(Clearwisdom.net)
Greetings Respectful Master,
Greetings fellow practitioners,
At the end of 2004, three months before the Chinese New Year, Toronto practitioners decided to hold the Chinese New Year Gala at the end of January 2005. Considering the short preparation time and the large amount of funds required, I decided to help with the sponsorship, work along with another Ottawa practitioner and attempt to solve the financial requirement.
I was targeting local and national big western newspapers and big banks for sponsorship. At the end of December 2004, I was laid off from my company which meant that I could work on the sponsorship full time. Unfortunately, I didn't succeed in getting even one single sponsorship. Besides, the sponsorship for the whole Gala wasn't very good either.
I was very upset as I saw the old forces' systematic arrangement at work trying to block us financially. I knew that in order to save sentient beings on a large scale, we needed to break through this financial blockade. Hence I was determined to deter Jiang's policy of "bankrupt them financially" by breaking the old forces' arrangement. I also realized that to do this, I ought to study the Fa with great determination.
1. Epoch Times Advertisement Marketing--Totally Negate the Old Forces' Financial Blockade and Persecution
At the end of 2004, Toronto started the English Epoch Times. Because we have fewer practitioners in Ottawa, we were wondering if we were going to initiate English Epoch Times for our city, taking into consideration that the financial burden could be quite a big obstacle.
Just as Master taught us in Fa Teaching at the 2007 New York Fa Conference,
"But what is happening with the persecution is so urgent, and as we resist the persecution there is no time to do things in such a slow, unhurried manner."...and "You cannot wait. Sentient beings are being persecuted, and morality is on a rapid decline. The number of people you are to save is becoming smaller and smaller, and it is becoming ever more difficult. That is why we cannot wait."
So, Ottawa practitioners decided that we would do it! And almost every practitioner participated in the project.
At that time, I considered three factors to make the project happen:
marketing, managing the Epoch Times advertisement and seeking for the path to negate the old forces' arrangement on a larger scale.
time wise, working for Epoch Times would give me more flexibility, not only for the work involving the paper but, to meet government officials immediately whenever there was some important event or incident happening and hold press conferences, etc.
I believe that by working for Epoch Times not only can I make a living out of it, but I can help Epoch Times financially too.
Therefore, at the beginning of 2005, I started coordinating Epoch Times advertising and marketing.
Master said in Teaching the Fa at the Washington, D.C. International Fa Conference,
"The old forces made well-ordered arrangements, but I too have done things with much order."
Master also said in Fa Teaching at the 2007 New York Fa Conference,
"[What you referred to is] just like with the New Year's show. For a few years, our Dafa disciples put a great deal of effort into it, but the effect was limited because the degree of professionalism was not quite up to par. Once it became of professional caliber, it was a different story altogether."
I remembered about four or five years ago, when Fa rectification started to turn around, and legal cases for suing Jiang were initiated all over the world. Because of a lack of legal knowledge, we felt that lawyers from ordinary society had undergone a great deal of interference by being easily led by their human notions, resulting in expensive legal fees. So, in order to suffocate the evil in a court of law, we needed to acquire legal knowledge by attending many human rights legal conferences. Through our efforts of clarifying the truth to the legal community, we got to know lawyers who have now taken on cases of suing Jiang for crimes against humanity. During the Summer of 2004, we were even invited to speak on Falun Gong human rights at the Canada Bar Association's Annual Conference. At that time, although we won the Iceland Information Department case, we were stuck with preparing the statement of claim due to a funding problem, and as a result the case was blocked. I then decided to take a course at Carleton University on International Criminal law and subsequently handed in the " Statement of Claim" to the Ombudsman. We won the case without hiring a lawyer.
Then, I realized what Master said in Fa Teaching at the 2007 New York Fa Conference,
"Once it became of professional caliber, it was a different story altogether."
The resistance to the old force's persecution needs to be carried out diligently. Dafa's vast power will give practitioners great wisdom as long as they study hard.
After that, I proceeded to devise a management strategy based on market survey data. I also endeavored to take a marketing and sales course at the university.
Ottawa's winters are very cold and I drove all over the city to sell ads. But I didn't feel the cold at all. Although there were only a few practitioners with any experience, it didn't matter because we always managed to sell ads. For example, one practitioner with poor English sold many ads to a western customer. We all felt the great compassion from Master. By that time I hadn't made any sales, but I wasn't disappointed, had strong righteous thoughts, and I could only think that the old forces are not worthy to test Dafa practitioners. Not too long after that, I signed up a one-year contract. I can't help but continuously feel the power from the Fa. It is really like the poem described,
"Disciples' righteous thoughts are strong,
Master has the power to turn the tide"(Hong Yin, "Master-Disciple Grace")
I often think about people's suffering as they're lost in the maze and who still have the opportunity to know the truth. Their willingness to put money into the newspaper, which serves the purpose of clarifying the truth on a large scale, will not only guarantee them a good future but by the same token they are helping to save sentient beings. Many times while driving, I shed tears as I felt Master's great compassion.
But after the contract was signed, I still could not relax. Not too long after that, the company's manager called me for a meeting. He said they wanted to withdraw the ad. He explained that when they put the ad in our paper, all the Chinese media called them asking for business and bad-mouthed the paper. I knew this had to be because I didn't clarify the truth enough. So I further clarified the truth to him and also told him that our paper receives a lot of good feedback. Finally, everything was fine.
In the long run our paper has indeed earned much praise. Not long ago, the UN Canadian Refugee Board praised our English Epoch Times and said it had a great reputation. A customer told me , "Your Epoch Times paper is so clean and pure." And two weeks ago, an elderly Greek lady called me and she was too excited to talk. I asked her to calm down and finally she said that she had never read such a good paper as the Epoch Times, and she was going to read every edition. I feel this is the manifestation of Dafa's power.
Then, not long ago, the manager of the car dealership called me again and asked for a meeting. He said the owner had said the ad didn't have a good effect, and also cost too much, and he wanted to withdraw the ad. I was puzzled: how come? The effect of the ad would be great in another dimension, so I kept clarifying the truth to him, talking about the advantages of advertising in our paper, how it is distributed to all members of Parliament, Senators, City Councils, and many government departments and businesses. I told him we have hundreds of distribution spots, with people handing the paper out every Friday as well. I also suggested that the design of the ad be improved. I told him that it is his good fortune to be able to have an ad in our paper. With some hesitation, he said he would talk to the owner. After that, everything was fine.
I deliver papers to my clients every week. Before Christmas in 2005, I saw the manager again, and he asked me to come into his office. He told me that they had over-spent on their advertising expenses, and needed to cut down on advertising. Then he told me that he dropped the other paper he was advertising with instead of ours. We shook hands warmly. Last May, the manager told me that our paper really brought good fortune to them, and for the first time their dealership became number one in sales in Canada for three or four consecutive months.
Of course, before long I faced another serious challenge, but this time I was very confident.
Last year, a middle-end furniture store bought an ad. Knowing this company had plenty of money, I suggested that the owner sponsor our gala, and he agreed. But later he felt doubtful, so I invited him for dinner to find out what happened. He told me that the company was involved in a legal case and had spent a lot of money. I knew this was interference, so I told him that the Gala is rebuilding Chinese traditional culture after it was destroyed by the CCP. I told him that to sponsor such a good show would bring great fortune and honor, as well as direct financial benefit. He said he would seriously consider it.
He finally sponsored the Gala using a loan from the bank, which really moved me. After the Gala, he told me that some audience members from the Gala bought furniture from his store.
I also studied ad design in order to be able to serve customers on time. Overall, I found it very hard to balance my Epoch Times job and Falun Dafa Association work. For example, in September 2005, when Hu Jintao visited Canada, we organized many activities, and I had very little time to spend on Epoch Times, but it was very easy to get ad sales. I once again felt Master's compassion whenever one's heart is on the Fa.
Another thing happened that was very touching. There was another furniture store owner who always wanted to have an ad in our paper, but could never make the final decision. I thought, "It doesn't matter how much I have to suffer, or how many times I have to visit him, I will get the ad." After visiting him about 30 times, the owner still said he needed more time to consider. I realized that my thought of "suffer more, visit more" was being used by the old forces to make me suffer more. When I rectified this thought, the furniture store owner bought the ad right away. This really showed me that a Dafa disciple's thoughts cannot acknowledge the old forces' arrangement. This is very serious.
Master said,
"Negate them, completely negate everything of the old forces!" (Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference)
2. Cultivate during the Chinese New Year Spectacular Project, and Abandon the Attachment to Self
Early last year, after many discussions, Ottawa finally decided to host the 2007 NTDTV Chinese New Year Spectacular. Having experienced the hardship and difficulties of the 2005 Toronto Gala, at that time I had not awakened to the celestial changes that had taken place for the coming New Year Spectacular. Ottawa has very limited resources, and with the challenges of the operation of Epoch Times along with the addition of the 2007 Spectacular, I felt tremendous pressure. In July, I investigated other opportunities for funding, without any success. Last summer, I was in two car accidents.
We planned thoroughly for the Spectacular. With Ottawa practitioners operating as one body, ticket sales went very well. By mid-October, only one month after the tickets were released, we had sold more than 50 percent of the tickets. We also made progress finding sponsorships. Just as Master said in Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference,
"For Dafa disciples as a whole, in the process of validating the Fa, when you work together in concert, the Fa power is great."
Meanwhile, in comparison with other coordinators who have put in lots of time and effort toward one-body elevation, I find that I lag behind.
Teacher said in "For Whom do You Practice Cultivation?" (Essentials for Further Advancement),
"As a matter of fact, from ancient times to the present, human society has had a principle called mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition......This was a principle in the past......(the principle of mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition will change in the future)."
I enlightened that the principle of mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition is changing now.
With many things progressing smoothly, my attachment to self began to grow as well. In mid-October of last year, although 50 percent of the tickets for the Spectacular were sold, the Epoch Times was experiencing a very difficult financial situation, and practitioners were having to contribute a lot of money. At that time, some practitioners thought that I was so devoted to the Spectacular that I did not care about the Epoch Times. I felt that they did not know my well-thought out plan. Therefore, I kept looking outward, and pointing out that the problem was caused by others. I even said: "This is a good thing, because you all understand the difficult situation of operating the Epoch Times when you share the financial burden."
That statement angered a practitioner. She kept calling me and pointing out that my words were not on the Fa. She also said that the Epoch Times sales were down. I responded immediately: "My sales are not down." She said over the phone very seriously: "I am not talking about your sales, I am talking about the sales for the Epoch Times. You are not validating the Fa, you are validating your self. You complain about others, and do not look inside. Your xinxing has dropped very low."
In fact, her words were quite correct. I paid more attention to sales as an individual, and was not responsible for the sales team. But at that time, I tried to protect myself. I did not guard my xinxing, and hung up the phone. In fact, I had received some hints in the past about my attachment to myself. But I always found an excuse to be busy, to not have time to share, etc. and missed the opportunity to eliminate my attachment to self. One day my wife said with a smile: "Among the few coordinators doing Dafa things, none of us have any attachment to self." I immediately said that I agreed with her. But then she said, "except you!"
Master said in Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Western U.S. Fa Conference,
"Selfishness is a fundamental attribute of the cosmos of the past. Because of that attribute, formation-stasis-degeneration-destruction and birth-aging-sickness-death are inevitable. In the future the Fa will be all-harmonizing, perfect, and selfless. The change in that fundamental attribute of the cosmos leads to fundamental changes in the cosmos's progression and beings' characteristics."
When looking at an issue, a Dafa disciple should first be concerned with the requirements of the Fa and the needs of Master's Fa-rectification. I found that the base point for myself in doing thing was my selfish heart. Sometimes, I even emphasize what I want to do, and make things that have a surface result my first priority. However, when Master asks for things with greater degrees of difficulty, I must put aside my ordinary heart and not fail to use the side of godhood to validate the Fa instead of making up excuses. It was not until recently that I began to feel changes in myself. I feel that for a quite long time that I wasn't able to study the Fa attentively and equated being busy and doing things with cultivating diligently. The attachment to self begins to grow when I cannot merge into the Fa.
It was not until recently that I began to become truly awakened. After the Chinese New Year Spectacular for 2007 project in Ottawa, I thought the progress we had made in Ottawa was quite smooth, and the cooperation among coordinators was quite smooth. However, when we were sharing, another coordinator shared her view of me. She said that although she is the overall coordinator, in everything we do she has to always follow my instructions. The way she expressed this was quite intense. Because my judgment was contrary to what was happening, this incident had a major impact on me. When I responded to her, it exposed my attachment to myself completely, and I did not begin to awaken until I could not avoid it any longer. I began to seriously face my attachment to self.
I felt full of anguish, because for quite a while I was very busy, doing things reactively, and was in a state of exhaustion. I was thinking of various projects while reading the Fa and sending forth the righteous thoughts, and that's when I realized that the reason I cannot cultivate diligently is because I cannot study the Fa persistently. After this incident, regardless of how busy I am, I always make an effort to do the exercises and study the Fa in the early morning. I had a deeper realization about my attachment to self, and I feel the difference after finding the attachment and getting rid of it.
Actually, last year, there was a period of time that I could study the Fa diligently, and felt the power of Fa when in a state of unselfishness. One time, while studying the Fa with my mother, I suddenly found the separation between us getting less and less. My mother became interested in some issues I was working on. Once, I was called to be in a meeting with practitioners from other cities to share the Gala's marketing and managing situation in Ottawa. Mother came along to join in, so I told her it was a marketing meeting, and that she wouldn't be interested, but she stayed anyway and listened quietly. By midnight, when it was time to send forth righteous thoughts, she was still there. She ended up staying until the meeting finished, at about 1:30 a.m. I was very surprised. I asked her, "Mom, do you understand?" She said, "Yes, I understand them all." Later, she took on the task of putting posters up in Chinatown with other practitioners. They put posters all over Chinatown and in Chinese society, and built up a pure righteous field.
Master said in Zhuan Falun,
"The actual message is sent forth by the Primordial Spirit. What is transmitted, however, is not language, but a message of the universe that represents a certain meaning."
I then realized that the separation between fellow practitioners is not language either. When the message our Primordial spirit sends out doesn't have self, that separation is not there anymore.
I felt that to follow Master's teaching to do three things well is actually to totally negate the old forces. The key is to study the Fa diligently. From now on, I will not let down Master's compassionate saving grace. I will study the Fa and do the three things diligently, give up selfishness, harmonize what Master wants without any conditions, and move forward along the of the path toward consummation!
Thank you Master!
Thank you fellow practitioners!