(Minghui.org) A fellow practitioner asked me why my family members support Falun Dafa so much even though I had been persecuted by the Communist Party for my faith. The answer was simple: I helped my family understand traditional Chinese culture. Once they used traditional values to discern right from wrong, they understood Dafa and why practitioners clarify the truth about Dafa to people.
In our region, some practitioners have a difficult time convincing their family members that Dafa is good. Some can't bring up the subject about Dafa because their family members had been brainwashed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s slander of the cultivation practice since 1999.
Many practitioners were imprisoned by the CCP for their faith, which led to a great deal of adversity for their families. For that, many practitioners try to compensate their family members using worldly means, such as by doing more housework or babysitting grandchildren. However, many of them did not receive appreciation for their efforts. They did not resolve the problem from the perspective of Fa-rectification and did not remember that the family is also a place where we need to clarify the truth.
My understanding is that the current moral decline in China is due to the loss of traditional Chinese culture. This affects every family. In society, leaders do not act as leaders, and subordinates do not act as subordinates. In a family, the father does not act like a father, and a son does not act like a son. For example, our generation respects and supports our parents, while our children’s generation thinks that our generation should serve them.
This is not just their generation's problem. It is everyone's problem. Our generation didn't pass down traditional Chinese culture to them, and we forgot many traditional values too. Nowadays, parents only give money to their children but not moral virtues, values, or skills. Everything is measured in wealth while people are steeped in Party culture. As Dafa practitioners, traditional values are the best gift we can give to our children.
Master told us, “Do not deviate too far from the traditional path (“Helping You Avoid the Danger,” Hong Yin IV) and “They bring back tradition, and revive the nation” (“Reviving the Nation,” Hong Yin IV).
Some have said, “A good cultivation environment is developed by a practitioner's cultivation.” If in a family the elders are kind, children practice filial piety, and husband and wife respect each other, many people in that family would practice or support Dafa.
I use the kindness that I developed through practicing Dafa to help family members regain their conscience and accept traditional values. Also, I try to put myself into their shoes so that I can understand them and think of how they would react in certain situations.
When my daughter-in-law first came to my home, I told her about my belief. She and my son asked me about “being patriotic.” They did not realize that the CCP misled the Chinese people by claiming that being patriotic was to love the Communist Party and follow its doctrine.
I shared with them, “First, what is the homeland? It is the land that our ancestors left to us. Since the CCP came to power, no one has his own land anymore–everything was taken by the CCP.”
“China fought the Japanese invasions during World War II. My uncles all joined the army. One of them sold all his farmland and rode a horse to enlist, but he later died in a CCP prison,” I told them.
I showed them a map of China before the CCP took power. It looked like a begonia leaf. But now, the map looks like a chicken, with about one million square kilometers missing, which the CCP gave to Russia.
Then, I talked about how the CCP has killed over 80 million Chinese during all kinds of political movements. It has also killed Falun Dafa practitioners to harvest their organs for profit. Even heaven would not tolerate its crimes, I told them.
My daughter-in-law understood and convinced several of her relatives to quit the CCP and its youth organizations.
There was a time that I went into hiding to avoid being arrested. My son didn't understand what I was doing, so I wrote him a long letter to explain why I practice Falun Dafa, the goal of a practitioner, and the CCP's persecution of our family. He then understood.
My son and I were arrested together once, though he didn't practice Dafa. His wife was pregnant. Both my husband and son later asked me if I could just do the Dafa exercises at home but not participate in projects to tell other people about the persecution so as not to bring trouble to the family.
I told them, “It is not me who does not want a peaceful home. It is the CCP that does not give people a peaceful environment.”
I continued, “The CCP persecuted our family. My father was a doctor and cured diseases for many people. But he was labeled a reactionary capitalist and killed during the Cultural Revolution. He didn't bring harm to anyone, but the CCP wouldn't let him have a peaceful life.”
To help them understand why I would not give up my faith, I said, “Now, I just want to practice Dafa, but the CCP does not let me have a peaceful life. Do you think the CCP will let your children have a peaceful life in the future?”
“A traditional saying is that the rise and fall of the country is the responsibility of every person. For your own sake, for your children's sake, for the peaceful environment that every Chinese deserves, shouldn't we get rid of the CCP?”
They didn't ask me again. Then, my entire family filed a criminal complaint with me against Jiang Zemin for launching the persecution of Falun Dafa.
I often shared the goodness of Dafa and stories from traditional Chinese culture with my family. They enjoyed it.
I also babysat my granddaughter. My son and daughter-in-law asked me to teach her using my method. They were so amazed when they saw that the little toddler could recite two books of Hong Yin poems.
Our family members are predestined to be with us. We should help them. Then, they will support us and make it easier for us to help other people understand Dafa.
For those practitioners who want to help their family members, I recommend talking to them about traditional Chinese culture. If you live apart or they do not want to listen to you, you can try to write a letter to them, which worked well for some practitioners in our region.