A Westerner Gains Understanding of the Persecution

(Clearwisdom.net) In the US and Europe, many people are not aware of Falun Gong and the persecution in China. For Westerners, especially Christians, when they think about a persecution, they imagine that of early Christians by the Romans, which began with the crucifixion of Jesus and lasted another 300 years. Once, on a trip to Turkey, I saw entire underground cities where thousands of ancient Christians hid to avoid certain death if caught by the Romans. The early Christians had a willingness to give their life to protect their Christian cultivation practice, and while this is not a commonly held thought among Christians today, it offers an example from history.

To put it into perspective, the entire population of the Roman Empire at the time of Jesus was between 50 and 100 million people, about the number of Dafa practitioners in China when the persecution began in 1999. Today, technology and science are more advanced, making today's persecution world-wide, using advanced electronic media to poison minds as well as the cruelest means of torture and killing known to history.

The Olympics again brought the maltreatment of Falun Gong, Tibetans, and Christians in China to the front pages of the world's newspapers and reminded ordinary people that human rights are still not respected there. This was in spite of the fact that the CCP had promised to make improvements in exchange for the privilege of hosting the Olympics.

When I became a cultivator about a year ago, I felt the way most Westerners do. They could not understand why a government would arrest innocent people--especially the elderly--for meditating in a park, reading a book at home, or handing out a brochure on the street. To a Westerner this is inconceivable, because here we have the freedom to do all of these things. Because the CCP media propaganda is so pervasive, ordinary people sometimes wonder if there is something wrong with Falun Gong that would make the Chinese government act this way. This is why truth clarification is so important--we can use this opportunity to save people.

Making a Short Truth Clarification Video

One thing that helped me gain comprehension was when my daughter made a short video documentary entitled "The Persecution of Falun Gong" for a local youth film festival. It was about three Chinese women practitioners in San Francisco who had faced persecution while they were in China. Their stories touched us both and I still have tears when I think about their tribulations and steadfast diligence through arrest, imprisonment, brainwashing, and torture.

Our local coordinator arranged the interviews and brought several other people to help with translation at a Dafa event in San Francisco. My daughter was familiar with video and she formulated the questions, ran the camera, and edited the video. One evening while she was finishing the editing on the computer, there was a big storm, so I told her to save her work frequently. Later, her aunt dropped by and mentioned that the power was out in the entire neighborhood and our house was one of the few with the lights on. I knew Master was looking after her video.

Several months later, we learned that her video was selected for a final screening in a theater of about 400 people and that it was being considered for an award. Most of the other youth videos were made to amuse people. When my daughter's video came on, audience members weren't quite sure what to think because this was a very serious topic. As they watched, I could hear those in the audience say, "I had no idea this was going on in China" and "Oh my gosh, this is just awful!" People's hearts were touched by the testimony of these practitioners, and they definitely gained understanding of the events that have taken place in China.

Later that afternoon, the festival announced that my daughter had won first prize in her category, which I attribute to her steadfast work and not pursuing any award or fame.

Better Comprehending the Persecution

Before my daughter made this video, I had incorrectly thought that the main reason Falun Gong is being persecuted was because it posed a threat to the complete control of the Chinese people by the CCP. On a surface-political level, this has some truth, but it was only later as my practice deepened and I studied the Fa that I realized the more profound aspects of this part of Fa Rectification.

The CCP killed at least 60 million people, making them the greatest murderers in known history. When they say anything, you know most of what they say is not the truth. Just look at the way they handled the SARS epidemic and the infant formula scandal by consistently lying. When the CCP illegally detains, tortures and murders innocent Falun Gong practitioners in ways that violate their own laws, there is no compassion. Because of their desire for absolute power and control, they have no tolerance for other's beliefs or opinions. Once I realized these things, I understood that the evil CCP is the opposite of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, the truth of the universe.

I was reminded about Dafa practitioners in China and what Master had said in "Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Midwest-U.S. Fa Conference,"

"And, while validating the Fa you've seen that the kind of cultivators' mighty virtue that the Dafa disciples in Mainland China have displayed in the face of death is something ordinary people couldn't achieve--that's not something ordinary people could do."

While Western practitioners have the freedom to practice Dafa openly and without fear of persecution, it is incumbent on us to validate the Fa and expose the persecution to everyone around us. Practitioners in China cultivate in the face of death and they have inspired the entire world. Just the thought of them reminds me that I have no excuse not to do the three things well and to be certain to send righteous thoughts for all practitioners in China every day.

Through studying the Fa, I have come to these understandings. Please kindly point out anything that is not correct.