(Clearwisdom.net)
The path that each genuinely cultivating practitioner has walked down is itself a historical event, a story that moves others to tears. Today I would like to share the moving stories of some fellow practitioners I know.
I
It was September 2001, Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Wang Chunyan was transferred to the provincial women's forced labor camp after being held at the local detention center for about 6 months. The environment of the forced labor camp was even more evil than that of the local detention center. The systematic torture inflicted upon Falun Dafa practitioners each day by the personnel at the forced labor camp is beyond imagination. Many practitioners were bruised all over, their bodies dark and swollen, and their faces covered with red burn marks from receiving extended torture with electric batons (1).
Not long after she arrived at the forced labor camp, Ms. Wang, together with other practitioners being held in the labor camp, practiced the Falun Gong exercises, despite receiving brutal beatings from the guards. For three days in a row, she did not relent in the face of the beatings from guards. On the fourth day, she was dragged to the forced labor camp office by a guard named Luo Jinfang, who lunged toward her with a fully charged electric baton. Ms. Wang's body jerked spasmodically on the ground as her pain intensified, while the high-voltage batons generated blue sparks from the electricity. Immediately, the guards threw her heavily to the ground and stepped on her body to keep her there, as they shouted, "Will you continue practicing?"
Sustaining tremendous pain, she shouted back, "Sure I will! I will! I will continue practicing even if I am beaten to death!" The beatings went on, and she continued to endure. In excruciating pain, Ms. Wang thought about Master Li Hongzhi, and suddenly shouted, "Master Li Hongzhi!" Her shout had the effect of deafening thunder. The four guards acted as though they themselves had been hit with electrical batons, and immediately backed off several steps, their batons were completely drained of their electrical charge.
A moment later, one of the guards mumbled to herself, "How come my baton is out of electricity? It was fully charged just a minute ago!" They reconnected the batons to the charger, but to no avail at all. Ms. Wang's righteous thoughts had prevailed over the vicious guards and she knew that Master had lent her a hand.
Whenever Ms. Wang mentioned this episode to me, she could barely hold back her tears. She said, "As long as you believe in Master, and as long as you think of Master at the critical moment, Master will help you, and the evil factors will be astounded into restraint."
Later, Master's lecture, "Touring North America to Teach the Fa" (2) was published. Whenever I read certain sections, Ms. Wang's episode always comes to mind. Her story was so encouraging to me and strengthened my belief in Master and Falun Dafa.
II
Another practitioner I greatly respect is Mr. Wang Xuejun, who has been imprisoned three times. While in prison, his cellmates, under the direction of prison guards, beat him but he was able to treat them with kindness. He told them all about how Falun Dafa helps one become a good person and the facts about the persecution of Falun Dafa. He said, "Although I am unable to go out to help offer salvation to sentient beings, all of you that I happen to meet behind bars are also ones I'm helping to save." He told his cellmates the facts behind the government's defamation of Falun Gong, explaining in detail why the "Self-Immolation Incident" at Tiananmen Square was a staged event. The inmates kept asking him questions in order to learn more, and gradually they became outraged at the unfair treatment received by Falun Gong practitioners. Their previously vicious stares were gradually replaced by kindness, and afterwards, there were fewer and fewer fights among themselves. Some inmates learned to recite poems together with Mr. Wang, that were written by Master Li, and some learned to practice the Falun Gong exercises with him while others kept a sharp lookout to warn of patrolling guards.
One inmate, imprisoned for murder, realized the deeper consequences of taking a human life after listening to Mr. Wang's understanding of the principles of Falun Gong, and he burst into tears. He said, "If only I had studied Falun Gong earlier, I would never have committed those crimes." Looking into the sky from behind the bars, he considered himself a student of Master Li. His attitude changed from one of despair to one of exuberance, the exuberance of a life that has been offered salvation. Whenever we walked past his cell, he always held his palms together in front of his chest toward us. (3) We could all tell that his deep sincerity came truly from his heart.
We later heard that while on his way to his execution, he smiled while reciting poems written by Master Li . His acts left the prison guards perplexed: How could someone who had killed others face his own death with such calm? Indeed, this is something that those who defame and persecute Dafa can never comprehend.
Notes:
- An electrical baton resembles a wooden police club, but contains the equivalent high-voltage electrical charge of a stun gun. It burns skin on contact and is capable of inducing temporary paralysis to incapacitate the victim, and in some cases, may even cause the death of weaker victims.
- Published March 2002.
- This gesture is called "Heshi," which is a part of the Falun Dafa exercises and also serves as a respectful salutation or departure among practitioners.
