(Minghui.org) Master arranged for me to help fellow practitioners in overcoming tribulations in recent years. There were bitter lessons as well as joyful outcomes.

Practitioner Amy (pseudo name) had been suffering from severe stomachaches for a long time. Her husband kept begging her to go to hospital, so Amy would try her best to suffer in silence and not allow her husband to see her pain.

She came to pay me a visit to tell me her situation. I noticed how much she was suffering, but had no idea what to do. I just felt we should send forth righteous thoughts.

I felt that way because whenever I come across tribulations, including physical ones, I would generally be able to overcome them through sending forth strong righteous thoughts, plus strengthening my efforts in studying the Fa and doing the exercises.

And so, I told Amy, “Why don’t we send forth righteous thoughts together?”

As soon as I sat down and crossed my legs in double lotus, I suddenly felt heat coursing through my body. That had never happened before. I felt I was enveloped in an immense energy field. I knew it was Master who saw I was doing the right thing, so He was supporting and encouraging me.

After more than 30 minutes, we stopped. Amy told me she hadn’t felt so calm and at peace for so many days. We were both greatly encouraged.

We repeated that multiple times, and every time we sent forth righteous thoughts, we would experience obvious results.

I said to Amy, “You can overcome this, absolutely, without a doubt.”

Later, Amy told me that there were times when her pain was so severe that she thought she would die, but she kept recalling what I said: “You can overcome, absolutely, without a doubt.” Her righteous thoughts would then be strengthened and she was able to overcome every time.

Through Amy’s successful experience, we both advanced in our cultivation.

Practitioner Bai once was faced with sickness karma. Her family wanted to find a Dafa disciple to keep her company, hoping for a miracle.

The coordinating practitioner knew I was not working, so recommended me.

At the time, I was living with my parents while looking for work, so I was feeling quite a bit of pressure. My parents were harboring grievances against Falun Dafa because of the persecution when I lost my job and my husband was forced to divorce me.

Still, I believed that helping out a fellow practitioner is something I should do. So, I agreed.

Bai and I didn’t know each other. I found out she used to be an assistant for a sizable practice site. After July 20, 1999, she went to Beijing to appeal and was arrested by the 610 Office. During her incarceration, she was tortured so severely she lost her eyesight.

When she was finally released, her family had her live with her son, far away from fellow practitioners. Bai then lost her cultivation environment. Before long, her body showed the illusion of abdominal malignancies.

Bai gave in to her family’s persistent pressure of pleadings and threats to undergo chemotherapy. She suffered a relapse and was on the brink of death.

Yet, Bai had never given up on Dafa. Finally, one day, she told her family only Dafa could save her. Fully aware that hospitals and medical science were offering no hope, her family had no choice but to agree to take her home and look for help from local practitioners.

That was when I came into the picture.

I settled down to work with Bai at once. Every day, we would send forth strong righteous thoughts, study Zhuan Falun and Master’s other recent writings, as well as doing the exercises.

Bai one day told me her stomach did not feel distended and her energy had returned. She found her improvements amazing, and I was very happy for her. I began to feel everything would be fine now and let myself relax.

Other practitioners thought that Bai just needed to study Zhuan Falun. I didn’t quite agree. I thought she also needed to study Master’s recent writings, but I didn’t raise any strong objection.

I then had some family obligations and needed to be home. I informed Bai and arranged for other practitioners to take my place.

When other practitioners showed up and realized Bai was their former assistant, they were so happy and excited, they started to spend a lot of time chitchatting about the past.

I wanted to tell them to stop, to concentrate on helping Bai send forth righteous thoughts and study the Fa, but for various reasons, I didn’t speak up.

Upon my return, I noticed Bai didn’t seem to have improved during my absence. I felt it a bit odd but wasn’t too concerned. I thought if we insisted on studying the Fa and doing the exercises, things would get better.

Just at that time, my mother found me a job through some friends. That put me in a dilemma. Should I take the job or stay and continue taking care of Bai?

My attachment to self interest won the day. I figured since there were so many other practitioners available to help her, my presence would not be of that much significance.

So, I gave Bai a call that I had to attend to some business and would be gone for a little bit.

Three days later, I got news that Bai had passed away. She died with her eyes wide open. Bai’s family believed that it would be good if I could go to say goodbye because they felt Bai was waiting for me before she could leave in peace.

I was shocked and devastated.

I was filled with remorse and regret. In my agony, I asked myself, “Why? When Bai needed me, when her life was hanging by a threat, why was I only thinking of myself? When I believed Bai needed intense Fa study and exercises and sending righteous thoughts above all else and other practitioners did not seem to be sufficiently aware or concerned, why did I not speak up?...”

I could not shake off my guilt feeling even though everybody was giving me words of comfort and expressions of gratitude and nobody found me at fault or responsible, yet I couldn’t help but think that if I had done better, Bai would still be with us.

This year, another coordinator practitioner Katie developed illusionary sickness karma in the form of a stroke. Her family took her to the hospital despite her strong protests. Katie pleaded her family to call me so I could stay with her until she overcame her tribulation.

From my experience with Bai, I knew Katie’s space was full of evil factors and I must be extremely alert and diligent so that Katie would not meet the same fate as Bai.

So, when I got off work every afternoon, I would rush over to the hospital to study the Fa, do the exercises, and send forth righteous thoughts with Katie until evening.

Katie recovered very fast. Within a week, she was discharged.

I continued to go over to her house day after day and stay with her evening after evening until she fully recovered in a little over a month.

Katie is now her old self and can go back to doing the three things as before.

The entire time I was helping Katie, I ended up going home late every night. At the beginning, my mother would be worried and displeased and would even make unpleasant comments.

So, every time before I set foot in my front door, I would ask Master to give me strength and support.

In my heart, I would say to my mother, “I am helping a fellow practitioner. I am doing a good thing. Please don’t get angry or upset…”

Before long, miraculously, my mother stopped being negative but would just ask me simply if I had eaten.

From the many times I have helped fellow practitioners overcome their tribulations, I have come up with some observations and understandings. I would like to share them with fellow practitioners:

What practitioners need the most when they are going through tribulations is Compassion. They need help, but help that their families offer is likely to be counterproductive.

A word of encouragement, a patient listening ear, a show of empathetic understanding can be a great comfort and produce positive results.

To persist under persistent persecution is not an easy task. We have all experienced different kinds of tribulations. I myself am no different. Many a time, I have likewise wished for understanding, support, and assistance from fellow practitioners.

If at that time all we think of is finger pointing or criticisms, we are in effect standing with the old forces and intensifying the persecution.

In “Essentials for Further Advancement II”, Master says:

“This is not the first time in the course of the degenerating history that evil forces have persecuted cultivators.” “Although they differ in their specific manifestations, they all aim to break the will of those who cultivate in a righteous Fa.” (“Path” from Essentials for Further Advancement II)

We must use our compassion and kind words to arouse the righteous thoughts of the practitioner struggling with tribulations, and mustn’t allow the evil forces to destroy the practitioner’s righteous thoughts.

There was a time when practitioner Daisy was experiencing sickness karma that lasted quite a while. Daisy was afraid she would discredit Dafa when her sickness symptoms persisted and she might lose her life, so she continued to seek medical treatment.

Her practitioner family member was at a loss, so sought me out and begged me to check on Daisy.

During my initial conversation with Daisy, she burst into tears and confessed she wasn’t cultivating well at all but didn’t know what to do.

At once, I told Daisy without hesitation, “Who says you’re not cultivating well? Nobody can see the good portions of your cultivation. Nobody has any say so in this matter. Only Master knows and has the say so.”

Daisy was greatly comforted. Her mood improved. Her confidence restored.

She said to me, “I know it’s Master who made you say these words to me.”

With help from her practitioner family member, Daisy promptly stopped all medical treatments and renewed her fervor in cultivation.

Practitioner Sally went into deep depression over a spate of family catastrophes and could not extract herself. I was asked to check on her. I decided I had to find time to study the Fa with her.

In the process, Sally confided in me details of her troubles. I listened with empathy. I also related to her some of my similar experiences and tribulations.

Sally’s mood was soon restored. Through intense Fa studies and with righteous thoughts, she was able to get rid of many attachments and arrive at a deeper understanding of many Fa principles.

Practitioner Helen cultivated diligently, but after she had been arrested, in a moment of weakness and confusion when she was subjected to torture in the brainwashing center, she had allowed herself to be tricked into renouncing her faith in Falun Gong against her true intention.

When she was released, she fell into an extreme state of remorse, and so, for a long time, she lived under the shadow of very negative thoughts.

I understood perfectly what she was going through. I told her that she mustn’t allow the old forces to destroy her will as a cultivator.

She was finally relieved. She said to me, “I believe it is Master who sends you here to tell me this.”

A second thing I enlightened to was that a practitioner who is being helped tended to rely heavily on the practitioner doing the helping to help dig out all hidden attachments and eliminate demons and rotten ghosts.

So, the practitioner doing the helping has to be cognizant that, except for the meager capability to help send forth strong righteous thoughts, everything is being done by Master, whose Fashen is always by our side.

Master says:

“My fashen know everything—they know everything on your mind, and they can do anything. They will not take care of you if you do not practice cultivation. If you practice cultivation, they will help you all the way to the end.” (Zhuan Falun)

At all times, especially in critical moments and in times of need, it is imperative that we remember we are Dafa disciples; if we call on Master, Master is sure to be there to lend a hand.

Yet another thing I enlightened to was that, in our efforts to overcome our attachments to laziness and selfishness, we need to have patience, and that, no matter what, we must not let go of our confidence.

In my district, we often organize sending forth righteous thoughts sessions to help out practitioners abducted or going through sickness karma.

During the 2000 Olympics, practitioner Gi from our Dafa materials production site was arrested. Since I not only knew Gi but was also friendly with her family, I would send forth righteous thoughts every hour on the hour for her early release.

At first, I didn’t feel very productive, Indeed, I felt weak and useless to the extent I wasn’t sure whether I should keep that up.

In my uncertain state, I thought, “I must continue because Master has told us that sending forth righteous is useful, so I must do what Master bids me to do.”

I sat down in double lotus. Right away, for the second time in my cultivation life, I felt myself being enveloped in an enormous energy field.

I knew that was Master’s message and that I had done the right thing.

Eventually, Gi walked out of the brainwashing center under the power of our and her own righteous thoughts.

In the process of helping fellow practitioners, I have also gained a lot, too many to enumerate here, but I do want to mention one incident:

Practitioner Lia was going through the sickness karma of colorectal cancer. She is fully recovered now.

One time when we were sitting down face to face together to send forth righteous thoughts, I could feel my stomach a bit numb and strangely distended. I was perplexed.

It was only several days later that I came to the realization that it was my Falun rotating in my lower abdominal area while I was sending righteous thoughts. It was Master encouraging me.

That’s what I enlightened to at my level. Kindly point out anything inappropriate.