PureInsight | March 4, 2002
I joined the practice sites in Battery Park and later in front of the Chinese Consulate. Cultivation in the last six months has made me deeply feel that the process of clarifying the truth is a process in which our xinxing improves, karma is eliminated and human notions are abandoned.
The Buddha’s grace is immense. Our infinitely merciful Master has given us the best there is and let us bear the minimal so we can quickly reach Consummation in just a few years without much suffering. This is because we’ve made vows before Master to assist Him in rectifying the Fa. Master values our vows, and has said, “Dafa disciples are magnificent because you are here at the same time as the period of Master's Fa-rectification, and are able to safeguard Dafa.”('From 'Fa-Rectification Period Disciples') “Fa-rectification is the great responsibility history has bestowed upon you.” (From 'To All Students at the Nordic Fa Conference') We must give it our best. I was determined to give it my best. But sometimes those deviated human notions that were formed over a long period of time would expose themselves without being detected. However, if I look inside when a problem occurs, I am able to identify them and eliminate them by taking the Fa as the Teacher and improving myself from within the Fa.
Everyday many tourists come to Battery Park, including delegations from China. It is a good place for Fa-rectification activities and clarifying the truth. It is often quite easy to distribute flyers to Westerners. Even when they refuse to take the flyers, they would do it politely and say “No thank you.” Yet, handing out flyers to Chinese can be a tough thing to do. Most of them refuse to accept them. Moreover, they would look back coldly and with hostility. At those moments, I would immediately think of those officials in China who like to flatter their superiors and can achieve their goals one way or another. I thought, “These Chinese people have managed to come to the United States for a visit. They must either be rich people or officials.” So I had the mentality of “I will hand out these to you, but it’s your own problem if you don’t want to read them.” So, I had a hard time getting flyers into the hands of the Chinese tourists for a period of time. Everyday, all of the English flyers would be used up, but the Chinese flyers would have to be carried back home. Master wants to save every savable being, including those people. The mentality and facial expression that I had didn’t meet what Master required. Thinking back, many of those Chinese people who wanted to accept yet were afraid of taking the materials were all deceived and faced suppression. They are so pitiful. Master said, “…clarify the truth with wisdom…” (From 'Rationality') I must come up with a way to let them read the flyers containing the truth. One time, four Chinese arrived at the Park after they came back from visiting the Statue of Liberty. Three of them seemed to want to take the flyers but were afraid. They were all looking at the other person – that person must be their boss. This person happened to start walking over towards the restroom. I told the three people remaining there, “If you don’t want to bring these back, you can read them here.” They took the materials, sat down and started reading. I then went to the boss who was outside of the restroom to tell him the truth. He looked very serious, but didn’t say anything. I kept talking for about ten minutes, and his facial expression became somewhat relaxed. Even though he didn’t say a word, I knew he heard what I said. In the end, these three people left with the materials. After this experience, I found that people would have more courage to take the flyers when they finished touring as a group and started wandering around in the park on their own. So I decided to keep handing out flyers until 3 p.m. I decided that even if there was just one Chinese person that accepted the flyers, it would make these three hours of standing worthwhile. Most of the time, the flyers ran out before 3 pm. One time, I had one set of flyers left in my hand, and I said to myself as I was on my way out, “a person with a predestined relationship will for sure get this.” Later, when I got to Chinatown, an older woman came up and said she wanted the flyers.
I stay in the park and pass out flyers every day until 3 pm. Two old men (westerners) are also there every afternoon. One is disabled and the other begs for food by playing music from a boom box. I gave the disabled man some flyers. After reading them, he said, “I can’t practice. I don’t walk very well.” I said, “I couldn’t walk before either. After I learned Falun Dafa, I became so healthy. I am now 74 years old. It’s so good.” He said, “OK” and took the materials. The other old man said, “It is Jiang…” I said, “No, it’s Beijing.” After that, every time as soon as I arrive there, he switches to Chinese music, turns up his thumb and smiles, silently expressing his understanding and support for Dafa.
Because I am old and dressed like a Mainlander, some people ask me how much I get paid for doing this. Some even give me a dirty look. At the beginning, I felt quite uncomfortable. But then I remembered I was doing the most righteous thing – I was spreading the Fa of the cosmos. I cannot let people think that I am trying to sell something. So I called out very loudly: “Please take a look at the truth of Falun Gong!” I also said in English, Spanish and Korean “Falun Dafa is good!” continuously. I felt big and tall.
I used to bring lunch to Battery Park everyday. Then summer came, and my lunch would go bad because of the high temperature. So I brought crackers instead. “Do I have to have lunch?” I asked myself. Master said: “Because of this body, everyday people will encounter this problem: They cannot stand being cold, hot, thirsty, hungry or tired…” (From 'People with Great Inborn Quality' in Lecture Nine of Zhuan Falun.) Isn’t this an old human habit? Break through it. Now after having breakfast a little after 6 a.m. at home, I will have my next meal when I get home after 5 p.m. It no longer matters to me whether the food tastes good or bad, or even if I skip meals.
The people to whom we clarify the truth in front of the Chinese Consulate are different from those I encounter in Battery Park. Here, we face the evil directly as well as overseas Chinese who go there to take care of various matters. Although these people are in the United States, they all have relatives in the Mainland. Their opinions on Dafa have a direct impact on their relatives living in the Mainland. Particularly now many people are planning to spend the Spring Festival there. Everyday, we take turns to practice, send forth righteous thoughts and distribute flyers from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. In the afternoon, two practitioners continue to hand out flyers until 3 p.m. when the Consulate closes for business. We don’t want to leave behind even a single precious Chinese who can be saved.
Everyday, rain or shine, we play Dafa exercise music before them. The powerful righteous field for sure frightens the evil, “the light of Truth they emanate makes the unrighteous elements in all being’s thoughts disintegrate.” (From 'Also in a Few Words.'
We improve our xinxing and our way of clarifying the truth when encountering different people so we can validate the Dafa with rationality, clarify the truth with wisdom and spread the Fa and save world’s people with benevolence. The urgent task we have in the current phase of Fa-rectification is to let more precious yet deceived Chinese get to know the truth about Dafa. From the bottom of my heart, I want every kind-hearted person to be saved. When I distribute flyers, my heart is filled with compassion. With smiles, I patiently and unhurriedly deal with passersby. Regardless how badly the staff of the Consulate treats us, I again and again urge them to find out what Dafa is all about. From the way they were looking at us and the way they were talking to us, we sensed their changes. Initially they told us, “you can’t distribute flyers in front of our building,” “You can’t use our restroom,” or “How much do you get paid for doing this everyday?” Now they’ve stopped saying that and don’t argue anymore. Everyday, we stand right in front of their gate handing out flyers, and they leave us alone when they go in and out. They no longer give us that hostile look like they used to. One time, someone even patted me on my shoulder and said, “You’ve been working hard for your age.” On another occasion, I ran into a staff member of the Consulate in the street that was a bit far from the Consulate. He said, “I am off work. Are you cold?” Every morning, people start to form a line to go into the Consulate at 9 a.m., and the Consulate opens for business at 10 a.m. We start practicing the standing exercises at 9. So every day we practice under the eyes of many people. The powerful energy field can help bring out the benevolent thought of a being. Some people have refused to take in the materials we handed to them, once, twice, but on the third offer, they took them. There also have been people coming up to ask for flyers. They said that they didn’t want to know about Dafa before, but now they want to. They asked for two copies of every flyer we had. Some people also asked us what they should do if they wanted to take these with them to the Mainland. One person after taking the flyer from me, held my hand and said, “You must persevere.” Quite a few people lowered their heads and tried to sneak by, but as soon as they heard, “please come to learn the truth about Falun Dafa,” they immediately turned around and accepted the flyers. Although some people are deeply deceived, through patient explanation of the truth, it is still possible for them to turn around.
I regret that I’ve not seized every opportunity and haven’t done enough at all.
I have come to the realization that individual cultivation is integrated with our participation in Fa-rectification.
December 20, 2001
