(Minghui.org) When I was young I got seriously ill and my family could not afford medical treatment. My left leg became disabled. In spite of this, I was able to bear hardship and handled everything without any problem.
It was over 20 years ago when I had a dream. In it, I saw a giant Buddha in the sky emitting golden light. From then on, I began to believe in Buddha. I collected several Buddha statues from the temple and prayed to them at home. On my travels, whenever I saw a temple, I would go inside, offer incense, and pay my respects. Strangely, after I started to believe that Buddhas exist, the small eatery my family owned started to prosper, and we made a lot of money.
Around five years ago, when I was busy in the eatery, a club hit my head once, and the sound was like a temple bell ringing. I was dizzy and saw countless huge ingots coming out of my head. Soon after, I was hit in the head again. I vaguely saw a tall monk’s hat similar to the one worn by monk Xuanzang in the novel Journey to the West. Then, I began to throw up and lost consciousness. My family rushed me to the hospital and was told that there was a problem with the blood vessels in my head. After surgery I handed over the business to my son and daughter-in-law while I recuperated at home.
I went to visit a neighbor two years ago. Another neighbor was there too, and her legs were also disabled. I suggested she come with me to the temple to pray to the Buddhas. She smiled and shook her head, saying she had been a Buddhist follower before she turned 30. Despite praying to the Buddhas for several decades, she did not notice any improvement in her health.
Now she followed another faith, which she believed to be the most righteous path. I was curious and asked what it was. She told me that she practiced Falun Gong. I was shocked, because I'd heard that those who practiced Falun Gong would be arrested. She went on to tell me that it was wonderful. I was moved and had a compelling feeling: “I want to practice this, too!”
When I told my neighbor, she got me a copy of Master Li’s recorded lectures. Every day I listened respectfully to Master’s lectures until the player’s battery was dead. I quickly charged it and then continued to listen to the tapes. I was illiterate and had just begun to cultivate in Dafa, but I understood what Master said. Furthermore, the more I listened, the more I loved to hear what Master taught. Every word Master said spoke to my heart. Many questions I had in the past when I was a Buddhist follower were all answered. My neighbor subsequently came to share her experiences with me. She was surprised when I told her my understandings. She did not expect me to understand so much and said I had good inborn quality.
Master said Falun Dafa (also called Falun Gong) is a cultivation practice of mind and body. Practitioners are required to cultivate their character and do the exercises. I told my neighbor I wanted to learn the exercises too. She had a doubtful look on her face. As I was disabled and had difficulty walking, it would be impossible for me to do the exercises. But I had made up my mind to overcome hardship, no matter what.
When she saw my determination, she asked a young practitioner to teach me the exercises. I was excited and thought that I must learn how to do the exercises. But, my body had trouble. After teaching me the first movement of the first exercise, my legs began to tremble. I tried my best to keep my balance. My face became swollen and red, and sweat started to pour down my face. By the time I learned the second exercise, I could not stand straight. I fell into the chair. Luckily the young practitioner was patient and kind. She let me take a break and catch my breath.
Thus I took a break after learning two movements. I finally learned everything after half a day. I understood the preciousness of Dafa and did the exercises every day.
In the beginning, I had to sit down and rest after doing the exercises for several minutes. When I did the second exercise, I could not stand or lift my hands. I lost count of how many times I had to sit down and take a break while doing all the exercises. I did not give up and continued to force myself to hang on for a few more minutes every time. Now, I can do all five exercises.
Besides getting up at 3:50 a.m. to join practitioners around the world in doing the exercises, I found another time to do the exercises again during the day. If I was not able to do them, I made sure to make it up the next day. Every time I finished the exercises, my clothes would be soaked with sweat, especially during the hottest days in summer. I did not turn on the air-conditioning. After the exercises, there was a small puddle of water where I stood.
Despite the hardship I went through, Master gave me even more. Soon after I started doing the exercises, Master cleansed my body. When I slept, yellow fluid came out of my ears and it smelled awful. The discharge stopped after several days and I clearly felt my brain, which used to be muddled, had cleared up. I knew Master had treated my brain and eliminated the bad things in it. Even more extraordinary was the fluid from the large tumor on my hand that began to leak out of my fingers. After a period of time, I suddenly discovered the tumor was gone. My previously dark skin gradually became bright and smooth. The wrinkles on my face disappeared and my appearance became rosy. I was full of energy and my husband often said jokingly that I was becoming younger.
Although I was doing the exercises, I longed to be able to read Dafa books just like other practitioners. This was an even harder challenge for me than doing the exercises. Because my family was poor, I could not afford to go to school and could not read a single word. When I first began to practice Dafa, in order to remember the phrase “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” I lost count of how many times I had to go to my neighbor’s place to ask her before I remembered it. Therefore, practitioners shook their heads when I told them I wanted to read Zhuan Falun the main book of Falun Dafa. No one believed that I could do it.
No matter what, once I made up my mind, I would succeed. I brought the book Zhuan Falun home. Whenever there was a word I did not know I asked my husband. However, there were too many words I did not know, and I soon forgot the words after he told me what they were. He lost his patience and kept calling me stupid. I then asked practitioners. Fortunately, they were very tolerant. I remembered a sentence after repeating it a dozen times. Once I knew how to read it, I seized every opportunity to practice reading it until I knew it by heart. I read in the morning, afternoon, and at night. Whenever I had time, I would read Zhuan Falun. The pages came loose because I was constantly flipping them. But I believed that nothing was impossible as long as I persevered.
Indeed, several months later, I managed to memorize “On Dafa.” My confidence was boosted, and I went on to read the first chapter. I have read around 30 pages so far. Although this is nothing compared to reading the entire book Zhuan Falun, I am convinced I can achieve my goal.
Master said,
“Cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one’s master.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
As long as I have the heart to practice cultivation, Master will help me. He is capable of anything. I only have to believe in Master and Dafa and there is nothing I cannot achieve.
On the last day of the 2021 Lunar New Year, in spite of the pandemic, I was fortunate enough to watch the latest Shen Yun performance. In the last program, when humans had a catastrophe, Master appeared as a shining bright Buddha to save sentient beings. I nearly cried out loud! Wasn’t that the giant Buddha I saw in my dreams many years ago? It turned out to be Master! I was moved to tears. For over two decades, I was lost in the world, fighting for personal gain and troubled by sentiments. Finally, I found the true Buddha who can lead me back to my origin! I regret learning Dafa so late. I told myself not to think of anything else but to seize the time that’s left to practice cultivation and follow Master home!