Resisting Tyranny – Part 18: Protect the First to Resist

jiejing

Resisting Tyranny – Part 18: Protect the First to Resist

Xuefeng

July 8, 2025

It is said that during the war, just three Japanese soldiers could march over a hundred Chinese people to their execution grounds.
How could three men overpower a hundred?
Of course they couldn’t—not physically.
So where did the problem lie?

The problem lies in a deep-rooted flaw within the Chinese people.

At the critical moment of life and death, everyone waits for someone else to take the lead.
But if everyone is waiting, no one steps forward.
And so, a hundred people are herded to their deaths without resistance.

Tyrants understand this psychology well.
They know that no one wants to be the first to resist.
So when someone finally steps up, they arrest and punish that person.
This reinforces the fear and makes people even more hesitant.
Everyone scrambles to protect themselves first, rather than stand up first.
As a result, bullies, thugs, and evil regimes overpower the people by sheer momentum.
And so, evil flourishes while righteousness is suppressed.

Even more heartbreaking is this:
Even when someone dares to resist, the crowd only watches—
no one lends a hand.
This trait has chilled the hearts of those who once had the courage to stand up for the common good.
This is why China has so many reclusive hermits, Daoists, and monks.
No one wants to be like Peng Zaizhou, who dared to protest on Sitong Bridge in Beijing.
No one wants to be the first to stand up—
and people are even more reluctant to help the one who does.

For thousands of years, the Chinese people have pinned their hopes on the coming of a wise ruler.
Even now, many are waiting for the Eastern Saint to emerge and save them from suffering.
But the wise ruler never seems to come—
and those who do arrive are more often tyrants than sages.

Even if the Eastern Saint truly arrives,
if the people only watch, wait, and bow their heads in submission—
if they do not rise up and respond to the Saint’s call—
then all he can do is sigh and walk away.

The Eastern Saint can show the path and give guidance—
but he will not clean up the mess alone.
If no one is willing to sweep the streets,
if everyone waits for the Saint to clean the world and prepare a grand banquet,
only to rush in and enjoy the feast—
then I can say with certainty:
such a Saint will never descend to Earth.

Whoever casts down tyranny is the Eastern Saint.
If millions of ordinary people rise up together to overthrow evil,
then those millions are the Eastern Saint.

Tyranny is evil.
And the struggle to cast it down is harsh and dangerous.
The first to rise may be imprisoned, sentenced, or even killed.
So how we treat the first is something every citizen must reflect on.

Here are my suggestions:

All money once offered to temples, churches, and monasteries
should first go to the ones who lead the resistance.
Even if they are taken away, let them be free of worry.
If one rises up, support that one.
If a thousand rise, support a thousand.
If ten thousand rise, support them all.

The money used to support spiritual teachers
should first support the brave souls who speak out against tyranny.

Wherever, whenever, and in whatever situation someone stands up
to resist tyranny for the sake of the people's safety and freedom,
everyone should rise up with them.
Do not let the one who takes the risk on your behalf stand alone and grow disheartened.

We should establish a fund to support these pioneers of justice.
If they are arrested, imprisoned, or disabled,
they must be fully supported—so they may live out their days without worry.

The first to rise up against tyranny is a Bodhisattva.
They are a Buddha.
They are an angel.

Statues should be built in their honor in city squares,
so future generations may admire them,
remember their virtue,
and carry forward their legacy.

When the people act together,
the long tragedy of tyranny in China—spanning thousands of years—will finally come to an end.
A new age will begin—
an era of clarity, peace, and joy,
where the people live freely, safely, and happily on this land.