(Minghui.org) The 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), an epidemic that originated in Wuhan, Hubei Province, has gone out of control. There are now confirmed cases in all provinces and provincial-level cities in China.
But the real situation may be much worse than what has been publicly reported by Chinese news media. Ever since the virus' outbreak, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials have been covering it up and underreported the death toll. Guan Yi, a virus expert at Hong Kong University who has studied numerous epidemics including the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), said, “The situation this time is at least ten times worse than SARS.”
Current Situation
Nearly all cities in Hubei Province are on lockdown. Seven additional regions, including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Hebei, Shandong, Hainan, and Xi’an, have canceled intra-provincial travel and tourism. Travel advisories have been placed on almost all provinces and cities in China.
Many people choose to stay at home and avoid travel as much as possible. Medical experts recommend that people wear face masks, drink more water, and wash their hands frequently.
Still, researchers predict that the number of infected patients may rise to about 250,000 in the next two weeks. Furthermore, it may continue to spread in big cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. With the scale of this contagion, personal hygiene may have limited effect on protecting against the virus.
What should we do, then?
Lessons from Ancient Wisdom
Traditional Chinese culture from the past few millennia has emphasized causal relationships. More specifically, promoting virtue can help one stay away from disasters or plagues. Below is an example.
A major earthquake occurred in Dali (today’s Yunnan Province) in March 1914, which was recorded with a magnitude of 6.7 according to Centennial Earthquake Catalog by the United States Geological Survey.
According to a witness, nearly all houses in Dali city collapsed except for pagodas in the temples. Fires burst from cracks in the ground and spread all over. As people ran around for safety, some were burnt, and some died after falling into the cracks. Among thousands of families in the city, very few people survived the catastrophe.
There were two gold shops in the city: one was Wan Chang, owned by the Zhao family; another was Zhan Ran by the Yang family. As fire reached these two places, it stopped itself. These two shops, each packed with dozens of people, emerged unscathed. Local residents said the two families' blessings were a result of their generosity and kindness to others, as well as their belief in Buddha. This story was recorded in Chronicles of Monk Xu Yun.
Miracles in the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami
Similar miracles have also been seen in our modern society. On December 26, 2004, the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami killed nearly 230,000 people in 14 countries. An article submitted to Minghui.org described how the author’s daughter and her friends survived the disaster.
“During Christmas in 2004, my daughter and her friends went on vacation in Thailand. Twenty minutes before the largest wave came ashore Phuket Island, my daughter and her friends left for the Phi Phi Islands by ship,” wrote the author.
On the boat, the girl and her friends enjoyed the sun and beautiful scenery, totally unaware of the tsunami traveling under the sea from Phi Phi towards Phuket, the island they had just left. “When they saw the ocean churning and heard about the disaster, her friends were scared. My daughter told them to recite, ‘Falun Dafa is good’ and ‘Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’ They were frightened, but my daughter told them that they would be safe.
“Had they left Phuket 20 minutes later or arrived at Phi Phi 30 minutes earlier, they would have encountered the tsunami,” explained the author. “A few hours later when they safely returned to Phuket, the beautiful island had become a ruin. My daughter saw many victims' corpses in the hotel where they had been staying. She donated all her cash to the local residents.”
A Path Towards Health and Safety
Consistent with traditional Chinese culture, Falun Dafa promotes the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Through practicing these principles in their daily life and doing the exercises, Falun Dafa practitioners are blessed with health and happiness.
In addition, as innocent practitioners are being persecuted for holding firm to their faith, non-practitioners who follow their conscience and support practitioners have also received blessings, ranging from improved health to family happiness to miraculous survivals in accidents. In a recent collection of Chinese New Year greetings titled “Supporting the Righteous Brings Blessings and Happiness”, some of these individuals described their miracles and joy afterwards.
As the new epidemic continues to spread, once again those who follow traditional values and support the righteous will be blessed. For Chinese, it may include keeping in mind that “Falun Dafa is good” and “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” along with quitting the CCP organizations.
Huangdi Neijing (The Inner Classic of the Yellow Emperor), one of the most respected books on Chinese medicine, wrote, “With righteousness residing inside, no viciousness is able to invade.” This explains the connection of conscience, safety, and epidemics.
Category: Perspective
