(Clearwisdom.net) On June 21, 1994, I had the opportunity to attend Teacher's lecture in Huangting Stadium in Jinan. I want to share some of the unforgettable experiences I had, as well as events as told by fellow practitioners.
1. Overcoming Hardship, Showing Compassion to Practitioners
On the afternoon of the second lecture day, our Teacher posed for photographs with practitioners on the stairs in the stadium. At that time we had two unique situations. It was mid-summer, and it was very hot. Jinan has always been known as the "burning furnace." The temperature that day was 37o C (99o F). We took photos in the mid-afternoon, the hottest time of the day, on the hot cement stairs in the field. Another situation was that we had a few thousand people. The location wasn't very big, so we had to divide into a few groups. Five groups would need about 5 hours. Our Teacher had to lecture that night, and we had less than 4 hours. How could the practitioners in charge of the event handle this?
At that time, Teacher started giving directions. In the midst of the large and loud audience, Teacher didn't need a microphone and he didn't need to shout. He only gave hand signals, telling people to shuffle to the left or right. At that time, I was thinking that Teacher had come here to lecture, he was tested, certified, and approved numerous times by government agencies, and is a Grand Master, that he was supposed to be in an air-conditioned room with drinks and services. I thought that he would be like other lecturers and come in when everyone else is ready. But amidst the "furnace" and the stuffiness of the crowd, our Teacher, while sweating, directed people to stand in order, and then he joined the crowd for the photo. Then he said, "Next group, hurry."
Teacher was busy the whole afternoon, until all the photographs were taken. Not only did our lecture start on time, he even gave us time to get dinner. The Beijing, Shandong, and Northeast veteran practitioners quickly consumed their dinner and took the least comfortable locations such as the hallways and corners, and left the good seats for new practitioners. A young boy about seven years old was standing in the hallway all the way in the back. I asked him, "Don't you have a seat here? Why don't you sit?" He said, "I am a veteran practitioner." I patted his back to prevent myself from tearing up.
Teacher started lecturing. But it was so hot inside and many started fanning themselves. The Teacher said, "Why don't you put the fans down..." Then a breeze blew through the stadium. All the practitioners applauded Teacher's compassion.
2. A Symbolic Charge
The lecture fee was extremely low. I had attended many Qi-gong seminars. From my experience, usually a week-long lecture cost about 120 to 200 Yuan, and some charged even higher. Teacher's lecture was 50 Yuan for 10 days, and the fee was waived for some practitioners. Why was the cost so low? It's not because of the content, not that I can see through all the content. It's because Teacher is openly "genuinely guiding people toward high levels," and "...offering salvation to humankind? Offering salvation to humankind means that you will be truly practicing cultivation, and not just healing illness and keeping fit." (Zhuan Falun). This solved the stagnated state of healing illness in Qi-gong practices. With just a few words Teacher explained the heavenly secrets. From the mysterious pass, heavenly circuits, to the Celestial Eye, etc. He astounded those who had searched the world for cultivation. The practitioners said excitedly, "In the past we traveled everywhere. Now Teacher has brought Falun Dafa to our doorstep, and we spent no effort in gaining it." Those who had continuously studied the Falun Dafa principles and cultivated their xinxing (heart, mind nature) knew that the book Zhuan Falun was priceless. How can anything from the ordinary world compare with it? Because Teacher is compassionate and wanted to ease the practitioner's financial burden, he pushed the entry fee to its lowest point. Everyone said that it's just a symbolic charge.
3. Purifying My Mother's Body
At first I wasn't planning on taking my over 80-year-old mother with me, but I got another ticket by chance. I thought: it would be great if my mother could go with me, but she was too sick. She had major heart problems and was extremely weak. Her kidney was failing, and the hospital already cautioned us that she had to remain in bed.
But my mother told me a dream she had the previous night, "A Teacher in 'Jiasha' (clothes worn by monks) came and taught me." I suddenly remembered that mother always believed in and respected Buddha. She was always kind and could endure hardship. Maybe this was a hint. We decided she would come with me. When we entered the stadium and when my mother saw Teacher, she took my hands and said, "That's the Teacher from my dream." I saw that she was already crying. During the lecture my heart was racing, I was afraid that she couldn't persist and something might happen. But she was focusing on the lecture and looked nothing like a sick person. I thought this might be pre-destined.
But my enlightenment quality was low, and I was afraid of being burdened. I didn't take her to the second day for the photographs and lost a valuable experience for her. On the third day, when we arrived at the stadium, I saw that she was in pain, so a friend and I took turns carrying her on our backs for a distance. But we didn't last long, so we supported her as we walked. Other than her heart problems she had serious rheumatism, and she couldn't walk due to joint pains, and her body was swollen. Not to mention the fact that she had bound her feet since she was 6 years old (feet-binding is an old Chinese tradition where women of Han heritage would bind their feet in an early age so their feet won't grow), so it was extremely difficult for her to walk. We supported her and moved forward, and we were exhausted. I was more worried about my mother's health. It was difficult enough for her to just stand. I was worried about her heart.
When I was regretting that I had taken this chance, I raised my head. I saw Teacher walking towards us. We shouted "Teacher!" But he didn't answer. He fixed his eyes on my mother and looked as if he was doing something. When he passed us we turned around to look. He was still looking at my mother's back, as we entered the stadium. At that time all the practitioners in the yard had entered the lecture hall, but Teacher was here. He must have business to attend to. We didn't think much about it and entered the hall immediately.
The next day my mother's body experienced a huge transformation. She urinated a lot, and there was blood in her urine. She felt much better afterward and all her symptoms disappeared. The swelling was gone. Then we realized that Teacher had purified her body the previous day. Teacher was purifying everyone's body during the lecture. Why did he come out to purify my mother's body? Maybe it's because he saw how dangerous it was for my mother.
Teacher always came to the stadium early. If we had gone earlier that day he could have purified mother's body, but I had to wait for a fellow practitioner to get off work and help carry my mother. So we couldn't get to the stadium any earlier. But Teacher waited for us in the yard (just a few minutes before the lecture). As soon as we entered Teacher came over. He was very quiet and we couldn't see anything happening. It wasn't until my mother underwent huge changes did I realize what happened. Teacher took a few minutes before the lecture to purify her body, maybe because it would be too late if we waited until the lecture.
With Teacher's help my mother's life was saved, and Teacher purified her body. Whenever I think about it, I feel extremely grateful toward Teacher. It was the compassionate Teacher who saw all of this and eliminated the disastrous misfortune before it happened. Teacher said, "I treasure you more than you treasure yourselves!" ("Eliminating Your Last Attachment(s)"). And that was proven. Teacher also told us in different lectures that he would be responsible for us if we wanted to cultivate.
4. Facing Vicious Slander
Once Teacher ate noodles with a practitioner. When the restaurant owner served the noodles, Teacher said lightly, "There's too much salt in this bowl." The owner became angry and said, "You are looking for trouble! How do you know even before tasting it?"
Teacher didn't say a word and started eating the noodles. The owner stopped after he felt that he had vented enough. Teacher finished the noodles without saying a word. When the practitioner cleaned the table and brought the bowls to the owner, he stuck his finger in Teacher's bowl and tasted it, and told the owner, "It's too salty. You put too much salt in it."
Teacher told us to "not fight back when you are beaten or sworn at." And he did so calmly.
5. Story of Shifo (Stone Buddha) Temple Gatekeeper
One day, Teacher was to visit the Shifo Temple. The local contact person and some practitioners came to see Teacher, but they waited for a long time to no avail. After noon, they thought that Teacher wouldn't come, so they left. Teacher arrived shortly after they left.
The first ones to see Teacher were the gatekeeper and his grandson. They started talking and Teacher told them about Falun Gong, introducing it to the gatekeeper. The gatekeeper said, "I am too old, I am not well-educated. I don't think I can practice it."
The old gatekeeper told Teacher about a problem his family had, that his grandson's brain was not functioning properly. He didn't want to go to school, and his education was falling behind.
Teacher warmheartedly rubbed the boy's head, and gave him a piece of candy. The kid ate it happily.
Soon after, good news came from the gatekeeper's house. His grandson changed completely. He became smart and could understand things, and was willing to go to school. He listened to others and received good grades.
The gatekeeper thought, "This Falun Gong Teacher is great and kind. A piece of candy changed my grandson. His Falun Gong must not be bad." Hence he led a group of villagers to practice Falun Gong.