(Minghui.org) The 15th Israeli Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Tel Aviv on November 4. Several practitioners from abroad also attended the conference and contributed to its success.
Fourteen practitioners shared their experiences in practicing Falun Dafa (also called Falun Gong), and how they improved their way of thinking and behavior according to Falun Dafa's principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. They also shared how they improved in various ways while raising awareness about the persecution in China.
Looking Inward and Not Blaming Others
A practitioner who has practiced for three years shared:
“For a long period of time, I had a lot of ongoing conflicts with a fellow practitioner, and many times I looked outward during our conversations and blamed him. Yet, shortly after one of our conversations, I started to look inward to see my attachments, and I called him to share the attachment I found in myself. The conflict was then resolved. The sooner I looked inward right from the beginning of a conflict, the faster the conflict was resolved.”
Cultivating at Work
A veteran practitioner shared her cultivation experience at work, and how she coped with a difficult moment when one of her coworkers criticized her disrespectfully.
She said, “Usually during staff meetings when a person is criticized, that person begins to justify himself and turn the blame around. One time, someone criticized me negatively during a staff meeting, and I replied, “Thank you.” After the meeting, that person approached me and asked, “I don't understand, were you joking or did you mean it?”
I said that I was seriously thanking him for the criticism and that as he knows, I practice Falun Dafa, which teaches me not only to not become angry at a person who criticizes me but to truly thank him. Someone from another department happened to overhear my words. She then approached me and asked where she could read such things, so I gave her the book Zhuan Falun, which I always keep in my desk drawer.”
Looking for Solid Evidence
A practitioner, who began practicing four years ago, shared that for many years she had been looking for a true way, even though she grew up in atheism and a scientific way of thinking. When she started practicing Falun Dafa, she realized that she had found what she had been looking for all these years. However, she went through an agonizing process of searching for “hard evidence” that would meet the skeptical standards she grew up with.
A certain event made her examine her entire conduct, and she realized that her cultivation in Falun Dafa was the most interesting and most important thing she had in her life. As soon as she changed her point of view and priorities, many things around her became more harmonious, including situations involving family and work.
Eliminating Ego and Cooperating Leads to a Successful Project
Another practitioner shared how she spontaneously decided to volunteer as a coordinator for setting up the Shen Yun Russian language website. She said getting the job moved her to tears, but she was later distracted by her fear of criticism, fear of failure, and fear of being involved in conflicts.
She said, “I realized that I have had the fear of criticism since childhood. I grew up under the influence of a communist regime, and criticism was used as a tool to suppress the personality.” She added, “At that time I developed the concept that it was better to avoid criticism, as it was unpleasant and painful.”
She realized that for cultivators of Falun Dafa, criticism is good. It allows one to look inward and find their shortcomings, and improve.
When she and the Russian-speaking team that volunteered from around the world put their egos aside and established good cooperation, the project was finished successfully, and in a relatively short time.
Overcoming Showing Off, Aggressiveness, and Negative Feelings Towards Others
A Ukrainian practitioner shared about “tests” he faced when a man tried to prevent him from handing out informational materials in a busy area. The man showed aggression and loudness and bragged that he was going to “deal” with this practitioner. Facing this bully, the practitioner (having a history of being a bully himself) felt the urge to show off and brag about his physical abilities, but since he had been studying Falun Dafa for several years, he knew he should act according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and not get back at that person or show off.
The next time he faced this man, he overcame his temper and smiled, but in his heart, there was a sense of rivalry, and a desire to fight back and show off his strength. The following time he faced him however, he was truly able to bear the insults, and smile at the man from the bottom of his heart. That person never bothered him again.
Another practitioner shared how she decided to take on the coordination of improving the content of the Chinese Epoch Times to better suit tourists, students, and business people.
Reading the Conference Sharing Papers Over and Over
One practitioner shared that after each conference, she keeps the experience sharing booklet and reads the sharing papers written by practitioners again, sometimes more than once, to find out where she can improve. Sometimes, even a few years later, she finds that she is able to understand things better and more deeply than before. It also helps her to get to know the other practitioners more, and as a result, she feels closer to them.
She realized that by reading the experiences over and over again, it makes the effort of attending the conferences even more worthwhile. “The more I read fellow practitioners' experiences, the more I see the benefits of the conference,” she concluded.
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Category: Experience Sharing Conferences
