(Clearwisdom.net) A month of truth-clarification efforts on the streets of Manhattan passed quickly. The following are my some of my experiences from the past week.
1. A group of young Falun Gong practitioners from far away
Because they wanted to attend the Washington DC experience sharing conference, many practitioners came to the USA a few days earlier. They headed straight for New York to clarify the truth on the streets. Eight practitioners from Europe came to our anti-torture exhibit. They came from the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Russia. All were young and only knew a little English, but this was not a barrier at all. With a sincere smile on their faces and the compassion of a cultivator, they brought the truth of Falun Gong to the people in the bustling crowd.
One of these eight had the face of a child. His deep blue eyes disclosed his innermost purity. I estimated him to be not more than 20 years old. He told me of the many people in the Penn Station building and asked if he could go there to hand out truth clarification materials. I said, "As long as you have formidable and pure righteous thoughts, security personnel will not trouble you." He smiled, "I understand," and turned around. Half an hour later he had finished distributing all the information. His sweat-soaked face mirrored his joy.
The woman from Czech Republic had black hair and was beautiful and pure. One day a middle-aged couple came to our exhibit. I immediately told them about the truth of the persecution, but they did not understand English. I asked them what country they were from so I could give them a flyer in their language. When I heard they were from the Czech Republic I told them that we have a practitioner who had just arrived from there. When that practitioner introduced herself, their faces showed a mixture of pleasant surprise and confusion. They did not expect to meet a person from their home country thousands of miles away on the streets of New York. The couple listened carefully to her explanation. Their expressions told me that they understood the greatness of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance and the might of Dafa. Not only did they sign their names on a petition to end the persecution, but at the same time remembered the greatness of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance in their hearts.
Mike, a computer engineer, is a young man and the only one in the group fluent in English. He is the only person from the European group whose name I know. In addition to his native language he also speaks German, English and Russian. Seeing him read the Czech version of Zhuan Falun surprised me. He told me that even though not many people in his country practice Falun Gong yet, he had translated this book with the assistance of other practitioners who understand English. He is a man of few words and hardly stopped to rest or eat; he constantly handed out information to clarify the truth, practiced the exercises and sent forth righteous thoughts. One day a woman crossed the street, walked over and told me that she had just gotten Falun Gong materials from Mike. Their brief conversation made her feel his sincerity and compassion. She came specifically for our anti-torture exhibit and hoped that I would teach her how to practice Falun Gong. Mike's benevolence touched her deeply.
Not too far away I saw a tall, brown-haired woman clarifying the truth to a couple. Her English speaking skills are limited. Although I could not hear the content of their conversation, I realized from her gestures and expressions that she was diligently trying to let this couple know the truth of the persecution happening in China. About half an hour later I still found her in conversation, and that couple was continuously nodding. This deeply moved me. The many seemingly little things Falun Gong practitioners do may look ordinary, but they are actually planting the seeds of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance in people's hearts.
2. A Beautiful Woman from Tibet
At first I mistook her as a Japanese or Korean national. When she told me she was Tibetan I felt closer to her.
I have a connection to Tibet because I had traveled there in 2000 before I had obtained the Fa. To experience the Buddhist spirit and breathtaking natural beauty of Tibet firsthand, I spent an unforgettable week there. The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) has deceived each and every Chinese person into thinking that the CCP was actually Tibet's "liberators from subsistence and slavery." I didn't believe it then, but I knew nothing of what Tibet was truly like. During a visit to a Buddhist monastery, some young nuns were weaving flowers for use in a ritual. I tried to communicate with them and discovered while they don't understand Chinese, they could speak English. Tibetan people's persistence and firmness in their belief is even more remarkable. Even in the face of pressure by the CCP, they still worship gods and respect heaven and earth. More precious were their sincere smiles and kind help toward ordinary Han Chinese (Han people are China's largest ethnic group).
The Tibetan woman in front of me had an air of great elegance about her. She told me she was born in India. Her parents escaped from there after the CCP army soldiers killed her grandparents. She also said Falun Gong is very grand, very peaceful and sacred. She often tells her American husband stories of the persecution. She had written an article and published it in the Tibetan community newspaper, to raise her compatriots' awareness of the persecution of Falun Gong. "There are quite a few Chinese people at my place of work, and I often tell them the plight of the people in Tibet. Because of my personal experiences they finally realized they have been deceived by the CCP. Now they also realize the persecution and deception by the CCP on the Falun Gong issue."
3. My Fellow Chinese Awaken to the Truth
In one week, another practitioner and I each talked one-on-one with three fellow Chinese countrymen. The first one was a middle-aged man who signed the petition against the persecution after receiving some of our information. There was also a woman that the other practitioner spoke with for quite a long time. She said she knew Falun Gong was good, for she had many friends who practice it. Because of her relationships with them, the police also harassed her and forced her to resign from her job before she came to America. She, too, signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution. The third person emerged from a building right in front of us and stopped to listen to our explanations when he saw our anti-torture exhibits. When we asked if he was willing to sign the petition to support us, he hesitated. He said he fully supported us, but his parents still lived in China and he often returned to see them. His hesitance represents that of many Chinese who fear the violence of the CCP. We expressed our understanding and respect to him and believe that, through our efforts, many more of our fellow Chinese can awaken to the truth and put aside their fears.
But there also people who suffer severely from "Stockholm syndrome" and cannot come to their senses. In order to rescue them we must be even more compassionate and caring. The following are my experiences with one of my fellow Chinese countrymen in the subway. [Note: The Stockholm syndrome is a phenomenon in which a hostage begins to identify with and grow sympathetic to his or her captor.]
After we were done with our anti-torture exhibition I took the subway home. I saw another Chinese person sitting across from me. I moved next to him and found out he was a farmer from Fuzhou City in China. I tried to give him some truth-clarifying handouts but he didn't accept them. I tried to clarify the truth to him but he interrupted me curtly several times saying, "Falun Gong is illegal." I asked him, "How can it be illegal for people to do exercises and meditation in a park? Does being good people according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance equal endangering our society?" I told him about many people who have gained new lives from practicing Falun Gong; because of the miraculous effects of Falun Gong in healing illnesses and improving health, and even high-ranking officials practice the exercise. He could not find suitable words, but tried to quibble. About the time he ran out of arguments, the train stopped, the doors opened, and he suddenly stood up and fled. I felt very sad that I was unable to remove the poison from this man's mind.
I had to change subway lines and after boarding a train I immediately found a seat beside a man and sat down. To my surprise, a fellow practitioner who was sitting opposite me looked at the man and then looked at me and broke into laughter. It was really amazing: this man was the person who left the last train early. As soon as he saw that it was me, he closed his eyes. I smiled and said, "There is an immense predestined relationship between you and me. Otherwise, how could we sit together one more time?" His eyes remained tightly closed and there was not the slightest show of emotion on his face. In a peaceful and genuine tone I told him the universal truth that good is being rewarded with good while evildoings will meet due karmic retribution. I told him in today's China, many farmers like him are deprived of the last piece of land on which they live, and are beaten to death during their appeals efforts. The expressions on his face told me that he was listening attentively. Before I got off the train I told him, "Please remember, "Falun Dafa is good and Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good. This will bring you a good future."
I believe the power of compassion will touch his heart.
