(Clearwisdom.net) Numerous practitioners have been persecuted recently, one after another, in Xinhua District of Shijiazhuang City. The evil has been rampant, indicating a previously established plan against practitioners. In particular, one practitioner died due to abuse within 10 days after arrest. We were all shocked upon hearing this. As we know, the Fa-rectification is close to the end; so why is such severe persecution still occurring in our area? We have to seriously think about what might be going awry in our cultivation. What can we learn from this?

In "Be More Diligent", Master said,

"I can see that everything is heading into the final stage. It's just that many people are afraid to acknowledge this reality and its progressive unfolding; that the number of lives to be saved before the final moment arrives has not reached the amount it should; and that there is still a portion of Dafa disciples that hasn't kept up. That is the key reason why the end of this undertaking still hasn't been enacted."

In fact, we do not need to feel intimidated by the evil, since it exists because of us. The critical thing is how we walk well the path during Fa-rectification, and by cultivating ourselves well, we do not leave loopholes for the evil to take advantage of. We all have to look within and check to see if we have done well the three things and have kept up with the momentum of Fa-rectification. Have we saved the people that can be saved? Have we completely let go of various human notions such as jealousy, attachment to fear, wanting to fight with others, and defending oneself?

The vicious persecution has indeed taken place. We know that Master does not acknowledge the arrangements of the old forces. We practitioners should not acknowledge them, either. Then, how can we end the vicious persecution and achieve what Master wants? The following are my thoughts and understandings:

1. Find our omissions, rectify ourselves, and keep up with the momentum of Fa-rectification. We heard that in the areas where this persecution recently took place, practitioners do not communicate well with each other. Even after some practitioners were arrested or subjected to abuse, other practitioners still did not know about it. Because the practitioners dared not share understandings with each other, they did not form one body. Plus, there are barriers between local coordinators. In "Be More Diligent", Master said,

"If you fail to cooperate well, the evil really will exploit your weaknesses and you will suffer major losses. Losses, that is, in terms of both individual cultivation as well as our group projects that are meant to save sentient beings."

We should now be awakened by the severe losses, and we cannot remain indifferent any more.

2. Let go of the attachment to fear and proactively harmonize with others. It was said that in the areas where practitioners were recently persecuted, practitioners had a strong attachment to fear and they did not care about each other much. This might be one reason why the persecution occurred. We should do better in these aspects and no longer allow the vicious persecution to continue, since we are Fa-rectification period Dafa disciples. The persecution is not only against us, but it also interferes with Master's Fa-rectification and with saving sentient beings. Master said in "Teaching the Fa at the Washington, D.C. Fa Conference," "The next person's things are your things, and your things are his things."

The persecution against practitioners is persecution against every one of us and against us as one body. Therefore, every one of us should do our best to step forward and help local practitioners strengthen their righteous thoughts. For practitioners who have died due to persecution, we can visit their families--not only to help them, but also to find out more information about the murderers. This way, we are able to expose the evil in time and send forth thoughts to eliminate the evil. When the vicious police agents were abusing practitioners and blocking information, they have committed the worst deed and they are now scared. We are doing the most righteous thing in the cosmos and there is nothing to be afraid of. In Essentials for Further Advancement II, Master said, "Dafa Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful."

3. Improve together through group Fa-study. Group Fa-study is a cultivation format left by Master. Only when following Master's words can we achieve the best results. By attending group Fa-study, we can let go of the attachment to fear and eliminate barriers between practitioners. Therefore, we should form Fa-study groups and improve together.

4. Cooperate with each other to form one body. By reading Master's most recent lecture, we gained more understandings on how to cooperate well with each other to achieve more. Now the vicious persecution has happened in our area, and we need to work well with each other. For example, exposing in a timely manner the persecution of practitioners, clarifying the truth on a large scale through various channels, exposing the vicious thugs involved in the persecution, sending forth righteous thoughts, etc. Each disciple should be fully functional in their individual roles, and by working together, we form one body. This is also a process for us to let go of ego as well as the mindset of being numb and indifferent. In Zhuan Falun, Master said,

"It is a xinxing issue if you do not help stop a murder or arson when you see it. How will you otherwise demonstrate that you are a good person? If you do not help stop a murder or arson, what would you get involved with?"

Our fellow practitioners have died due to the vicious persecution, and even gods are shocked and furious. How can we remain numb and do nothing? How can we not put our full efforts into exposing the evil and stop the persecution?

5. Expose the evil and stop the persecution. The evil is afraid of being exposed. The vicious thugs have been trying hard to cover up their crimes and block the communication of their deeds. These recent incidents reflect our omissions in exposing the evil. Agents from several police stations have been actively involved in the persecution, but we have not done much to expose them, other than reporting them on the Minghui website. From Master's articles, we have realized the importance of exposing the evil to local communities. On the one hand, we can write articles to expose the vicious deeds so that everyone in the local area can learn about them. On the other hand, we can, through truth-clarification, let people know the evil nature of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and ask them to quit it as well as its affiliated organizations, so as to be saved.

6. Seize the opportunity to eliminate the evil to save sentient beings on a large scale. Master has given us the ability to eliminate all evil through sending forth righteous thoughts. We have to take this seriously. Since the evil has committed many bad deeds in the local area, we need to work together and eliminate them. The CCP's evil specter has been manipulating the vicious elements to do bad deeds and the thugs have tried hard to cover these up. However, our sending forth righteous thoughts can completely clean these up, and everyone will hear the truth.

Our fellow practitioner was persecuted to death and this has caused big losses. We need to be proactive in exposing the evil more effectively on a large scale. Meanwhile, we should get past our frustration and pessimism. After all, we are here to save sentient beings and every practitioner persecuted should make us more clear-headed. Rather than slacking off, we should do even better and completely eliminate the evil.