My Understanding Of What It Means to Be Compassionate

(Minghui.org) Several practitioners I know tried to help others, yet they were persecuted. So, I've been wondering: What is true compassion?

One practitioner's husband had an affair. When he brought the woman home the practitioner swallowed the insult and even cooked for them and washed their clothes. Despite her kindness they threw her out.

Another female practitioner's parents died when she and her younger sister were teenagers. She always took care of her sister. When her sister wanted to open a business she took out loans to help her. Her sister used her ID and took out additional loans in her name without her knowledge. She was heavily indebted. The bank closed her account and she didn't have enough money for her own living expenses.

Both of these practitioners put others' needs first. So what went wrong? In my opinion because they did not follow the Fa people took advantage of them and the old forces persecuted them.

Master said,

“Yet some people are now traveling all over the country and calling themselves Dafa disciples. They live in the homes of Dafa disciples for no reason, while eating, drinking, taking, and asking for things. Swindling and bluffing, they take advantage of Dafa by capitalizing on the kind nature of students. But why can’t our students distinguish them?” (“A Heavy Blow”, Essentials for Further Advancement )

From Master's words, I understand that having compassion does not mean allowing people to take advantage of us. We can be kind but we should uphold moral values.

Master said,

“...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”)

Since we are “responsible for all righteous elements in the cosmos”, then what is righteous? My understanding of traditional culture is that a husband and wife should not have relations with other members of the opposite sex. Siblings should respect each other.

When the practitioner's husband violated his marriage vow, she did not stop him. Instead, she acquiesced to his moral corruption. The other practitioner kept indulging her younger sister. This harmed both her sister and herself.

When someone claims they are a Falun Dafa practitioner but collects money or cheats others, why don't practitioners expose them? I think it shows their misunderstanding of the Fa.

When a practitioner was arrested after going to Beijing to appeal for Falun Dafa her family members complained: Father has high blood pressure. The children wept every day while you were away. Aren't you supposed to be compassionate? Where is your compassion? Why didn't you say you'd stop practicing so you'd be released and take care of the family?

Master said,

“As a cultivator, you must assess things in accordance with the characteristic of the universe. Only then can you distinguish what is genuinely good and what is truly bad.” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)

If we listen to our family members and betray Dafa, then our family will have committed crimes. We are not everyday people, we're practitioners and it's our responsibility to defend the Fa. When we're righteous, our family members will benefit as well.

As practitioners we should use the teachings of Falun Dafa as our guide and balance our relationships with others by following traditional culture's moral standards. When a husband has an affair, it's his wife's duty to tell him it's immoral. It's an older sister's duty to educate her younger sister and encourage her to be a good person instead of spoiling her. 

Master said,

“Dafa, the solution for a troubled world,Puts a stop to its downward slide.” (“Illuminating All”,  Hong Yin Vol. II)

If something isn't aligned with Master's teachings we should reject it. Dafa's compassion is righteous and is setting the standard for mankind. It's not for satisfying everyday peoples' desires. When practitioners stop our relatives from doing wrong, then we're being responsible for them and that is true compassion.

In today's society, cheating and scams are everywhere. The older sister did not realize her younger sister took her cellphone and ID and applied for a loan of more than 200,000 yuan. If the older sister was more careful and educated her sister well, this might not have happened.

Master said,

“The situation in China is very complicated. As soon as your thinking is a bit off, the old forces will seize upon that gap. So you must be especially mindful when it comes to your cultivation and the motives behind your actions there. After all, that is the place of red terror.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference”)

If you help someone financially, you should know where the money goes. Every practitioners' time and money are Dafa's resources. We shouldn't casually lend money to support someone's luxurious lifestyle.

Master said,

“Some of these cases are caused by a lack of diligence in cultivation, and some result from people having ulterior motives and thereby taking advantage of Dafa disciples’ kindness. So by all means, you need to watch out for these things. When you donate to or financially support someone, you must know and be perfectly clear on what he is doing with the money. Otherwise you cannot do it. If you give someone money, it amounts to supporting him in his actions, and you stand to be at fault as well. Therefore, the old forces won’t regard you as having been duped. Instead, they will see you as being in cahoots with the other party and supporting him. So you absolutely must be careful with these things.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference”)

We should eliminate our attachment of affection to our family. Some practitioners helped to pay off their family members' debts. But their family borrowed money to live a luxurious lifestyle. The practitioners had to save every penny to pay for it and did not realize their behavior was not in line with the Fa.

Master said,

“One must repay one’s own karma, and no one dares to violate this principle.” (Lecture Two, Zhuan Falun)

Only when we put the teachings into action when tribulations come are we walking a righteous way. Everything is contained in Master's teachings. If something goes wrong, then it's due to a lack of understanding of the Fa.

Master said,

“Whenever a tribulation comes, you do not see it with the side of your original nature but view it completely with your human side. Evil demons then capitalize on this point and inflict endless interference and damage, leaving students in long-term tribulations.” (“Expounding on the Fa” ,  Essentials for Further Advancement)

In Master's articles “Also in a Few Words” , “On "The Dignity of Dafa"” , and “Fa-Rectification and Cultivation” (Essentials for Further Advancement II) , Master taught us what good people are and how to walk a righteous path. We should study the Fa very seriously. If we don't we may face problems and the old forces may take advantage of us.

Our compassion is both merciful and dignified. We should follow Master's Fa, and be alert to persecution under the name of “compassion”.

Please point out anything improper.