Reflection After a Major Arrest in Our Region

(Minghui.org) More than 20 practitioners were arrested on June 11, 2021, in our area of Lingyuan City, Liaoning Province. We have since been searching within to find inadequacies in our cultivation. I would like to share my understandings.

Desire and Addiction Resurface

The evil factors have become less in recent years, and the environment has been more relaxed. As a result, some practitioners have slacked off in their cultivation and even violated some of the basic requirements in cultivation. Some began raising pets or became fascinated by picking wild mushrooms; some who had abstained from certain “hun” foods, such as raw garlic and onion, no longer do; and some even began drinking beer and smoking cigarettes. It appears that their desires and addictions have outweighed the importance of cultivation.

When we indulge in human desires, we are wasting the precious time Master extended for us to save people. I remember reading a sharing article on the Minghui.org website about eight practitioners who often went to the countryside to clarify the facts. On their way there, they sent righteous thoughts to eliminate the interference. On the way back, they recited the Fa. They could persuade 200 or 300 people to quit the Chinese Communist Party every day. I think this was a good example of how to make the best use of our time.

Master told us:

“The intensity of our clarifying the truth should grow only greater and greater, so you mustn’t let up—you absolutely must not.” (“Fa Teaching Given in Manhattan,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. X)

Addiction to Electronic Devices

Some fellow practitioners were very diligent in cultivation but later became addicted to their cellphones and wasted much time browsing the Internet. They stopped doing the exercises or studying the Fa. One such practitioner developed this attachment while he was homeless and moving frequently to hide from the police. He was later arrested and given a heavy sentence. His wife subsequently had a physical tribulation and passed away. It was a hard lesson.

Many articles on Minghui have talked about the dangerous consequences of becoming addicted to cellphones. In one example, the practitioner became blind in both eyes after watching Korean TV series and using WeChat. Others talked about how watching online videos affected their Fa study, and made them develop sickness karma and become irritable.

A young practitioner saw a skeleton transformed by his cellphone trying to enter his body in his dream. He was terrified and screamed for Master’s protection. It took a while before the skeleton left him, because this was something he asked for himself.

Master told us:

“Do you know why I didn't have these Shen Yun DVDs distributed in society and place them online? This society is already a mess, and on the Internet all bad things are stirred in, just like demons, circulating. Whatever goes in is stirred in there or mixed in there, disrupting society, the human mind, and morality, and changing people's living state—the good and the bad are all jumbled together.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2016 New York Fa Conference”)

Master also told us:

“A person is like a container, and he is whatever he contains.” (“Melt Into the Fa,” Essentials for Further Advancement)

When we look at our phones, whatever we see fills our minds. Some practitioners think that because they didn’t look at pornography or violence, it would be okay. But shopping and cooking, etc. are equally addictive. The damage that happens to our brains when we become addicted to watching videos is similar to what happens when people become addicted to drugs. Our dependence on the conveniences of modern technology has pushed us further away from the divine.

Current research has found that long term cellphone use reduces one’s concentration, memory, self-discipline, and the ability to communicate normally with others. One may react slowly, procrastinate, or become irresponsible, irritable, and careless about their families.

The time for cultivation that Master has extended for his disciples with enormous endurance cannot be wasted on “electronics addiction.” The body and mind that Master has worked so hard to purify for us should not be polluted or poisoned by cellphones and the Internet.

Attached to Oneself, Not Being Able to Take Criticism

Some practitioners still have strong Party culture. Their overbearing, domineering behavior is obvious to others. They won’t allow others to raise any objections or point out their shortcomings. Nor can they take any criticism. Some practitioners are family members, but they complain about each other and do not look within.

Cultivation is serious. If one refuses to take criticism and blames others, one is not cultivating.

Master specifically talked about this as early as in 2006:

“From this point on, whoever can’t take criticism is not being diligent, whoever can’t take criticism is not displaying the state of a cultivator, or at least on this issue. (Applause) If someone still can’t pass this test, I’ll tell you, he is in a very dangerous situation, because for a cultivator this is the most fundamental thing, it’s at the top of the list of things to eliminate, and it has to be eliminated. If you don’t get rid of it, you won’t achieve Consummation. Don’t let it become that it’s ordinary people doing the work of Dafa disciples. You want to achieve Consummation, not good fortune.” (Teachings at the Conference in Los Angeles)

Master gave that lecture 15 years ago. If we do not solidly cultivate ourselves and not change from within, no matter how long it takes, we might never be able to reach consummation. The attachments and notions that we have formed over the course of our lives cannot be removed by just talking about them. We have to cultivate them away, little by little, through consistent, solid cultivation.

Indulging in Family Sentimentality

While many senior practitioners are helping to take care of their grandchildren, some are able to keep up with their cultivation in spite of their busy schedules. But others are affected by their attachment to family and unable to do the three things well.

In an article on the Minghui.org website, “Persisting in Cultivation and Helping the Next Generation,” the practitioner raised four grandchildren over 17 years, yet she never let up in carrying out her responsibilities as a Dafa practitioner. She clarified the facts to people while waiting for the bus, and distributed materials during her lunch break or while taking her grandchildren to school. In the evening, she studied the Fa. Not only did she not slack off, but all four of her grandchildren began to practice Dafa.

Compared to that practitioner, some practitioners in Lingyuan wrote statements to renounce Dafa when they were threatened with the loss of their pension or their family members’ jobs, only to suffer more serious forms of persecution.

If we are too attached to sentimentality, the old forces might use our families as bargaining chips to drag us down. If we balance well the relationship between our cultivation and family, they will also position themselves well and cherish their precious relationship with Dafa. That is truly being good to our family members.

Unaware of One’s “Fundamental Attachment”

After all these years of persecution, we should all search within for any “fundamental attachments” that have not yet been cultivated away.

There are many articles on Minghui regarding this: Some cultivate Dafa because they are seeking a happier life; some are pursuing peace and contentment; some hope to avoid competition; some seek harmonious family relationships; some hope Dafa and Master will protect them; and some are seeking spiritual support.

Many practitioners in Lingyuan passed away from strokes, diabetes, and so on. We should all examine why we took up cultivation in the first place, and what makes us continue. Is it a selfish desire to use Dafa to achieve our personal desires, or is it the pure heart to cultivate and improve ourselves?

How to View “Sickness Karma”

Some practitioners did well in clarifying the truth but suddenly suffered sickness karma or even passed away. This left many fellow practitioners confused, “He cultivated so well—what happened?”

What we see is the cultivated side of the practitioner—we cannot see their attachments. They might have been tucked away and even they themselves were not aware of it. We cannot know if the practitioner signed a contract with the old forces and did not have enough righteous thoughts to negate the old forces, or if he reached the end of his life span and did not cultivate diligently to extend his life. Or he might have cultivated well, but because other practitioners learned from him instead of the Fa, the old forces used that as an excuse to take his life. The causes could be varied and complicated. If we do not have a clear understanding on this matter, it can cause serious losses.

Letting Go of Fear, Exposing the Persecution

Some practitioners have been harassed, detained, and had their homes raided in recent years. During the massive “Zero-Out” harassment campaign, some were harassed but did not expose it for fear of retaliation by the police.

If we can eliminate our fear and resentment and focus on saving people, then our exposing the persecution will eliminate the evil. If we did not dare to expose the persecution, we are in fact helping the evil to aggravate the persecution. Dafa practitioners are here to save people, not to be persecuted. We should write out the details of how we were persecuted in a dignified way and publish it on the Minghui website. That in itself will shock the evil and disintegrate the persecution.

After the massive arrest, some practitioners became fearful and stopped distributing Dafa information. As Fa-rectification period Dafa disciples, fear is an attachment we must eliminate.

We should send more righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil factors, but without being attached to the result. Do not get discouraged or lose confidence in sending righteous thoughts when fellow practitioners are still not released. Instead, we should look within and examine whether the reason we are sending righteous thoughts is based on the right intention. Do we only want fellow practitioners to be released or do we also want to save those who are participating in the persecution? If we are able to eliminate evil factors that manipulate the perpetrators to harm Dafa, our righteous thoughts will be more powerful.

Whether or not the practitioner is released is also related to his own cultivation. If we don’t send righteous thoughts, the persecution will probably be worse. The ability to persistently send righteous thoughts and not be obsessed with the outcome is a reflection of faith in Master and Dafa.

Incidents of persecution have occurred repeatedly in Lingyuan precisely because some public officials are unaware of the truth and are being manipulated by the evil to participate in the persecution. They are deeply poisoned by the CCP, and it is very hard to clarify the truth to them. But our mission is saving people. They might be the higher lives that once pinned their hope of salvation on Dafa disciples eons ago. As long as we keep a pure heart and persevere in clarifying the truth to them in a variety of ways, our compassion will disintegrate all evil.

We recommend that fellow practitioners in Lingyuan collect personal information on the perpetrators and expose their evil deeds on Minghui. We can also distribute information on the persecution and retribution cases, which will also help to expose the persecution and save people.

We need to negate the persecution by intensifying our Fa study, truly and solidly cultivate, and do the three things well. Master reminds us repeatedly of the importance of Fa study, and each one of us must determine how to do that. The time for cultivation has been prolonged through Master’s enormous endurance. If we are truly determined in Fa study, there will be less interference by the old forces.

Many fellow practitioners do study the Fa but do not know how to apply that to their own cultivation. In the Minghui article “Improvement Comes from Solid Cultivation,” the practitioner always looks within even if it seems that the other person is at fault. When she truly abides by the Fa, Master reveals the deeper meaning to her. The Fa principles aren’t limited to words but will be shown to us when we reach higher realms.

When we study the Fa more, we can inspire more fellow practitioners to do so and bring about positive changes in the group. If we truly form one body, no evil will dare to approach this righteous field. We can negate the persecution and create a relatively safe environment to clarify the truth and save people.

We also need to pay particular attention to cellphone safety. This massive arrest has something to do with the long-term cellphone surveillance. We should not use cell phones to communicate with other practitioners. When we go out to clarify the truth, we should not carry our cell phones—they are listening devices.

This is our understanding at this level. Please point out anything inappropriate.

Editor’s note: This article only represents the author’s current understanding meant for sharing among practitioners so that we can “Compare with one another in study, in cultivation.” (“Solid Cultivation,” Hong Yin)