(Minghui.org) Since the Los Angeles Fa Conference in 2006, Master has mentioned, at almost every Fa conference, the issue of practitioners coming from China with Party culture and the need to eliminate it. It seems that this problem is getting worse due to more Dafa practitioners coming overseas from mainland China.
I wrote this article to share behavior that I have seen and attribute to Chinese Communist Party (CCP) culture, exhibited by practitioners from mainland China as I have worked with them on Dafa projects. I hope that everyone can pay attention to this issue. Otherwise, what is displayed from the Party culture will tarnish Dafa and damage the many years of hard work by early overseas practitioners. It seems that these practitioners still do not know that what they have been doing is counterproductive.
CCP culture is based on hatred and fighting. It makes people extremely selfish, so that disputes and quarrels are easily provoked. Conflict is what the CCP values and produces, and if we do not recognize it and cultivate it away, this can disturb the environment of Dafa practitioners. Aspects of Party culture can be seen in the thinking and speech of those indoctrinated with its principles. Practitioners have heard this many times and are aware of the negative effects of CCP culture.
For example, some practitioners may harbor grievances because they are not involved in a certain project. They do not look within themselves to find the reasons for their exclusion, but instead feel that they have been wronged. They use human thinking to draw conclusions instead of improving themselves. Holding on to grievances can have a very negative impact on the cultivation environment. We should not go along with such thoughts, but should reject and suppress them. Then we should look within to find the attachments or inappropriate notions we have that may have caused us to experience such trouble. If we can’t find them, then we should immediately study the Fa and ask Master for hints to help us out of the maze.
Another example I have seen was during the early stages of our Shen Yun promotion. There were fewer Dafa practitioners living abroad then, but many of them had degrees from overseas universities and good jobs. They were also very considerate and thorough in the way they went about things. I remember that when we were organizing manpower, everything, including what to do at each step and what to achieve, were all carefully considered and arranged. There were also many training sessions for Shen Yun promotion. At the same time, there were many things to take into consideration with regard to the theater industry. There were only a few practitioners, but our efforts were very effective.
Since 2012, the number of Dafa practitioners who have come abroad has greatly increased, and most of them do not understand English and don't have degrees from overseas institutions. Of course, due to a lack of manpower, in the past we still let them participate in Shen Yun promotion, and as a result, the direction of promotional efforts gradually went from one of thorough consideration to one of more and more vigorous pursuits. In some cities, more than a dozen, or even dozens of practitioners went to hang brochures on doors, without taking the time to understand how Westerners may perceive their behavior. There were many objections by fellow Dafa practitioners about doing this, but they would not listen. This led to many serious issues.
In CCP culture, people do not consider others or consider the consequences of their behavior; they do whatever they feel like doing. The attitude is one of: “We are all eating from the same pot; no one is responsible for the consequences of their words and actions.” Practitioners unintentionally acting from this mindset can unconsciously damage the image of the project. For example, before 2012, It was uncommon to hear a complaint about Shen Yun promotions, but since many more practitioners joined the efforts to hang promotional brochures on doorknobs, various problems arose and it became a bit overwhelming. The coordinators couldn't even control it, and communication didn't work. This may also have been the reason why many former coordinators gave up on coordination.
It was the same for working backstage at Shen Yun performances. In the early days, it was only carried out by overseas Dafa practitioners. Everyone was disciplined and polite. Even if Master came to a performance, they would stick to their responsibilities and do things with courtesy. In recent years, as more Dafa practitioners have come out of mainland China and began to participate in this work, certain things occurred that were really very disappointing. I personally heard a lot of things: surrounding Master and giving letters or gifts, looking for Master everywhere in the theater, asking Master to solve their personal problems, and so on. Such behavior is seen as inappropriate and impolite to educated people. It comes from Party culture and should be cultivated away.
Why did so many guidelines come out later on? Not to mention that Shen Yun performers all have great responsibilities. No professional performing arts troupe will allow people to freely access backstage. To do so is in everyday society is considered very bad behavior.
The correct way to conduct oneself is to be considerate of Master. Since Shen Yun is assisting in Fa-rectification and saving sentient beings, we should first think of Master. Were those who behaved in this way thinking about Master’s feelings? As a Dafa practitioner, I felt upset and embarrassed when I saw practitioners behaving inappropriately around Master. I felt that their intentions were not altruistic, and that instead they were acting out of strong human attachments and Party culture. I was really disappointed. Therefore, I think that everyone needs to be disciplined and behave at least like a normal person; then you can aspire to be a good person among ordinary people. From there, you can improve to become better and cultivate to higher realms. No matter what we do, we must consider others first, so we can prevent Party culture from continuing to control us.
One such example of CCP culture is: “It’s every man for himself.” Some Dafa practitioners from mainland China who came abroad recently were refused access backstage but still they tried every means to get there. When others came out of the theater and saw them, the first sentence they asked was, “Have you seen Master?” They did not feel that their approach was excessive. This is the United States, which is a civilized society with behavioral norms and values, including politeness. I think that this behavior is caused by selfishness! It would be better to work hard at making your mind clear and rational, to actively reject and eliminate that strong sense of self, and to remember that each Shen Yun performance is helping Master save people. So do not disturb Master, and do not directly interfere with Master’s business.
As for Master’s whereabouts, early overseas Dafa practitioners knew that this could not be discussed. Even when Master attended an event, and wherever he went, we understood that we should not disclose it. But nowadays practitioners talk about it casually. Meanwhile, the CCP’s surveillance has strengthened, whether it be monitoring coordinators or other practitioners. In this way, with our unwitting assistance, the CCP can easily learn Master’s whereabouts. Practitioners can draw a lesson from what Judas did long ago. Although fellow practitioners from mainland China are behaving this way unintentionally, Master has mentioned many times at Fa conferences that electronic equipment is being used to monitor us. Why wouldn't we pay attention to this? If we treat mobile phones casually, talking about Master’s whereabouts, aren’t we giving the CCP important information?
Think about it, why didn't Master go to certain areas in the past? Some practitioners are being led by human attachments and feelings. Those who do not consider Master’s safety and work needs are not at all cultivating their xinxing and are behaving impulsively. As Dafa practitioners, we should not do that. Just like taking the life of a sentient being, once you are aware that it generates karma and is a crime, you will not do it. We all know that it's wrong to directly interfere with Master’s Fa-rectification, and no one would do so knowingly.
Let's talk about securing advantage through influence. This type of behavior is seen as inappropriate by people in the West, but it is all too common today in mainland China. People in China are unaware that it is bad behavior. For example, to flatter another practitioner they might say, “Oh, you are a coordinator; you are amazing.” They may even offer favors and so on. This is seeking personal privilege and forming cliques for private gain among cultivators. The purpose is to increase their own fame. Since they know someone famous, they feel honored and believe that they may benefit in some way in the future.
In fact, in the early days of Shen Yun’s establishment, there were no such messy things at all. Everyone focused on how to promote Shen Yun and save more sentient beings. Later, when Shen Yun’s promotion strategy was basically finalized, and participation by practitioners gradually decreased, many such practitioners started to seek personal connections among practitioners.
Yes, there are coordinators; however, many local practitioners have contributed a lot through their roles in promotion. Should all efforts and accomplishments be attributed to the coordinator? And what about Master’s arrangements in other dimensions and the help of divine beings? Are all these successes to be credited to the coordinator? Why do some practitioners compliment the coordinator afterwards? Isn’t this the extreme opposite of belittling, combating, and envying the coordinator?
While working on Dafa projects, we have met practitioners who weren't previously part of our social group. This type of predestined relationship is one based on the Fa. Why not cherish it and save people together, instead of interfering with the environment of Dafa practitioners using human attachments by seeking out certain practitioners for selfish reasons? In fact, when you seek to utilize certain practitioners with a higher status in society, you run the risk of causing resentment among practitioners. The true relationship between fellow practitioners is actually very complicated. Such behavior is actually caused by attachments to fame. Among Dafa practitioners, it can play the role of disrupting Master’s arrangements. Practitioners should naturally help each other when the need arises.
Another manifestation of Party culture that I have seen is the gossiping about and exclusion of Dafa practitioners who have played an important role in a project. In these scenarios, whoever contributed more becomes a target. The person who contributed more would be picked on and have rumors spread secretly about them. I felt that the practitioners spreading the rumors were trying their best to get rid of the person who contributed more. In some areas, there were really no outstanding figures and the projects were not done well. I think that many of these instances were the result of interference by practitioners acting under the influence of Party culture.
A practitioner in this state may refuse to listen to other opinions yet may pass judgment on every sentence of the practitioner who contributed more. Many practitioners are hurrying to save sentient beings and help Master in Fa-rectification, but others seem to act out of Party culture: from selfishness, narrow-mindedness, and a conceited mentality. Dafa practitioners who have been doing a good job and wholeheartedly saving sentient beings, in the end, were excluded by such practitioners. Other bad habits formed in the big socialist rice pot include measuring and judging, then criticizing, gossiping about, and even slandering others. These qualities all reflect the subtle influence and contamination of Party culture. With such thoughts and deeds, one not only helps the CCP trample on diligent Dafa practitioners, but also helps the CCP to trample on the perpetrator of this behavior. Isn't this person also a Dafa practitioner? How can they indulge in such behavior? And we should not voluntarily treat these bad habits as our own, as this only serves to protect and strengthen them.
I've found that people in Western society, on the whole, think about what is good for others and say good things about others. They try to avoid belittling others to elevate themselves, and take such behavior as uncultured and immoral. They are very kind to others. However, since the Party culture is one of fighting, bringing this culture to the environment of Dafa disciples disturbs the group environment, causing practitioners to look at each other with dissatisfaction. They always make comments about others and this results in those who did more and did better even being vilified as a result.
Of course, characteristics of CCP culture among Dafa disciples are not confined to just those behaviors mentioned above. These are what I have seen most frequently. I wrote this article as a reminder for fellow practitioners who came from mainland China more recently: no matter how long it has been, as long as we can seriously look within for these phenomena, consciously reject them, and eliminate the words and thoughts of the Party culture in our cultivation environment, we can better assimilate to Dafa and reflect the true realm of a Dafa practitioner.