PureInsight | January 22, 2012
[PureInsight.org] Many ways and platforms have been used to clarify the truth so people from different walks of life would have opportunities to hear the facts regarding Falun Dafa. Among them are the New Tang Dynasty Television (NTDTV) competitions that I have been working on. Some people may choose not to read the Nine Commentaries, pass up seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts, or ignore the brutality of live organ harvesting in China. But, if they show an interest in an NTD competition, or agree with its purpose to revive traditional Chinese culture, they could probably be saved. When contacting potential contestants I had a deep sense of this. One day, I called more than 10 Chinese students at a local art school who were majoring in canvas painting when I realized if not for the painting competition, I would not have had an opportunity to interact with these people. Through organizing the competition, I was able to explain the degeneration of contemporary art and the need to revive traditional art. I told them paintings like those in the Louvre Museum in Paris were genuine art, which led people in a positive and upright direction, while many of the contemporary artworks are of a demonic nature.
From this, I felt the power of Dafa. It is the Fa that can awaken people who are lost in a maze. People will think about leading a meaningful life and create good artworks. Without NTD competitions, they probably would not learn about NTDTV, a Chinese television network. Without NTD competitions, they might wander around after a long journey of searching for the Truth. Now we can reach lots of people so they will be blessed in the future.
Creating the Future
Some practitioners have been involved in the NTD competitions for a number of years. All feel the important mission of reviving 5,000 years of Chinese traditional culture, glorious periods of China’s dynasties, from Tang, Song, to Ming. This culture has been systematically decimated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), starting with the Paris Commune, which destroyed the majority of art in Paris. But now, through competitions, we will see how much traditional culture has been preserved, and how we can bring about a renaissance.
During the Han Couture Design competition, we could see that ancient people were graceful no matter whether they lowered their heads or bent their backs. When wearing contemporary clothes, however, people of today are either exposed in the front or back, when bending over. In addition, traditional clothing required people to be upright and modest. Therefore, everything we do requires us to be self-restrained and upright, since there are no role models to follow. Through constant Fa-study, we are able to validate the Fa.
Each Talent and Art Discipline Has a Corresponding Dimension
Some practitioners have come to understand that by saving people from a variety of art backgrounds and talents, we are enriching our own dimensions. Only through Fa-study, however, can we gain a further understanding of this.
In “Teaching the Fa in San Francisco, 2005,” Master said: “You all know that along with painting there is music and sculpture. Those things and also modern science and technology are all different skills for various facets of human life. It seems as though human beings created those things themselves and did so to enrich human society, but that's actually not the case at all. What's the real reason, then? Let me tell you that those are in fact [parts of] cultivation and unique characteristics of the realms of lives from distant systems. Elevation in that kind of realm involves combining the understanding of those skills with the Fa. It requires elevating one's understanding, a limitless upward climb. Particles that make up high-level dimensions are smaller, and the sound-field there is also composed of microcosmic material particles, so the music is more pleasing to hear and the colors are more beautiful. All such matter is composed of high-level, microcosmic particles, which can't be found by lives in low-level dimensions. The works and the skills there are more advanced and magical, and a life's elevation means the dual elevation of realm and skill, and improvement of that life's understanding in different realms. In other words, if I'm to use the concepts of people on earth to describe it, when you are able to create good things, it is because you are a good person or because you have done something good. Conversely, only when gods see that you are a good person will they grant you wisdom and allow you to create things. (Applause) Isn't human society controlled by gods? These things all in fact have elements of the Fa in them. If I had you adopt those methods, would you still be able to cultivate? Yes, you could cultivate just the same. It's just that I didn't have you take such paths. Those are methods adopted by different cosmic bodies and different lives.”
Unlike journalists working for news media, contacting people and looking for competitors may not derive an immediate result. Nonetheless, we have to continue working. It is the Fa that guides us and also tests our perseverance.
The Importance of Clarifying the Truth
Practitioners who have worked on competition projects for a while all know the importance of clarifying the truth when contacting people and looking for candidates. Otherwise, a potential candidate may waver when Chinese embassy officials threaten them. For example, one candidate was worried that participating in the competition may affect his returning to China. So we asked if he could win an international prize within his profession in China. Besides, winning the prize would have nothing to do with the Chinese embassy. Thus, the candidate decided to know more about NTDTV and more about Falun Gong. In the end, he asked for a copy of Zhuan Falun so that he could read after returning to China.
Some candidates, under threat of the Chinese embassy, withdrew from competing. But not this candidate. He did not falter and attended the competition as scheduled. From this, we can see that clarifying the facts through competition activities is a process of saving people. This is the mission of Fa-rectification Period Dafa disciples and we have to be determined. Regardless of which Dafa projects we are involved in, clarifying the truth is always key.
Clarifying the Truth to More People
One good experience we had this year was telling the facts to more people, not just the competitors. For example, in order to find Chinese singers, we needed to let people know the mission of the competition on a large scale in Western society. When their agents, friends, classmates, professors, co-workers come to know the truth and understand the purpose, it will be easier for these people to attend competitions. Therefore, in order to find 30 ideal candidates, we may have to contact and audition a few hundred people and explain the mission to revive ancient culture. Through regular Fa-study, we will gain more wisdom. Then when we work well together, we may be able to overcome any technicality. During this process, instead of being attached to the outcome, we should focus on letting more people know our mission and know the truth.
Further Understanding on the Damage of Traditional Culture Caused by CCP
I have been involved in the NTD Vocal Competition for five years and I know that the CCP is scared. The CCP officials know the competitions are to revive traditional culture, so they threaten contestants. They are also told not to work with Falun Gong practitioners otherwise they may run into trouble upon returning China.
One candidate said he had received such a warning in 2004 and several more over ensuing years. On another occasion, the CCP offered to help an Australian candidate sign a contract with an income more than ten times that of the Gold Prize. That person dropped out of the competition. Over the past several years, the CCP has always held a nationwide competition on bel canto in China to interfere with the NTD Vocal Competition.
One contestant confirmed his participation and said he was not afraid of pressure from the CCP. But later, he gave up after being told to avoid problems upon returning to China. Some also encountered visa denials due to CCP spies during the visa application process. Their workplace officials may also follow up with further threats, threatening to deny school diplomas or jeopardizing future job searches. This is just like what Master said in “Teaching the Fa in San Francisco, 2005,” “The evil Party has attached itself to the Chinese nation and Chinese people's bodies and culture. It is using Chinese people and Chinese culture to do harm to the Chinese people and their culture.”
We know that the CCP has established many Confucius Institutes in various universities in many countries as an attempt to undermine Shen Yun Preforming Arts performances and NTD competitions. The CCP is actually hindering the revival of traditional culture in the name of protecting it. Why did it not launch Confucius Institutes in the Cultural Revolution when the Confucius Temple and Confucius State were destroyed? It is now utilizing Chinese classrooms to stop the restoration of genuine traditional culture.
People 70 years or older who have kept the Chinese traditions alive generation after generation might pass away, which would be a massive loss of knowledge. This includes traditional martial arts, such as classing combat tools. When watching martial arts, one can tell at a glance, a genuine master from an amateur. Nowadays, even elderly people don’t really know what dishes are included in the five major cuisines. For example, traditional fish-flavored shredded pork does not need soy sauce, while many cooks add it in. Another example is fruit. Traditional cuisine focuses on color, smell, and taste, along with technique and cutting. But nowadays, people cook dishes together with fruit and sometimes even Chinese medicine. Traditional cooking allows people to eat well and eat neat, as well as eat low in sugar, salt, and oil. This requires people to be considerate of others and cherish virtue.
A Test for Dafa Disciples
For those people who were threatened by the CCP, we need to thoroughly explain how traditional culture was damaged by the CCP. In order to have in-depth discussions, we need to make friends and share some such stories. We have encountered this problem year after year in the past, and now it is time to change our notions according to the Fa. In “Teaching the Fa in San Francisco, 2005,” Master said: “As soon as the wicked Party started interfering with Fa-rectification and persecuting Dafa disciples, Heaven decided to weed out the wicked Party. There was unanimous agreement among both gods who play a positive role, and old forces who play a negative role. It was only that some bad elements insisted that it be used to test Dafa disciples, and they didn't want it to be weeded out immediately. However, it will be weeded out for certain.
At most, it was meant to play its so-called role of testing Dafa disciples during the process of it being weeded out, the idea being that those students who hadn't done well would be given another chance to temper and improve themselves, and make it through in terms of understanding. If the evil specters all vanished instantly, the wicked Party would immediately fall apart, and then who would dare to persecute Falun Gong? Who else has such nerve? (Master smiles) So wouldn't the Dafa disciples who haven't done well be out of chances, then?”
After studying the above paragraph, I found my thinking totally changed. We need to clarify the truth to people and tell them what the culture was before the damage caused by the CCP.
How to Wake Up Chinese People
In “What is a Dafa Disciple,” Master said, “So, over time, man gradually learned how to respond to the natural environment. Afterwards, gods ceaselessly went about imparting to man cultures of every sort, with gods watching, along the way, to see what kind of person such cultures would produce. In other words, it was an ongoing process of trial-and-error and putting things into practice, with things having ultimately been finalized at a certain point. After an extremely protracted process spanning countless years and that served to finalize things, culture suitable for establishing the kind of thinking and behavior needed at the final stage, and the best things from human culture, were selected. Those would be brought forth during the five thousand years of the final mankind, and be enacted by man. It is precisely the five millennia of Chinese civilization that I am referring to. It is the product of what was established over the course of, and is the culmination of, that protracted historical process. The process was meant to teach people what mode of thinking to use, what structures of thought to form, how to think about the things that they encounter, and what ways of thinking to use to contemplate things.”
In the past 12 years, the CCP has been using media and other political machines to persecute Falun Gong. This led to the degenerated thoughts of people: “I can participate in NTD competitions to restore traditional culture, but what if CCP does not allow me go back to China and visit my parents?” Many people agreed that the competitions are good, but they dared not to irritate the CCP. Many Chinese restaurant owners in Flushing, NY said that they had received notice not to go and they had to obey the policy.
We need to tell these people that Marx and Lenin are not our forefathers and we should not follow them or the CCP. We know that traditional culture was damaged in the Cultural Revolution and intellectuals were humiliated as well. Mao even boasted that he exceeded the Qin Emperor in burning books and killing intellectuals. That is why we need to encourage people to stand up to support the traditions, instead of being suffocated by the CCP.
Making Friends and Clarifying the Truth
I once came across a candidate who confirmed several times that he would come to the competition. But later his student told him not to come since the Chinese embassy may give him a hard time after he returns to China. He withdrew his registration. In fact, the CCP is so vicious it has no influence, but many Chinese people are still intimated. We should tell people to stand up for traditional culture and not be scared of the evil. Another practitioner shared we should be proactive when making friends with others. Instead of waiting till the last minute, we should always find more opportunities to interact with them, such as inviting them to tea, having a chat, inviting to a party, giving a holiday or birthday card. All these are long-time investments. When making friends, we should try to build deep relationships.
Promote Shen Yun Through the Competitions
When first promoting Shen Yun, I would describe the show as very good without giving examples. The result was not good. Later, I said that the lead dancer from this company won the NTD Dancing Competition gold prize this year and that the soloist won the NTD Vocal Competition that year. After this, many store owners not only allowed us to put up posters, but also decided to watch the Shen Yun show. I came to understand that since Shen Yun is a world-class show, we need to spend time learning more about Shen Yun and introduce it to people.
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2011/11/21/78496.html
