(Minghui.org) Most people know that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship is a rocky one. By the time my daughter-in-law joined our family, I had already begun practicing Falun Dafa. However, because I didn’t study the Fa well, my xinxing was not great and I had little compassion. As a result, my daughter-in-law had negative opinions and grievances towards me. I seldom looked inward and then only superficially.
I forgot that when I remember that I’m a practitioner and take a step back, there is always a way out.
I later realized that my daughter-in-law’s dissatisfaction with me, from the perspective of the Fa, was to help me improve, push me to find my shortcomings and eliminate attachments. No matter how “unreasonable” her words were on the surface, I should thank her from the bottom of my heart.
When the Wuhan virus broke out and the city was locked down, I went out every day to clarify the truth. My daughter-in-law was worried and tried to stop me several times. When I returned home one day my daughter-in-law came out and blocked me from entering the house, “The epidemic is so severe! You don’t care about your family! Please hurry up and wash your hands and make sure you use the antibacterial soap.” I agreed with a smile, “Okay! I’ll wash my hands.” I stopped flaunting my seniority and did as she asked.
Later when I went out my daughter-in-law no longer interfered or questioned me. Sometimes, she would even ask me to buy some vegetables, fruits, and the like on the way back.
On my way home one day I called my son and asked him to make pancakes. My daughter-in-law was unhappy, shouted, and yelled... I could tell that it was directed at me. My son was irritated and scolded her for disrespecting the elderly. They walked outside and kept shouting, attracting the neighbors who came out and watched.
I was calm and kept quietly saying “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” From this incident, I saw my competitiveness, jealousy, and other attachments that I hadn’t yet eliminated. My self-righteous, domineering, and heart tainted with communist traits quickly disintegrated. As I identified my attachments the situation calmed down and my son went back to making pancakes.
My daughter-in-law came into the house and apologized to me sincerely, “Mom, I’m sorry. I overreacted.” I said, “I’m not angry. As a family, we must understand and tolerate each other. Everything is harmonious and our family is happy.” My daughter-in-law said, “I’ve had some trouble at work recently and didn’t get paid for a few months. My parents have a hard life. My mother still has to work and cannot retire. I’m very frustrated.”
I calmly said, “As a family, we can’t sweat the small stuff. Children should be filial to their parents. Parents should treat their children kindly. We have to be kind to everyone. Your parents live in the countryside. Their land was taken away and their house was demolished. Their situation is very difficult. You are the eldest and should be a role model. You should take the lead and give your parents two hundred yuan a month. If all five siblings donated, that would be 1,000 yuan a month—enough for two elderly people. Filial piety is children’s responsibility and human virtue.”
“You said one of your sisters spent hundreds of thousands of yuan to buy a new house. Two hundred a month is nothing.”
After hearing my suggestion my daughter-in-law cried and said, “I always thought that I could distinguish good from bad, understand right from wrong. But today, I finally understand that I was wrong. I’ve hated you and blamed you for more than ten years. I am sorry. You are the best and most wise person. No one can persuade me, only you can move me.” I replied, “I follow Falun Dafa’s principles. Falun Dafa is good, Master Li (Dafa’s founder) is good.” My daughter-in-law hugged me tightly and smiled.
For a few days, there were no conflicts. I was not used to this and realized I needed to improve.
Shortly after, there was a heavy rainstorm. My courtyard was flooded. We live in a two-story building. My granddaughter and I live on the first floor. My son and daughter-in-law live on the second floor. The water did not subside and the things on the first floor were damp and molded. My daughter-in-law was furious... She complained while she cleaned. Her words were harsh, excessive, and unreasonable. From time to time, she smashed something to vent her anger.
I appreciated this opportunity to look inward. I silently recited Falun Dafa is good and helped her clean with a smile. My heart was very calm. I took care of the house chores: cooking, washing, and putting things in order. Although things are fierce and intimidating on the surface, as long as we let our human attachments go the situation is resolved and a beautiful new world opens up.
Let Human Attachments Go and Cooperate
In the past, my study of the Fa didn’t get into my mind and integrate with my practice. I had all kinds of attachments: fear, self-righteousness, resentment, competitiveness, family affection, and so on. I never took the initiative to cooperate with other practitioners. If a practitioner tried to reach me, I would distance myself from her. If I had a conflict with another practitioner, I would alienate and ignore her.
I minded my own business and did not coordinate with others. I had negative opinions about fellow practitioners. I felt superior and looked down on them. After studying the Fa and integrating it into my practice, plus silently reciting “Falun Dafa is good,” I changed.
At the end of 2019, more than one hundred Dafa books including Hong Yin V were produced locally. At that time the persecution was intense, the situation was very tense, and local practitioners were arrested or harassed. Where could several boxes of Dafa books be stored? I offered to keep them. Practitioners came and went to my place, but I never worried about safety issues. My thought was: These are precious Dafa books. No one can touch them.
When I studied the Fa, did the exercises, or sent righteous thoughts I could see thousands of rays of golden lights flashing from the books. It was a magnificent sight. The light of the Buddha shined on me, shone throughout my home, the city where I live, and throughout the world. It was so amazing, so beautiful! I was so happy!
More than one hundred precious books had been kept in my home for a month. Then they were dispatched to practitioners who needed them.
The currency imprinted with Falun Dafa information carefully crafted by practitioners plays an important role in saving sentient beings. Fellow practitioners and I like to purchase things with it. One day, practitioner Bing said that there was an urgent matter and that they need me to pass 10,000 yuan of currency imprinted with truth-clarification messages to practitioner Cai. I immediately said, “Okay! No problem!”
I rode my bicycle home. On the way back, the currency in the bag emanated a magic light that cannot be described in human language. I felt surrounded by intense and golden-colored positive energy. My righteous thoughts covered everything. It seems that nothing else existed around me. All I knew was that I was walking on the path to Godhood, and I was going home.
During those three days, I felt very energetic. I studied the Fa, sent righteous thoughts, and clarified the truth. Everything went very well.
Around nine o’clock on the third day, I took the bag including the 10,000 yuan and rode my bicycle. I felt very relaxed. Although I was seventy-five years old, I was not tired at all. I easily passed through the crowds. I could see that the currency in my bag emanated strong positive energy, which was a golden color and enveloped me. It radiated to the surrounding crowd and dissolved the wrong factors in them layer by layer. I was no longer in a hurry. I passed very slowly. I hope to pass by more sentient beings, dozens, hundreds, or even more. I hoped that they could be cleaned up and saved.
Rectifying Myself
I started practicing Falun Dafa in 1995 and I have read the Fa every day. I recited Zhuan Falun and read Master’s books. The more I read, the calmer I feel. Master keeps enlightening me and I realize that the Fa is wide-ranging and profound. Its boundless meaning is hard to describe in human language... Sometimes when I read the teachings I was so happy I wept.
In the process of reciting the Fa and reading the Fa, the human side attributes like “selfishness” and “self”, the attachments like self-righteousness, resentment, jealousy, competitiveness, thoughts tainted with communist traits, and so on, are dissolved and disintegrated layer after layer by the Fa. Those layers were dissolved. I felt lightened, broadened, and sublimated. It is so wonderful and precious to study the Fa. More and more, I felt the “Fa’s light,” (HongYin II) the boundless compassion of the Buddha’s light, pervades my and all sentient beings’ lives.
Once, when I recited the last paragraph of “Expounding on the Fa” from Master’s teaching in Essentials For Further Advancement, something amazing happened: Master’s scripture emitted a powerful light, and huge positive energy directly hit my whole body. I felt hot, gentle, sweet, but also steadfast, strong, and unbreakable. The feeling dominated my mind and body, layer by layer. I realized that is the “enlightened, original nature” (“Expounding on the Fa,”Essentials For Further Advancement) validating Dafa, dominating my mind and body to validate the Fa, help Master to rectify the Fa, and save people. My main consciousness became stronger, and I truly obtained the Fa. Since then, my selfishness and fake self no longer dominated.
Master led me to find my “altruistic” and “true self.” My perspective changed. Whenever I encounter a problem, I think of others first. “Falun Dafa is good,” “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” repeatedly appeared in my mind. My vision was broadened and my capacity enlarged, I am no longer nervous and irritable. I am no longer resentful or have hatred. In this way, when facing difficulties, I would follow the standard of the Fa and embrace all contradictions or troubles as good things and opportunities to improve.
When I regard myself as a practitioner and take a step back, there is always a way out.
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Category: Improving Oneself
