(Minghui.org) With the permission of another practitioner, I am sharing his story about encountering a burglar, clarifying the truth about Falun Dafa to him, and persuading him to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) youth organization the Young Pioneers.
The sharing of this practitioner helped me realize the power of compassion. I have cultivated for 20 years, but I asked myself, "How much compassion have I cultivated?"
A man and his parents and siblings all practiced Falun Dafa. After the persecution started, his father passed away, his mother was arrested and released after she became paralyzed. His two sisters were taken twice to a brainwashing center, and his younger brother was taken to a local police station and beaten.
He was taken twice to a forced labor camp. Despite intense pressure, he refused to sign a repentance statement agreeing to give up Falun Dafa, and was released because of high blood pressure.
On his release from the labor camp, he was dismissed from a government clerk job. To make a living, he was hired by a small store owner. He would often clarify the truth about Dafa to his customers and many people quit the CCP and/or its youth organizations.
One day, an elderly woman came into his store. As she looked kind, he talked to her about the persecution of Falun Dafa. She told him that she was also a Falun Dafa practitioner and that she had been forced to leave her hometown because of the persecution.
She was renting an apartment nearby. The electric meter switch broke and she asked if he could fix it. He agreed, so she bought a switch and they left the store for her place.
When they arrived at the apartment, they noticed that the lock was broken. But the door was locked from the inside and they could hear movement.
The gentlemen practitioner tried to convince the burglar to open the door, so they could discuss the situation. However, there was no response even after he promised not to harm him.
“Think about it,” the practitioner said. “If I call the police, you know the consequences. You will be imprisoned for several years and be labeled a criminal for your entire life. Your life will be over. Think about it!”
He then gave him three minutes, after which he would call the police. No response for two minutes, but after his last warning, the door opened, and a young man stood in the doorway. The practitioner was a big and tall man who was holding a tool in his hand, which seemed to frighten the young man.
“Don't be so fearful,” the practitioner said. “I am a Falun Dafa practitioner. Our Master taught us to cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and become a better person. I will not harm you.”
The practitioner continued, “You are young and can do any job. Why do you harm people and yourself? This elderly woman is so poor, yet you steal from her? How can she survive?”
Then, the woman thought her money had been stolen. However, after some back and forth, and after the burglar showed that there was nothing in his pockets, she found her money.
The practitioner said, “Our Master taught us to think of other people before taking any action, and not harm people when we do things. Nowadays, life is hard. I don't want to ruin your life because of this. But what you have done is truly detestable. If the victim's money was borrowed for going to a hospital, and if you took the money, think of the problem this creates? If I didn't practice Falun Dafa, I definitely would call the police.”
The young man felt bad and apologized.
The practitioner said, “Today is your lucky day because you met two Falun Gong practitioners. In the Buddha School, we often talk about predestined relationships. Perhaps you were predestined to meet us.”
He continued to talk about society's ills, corrupt officials, deteriorating moral standards, not respecting the divine, and how people do anything to get money. They even persecute kind and honest people.
“You are one of them,” said the practitioner. “You can do all kinds of jobs, but you choose to steal. The more you steal, the more virtue you lose. You will receive retribution for your wrongdoing.
After the burglar was told to never steal again, he promised to remember and change his ways.
The practitioner offered him 10 yuan, which he could use to buy a tin of shoe polish and a brush. He could make a living by cleaning and polishing shoes. The burglar declined the offer and said that he understood exactly what he was told.
Then, the practitioner said that it was not wise to be a member of the CCP or its affiliates. He explained that dissociating with the Party would ensure one's safety when the Party meets with karmic retribution. The words made an impression on the burglar and he quit the Young Pioneers, a CCP associate.
The practitioners told the burglar to recite, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” when facing problems, and he started to recite the words right away.
The burglar was let go but asked to first if he could get some screws and fix the door. He indeed returned to fix the door and the practitioners wished him a good future as he left.