(Clearwisdom.net) As the global economic crisis floods the world like a tsunami, the previously active market suddenly has slowed down and unemployment numbers keep rising. In such a difficult environment, Falun Gong practitioners, living by the principles of Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance, have not only performed their own duties well but also have used their peacefulness and benevolence to assist other people struggling to make a living.
Dentist Shen Kunjin
The big board proclaiming "Falun Dafa Is Good" outside Dentist Shen's office
One day in the late Fall of 2008, cold wind and drizzle ruled the streets of Taipei, Taiwan. People put up their collars to keep themselves warm. In the third section of 1st Boulevard East, the glass door of Dentist Shen's office was pushed open. A man around 40 came in. A little shyly, he asked, "Dentist Shen, my ceramic dentures covering my front teeth fell out. Could you please fix them?"
After examining the dentures, Dentist Shen found that the roots of three artificial teeth on the dentures were broken and only one tooth had a good root. However, the one good tooth root couldn't hold the denture. So Mr. Shen told the patient that he needed a new dentures and explained the reason. Lowering his head, the patient said slowly, "I know it needs to be redone, but I don't have any money. Can you help me fix it?"
Normal patient procedures require that the patient register and pay a set-up fee before the dentist will begin the check-up. If the patient needs dentures, he is required to pay upfront, to avoid unnecessary dispute after it is done. However, Dentist Shen just asked the patient to fill out his basic personal information, then started to fix the dentures. He also reminded the patient, "I can glue it for you, but I need to let you know the condition of your teeth. You need to be very careful and try not to use the front teeth to chew. If you are careful about that, your dentures will last longer."
Seeing "Falun Dafa Is Good" Encouraged the Patient to Come Into the Office
After the dentures were fixed, the patient asked, "How much is it?" He also said frankly, "To tell you the truth, I don't have medical insurance, since I don't have the money to pay for it." In other words, all expenses would come out of his own pocket. Dentist Shen said, "Then give me one hundred yuan (equivalent to three dollars) as the set-up fee." The patient could not believe his ears, "Dr. Shen, how much did you say?" Dentist Shen said sincerely, "Just a one hundred-yuan set-up fee."
The patient's eyes began to tear up. "Dentist Shen, to be honest, today I had force myself to come into your office. I have been turned away by a dozen dentists already. None of them wanted to help me fix these dentures. They all told me to get new ones. After I begged, one dentist said he could help me, but he asked for twelve hundred yuan, and I don't have that kind of money. So I didn't get it fixed until now."
The patient was greatly moved, "Luckily, today my wife and I went to the post office across the street. We saw the characters 'Falun Dafa Is Good' on your office. My wife said, 'This dentist practices Falun Gong, perhaps he would be willing to help us.' She told me to go in and ask, but I didn't want to. She kept encouraging me, so I came in."
"Falun Gong practitioners are much better than I thought"
The patient then went to the store next-door to buy a bottle of flu syrup. He said that he had a light flu, but had not been able to afford the medicine. He told Dentist Shen that he had lost his job for a while and was having trouble finding a new one. He and his wife lived on the meager income of his wife's cartoon drawings, and he once even considered ending his life. But today he was finally able to save a few dozen yuan to buy flu syrup. He and the dentist talked a lot. Dentist Shen encouraged him not to give up, and to take care of his health before resuming his job hunting. He also welcomed him and his wife to practice Falun Gong, so that they could gain good health and stay happy.
When the gentleman left, he gave Dentist Shen a deep bow, "Dentist Shen, you Falun Gong practitioners are really nice, much better than I thought."
Thinking of Others First
Other people may wonder, since Dentist Shen didn't care about the one thousand yuan to fix the man's dentures, why did he charge one hundred yuan for a set up fee? Dentist Shen told about an article that he had read earlier. The author of the article shared an experience he'd had when he was traveling overseas. One day when he was rushing to catch the last bus home, his full bag of apples fell on the ground. A girl who was selling gum at the bus station ran over to help him. He was very grateful and handed her a dollar as a gesture of appreciation. Her face turned red and he saw that he had embarrassed her. The girl pushed the money back to him and ran away. The author felt very sorry. He realized that he had humiliated her. Helping others is a source of happiness. That girl came to help him out of the kindness of her heart.
Dentist Shen said, "Our Teacher told us to think about others first concerning everything.
'Whenever you encounter a problem, you should first consider whether others can put up with this matter or if it will hurt anyone. In doing so, there will not be any problems. Therefore, in cultivation practice you should follow a higher and higher standard for yourself.' ("Upgrading Xinxing," Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun, 2000 Translation).
The patient had no choice when he was in trouble. I didn't think that I was helping him at all. The thing just happened naturally. If I didn't take any fee, it would seem to him like I was helping him out of charity. I don't want to hurt his sense of pride or to put him under a lot of pressure. Besides, we practitioners know the theory of 'no loss, no gain.' I didn't want him to feel that he owed me anything. Since I can decide how much to charge, I decided to charge him only a small amount. As long as he could pay, he could leave my office with confidence. This is also a kindness to him."
March 28, 2009
