As an anti-cult volunteer, I provide voluntary psychological counseling regularly for former “Falun Gong” practitioners in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province. One day, under the guidance of local volunteers, we went to a residential building in a community in Jiawang District, and it was Geng Daming himself, a former “Falun Gong” practitioner, who opened the door for us. Entering his house, we saw that the whole family was paying tribute to an old woman- Geng Daming's mother. The moment Geng Daming saw us, he burst into tears with deep remorse, saying it was him who had killed his mother because of his obsession with the “Falun Gong” cult.
In July 1963, Geng Daming was born into an ordinary coal miners’ family in Jiawang District, Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province. His parents got divorced when he was young. So, it was his mother who had endured all kinds of hardships to bring him up, and he had a very deep affection for his mother. Since childhood, he had been interested in religion and liked reading books on Buddhism, Taoism and Christianity.
In February 1997, a neighbor gave Geng Daming a book named Zhuan Falun. After reading it, he felt it was easier for him to understand than those religious scriptures he had read before. In addition, the neighbor told him, “as long as you practice Dafa, Master Li Hongzhi will make your family free from disease, and you will ascend to heaven in the future.” For this good will, he not only practiced Dafa by himself, but also took his mother on the road of “cultivation”.
To “increase Gong powers”, they persisted in taking time out every day to “study the Fa and practice Gong” in strict accordance with requirements. At that time, Geng Daming and his mother read the book “Zhuan Falun” all day long, and meditated regularly to practice their skills. They basically spent all their spare time “studying the Fa and practice Gong,” at least 3 hours a day. They did not do housework even if they could, but squeezed out all the time to practice. They visited their relatives less often, seldom contacted their friends, and they were reluctant to participate in classmates or friends’ parties, feeling that it was a waste of time. As he became more and more obsessed with “Falun Gong”, Geng Daming was gradually attracted by miracles described in the book and fantasized that one day, he could obtain such magical powers through practice, and “reach Consummation and ascend to heaven” in the future.
In the spring of 1998, Geng’s mother began to feel depressed and often felt tired. She also had health problems as a lump was found in her abdomen. At that time, they thought it was the manifestation of “karma” after practice, and as long as they insisted on practicing as the “Master” required, these minor “ailments” would automatically disappear. But the lump in her body gradually became as big as an egg and felt hard. The pain was getting worse and worse. Relatives and friends urged Geng Daming to take his mother to the hospital as soon as possible. However, despite the opposition from family and friends, the two kept practicing at home, refusing to see a doctor. They comforted themselves that it was just a normal reaction to “eliminating karma,” saying, “to achieve success in cultivation, we must fundamentally change the way ordinary people think.” But no one knew that this was just the beginning of a nightmare.
In July 1999, the Chinese government banned “Falun Gong” according to law, but the two felt quite resentful, thinking that the government had misunderstood “Falun Gong”. Geng’s relatives, friends, and leaders all advised him to give up his practice, but at that time, Geng’s mind was full of “Dafa” and “Consummation”. He had already put relatives and his work behind him. Later on, Geng simply resigned from the unit and devoted himself to “Falun Gong” practice.
Geng Daming would never forget the cold early spring of March 2000, when his mother began to have a persistent low fever, and they still rejected any medical help. What Geng Daming did was “sending out Righteous Thoughts” to his mother as “Falun Gong” required, in an attempt to cure his mother’s sickness. Sometimes, his mother's temperature dropped, but it would rise again after a few days. At that time, they firmly believed that this was a normal phenomenon in the process of “eliminating karma”, and the “Master” would bless them. Gradually, his mother's face and neck became swollen, resulting in shortness of breath or other breathing difficulties. One night, his mother began to cough up blood. Geng Daming was so terrified that he finally realized the seriousness of the situation. With the help of relatives, he hurriedly sent his mother to the people's Hospital of Jiawang District. But it was too late. The diagnosis was advanced liver cancer plus lung cancer. Doctors all blamed him for coming too late.
Standing by his mother's sick bed, Geng Daming felt deep remorse, gut wrenching and overwhelming. He was thinking about the scenes of his obsession with the cult, as well as his mother's initial symptoms. If he had taken his mother to the hospital in time, the tragedy might have been avoided. Unfortunately, he woke up too late. In early May 2000, Geng's mother died of organ failure at the age of 58.
Obsessed with the so-called “Dafa”, Geng Daming lost his mother, abandoned his job, and wasted his best youth. After his mother’s death, he had nothing left and everything had to start over again. Later, with the help of the local community, Geng Daming ran a small grocery store. Due to his hard work and diligence, Geng’s family finally lived a well-off life.
