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Cultivating Myself Well According to the Fa

Feb. 4, 2010 |   By a Dafa disciple in Sichuan Province

(Clearwisdom.net) During the past 12 years that I have been practicing Falun Dafa, several chronic diseases have disappeared. I have treated fame, profit, and human sentiments lightly, which resolved many predicaments I was in. I have never been separated from Dafa, even when the evil communist regime has severely persecuted Dafa disciples. Although the path has been difficult and rough, I have still managed to persevere and have changed much. Of course, this is the result of Master's care, the power of Dafa, and help from many fellow practitioners.

Continual Disasters

I come from an impoverished background, and my parents died young. I've had a hard life since childhood. This made me purse recognition and honors in order to get a foothold in society. However, the discord in my marriage and the ensuing divorce was a serious setback for my career. Facing this heavy blow, it was difficult to hold back the tears. In order to escape this pain, I had to move to another, far-away city. Unexpectedly, I was faced with being a stepmother to my current husband's two daughters. I treated them with sincerity and showed them maternal love. However, no matter how much effort I exerted, there was no acknowledgment. Finally, I had to move out with my son into the company dormitory.

I suffered from a number of diseases, including bronchitis, emphysema, chronic enteritis, gastric illness, cholecystitus, pyelonephritis, hyperosteogeny, and cerebral vascular insufficiency that constantly caused me much misery.

Obtaining the Fa

Just when things seemed utterly hopeless, I learned of Dafa! A friend brought me Master's "Lecture in Sydney." Opening the title page and looking at Master's photo, it seemed so familiar. I finished reading the lecture at one go and felt from the bottom of my heart that this was just what I was looking for. Subsequently, I obtained a copy of Zhuan Falun.

Reading Zhuan Falun with respect, I was attracted to the profound perspective of the Fa that allowed me to know that the basic reason for misfortune and a bitter life was karma. When I was at a loss in life, Master pointed me to a bright way: "Cultivation."

I attended Fa-study and group exercises. After practicing cultivation for a while, many of my diseases disappeared. During the past 12 years, I have been always in very good health and I have a fair and rosy complexion. I have had personal experiences with the supernatural and miraculous effects of Dafa. The lives that have gained the Fa are really fortunate. From the bottom of my heart, I thank Master and Dafa.

Mercy Instead of Hatred, Clarifying the Truth to My Ex-husband and Helping Him Quit the CCP

My ex-husband and I didn't get along well after we got married. In order to develop our business, I sent our first child back to my husband's hometown. However, after a year, this child died in a traffic accident. Although I was already in so much pain from this, my husband still often blamed me. It was because of his parents' carelessness that our child got into that accident, how could he only blame me? After that, we constantly quarreled over the accident, over the increasing debts, over the lies he told when we fell in love, and over his extra-marital affair. The quarrels got so serious he even brandished a kitchen knife at me. In the end, we divorced. This disastrous marriage caused me to temporarily lose my memory and suffer many ailments. I hated him so much that I swore not to coexist with him under the same heaven. I left the city where I had worked for 20 years and swore not to ever see him again. In addition, I didn't tell my son anything about his father, and I even changed his family name to mine.

Later I found out that my ex-husband had also divorced his second wife and that he was put in jail due to the economic situation he was in. I took pleasure a bit in the calamity he was in, thinking that evil would be rewarded with evil. When he came to my city by himself and asked to live with our son, I had human thoughts such as hatred, disgust, and commiseration. However, I'm a Dafa disciple, how could I lower myself to the same level as an ordinary person?

The reason that we divorced had to do with our predestined relationship and karma. When he hurt my son and me, he also helped us eliminate much karma and gave us much de. Don't practitioners need de? In the past, I would have considered it a bad thing. But from the Fa's perspective, he was giving me an opportunity to cultivate and upgrade myself. It was really a good thing. So why did I hate him? Instead, I thought, I should save him. I read Master's Fa again and again. The hatred in my heart for more than ten years gradually faded. Knowing that he was growing older but was still on his own, I felt pity for him. Eventually I went to his room one day, clarified the truth to him on how the evil Communist Party persecutes practitioners, and persuaded him to quit the evil Party.

My ex-husband had held a county-level official position for more than 20 years for the Party. He knew first hand about the serious corruption in the Party. Therefore, he accepted Dafa and Dafa disciples. However, he still asked for some time to consider whether or not he should quit the CCP, and he persuaded me to be careful and not to mention the matter to anyone else.

I also sincerely considered his life from his perspective, which surprised and moved him. He thanked me several times. I replied, "This is what our Master teaches us. If you want to show appreciation, just thank our Master." My ex-husband also mentioned this to our son, who was also moved and wholeheartedly greeted our Master as "Master Li." After some time, my ex-husband finally quit all the affiliated organizations of the evil Party.

Take the Fa as Teacher and Repay Injury with Kindness

Regarding the two daughters of my current husband, our neighbors also thought them to be unruly, unreasonable, and rebellious. In addition, I thought the worst thing they did was create lies and slander to estrange me from their father.

It had been almost 10 years since my son and I moved out. One day, the daughters' aunt came to ask me to reconcile with them. The elder daughter was about to divorce. Her child, whom nobody took care of, needed to have lunch in my home. This elder daughter was prideful and caustic. In the past, my current husband begged her with tears to treat me well, but she turned a deaf ear. Moreover, she secretly urged her sister to make trouble and even falsely accused me at my workplace.

Now she was in trouble. Should I help her? As an ordinary person, I would have amused myself and vented my hatred by watching her make a fool of herself. However, I am a practitioner who needs to take the Fa as Teacher and act with mercy. When the girls were young, their mother was ill and their father was often away on business trips. Their parents neglected to educate them, and so they were selfish and it was hard for them to get along with others. The granddaughter was only seven or eight years old, but she had had to endure the pain of her parents' divorce. It is so sad that she has had to experience this at such a young age. Thinking about all of this, I reconciled with them without asking them either to admit their faults or make any apologies.

The granddaughter had lunch in my home every day, and we developed an intimate relationship. I made her favorite meat and vegetables. Every time we went out for a walk, she would hold my hand tightly. The granddaughter always mentioned how good I was to her when she went to her great-aunt's home. The aunt, who lived in another city, called me and, "Sister, you treat Lingling (the granddaughter) so well, like she is your own granddaughter. We appreciate you very much!" The relatives of my current husband also praised me, saying, "You are so magnanimous!" My current husband had misconceptions about me before due to his daughters' lies and slander. Now all the misconceptions have disappeared, and the entire family is bathed in and enjoys the mercy of Dafa. It is Dafa that solved the serious conflicts among us and harmonized my family.

Right now, I have a new understanding about tribulations. Tribulations can eliminate karma and have one obtain de that transforms into gong. Therefore, having tribulations is really a good thing for practitioners. Master told us in Zhuan Falun, "the more one suffers, the better, as one should speed up repaying one's debts." Looking back at what I have suffered, I no longer blame others.

Looking within Myself and Cultivating

For a while I studied the Fa. However, when I encountered a conflict, my human heart was often moved first. Sometimes I even wasted time and effort trying to study an insignificant issue, and I had difficulty measuring it against the Fa. In addition, I often talked about these so-called unfair things to others and complained about people and their affairs, rather than looking within and finding the attachment that I needed to get rid of. In short, I didn't know how to cultivate at that time and therefore some fellow practitioners I met had a negative opinion of me.

Once while studying the Fa in a group, an elder fellow practitioner sternly called my name and said, "You are so petty. You have an opinion about this, you have an opinion about that. It seems that the entire world owes you!"

It was a thunderbolt aimed at me, and I felt terribly ashamed. Since I came to this world, I had never suffered a rebuke like that. Moreover, it was in front of so many people. I felt almost beaten.

That night, I tossed and turned restlessly and stayed awake all night. Could I continue practicing cultivation? Should I give up? I really didn't want to. It is such a great Dafa and difficult to obtain even in ten thousand years. Our revered Master has helped us with so many things. Every time I think of Master, I want to cry. Master never deserts me and always reminds me and enlightens me in my dreams. Why did I want to give up? No matter the circumstances, I will never do that! Master told us that, "When it's difficult to endure, you can endure it. When it's impossible to do, you can do it." (Zhuan Falun) Thinking of that quote, I got up from bed and started to read Zhuan Falun.

Reviewing my cultivation status, I have many problems and huge gaps. The main issues are as follows: Firstly, I don't believe in and respect Master and Dafa enough. Secondly, I always blame others, rather than looking within myself, and I lack tolerance for others. Third, I am heavily attached to reputation. In other words, I am heavily attached to fame. Last, but not least, I didn't view my tribulations from the Fa's perspective. I just felt them unfair and complained everywhere, which reflects that I'm afraid of tribulations and getting hurt.

Finding out these attachments, I said towards Master's photo, "Master, I am firmly determined to practice cultivation, to get rid of these attachments, and to follow Master to return home." Then I repeatedly read several paragraphs of Master's Fa. The more I read, the better and brighter I felt. In addition, I wrote down my cultivation sharing experience and read it out loud at the next Fa-study group, which received praise from fellow practitioners.

I understand that Master again helped me get rid of many bad things and that I made a big step on my cultivation path. From my experience, I enlightened that looking within is really a magical tool and that only by looking within can one really cultivate, get rid of attachments, and elevate to higher realms. In addition, I realized that studying the Fa requires us to measure ourselves against the Fa in everything.