(Minghui.org) Age should not matter when it comes to what Master asks of practitioners, including studying the Fa, doing the exercises, sending forth righteous thoughts, and clarifying the truth. I am 72 years old and have always been very diligent with anything Master asks of us.
Among the Fa principles, the most important are the ones that tell us how to cultivate well and how to help people learn the facts about Falun Gong. To accomplish this, we need to cultivate compassion.
Master said,
“Then as a cultivator, if in your personal cultivation you are unable to love ordinary people who have once been against you, you will not become a Buddha. That’s the truth, because cultivators need to be compassionate.” (“First Fa Teaching Given in the United States” in Teaching the Fa at the Conference I)
Fear Is the Greatest Barrier
Fear is the greatest barrier for a practitioner whose mission is to tell people the facts about Falun Gong. Fear is the derivative of a heart of selfishness. In short, fear demands that one wants to change others but not oneself. Therefore, we must let go of our human notions and keep a pure heart. Only then can Master help and arrange everything for us.
A group of police officers broke into my home, ransacked it, confiscated our personal belongings, and arrested me, my husband and my son (who are not practitioners) in June 2014. I was told after my release that my husband and son were released the day they were arrested.
Everyone Needs to Hear about Falun Gong
I said to Master in my heart that I will be guided by him and let go of human notions, as I want to tell people the facts about Falun Gong, and that I am not here to be persecuted.
I was taken to a cell and monitored by an officer stationed at the door. I talked to him about the persecution of Falun Gong and the depravity of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from morning to afternoon.
A young officer then came to hear the facts about Falun Gong. By the time I was transferred, both quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations. Next, I was taken to another room, where I told four officers about Falun Gong. All four quit the CCP.
I was transferred to a place that looked to me to be a brainwashing center. Rather than feeling resentment, I held only pity and compassion in my heart for the people assigned to the brainwashing center, and so I treated everyone kindly.
High Blood Pressure from Stress of Persecution
Meng, a warden, told me I had high blood pressure. I told her that I used to have low blood pressure before I practiced Falun Gong. When she asked me why I now had high blood pressure, I said,
“The persecution has lasted for over 10 years, during which I was harassed, detained, and taken to a forced labor camp. My harmonious life was disrupted. My family and I feel constant stress because of the persecution. What do you think that has done to my health?”
She left, and a young man in his 30s stopped by. He said that he could sit in the sitting meditation for three consecutive hours and wanted to compete with me. I turned him down, and he tried to argue with me about qigong. He left after realizing that he did not know as much as he thought.
Two women were assigned to monitor me around the clock. I talked to them about Falun Gong and the movement to quit the CCP. Both decided to quit, and they did not disturb me when I did the exercises and sent righteous thoughts.
Brainwashing Instructor Listened
Meng, 50, showed up after breakfast the next morning. She was told to “transform” me. She asked me for my thoughts, and I expressed my appreciation that she did not try to silence me and force me to change my belief, but wanted to hear what I had to say.
I did not want her to waste her time, so I told her that I had been in several brainwashing centers at the township, county, and city levels. The head of the local 610 Office, “transformation” experts from different centers, and psychologists had tried to “transform” me over the years.
She asked me what counterattacks I employed that stopped their efforts. I said that all I have ever done is talk about Falun Gong. She wondered if I had ever doubted Falun Gong. My response was “certainly not.”
She listened and took notes. Finally, she said that no one had ever convinced her, but that this time, I had convinced her about the goodness of this cultivation practice. She quit the CCP, said that she did not need this job and that she had a good pension.
The warden told me three days later that I was free to go. Quite a few people stood in the hallway and smiled when I left.
The only regret I have is that the time had passed too quickly, and I could not tell more people the facts about Falun Gong.
A police car took me to my neighborhood, and a young man from the local neighborhood committee escorted me home. After listening to me, he also quit the CCP.
“Compassion can harmonize Heaven and Earth, ushering in springRighteous thoughts can save the people in this world” (“The Fa Rectifies the Cosmos” in Hong Yin Vol. II)
