(Clearwisdom.net) I have been held in four detention centers and two prisons for a total of almost eight years. The most painful thing was not having access to Dafa materials and articles.

Master said, “When a cultivator's mind departs from the Fa, the evil will find its way in...” (“Fa-Lecture at the Conference in Florida, U.S.A.” 2001)

I believe that our minds must never deviate from the Fa, especially while in police custody. The old forces instructed evil beings to launch the persecution. We cannot survive by relying on anything human. We can overcome it only by assimilating ourselves with the Fa.

Master said,

“Dafa can rectify the universe, so it certainly has the Fa’s power to repress evil, eliminate disorder, harmonize everything, and remain invincible.” (“Definitive Conclusion,” from Essentials for Further Advancement)

While imprisoned, I tried to recall as many Dafa publications as I could, including Hong Yin, Hong Yin Vol. II, more than 40 articles, and some parts of Zhuan Falun, in addition to what my practitioner sister wrote in her letters, which totaled about 60,000 words. I memorized them daily for five years. As I continued to recite them, my mind became increasingly clearer in understanding the Fa principles.

I didn't know what was happening with Fa rectification on the outside, so I thought, “I’m willing to make any sacrifice if I can read Dafa books again.” Perhaps due to this thought, Master helped me transfer from the isolated prison ward I was being held in to a relatively open ward. Soon after, a practitioner gave me a copy of Zhuan Falun, the electronic version of other Dafa books, and paper pamphlets. I was excited, feeling the same way I did when I first began learning Dafa.

In the two years that followed I studied all the articles published after July 20, 1999, and read Zhuan Falun ten times over the course of a month. When I later resumed memorizing Zhuan Falun, I read four chapters daily and then recited two pages in an effort to make up for the lost time.

I believe it is important that we study the Fa and cultivate ourselves, as Master instructs us, but in my opinion, saving sentient beings is our greatest mission. After speaking with us, many prisoners, including three officials, one of them the division head, quit the Chinese Communist Party.

We were arrested because of our omissions. Dafa is harmonious, and we should play the role of Fa particles no matter where we are. Some prisoners were incarcerated for over a decade and knew nothing about Falun Gong. After reading the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party they quickly decided to withdraw from the Party and even helped us protect Dafa materials from the officials.

The deputy division head once saw me studying the Fa and took my copy of Zhuan Falun. I was determined to get it back. I said to him, “Dafa books are all that I have. You must return them to me.” I was completely focused on getting it back. His attitude changed from abrasive to kind, saying, “I’m impressed with you. Go ahead and take it back; you can take care of it yourself tomorrow.” From then on he pretended not to see me when I was reading Dafa books. I felt Dafa’s power manifest when my thoughts were righteous.

Over the next two years I studied the Fa all day long in front of the prison authorities. They simply ignored me. The group head told me he was not against Falun Gong. The political head asked me how it felt to do the meditation, so I explained to them the wonders of Dafa and the crimes committed by the Chinese Communist Party. I even wrote long letters to them on occasion. All the officials and inmates assigned to watch us developed positive attitudes toward Dafa, and many sentient beings were saved.

As long as we have righteous thoughts that conform to Dafa’s standards in any environment, everything will be rectified and harmonized.

This is my personal understanding. Please point out anything inappropriate.