We Must Break through the Notion that “Elites Are Hard to Save”

(Minghui.org) I am a professor at a university. A renowned doctoral candidate supervisor and researcher, Tang, passed away in July 2023. Her achievements in her field were outstanding, and she brought many honors to the school. Her passing was a shock and saddened the academic community. After reflecting on this, I regretted not having done more to clarify the truth to her.

Just a year before, when news about the deaths of prominent scientists, professors, and university principals kept surfacing, I realized that those elites who supported the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) were in grave danger. As soon as I heard that Renmin University of China issued 20 eulogies in one month, a thought flashed into my mind, “Tang is in danger.” I decided to visit Tang and tell her about the persecution of Falun Gong.

On a Sunday in 2022, I visited Tang’s home. She and her husband welcomed me warmly. She seemed very excited and showed me some of her publications in peer-reviewed international journals. She even played a well known piano piece for me. We started talking about Falun Dafa, and I could tell that they had no problem accepting the facts. However, when I mentioned quitting the CCP, her husband raised his voice, “No, we absolutely will not quit the CCP!” She said, “Why don’t we talk about this another time.” After that, they refused to listen to what I had to say. I realized that the CCP has awarded Tang so many honors that she refused to disassociate herself from the Party.

When I heard about Tang’s passing, I regretted not visiting her at home or at her office to clarify the truth to her again, even after Master published “How Humankind Came To Be” and “Why Save Sentient Beings.” I realized that it was my notion that “elites are hard to save” that was holding me back.

Ousted Twice by My Best Friend

Tang’s death brought back memories of something that happened over 10 years ago. Bo and I met in college. After we graduated, we were assigned teaching positions at the same university and have been colleagues ever since. For dozens of years, we were best friends and and shared everything. After the persecution of Falun Dafa began, Bo worried about my safety.

One day in 2007, I visited Bo’s home hoping he and his wife would quit the CCP after I explained the facts about Falun Gong to them. To my surprise, as soon as I mentioned Falun Gong, Bo said “hold it” and raised his hand to stop the conversation. When I tried to continue, his face fell and he said, “If you insist on talking about Falun Gong, I’ll have to ask you to leave,” which shocked and embarrassed me.

Bo’s rudeness surprised me, but I didn’t blame him. I understood that it hadn’t been easy for him to reach where he was. He kept a low profile because of his poor family background. However, he eventually became a professor and a lead scientist because he was intelligent and hardworking. He even received additional pay from the state. He was never a member of the CCP. As a result, the school tried very hard to recruit him by giving him fancy titles such as People’s Congress Representative and Member of the City Political Consultative Conference. Bo clearly knew that the CCP was using him to boost the Party’s image, while he used the titles to protect his career. He was afraid of losing those titles.

Eight years later, I visited Bo in 2015. He looked happy to see me, but as soon as I sat down, he said, “I welcome you, my brother. But if the topic of Falun Gong comes up again, I’ll have to be rude again.” When I tried to bring up the topic, he ordered me to leave.

Being told to leave twice served as a reminder that I needed to improve my xinxing, but it still saddened me that my best friend didn’t hesitate to hurt my feelings to protect his vested interests. The notion that “elites are hard to save” formed in my mind after Bo and Tang rejected my attempts to counter the defamatory propaganda about Falun Gong.

The Notion that Stopped Me from Saving People

After Tang’s death, I reviewed the list of coworkers I had spoken with over the past 12 years. Among those who quit the CCP, not many were outstanding in their professions. Evidently, I chose to talk to those I believed would agree with me and avoided the “outstanding elites” who I thought would not. Was I deciding whom to save? Also, I often worried that some people might be rude and refuse to quit the CCP. This mindset, which deviated from the Fa, prevented me from effectively saving people.

“When you fail to walk the correct path, one reason for it is karmic causes. Among them is the trouble that accompanies a being in the background; past favors done for others or scores to settle; old promises; all of the different connections one might have with a being, and so on. Another cause is the attachments that come from one’s human mindset. Especially notable are the notions that one forms, or habits of thought that one forms, which make it very hard for a person to recognize when human thinking is unconsciously at work. ” (“20th Anniversary Fa Teaching,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume XI)

Master Li’s words reminded me that the notion “elites are hard to save” was preventing me from saving some people. But, what attachments did this notion stem from?

I cried every time I watched the movie “Once We Were Divine.” When I compared myself to the character Song, who is also a faculty member at a university, I saw the many attachments I hadn’t let myself see. At a class reunion, Song unapologetically said that the persecution of Falun Gong is the government’s mistake, and frankly admitted that he was suspended from his position because he practiced Falun Gong. I was overwhelmed by his courage and righteous thinking. I realized that I had not let go of my attachments to fame, vanity (in wanting to save face), and fear. These attachments all stemmed from my selfishness.

Song once said, “They choose whether they want to listen, I decide if I want to speak up. People have the right to know, and that’s how they can tell right from wrong.” His words moved me. The “elites” have the right to know and to choose a good future. If I don’t tell them what they need to know, they won’t know what to choose. I told myself to get rid the notion that “elites are hard to save.” I must clarify the truth with compassion and have no preconceived notions. Master says, “... cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while transforming gong is done by one’s master.” (Lecture Two, Zhuan Falun)

Since then, I often remind myself, “They choose if they will listen, I decide if I want to speak up.”

Elites Learning About the Persecution

Since October 2023, when I spoke with my coworkers about Falun Gong, I made sure to visit the elites that I once purposely avoided. I used Tang’s passing to bring up the topic. People’s responses showed me that the elites were not hard to be saved once I let go of my notions. In fact, Bo listened to me this time and quit the CCP.

You Are Doing a Good Deed

One day, I visited Professor Chen’s home. Chen used to be a college dean at my university. He and his wife welcomed me warmly. When the topic of Tang came up, Chen said, “I knew her well. She was doing too much for the CCP and physical exhaustion led to her death.” I told him what happened when I visited Tang a year ago. I shared with him details about the persecution and explained why he needed to quit the CCP, just as over 400 million other Chinese have done. In the end, Chen and his wife quit the CCP. They loved the amulet I gave them and read the words on both sides.

Before I left, Chen said emotionally, “In the past, I thought Falun Gong practitioners were crying out for justice for their own purposes when they handed out flyers or made phone calls. Now I know that they were helping others. You are doing a good deed.”

The CCP Relies on Taxpayers to Survive

I helped Dong, the director of a research institute, to quit the CCP. As I was leaving his home, he said, “There is a question that bothers me. I know that the CCP is corrupt and should be eliminated, but who will pay our salaries if it is indeed eliminated?”

I smiled and asked him, “Have you seen the CCP officials actually farm a piece of land or operate a factory and create a dime of revenue?” He said no. I told him, “The money in this country comes from the taxes we pay, and the CCP has contributed nothing to our salaries. How would ending the CCP change anything?”

Chen thought about it and laughed, “And our taxes even pay for the CCP officials and keep them alive. Why have I never thought of it this way before? I must be getting old.”

Ending the CCP Is God’s Will

Yi was well-known for his excellent calligraphy. We used to get along well: I helped him a lot, and he respected me. After the persecution began, he stopped speaking to me and ignored me whenever he saw me. Our friends called him an ungrateful snob. I also thought his behavior was extreme.

A few years ago, Yi started sending me some of his calligraphy work, which was reported to be worth a lot. I still held a bit of a grudge and didn’t think about clarifying the truth to him. Six months ago, I ran into Yi at the entrance of a building while on my way to visit a professor. He invited me to his home in that building, and I told him I would pay him a visit after I finished some business on another floor.

After I came down, I hesitated about whether to visit Yi or not. I worried that he’d report me to the police once I talked to him about Falun Dafa. I eventually went to his home, knowing I had to help him. He and his wife welcomed me and served me tea and fruit.

I wasted no time and quickly brought up the subject of the persecution. Yi then condemned Jiang Zemin, using words like treasonous, promiscuous, and corrupt. At first, I thought he was just going along with what I said. Then I realized he was truly angry. “Jiang’s never done one thing good,” Yi said. “Look at how he’s ruined the country. I can’t believe he was given a grand funeral and portrayed as a war hero. How ridiculous, he’s never fought in a single war!”

After I showed him a photo of the rock engraved with the Chinese characters “Death to the CCP,” he read it out aloud and said, “That’s right, it is God’s will!” I helped him and his wife quit the CCP. He walked with me for some time when I left his home.

I knew that Master had arranged this seemingly accidental encounter for me to help the couple quit the CCP. Having things go so smoothly also helped me get rid of my grudge against him and my fears. I was no longer traumatized by how he had treated me in the past.

What Kind of Person Suppresses Zhen-Shan-Ren?

Fang was someone I regarded as the most capable and outstanding leader at the university. I have always respected him. Five years ago, I spoke with him about the persecution and showed him a video about the rock engraved with the Chinese characters “Death to the CCP.” He agreed with what I talked about and said he thought highly of Falun Gong. However, when we discussed quitting the CCP, he said, “I’ll think about it.” I understood that he had concerns because of his status.

Earlier this year I visited him again. We discussed the school motto he had proposed years ago, and I said, “I’ve always thought highly of that eight-character school motto. Do you know why? Because it conforms to the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.”

Fang appeared quite emotional, and said, “There is nothing wrong with Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. Where does a person position himself once he chooses to suppress such principles?”

I was impressed by his accurate and profound view, “When did you start thinking this way?” He said that since 1999, “I thought the CCP was wrong to start the persecution; it was absurd. I just couldn’t openly say it.” I smiled, “Now I know why both you and your wife are so healthy when you are almost 90. The divine protects you because you sided with the righteous in the battle between good and evil.” The smiles on their faces beamed brightly.

I quickly changed the subject and told him that the 25 years of persecution have not destroyed Falun Dafa—the persecution has instead undermined the CCP. “Over 400 million have quit the CCP. Maybe I can help both of you do the same,” I suggested. “Yes, of course. Thank you very much,” he said, with his palms pressed together in front of his chest.

In my opinion, Fang is the smartest elite at my school.