(Minghui.org) I’d like to share two stories about how I was able to improve my tolerance.
Moon Cakes
A practitioner gave me a box of moon cakes after Fa study, saying it was a gift for me and my granddaughter. I accepted it and took it home.
A couple of days later, two practitioners came to my house and one of them brought a moon cake with her. She cut it into four pieces and invited us to take a piece. I didn’t take one and explained that I had several moon cakes. One practitioner took the remaining pieces of moon cakes when they left.
Hours after they left, our local coordinator came to my house. She was upset and said that I was greedy and gluttonous to accept moon cakes from the two practitioners.
I said that I hadn’t taken a piece of moon cake, but she refused to listen. She pointed a finger at me and said, “You have an attachment of being greedy, and you are gluttonous!”
I remained silent and listened. She said several other things and was about to leave. At the door, she turned back and started a new round of criticizing me.
I said to her, “Older sister, please rest assured. I knew I shouldn’t have accepted the moon cakes. Starting today, I will do as Master taught us”:
“It doesn’t matter what so-called Buddha, what Dao, what Deity, or what demon it is—they can’t sway me.” (Zhuan Falun, Translated by North America Practitioners, Feb. 2003)
Hearing this, she smiled and left.
My granddaughter was doing her homework at the table. She looked at me and said, “Grandma, how tolerant you are! You’re over 70 years old and she was so rude to you! I almost couldn’t tolerate it myself.”
Her words stirred up some feelings of being wronged. I then remembered Master’s teaching,
“Now you are a cultivator, and so for the sake of your improvement circumstances like that have to be created for you. It won’t do if you don’t have these troubles, and I will utilize these troubles to improve your xinxing. As your xinxing is improving your gong increases, and your xinxing will be improving. Whoever causes trouble for you will be giving you virtue at the same time. While you are in pain your own karma will also be transforming into virtue. You will gain four things in one stroke, so you should actually be grateful to the other person. If you still hate the other person or can’t stay patient with him, that’s not correct.” (Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Houston)
I realized that the coordinator had a good intention to help me with my cultivation. I accepted a box of moon cakes and I was gluttonous about moon cake. I should thank her for pointing out my attachment.
One day we were sending forth righteous thoughts during Fa study. I felt sleepy so I opened my eyes to wake up and re-focus. As I opened my eyes I noticed that a practitioner was watching me.
After we finished sending righteous thoughts, she said to me in a serious tone, “Why do you often open your eyes and look around when we send forth righteous thoughts? How can you concentrate on sending righteous thoughts?”
I could feel myself blushing but I didn’t defend myself. Instead I said, “Thank you for pointing it out to me. I will do better from now on.”
Even though I was calm and my tone was kind, I became upset on the way home. I felt she was very rude and had no respect for me, someone who was her mother’s age.
That night, I became upset again. When I looked inward I found the root of my anger was an attachment to reputation. I remembered what Master taught in Zhuan Falun about “You will gain four things in one stroke...” We are both Falun Dafa practitioners and age is not a factor in deciding who is right or wrong.
When I reached that understanding, I felt that a block in my cultivation had been eliminated and my xinxing was raised.
During the next Fa study, the young practitioner immediately apologized, and said, “Auntie, I was so rude last time. You are nearly my mother’s age. I am very sorry.”
The other practitioners avoided making eye contact with me. I knew they were worried that this episode between us could create misunderstandings in our group.
I said, “Your apology is accepted. I also want to thank you for pointing out my shortcoming. I also improved through this matter.” I then shared my thoughts and understanding with everyone, including how it helped me eliminate my attachment.
After hearing my sharing, the other practitioners nodded their heads. Our Fa study environment was filled with peace and serenity.
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Category: Improving Oneself
