PureInsight | February 9, 2004
Chapter 5: Journey to the Great Wall of China
[PureInsight.org] In a few short hours the alarm on my hand held computer or Palm Pilot woke me up. Today was a day I couldn't hit the snooze button. So I pulled myself out of bed and went to get ready. After returning my bicycle key and collecting my 400 yuan, I checked out at about 6:00 am. Many of the police were sleeping in the lobby so I was tip-toeing around them for fear of waking them up. Exiting through the revolving doors I entered the crisp dark Bejing early morning. The shirt I used to clean the carpet was thrown in a trash can on my way out. Although the streets were empty just as I left the hotel grounds a taxi cab pulled up. I pointed to the map and off we went.
So there I sat drinking hot tea waiting for Joel by the main entrance of the Great Wall. While I waited, drinking cup after cup of tea, I watched the locals milling about and this little tourist strip was slowly coming to life. Tattered tents and small tables were erected in neat rows along the inclining road that led to the main gate of the Great Wall. It was nice to watch the elderly ladies set up their booths to sell nuts. A man came slowly walking up this steep incline alongside a donkey that pulled his cart. I looked into his face to see the eyes of a kind old man. He smiled at me and nodded his head, as if to wish me a good day. His hand lay on the head of his donkey as if he were helping or guiding it up the hill. As he passed me I could hear each one of his footsteps. I watched the wheel of his cart slowly rotate and the quiet squeek of the steel wheels mixed perfectly with the sound of crushing gravel and the soft beat of his footsteps. Not a few minutes later another old man came up the incline with his donkey and cart. I looked at him, anticipating another pair of kind eyes and a warm smile. Yet when my eyes met his, he smiled but he seemed rather smug. I noticed that he was sitting on his cart and his donkey was pulling both himself and the load up the steep incline.
The selfish and the selfless, I thought. If I took a plane back to the other side of the world and sat on Wall Street and enjoyed my coffee, whether standing on the corner or sitting in the window of a Starbucks, I am sure I would see these very same men. Both well dressed, with somewhere to go and people to see or some deal to sign. One of them got to his place in life through hard work and effort. The other just rode the backs of other peoples' hard work and reaped all of the rewards for himself. Both of these old men in China made it to the top of the incline and so did the businessmen on the other side of the world. All four got to enjoy the view but there is that one thing that seperates each pair: Virtue and the lack thereof. Whether you are on Wall Street's corporate highway or the dirt path going up to the Great Wall of China, people are just people. But the true question we need to ask ourselves is where are we going? Or, what will we make of this human condition? Is this just a condition or a stepping stone opening the door to something more?
This rather pensive state of mind was suddenly interupted by another Chinese man smiling at me but this one was riding a camel. He wanted me to go for a ride. Then the ladies selling nuts began playing around kicking each other in the behinds and laughing loudly. I couldn't help but smile. All I wanted to do was start to tell them all how good Falun Dafa is. But I refrained. This feeling emerged many times. I kept thinking "Zenon you can't jepardize the mission, the reason you came all this way". That was my favorite rationale that I used whenever I was too afraid to do something.
Joel still hadn't arrived so I ordered some dumplings. Half way through the dumplings Joel finally showed. As far as I can remember, I have never been so pleased to see Joel. I was able to relax a little. After my dumplings we ascended into the mountains, onto the Great Wall. On our way up we were taken aback by all the mountains and the view, it was just beautiful. Joel got out the video camera and started shooting. Then before you knew it we heard a light thump and then the rustle of some bushes.
Joel: I dropped the camera bag
Zenon: That's okay, you're holding the camera in your hand
I felt suprisingly calm
Joel: Well…ahhh.
Zenon: Was the hidden camera in there?
Joel: Well
Then I was a little panicky.
Zenon: Joel did you drop the camera you were going to use in Tiananmen Square?
Joel: Well , yes.
Zenon: You know how selfish I am Joel. I am just glad I didn't do it so I don't look like the idiot.
I confessed.
Joel: We have to get it back. How are we going to get it back.?
Zenon: Look. One of the workers is going to pick it up.
It started to sink in exactly how important that camera was. Sure enough we got the camera back from one of the workers and continued.
We started walking up and down the steep inclines of the Great Wall. Those who have been there know that its very steep going up and down. We couldn't help but stand in awe of this immense and beautiful structure. We walked trying to get as far away from the other tourists as possible. We came to one of the small buildings that lined the wall and entered it expecting to walk out of the other end and continue on the wall like we had already been doing. But the other end was boarded off. So we climbed out of one of the windows to a 6 centimeter wide ledge. We put our torsos up against the wall and inched our way along the ledge to get around the baracade. Sure enough the next builiding was boarded off but this time we could slip through the baracade. The part of the wall we were on was completely over grown with plants and was falling apart. We walked to what was left of the next little building and decided to stay there for the day.
Using the timer on Joel's camera we took all the photos of ourselves doing meditation, holding the banners we made, and set up the video camera to interview each other. We took time out of the public eye as a chance to do some Falun Gong exercises. We read Zhuan Falun off our Palm Pilots and we sat sharing our experiences of what we had been doing, feeling and thinking ever since we seperated in Toronto.
Joel: I have been feeling so clear and strong like nothing can move me. I look every policeman in the eyes with a big smile and say "ni hao" ( hello in Chinese). They either have to smile back or look away, they can't hold their angry faces when I am smiling at them.
As Joel laughed with a big smile.
Zenon: Wow, I haven't been that strong, nor that clear.
Joel: Really isn't that funny.
Meaning ironic. He has known me for a long time, so he knew that fear was not one of my common problems. In fact it was usually his problem. But not now, that was for sure.
Joel: I know why I am here. I know what I have come to do. Its all so clear.
Zenon: I know why I am here, but I still feel like I have no footing. I feel weak.
Joel: Lets Send Forth Righteous Thoughts.
Zenon: Okay.
We sat down, folded our legs in full lotus, conjoined our hands in our laps and began to clean ourselves of all bad thought karma, bad notions and external interference. The second I folded my legs all I felt was pain. I can usualy sit like this for over an hour but I was in pain instantly and not just in my legs. My mind spun, my heart ached and every inch of my body felt this unique painful sensation. I just tried to stay focused. After five minutes we began to Send Forth Righteous Thoughts but we didn't stop after five minutes this time. We ended up continuing for half an hour. A long half-an-hour as the pain never really subsided. The only thing that seemed to subside was my will. I couldn't bear it and many times I just wanted to give up but I knew I couldn't.
We had come so far. Using our lives, not just time, but our own bodies to come here and stand up for Falun Dafa and defend the Chinese people from the hate-breeding lies being forced upon them. There we were on China's monument of monuments. The structure that itself defended China for thousands of years. Should I just give in to the want of comfort. Although I felt weak I couldn't give in. I kept straightening my spine everytime it slouched and tried to stay clear, firm and as unmoved by the pain as possible.
Joel: Finish.
I was shamefully relieved and quickly unfolded my legs. I bowed my head down feeling defeated as I could barlely keep my mind righteous enough to really send out any righteous thoughts. Then Joel looked at me and said in a very calm voice.
Joel: That was great. I felt so clear. My mind was so firm and strong. Wow that was great!
I was glad one of us was strong. I couldn't help but feel a little deflated, as I gazed out at the mountain range. Although it was real it looked like a painting. The sun was on its way down and half the landscape was starting to turn a deep blue while the other was lit a golden brown. It was a strong contrast. The bluish mountians were a little foggy and you could see the mountain ridges in the distance drawing lines in the landscape beneath the horizon. The other side was crystal clear. Looking back it seemed so fitting. Joel and I were as contrasted as our surroundings. You could see some villages in the valleys below and I wondered if there were any Falun Gong practitioners there.
About five hours had passed and the first ever English speaking, mini experience exchanging conference held in China, had successfully come to a close. All that was left to do was to hang the banner on the Great Wall and then head back to Beijing. Joel kept suggesting a place that was very visible and I kept suggesting a place that was not so visible.
Joel: Well there is no point of leaving it if no one will see it.
Zenon: Some people will see it… Ah Joel…
Joel: Yah Zen.
Zenon: Am I still too attached to fear right now?
Joel: Yup.
Again I felt deflated but then I remembered our "mission"
Zenon: Remember we have to be careful, we can't jeopardize our mission.
Joel just smiled and walked away.
Joel: Hey Zen, hang it right here.
Another spot I would be risking the chance of being seen.
I became quite fed up with myself. As practitioners of Falun Dafa we cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. This is noble. Those genuine pracititoners are truly noble. Should I really be cowering in fear or standing out with dignity in my heart. So wherever Joel told me to put it I did. Why should we be afraid? I kept hanging and he kept taking the pictures until we finally left it in one place and then began our walk back. It felt good to make that small step past the fear.
While we were walking back we kept joking about how impossible it was for warriors to have fought on these steep staircases that make up a large portion of the Great Wall. We had to really be careful just to walk up and down normally, let alone in battle armour carrying weapons. We were just in awe. Then the conversation turned a little more serious. I told Joel how sad I felt for those people who tried to rip people off for some tea, or try to make people pay extra for the washrooms. They were really sad. Doing anything they could to take people's money. When the lady told me the tea and dumplings were 50 Yuan I told her that she was stealing from me. She just smiled, nodded in agreement and took my money.
Zenon: I didn't have the heart to fight it out with her, I felt so sad for them.
Joel: You shouldn't just judge things from your sentimentality. When they rip you off they are doing more harm to themselves. Remember good is rewarded with good and evil with evil!
I remembered my past when I used to steal. He was right.
Zenon: What goes around, comes around.
Joel: Its okay I'm just on a roll. If you fall into their little game you just help them to hurt themselves. You have to be strong and dignified and remind them what is right. "One's mind must be upright."
He quoted from the book Zhuan Falun.
Zenon: You're right. Thank you.
By this time we were almost back to the chair lift. I looked back at the banner and you couldn't even read it. No matter how "visible" we had been, it was obvious we were totally safe. Right then and there, I saw how irrational fear can make you.
Rather than taking the chair lift down we took the metal slide. You get on this sled and with a big iron lever that sticks up between your legs. The attendant said "to brake you pull back". Well not many people knew how to speak English but surprisingly when I went flying down that mountain a lot of them knew how to shout "PULL UP" You should have seen Joel's hair when he came flying down the home stretch. Talk about wind blown hair. He got of his little sled with a big smile on his face.
As we walked down some steps into the market area the people working at the booths began screaming at us. If you didn't know that they were trying to sell something you would have thought that they were angry with you. They all approached us. Joel just sauntered on through like it was nothing. My heart began to bleed. ne of them could smell it and came in for the kill. She dragged me over and pushed me into her booth. It was a little old lady; I didn't have the heart to use my strength to overpower her. She kept smiling at me but every time I tried to walk away she hit me in the shoulder shoving me back into her booth. She kept screaming numbers that kept getting smaller. I wanted to just give her money and put and end to her misery. I could see this pitiful desire just controlling her to the point that she could barely acknowledge me as a human being. But after the talk I had with Joel, I knew that giving her money would have been wrong. I finally got out only to be surrounded by more peddlers from other booths. The bizarre thing about it was they all had virtually the same things in their booths. They didn't care if I wanted anything they just wanted my money. When I finally got away, their faces lost their smiles and a few shouted at me in anger.
My heart sank into my belly seeing people so lost. They say the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Regardless they both seem to be after the almighty dollar. Maybe not everyone but a lot of people. Actually the dollar isn't so mighty after all. It can play on peoples weaknesses but that's not mighty. After practicing Falun Dafa I feel that true might comes from compassion. It comes from letting go of the things that can make us weak replacing it with the unwavering strength of Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance. I just wanted to tell them all that Falun Dafa was good and that it could bring their life more meaning. There weren't any obligations; you can just benefit your life. But earlier I had seen some military soldiers and I didn't know who was still milling about so we just left.
