(Minghui.org) More than twenty Falun Gong practitioners in my area were arrested over a one-year period. Some were released the same day, but most were detained for various lengths of time. We thought about this phenomenon and realized that something was seriously wrong with our cultivation state.
We had a similar experience in 2011: four practitioners were arrested and tried. Our local practitioners reacted by working together to make people aware of the persecution and put a stop to it.
Some practitioners contacted family members of the arrested practitioners and hired lawyers, while others wrote letters, made phone calls, or distributed information about the arrests.
Some reached out to 610 Offices, police departments, prosecutors, judges, as well as court officials. Some sent forth righteous thoughts around the clock. We also received support from practitioners living abroad.
Ultimately, all of the practitioners were released on probation.
It caused quite a stir in our area. Some judicial personnel system praised the defense lawyers' statements, and people around town expressed admiration for our success.
After that, practitioners weren't sentenced to prison or sent to labor camps in my local area for quite a while. Some policemen looked the other way from practitioners' truth-clarification activities and even protected them.
Although it was a good thing for our area, it led to attachments of elation and showing off, especially when practitioners from other areas praised us. In speaking with local practitioners, I discovered that most had these attachments to various degrees.
Cultivation is a serious matter, and one cannot reach Consummation with even one attachment, let alone so many. During the recent New Year holiday, a local practitioner was arrested and detained for talking to people about the persecution.
Local practitioners met the next day to discuss the frequent arrests in our area, how to search within and better cultivate ourselves, and how to rescue detained practitioners.
One practitioner pointed out that whenever someone was arrested, he or she would be released in a few days, and we had accepted it as a matter of routine. We thus tacitly acknowledged the old forces' arrangement, and became apathetic and indifferent to a serious situation.
Another practitioner stated that whenever a problem surfaced, there was a tendency to look for problems in others, but not ourselves.
One raised a concern that some did not pay attention to safety, and also had attachments to comfort and resentment.
After everyone searched within on the basis of the Fa, we came to an agreement on what to do next. We needed to talk to average citizens, the legal system, and public security authorities about Falun Gong and the persecution.
Everyone pitched in with ideas and worked together to implement them. Some would collect information on personnel and family members of those who work in the 610 Office. Some worked together to gather information and post it online. Some sent forth righteous thoughts close to sites where the persecution was taking place, while others wrote letters and made phone calls to expose the persecution.
In short order, we disseminated information about recent local arrests. Flyers and other media containing information could be seen near perpetrators' and their families' residences, at their workplaces, and in public areas. We were able to reach some adjoining areas, as well.
We learned that the fellow practitioner was released on the third day, without having cooperated with the authorities. In fact she told people about Falun Gong and the persecution in a dignified manner, all the while keeping up with doing the exercises and sending forth righteous thoughts at the detention center.
This practitioner was arrested in 2011 and is still on probation until March 2015. In a normal situation, she would not have been released like this. However, we did not acknowledge the old forces' plan and overcame it with our righteous thoughts and actions.
Master said in “The Master-Disciple Bond” in Hong Yin Vol. II:
“When disciples have ample righteous thoughtsMaster has the power to turn back the tide”
When our xinxing elevates, Master can do anything for us.
Looking back, we still could have done better. For example, we should have included more practitioners in this most recent effort, even if it was just sending righteous thoughts from their homes. This would have given more practitioners a chance to establish their mighty virtue and experience the power of Dafa. We can also improve our written materials to show more compassion and also serve as a more stern warning to the perpetrators.
The above is my personal understanding. Please kindly point out shortcomings.
Category: Improving Oneself
