Chinese traditional culture emphasises kindness, even in people’s thoughts. A Chinese idiom says, “A whisper in the human world is as loud as a thunderclap in the heavens.” This implies that the divine knows our every thought. And a thought – whether kind or unkind – brings about consequences. Luo Yin (c. 833 – 910), a poet of the late Tang and early Wuyue dynasties, learned this lesson the hard way.
Luo was very skilled in writing essays and poems. He was also arrogant and often looked down on others. His neighbors were quite afraid of his sarcastic comments.
He tried to borrow some money from his relatives once, but dozens of them declined to help him. Because of this rejection, Luo’s mother and Luo developed quite a bit of resentment toward their family members.
A fortune teller told Luo Yin, “You have a tall forehead, a straight nose, and a square-shaped mouth. Your eyes sparkle. You have the look of a lord. Please take care of yourself.”
Luo and his mother made a wish, “We resent our relatives for neglecting us. We will take revenge on them once we become rich and powerful. We won’t let them live.” They talked about this for a few days.
Luo was brought before a Taoist deity during a dream one night. The deity said to Luo, “You have the blessings of becoming a lord. However, you had unkind thoughts. You wouldn’t let others live because they didn’t lend you money? Being so brutal and unkind, if you became a lord, you would damage the harmony of heaven and earth and harm living beings. The heavenly emperor was angry at your unkind thoughts. Your blessings have been reduced.”
Luo woke up and saw that he now looked like a totally different person. His forehead and mouth were tilted. His nose was also flat. He told his mother about the dream. They both felt regretful.
Luo saw the fortune teller again a month later. The fortune teller was shocked, “Why has your appearance completely changed in such a short time?”
Luo told him about the dream and asked, “My blessings have been reduced because of one unkind thought of mine. What should I do?”
The fortune teller told him, “The heavens know our every thought. If you have unkind thoughts, those bad thoughts invite an evil field. How could the heavens not see that?
Your appearance is determined by your heart. If your heart is not kind, your appearance changes accordingly. This is the principle. You should change your behavior. Maybe you will be afforded a second chance.” He sighed and left.
Luo strove to be kind. He became a teacher and did his best to help others. Qian Liu was one of the people who obtained help from Luo. Qian became a high-ranking official and promoted Luo. Luo helped Qian for 22 years and spoke up for citizens in need. He recovered some of his blessings.
Luo’s story tells us that we are all subject to divine principles. Our blessings are determined by our virtue. Kindness builds virtue; evilness, including unkind thoughts, reduces virtue.
Traditional Chinese culture believes that harming those who cultivate themselves in Buddhism and Taoism brings even more severe consequences: karmic retribution.
Let’s take a look at some contemporary examples.
A key staff member at the 610 Office made a fortune by persecuting Falun Gong practitioners. Two years ago, his wife started suffering severe headaches at four set times each day. The doctors couldn’t identify the cause. He hired someone in the Buddha school to examine the issue. This person told the 610 Office agent that sharp swords were attacking the wife’s head four times a day. He told the officer, “You should do more kind deeds.”
This officer understood that this was why Falun Gong practitioners often told him that those who persecute practitioners will incur karmic retribution. He decided to change his behavior and stop participating in the persecution. His wife recovered quickly.
A male Falun Gong practitioner in Jilin Province died from persecution around November 2001. His older sister didn’t practice Falun Gong and had often cursed him after the persecution was launched in 1999.
Soon after his death, her daughter caught a strange disease. No hospitals could offer any cure. She finally approached a fortune teller who told her, “The child’s uncle is a deity in the heavens. How could you curse him all the time?”
She understood and stopped cursing her brother, the Falun Gong practitioner. Her daughter’s disease then disappeared without requiring treatment.
A public security officer in Sichuan fined a Falun Gong practitioner more than 10,000 yuan. Soon afterward, he was in a car accident. He was not injured, but the repair fee was the same amount as the fine.
Falun Gong practitioners told him, “The accident was a warning from the heavens. Stop persecuting Falun Gong practitioners. You took 10,000 yuan and then immediately spent 10,000 yuan. This is retribution in the same lifetime. Your payback may not be as little as 10,000 yuan next time!” The officer understood and retired early from the public security agency.
Falun Gong teaches people to be kind and to conduct themselves in accordance with the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.
More than 100 million people practiced Falun Gong after it was introduced to the public in May 1992. We hope that all people who implement the persecution policy in China learn from these ancient and contemporary lessons and rethink what they are doing.
Politics are not the ultimate standard to live by, and the protocols that the persecutors are blindly following are not acknowledged by the heavens.
(Clearwisdom)