(Minghui.org) I have been practicing Falun Dafa for four years. I'd like to share with fellow practitioners some of the wonderful experiences that I've encountered in my cultivation journey.
Witnessing Miracles and Beginning My Cultivation
I am a lecturer and scientific researcher. I grew up in Communist Party culture, which left deep marks on my mind. I only believed in what I saw and felt, and things that had been proved by modern science. Therefore, I brushed off my mother and sister when they introduced me to Falun Dafa about one or two years into their cultivation.
I thought that Falun Dafa was just a common belief that may help people become peaceful. My mother used to suffer from incurable diseases and had to take pills every day. She always felt tired and thus became very agitated and irritable. I often reminded her to take her medication on time. I felt that nothing could replace her medication.
My mother began practicing Falun Dafa when she was gravely ill. Even though she was a new practitioner, she had strong faith in Master. Despite our objection, she stopped taking her medication. She spent a lot of time studying the Fa and doing Falun Dafa exercises every day. Then her face became swollen and she had trouble breathing and walking. I again brought up the issue of medication. At that time, I did not understand that Master was purifying her body. My mother read the following passage of Master's Fa to me:
“From today on, some people will feel chilly all over their bodies as though they’ve caught a heavy cold, and their bones may ache as well. Most of you will feel uncomfortable somewhere. Your legs may ache and your head may feel dizzy. The parts of your body where you had sickness before, which you thought had been healed before through qigong exercises or by a qigong master, will act up again. This is because that qigong master did not cure the illness for you—he only postponed it. It was still there in that spot, so it would recur later if not at that time. We must dig it out and eliminate it completely from its root. With this, you may feel that your illnesses have recurred. This is to remove your karma fundamentally. Thus, you will have reactions. Some people may have physical reactions somewhere. Some may feel uncomfortable in one way or another, as different kinds of discomfort will manifest. These are all normal.” (Zhuan Falun)
My mother never wavered her faith in the Fa and Master, and she kept sharing with me what she learned from Dafa. After a period of time, her facial swelling disappeared, and her complexion became much better. She was totally fine.
I was in awe of my mother's tremendous change. My perspective based on positivist science was dealt a heavy blow. I began to wonder why Falun Gong could cure a gravely ill patient without any medical intervention and why it could help a person quickly improve her xinxing in such a short period of time. It suddenly dawned on me that Falun Gong is a true cultivation way.
After I read Zhuan Falun from beginning to end, I understood that Master demonstrated the immense power of Dafa through my mother so as to guide me into cultivation. I am proud to have become a Dafa disciple, and I thank Master for opening up my wisdom.
On the path of cultivation, everything is only a test
During a trip, I got a big chicken bone lodged in my throat as I ate and talked at the same time. Everybody urged me to go to the hospital immediately. They warned that I was in danger. As a new practitioner then, I still harbored many human notions. I was scared and went to the hospital. I didn't feel that I had violated any Dafa principles, as I didn't take any pills. I failed to see that it was a test to check if I could let go of my attachments.
The doctors told me I needed a small surgery to remove the strange object they found in my throat. I was puzzled and terrified. I called my mother and sister for advice. They suggested that I return home to send forth righteous thoughts. They reminded me that Master would take care of me.
I was awakened and recalled Master’s words in Zhuan Falun:
“Once you are scared, it is an attachment of fear. Isn’t that an attachment? Once your attachment surfaces, shouldn’t it be removed? The more you fear it, the more it will appear like a sickness. This attachment of yours must be removed. You will be made to learn from this lesson so that you can remove your fear and improve.”
“As a cultivator, if you always treat yourself like an everyday person and always think that you have illnesses, how can you cultivate? When a tribulation comes in cultivation, if you still treat yourself as an everyday person, I would say that your xinxing at that moment has dropped to the level of everyday people. At least on this particular issue, you have dropped to the level of everyday people.”
I decided to go home and work to eliminate my fear and to follow Master's arrangements of me. I studied the Fa and did the exercises as usual. All my symptoms were gone the next day, and I felt extremely good. I knew that Master had purified my body and helped me pass the test.
Another time I was studying the Fa on my computer when the monitor suddenly went dead. I tried to fix it myself but couldn't get it to work. At first, I thought it was just some technical issue, so I identified a few factors that could have resulted in my monitor's malfunction. I brought the monitor to a repair shop and was told it was totally bad and that I needed to purchase a new monitor. It was not cheap to get a new one or easy to find the right model to be compatible with my computer. I decided to spend a bit more time thinking about whether to get a new monitor. I knew that if I could no longer use my computer, my Dafa projects would be affected.
I asked Master to please help me fix the monitor so I could continue with my Dafa projects. I then rebooted the computer. To my surprise, the monitor turned on without a hitch. I thanked Master sincerely and started to look within for my attachments. I recalled that I was chatting with my friends online while studying the Fa that day. I commingled ordinary people's stuff with a Dafa activity. No wonder the evil exploited my loophole to interfere with me. Master helped me fix the problem. Master is always by our side to look after us. Thank you, Master!
Many of my students were working professionals, and it was very hard for them to pass tests as they didn't have as much time as full-time students to spend on coursework. In order to get better grades, they often bribed their teachers. In our country, university professors are not paid that well, so bribes from students become extra income. Before my Dafa cultivation, I never asked for money from my students, but I'd take whatever they gave me of their own initiative. I felt I was better than my colleagues. I was gauging myself against ordinary people back then.
I began to follow Dafa principles to conduct myself after I became a practitioner. I declined every time students wanted to give me money. I knew they were tests to see if I could let go of my attachment to material interest. My students often begged me to take the money as they were afraid to fail exams and have to retake them. I realized I should talk to them about Dafa. I explained that as a Dafa practitioner, I follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I also told them about the greatness of Dafa and its persecution in China. Many students thanked me for telling them about Dafa. Now, I earn a stable income without taking any bribes. Thank you, Master!
Improving xinxing on the path of cultivation
I was an angry person who often fought for personal gain. I considered myself an intelligent and outstanding person, so I was arrogant and often argued with people. Sometimes I even got angry with my students. When problems came up, I arbitrarily made decisions without listening to students’ words. In class, the students obeyed me because they were afraid of getting bad marks, but they criticized me behind my back.
After I began cultivation, I learned how to interact with my students. I look inward for shortcomings and listen to them. I put the benefits of students first. If students make a mistake, I am happy to remind them and always provide the best conditions for them to correct it. I feel the atmosphere of my classes becoming more and more peaceful. Students also pay more attention to my lectures, and their grades are also getting better. When we emit compassionate and righteous thoughts, our surroundings will become better, and people around us will also feel it.
Whenever is possible, I share with students how Dafa turned me from an angry person to a happy person. When I play video clips about Dafa and its persecution in China for students to watch, I am often moved to tears and feel hot all over my body with a Falun law wheel spinning in my abdomen. I know that Master is always by my side, supporting and encouraging me.
Stepping forward to validate Dafa
Having been able to become a Falun Dafa disciple is the greatest honor bestowed on us by Master and Dafa. We must remain loyal to Dafa. I often go out to talk to people about Dafa. We encountered a lot of interference due to the Chinese Communist Party's pressure on our government.
Once I heard that a practice site was being severely interfered with and needed support. My mother and I went there to do the exercises. We believed that the peaceful energy field of the practitioners would transform the evil environment.
The evil then blocked our practice site. We moved to another place. Those people followed us there and cursed at us through a loudspeaker. They even poured dirty water on us. We were still happy and peaceful. We did not argue, nor did we hold hatred or grudges. We only wished they could awaken to the truth and be saved. Some practitioners clarified the truth to them. We demonstrated forbearance.
Cultivators’ forbearance can change the environment. Before we knew it, their loudspeaker went dead and couldn't make a sound. They found a new one, but it soon stopped working too. When Dafa practitioners maintained righteous thoughts with no resentment, the surrounding environment became better.
A few days later, non-practitioners around us began to express dissatisfaction with the troublemakers and show their support for us. The interference finally stopped, and we were able to do the exercises as usual.
The strong righteous thoughts of Dafa practitioners can correct all improper states in the surrounding environment. When Dafa practitioners are no longer angry or resentful, the evil is destroyed. How great and wonderful Dafa is!
Doing well the three things is every Dafa disciple's responsibility
I often tell my students about the beauty of Dafa and its persecution in China. I also show them flyers. However, when I played the videos one day, many students weren't focused. They also didn't take the flyers. At first, I felt they were too poisoned by Communist Party culture and was sorely disappointed in them.
Master said:
“Therefore, from now on when you come across a conflict you should not consider it a coincidence. This is because when a conflict occurs, it will take place unexpectedly. But that is not a coincidence—it is for improving your xinxing. As long as you treat yourself as a practitioner, you can handle it properly.” (Zhuan Falun)
I looked inward to see why my students behaved the way they did. I remembered that I had fear that day and that my heart was not calm enough. No wonder I didn't achieve good results with my truth-clarification. Later I sent forth righteous thoughts to eliminate my fear. When I played the videos again, my students watched attentively and also took flyers home.
I was able to realize my attachments and work to remove them, thanks to hints from Master and my participation in Dafa work. One day, my sister asked me if I wanted to join a Dafa project team to save more people. In my mind, I did not want to take part in this group. I felt that clarifying the truth to my students was enough because I had a demanding job.
Later I remembered Master's lecture:
“But since every minute and every second of your life is part of your cultivation, you are wasting your own [opportunities], wasting the limited time that you have on your cultivation journey, and failing to walk the path well. You have to wholeheartedly do a good job at whatever you are supposed to do—and only then is it admirable. You might be doing what you’re told, but if you don’t really pay attention to your attitude toward things or how to effectively save people, then that’s a problem in your cultivation.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference”)
We Dafa practitioners had long signed pacts with Master to save sentient beings in the human world. We came here not to acquire ordinary things or do ordinary jobs but to improve our xinxing, clarify the truth, and save people. My attachments were exposed in my response to my sister. Before my cultivation, I was quite busy, and my job took up most of my time. Thanks to Master’s arrangement, now I have more time to balance cultivation, Dafa projects, and social interactions.
When we put Dafa first, everything in our lives becomes perfect. During our cultivation, Master will help us to see our attachments. We must be aware of the high standards of Dafa disciples and remove our attachments.
In our cultivation, there exist unexpected difficulties and challenges, which become tests that we must pass. We came to the human world to assist Master with Fa-rectification. We must do well the three things required of Dafa disciples. Our faith in Master and the Fa can help us remove attachments and overcome challenges. Master is always by our side.
I will always believe in Master and Dafa. Thank you, revered Master!
Thank you, fellow practitioners!
Please feel free to point out anything inappropriate.
Views expressed in this article represent the author's own opinions or understandings. All content published on this website are copyrighted by Minghui.org. Minghui will produce compilations of its online content regularly and on special occasions.
