(Minghui.org) I read on the Minghui web site that many practitioners were suffering physically after they were illegally sentenced and sent to forced labor camps. However, the wicked police refused to release them. I would like to share my experience with fellow practitioners.
Every one has a different situation and a unique cultivation path. But in the persecution, believing in Master and Dafa, holding righteous thoughts and letting go of the attachment to life and death are all of great importance. Moreover, we should be able to enlighten to Master's hints. In fact, all the bad things in our cultivation are caused by ourselves.
I obtained the Fa in 1999. Since the day I started cultivating, I have been determined to practice even if I have to let go of everything in the secular world. In January 2001, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) agents sent me to a labor camp and I was detained there for three years. I maintained my firm belief in Dafa. Although I was aware that the persecution was very severe, I had a firm mind that even though I may lose my life, I would not betray Master and Dafa. The night I was sent to the labor camp, I had a dream. There was light in front of me and I ran towards it. A man was running after me with a gun. He shouted, “I will shoot you if you do not stop.” I did not care whether he shot me or not, but just kept running.
When I was a child, I was very afraid of being given an injection. When I was in my twenties I was given an injection and I passed out. After the persecution began and I was sent to a labor camp and had a physical examination, they wanted to check my blood. A nurse held a needle and tried to insert it into my arm. I was thinking that if I could not take such pain, how could I say that I let go of the attachment to life and death? I looked at the nurse who was looking for a blood vessel in my arm. She said that my blood vessels were too thin to take blood from and it took her a long time to find a vein. In the end, nothing was taken out. Then the head nurse came to try but she said that my blood was too dense. As a result, only a little blood was taken. From the perspective of ordinary people's medical science, that kind of blood is of very poor quality. However, I was enlightened to the point that practitioners' blood is very pure and precious. It was Master that was protecting me and preventing me from losing too much blood. Later on, other examinations were taken. Finally, the labor camp refused to accept me. I was not aware of what was going on.
The next day, the police refused to give up and took me to a hospital for a check-up. The doctor told the police, “She is seriously ill.” I replied, “I am not ill.” The doctor was very upset, “We are using a very hi-tech device to check your body. How can you say that you are not ill?” I suddenly realized that Master was protecting me, and I appeared to be ill. I returned home. Afterwards, police saw that I was very healthy and tried to send me back to the labor camp multiple times but failed to do so since I had very strong righteous thoughts and Master was protecting me.
In 2006, the regime's authorities gave me a long prison sentence. In the whole process, I had a clear mind and righteous thoughts. However, there were things that I did not do well and some results were not so good. Those were caused by my improper pursuit.
At the very beginning, I sent righteous thoughts every day and it became a habit. I could feel that there was a very powerful energy field surrounding me. It became a natural thing for me to do and I was very focused. A few days later, besides sending righteous thoughts, I began reciting the Fa and clarified the truth. Since the time when I was detained, I firmly believed that evil factors would not succeed because Master was protecting me. I must not go to jail. If I really did, I wouldn't be afraid. I would not cooperate with wicked police, not by fighting with them but by not being afraid, haughty or downcast so that they could feel that Dafa practitioners' firm thought could be changed by nothing.
After I was told the court decision, I demanded to appeal. Guards at the detention center tried to persuade me not to, by telling me that they would not reduce the sentence for me. I replied that I was not appealing for a reduced sentence but for upholding the truth and telling others about the facts. I was appealing because I did not acknowledge the persecution.
I had never written a petition and I did not know how to write one. It was difficult for me to write a petition. However, I knew I must appeal and try my best to write the petition no matter how hard it was. The ten-day limit was about to expire. On the eighth day, I started to write the petition with Master's help. Several pages were done very quickly. I made three copies by hand and gave one copy to the police station, Procuratorate, and the court, respectively.
The court was trying to sentence me using the excuse that I had made truth-clarification materials. Therefore, in my petition, I pointed out that making materials to tell people about the facts was not doing a wrong thing. I was saving people and actually doing a good thing. When they said that I spread things against the Party, I told them I only informed people about the persecution and facts of Falun Gong.
After reading my petition, some people shed tears. Some said that it was well written. They smiled and said, “Your tone is really magnanimous. It's as though you are in charge and the one who's making the decision.” I said to myself, “It is Master that is rectifying the Fa and controlling everything. Master is the one who makes the decision.” One person said, “It's wrong to be sentenced to so many years just for practicing Falun Gong.” I replied, “Perhaps I won't have to stay in jail for even a single day.”
On the way to prison, I was thinking about how to save the two teenagers sitting behind me. They were sent to the Education Center for Young Criminals. The police did not allow us to talk. I borrowed a pen and there was a piece of paper in my pocket. I wrote on the paper, “I practice Falun Gong. Falun Gong teaches us how to become good people. Please remember that Falun Dafa is good.” Just as I was about to finish writing the last word “good” the police officer turned his head back and said, “What are you writing? Give it to me!” I thought that I should finish the word “good” first. The officer was very upset after reading what I wrote. A few minutes later, he laughed and said, “She's going to prison, but she still looks optimistic.”
When he did my physical examination, the doctor shouted, “What? How did you become like this?” He also said, “Just listen to them.” I said to myself, “I will listen to Master.” The prison sent me to a hospital for a more extensive examination. Afterward, a senior doctor said, “You have to undergo surgery right away.” He looked at the police and me before he said, “Whether she should do the surgery or not is up to her.” I realized that I should be the one who made the decision. Sometimes, we do not enlighten to a point but Master gives us a hint by having someone else tell us. It's up to us whether we realize it. Afterwards, the prison refused to accept me. The police demanded that the prison take me. Then the prison asked for another blood check and the result was not very good.
When I was stepping out with a criminal who was helping me take my packages, a police officer asked the criminal, “What are you doing?” She replied, “She hasn't been accepted for detention, so I'm helping her take away her things.” The officer kept walking with his head facing downward and said, “It's good to go back home. It's good to go back home.” In fact, we don't know how to deal with many things, but Master always gives us a hint. I realized that going back is returning home, it did not mean going back to the detention center.
After I got back to the detention center, the guard told me I needed surgery. I refused to do so. The guard said, “It's not up to you.” They were trying to force me to go there. My mind was not changed. The guard said, “The prison won't accept you and we cannot hold you in the detention center forever. Where should you go?” I said, “I will follow the normal procedure.” In fact, I did not know what the normal procedure was. I had heard that if prison won't accept the person, he or she must be taken to another place within a month. Normally, the person would be released. Finally, I went on a hunger strike to protest. I wrote letters to all officers in prison and told them that they would be held responsible for everything. I did not want to be on a hunger strike; it was them that forced me to do so. At last, when my body was about to reach the limit, they released me on bail without any requirements attached.
After I returned home, many people thought that even if I did not die, I would be seriously ill and never recover. I was not afraid but thought that I would be fine if I just had some water and food. I did not have to eat anything special but just ate whatever my family was eating. Moreover, everything worked fine in my body.
I would like to point out that everything negative that I've experienced has been a result of my own pursuits. Why were the regime personnel able to sentence me to ten years and I had to go to prison? Why did I have to go on a hunger strike before they would release me? When I was in the detention center, everyone had to be numbered and I was No. 202. I said to myself using an ordinary person's thought, “I'll be able to go back home. However, I had to go through a process.” Therefore, I was sentenced to many years and taken to prison. I went through the process. On my way back from prison, I had a thought that they would not give up easily after they failed to put me in jail. Everything that I was put through was due to the fact that my mind was not righteous.
I also heard that many practitioners were talking about such issues. One practitioner was in a detention center when her family called her and asked, “Isn't it time for you to come back?” She replied, “Is it up to me?” Afterwards, she enlightened that Master was giving her a hint, and asking, “Isn't it time for you to come back?” It was similar to when Master was purifying practitioners' bodies before the persecution started and asked the person if he was fine. If you could maintain righteous thoughts and answer that you were fine, then you would be fine. Another practitioner was held in a labor camp as well and a policeman asked him, “Aren't you just staying here for two days and then going back home?” He did not think about it and replied, “No.” Afterward, he blamed himself, “Why didn't I have righteous thoughts?” I have heard many practitioners' experiences similar to this. In fact, Master is protecting us every minute. We did not realize Master's hint because we did not let go of our attachment to life and death and were blocked by our human notions. Of course, our bodies are not ill, but when tested may appear to have “illness.” We should also think about whether we had some attachments when some part of our body is not comfortable. I did not cover all aspects of the issue in this article, but only part of it. Some were my old understandings at that time.
I've shared the above experiences so practitioners may learn some positive lessons so that they are able to say no to the persecution. Please point out anything inappropriate.