can't do well with a specific matter, we should silently make it up. Compassion is most powerful and can move the practitioners who haven't done well. We should look within and cultivate ourselves. After realizing these things, I made up my mind that no matter what, I can't deviate from the Fa.
We planned to analyze the facts to expose the true nature of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) the following day. Because another practitioner was to come and give the presentation, I felt a little relieved. However, the practitioner unexpectedly called me, saying that because he didn't get off work until 10 p.m., he wouldn't have time to prepare the presentation, and he asked me to prepare everything for him. He hadn't prepared anything yet. He asked me to do all this as if he had all the justification in the world to do so. I felt like I'd been hit in the head. I knew that all my plans for the afternoon had to be changed. However, since I had already enlightened to those things earlier, I wasn't affected anymore and immediately started preparing.
It was two o'clock in the morning by the time I finished all the necessary preparations. I felt uneasy because I hadn't studied the Fa all day, and I was reluctant to go to sleep right away. I thought to myself, "Just let me read one paragraph, but let me read it wholeheartedly." I opened one document in my computer randomly. It taught that no matter how busy we are, we must study the Fa well. My heart was full of gratitude after I read this paragraph. Teacher is always guiding me towards being diligent under all circumstances. I made up my mind that I must keep on being diligent within the Fa.
The next morning, while we were on the train, I explained the plan for the day to the two practitioners. We started reading the Fa, but soon I saw them falling asleep with their books in their hands; one was about to drop his book on the floor. If this had happened before, I would have surely pointed it out to them in a very stern manner. Now, however, although my respect and righteous faith towards Dafa hadn't changed one tiny bit, I knew I had to deal with specific problems with compassion and wisdom. At that moment, I felt that my mind had become so broad and my heart so soft. There was only compassion and caring in my heart. I only thought, "They haven't sent forth righteous thoughts to clear up that part of their dimensions, so I'll do it for them."
The practitioner who gave the presentation did very well in the beginning, but when he got to the third subtitle, he put aside what we had prepared and just said whatever he wanted to say. He only talked for a few minutes about the Cultural Revolution, although I had prepared many photos, videos, and analyses from different angles. I felt so worried, but I couldn't do anything because his English was very fluent, and I couldn't find an opportunity to interrupt him.
However, I was not too surprised, as I already knew that this practitioner's mind was relatively simple. When he believed that he should do something, he would just go and do it without considering very carefully or comprehensively. Actually, I had the same problem, so I decided that I would just try to make up for anything that he didn't cover to let people know the truth. Even if our presentation was not that clear, our purpose of saving sentient beings and the power to reach people's hearts would remain unchanged.
I noticed that the audience's attention was not very concentrated while he was speaking. I assumed that it was because he was speaking in an academic style. His way of thinking and the terms he chose to use were more suitable for an academic discussion, but the educational level of the current audience was not very high, nor was their knowledge abundant. It might be difficult for them to accept his style, which was more complicated, abstract, and academic than my way, which was simpler, fact-based, and more concrete.
I asked myself, "If I were to discuss this with scholars, what would I do?" If I talked about my persecution experiences, they might find me simple and sincere, but I wouldn't be able to reason with them theoretically and thoroughly, the reasons being that my vocabulary wasn't big enough, and, after practicing Dafa, I had gradually abandoned everyday people's philosophy and everyday people's way of thinking and speaking. As far as I could see, those things were just like a labyrinth that has no way out. I had already become unaccustomed to those things.
While the practitioner was talking, I closely observed the audience. Whenever I thought there was something that they didn't understand, I tried to remember it, so that I could explain it to them later.
During the first break, a few people who'd been sitting in the corner and often talked and laughed loudly lined up to sign the petition to support human rights in China and the persecuted Falun Gong practitioners. On the second day, 100% of the audience signed! The three of us agreed: the effect was very, very good.
I had noticed many things that needed improvement, so how had we achieved such a good effect? Surely we'd done something right. I thought about where we'd fallen short. One, our knowledge of human rights and legal content were inadequate; two, we hadn't cooperated very well. Why did people still understand? What's the crucial factor as to whether people can understand the truth or not? It was Dafa practitioners' righteous thoughts and pure compassion.
I also realized that I had paid more attention to the surface matters than to Dafa, thinking we must organize things with logic and order. My mind was very much focused on human methods. To prepare thoroughly was of course important, but it was definitely not the decisive factor. I asked myself, "How had this attachment of mine been formed?" My major was science, and I had migrated to a country where laws and regulations are respected. While I became more and more rational after I began practicing Dafa, I also became more orderly and efficient in my daily life and in doing Dafa practitioners' three things. This made me feel that my methods were very good. Unknowingly, I'd become very grounded in human logic. This was actually another manifestation of being deluded by this material world.
Digging deeper and further, I also realized that I hadn't been able to deal with practitioners' shortcomings interfering with the salvation of sentient beings.
Students have to study hard to go to universities. If they don't, they will surely fail the entrance examination. But having studied hard doesn't necessarily mean that a university will accept them, unless their fates are arranged that way. Thorough preparation was necessary to enable the audience to better understand, but if we didn't have righteous thoughts based on the Fa, we wouldn't be able to eliminate the bad elements behind the audience, and we wouldn't be able to save them. If I got worked up because of a practitioner's shortcomings, I would have deviated from the Fa, and that would be abandoning the root for the sake of trivialities.
I also saw clearly the relationship between matter and thought from perspective of the Fa, and that my thinking had been crawling within the boundary of the human level. I was deceived by the fake "reality" of the everyday world.
While I was illegally detained, I had been beaten so badly that I couldn't walk. Although I firmly believed that Dafa is the truth of the universe, I submitted to the endless torture because I felt my physical body couldn't possibly bear any more. Teacher told us long ago that his disciples were protected. He also talked about how in martial arts people could develop abilities to strike and to ward off blows. In Teacher's new articles, he also talked about the Fa principles of restraining the evil with righteous thoughts, etc. Why hadn't all these manifested in me? Why hadn't Dafa's power to eliminate the evil manifested in me?
It was all because of my attachment to self. The most important reason was that I was too lost in this "real" material world. The structure of the human body, the characteristics of the human space, the science arranged by the old forces, the brainwashing of the CCP and the reverse principles of the human world all make people deluded by "reality." However, this "reality" is not eternal. People who are too attached to the material will find it hard to believe the Buddha Law in their hearts and won't do well in the most evil tribulations. Only those who cultivate successfully in this world can be called the greatest lives in the universe. This path is very narrow. We must be completely pure and righteous to secure everything in the future.
After realizing how we should look at material matters with righteous understanding based on the Fa, I understood more clearly how we should treat fellow practitioners. Thus I solved my problems from the root. Actually, many different problems were all dissolved. When I studied the Fa again, many new meanings emerged. Although I had experienced that state many times before, I was still awed by Dafa's magnificence and profoundness, and I again realized how insignificant I am.
It took me four days to write and revise this article. Please kindly forgive me and correct me if it is too long and not orderly enough.
