(Minghui.org) I would like to share my journey of stepping onto the path of practicing Falun Dafa and how it has already changed my will, heart, and mind.
I first held Zhuan Falun in my hands in April 2022, when a person who had been practicing cultivation for more than eight years gave me the book. After a short introduction to this immense, and at that time, new world, it felt heavy in my hands, but at the same time I could feel the lightness it held inside. It turned out that I was right for both. Up to now, I have experienced that it is truly hard to, and at the same time, wonderfully easy to practice cultivation with the help of Master Li Hongzhi. But this experience I will share today is not about this but rather about the turning point in my mind that helped me decide to practice Falun Dafa.
When I started to study Falun Dafa thoroughly, I had different ideas in my head regarding cultivation practices. I had never sat down to deeply reflect and learn from previous opportunities in my life. Throughout the 28 years of my life, I always felt that there was something more, but never grasped what it could be.
I have friends who wholeheartedly gave me a hand in looking into Christianity. I have a friend who gave me insight into Judaism. Someone talked with me about Zen Buddhism, not to mention other smaller encounters I had with spiritual practices. Although I am thankful for all my friends’ offers, I never felt those teachings were my predestined path in this human world. However, for around ten years, I’ve known a person who was and still is practicing Falun Dafa, but our paths repeatedly crossed for very short moments. I saw him meditating in the park. I saw him sharing information and I met him for a short talk, but it never was the right time to learn more. And then, this year, after the lowest point of my life, it was destined for us to meet for a longer talk. I was finally introduced to Master Li Hongzhi’s book Zhuan Falun. This was the start of my journey to my true self.
When I first opened the book, it was just in the interest of understanding the person I recently met. I did not expect anything to come out of it. However, the further I read the book, the more it felt like something was opening up in front of me. Yet still, I was very cautious and so full of attachments or fear. Until I experienced an extraordinary situation first-hand that changed my long-known reality, I was full of delusions.
I was walking to the office near my home, and passed a construction site. The previous evening I was reading one of the Master’s lectures, so I was thinking about the meaning of the cultivation practice, when suddenly a strong wind gushed right where I was walking. Right then, I saw one of the heavy metal temporary fence pieces falling on me. Because I was walking so fast it was too late to move out of the way. I did not feel any fear. The large piece of fence just fell next to my left side one millimeter from my feet but did not harm me in any way. It weighed almost half of my weight and could have hit my head pretty hard, but it just landed right next to me. At that moment, I understood that this was something very special and genuine and I thought of the Master’s words from the Third lecture:
“...no matter how many more people there are, I will still be able to take care of them.” (Lecture Three, Zhuan Falun)
“...you have the protection of my fashen, and you will not be in any danger.” (Lecture Three, Zhuan Falun)
After this experience, when Master’s words became true in front of my eyes, it shifted my thinking. I suddenly knew how precious this cultivation practice was. I knew I wanted to become a true cultivator and devote time to learning Dafa. I kept in my mind Master’s words:
“To truly cultivate, you must cultivate your mind.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
So I started to read Zhuan Falun every day. I joined our local Falun Dafa group reading sessions in Riga. Although I still need to temper my will to do the full lotus position, I started to meditate every day - from 30 minutes in May to 1 hour in July. And lastly - I truly started trying to keep my mind calm and my heart compassionate in all everyday situations, to be a true cultivator of Falun Dafa.
There have been many tests and tribulations that I have made it through, and many that I still need to overcome. I still have many more attachments to let go of and many more areas for xinxing improvement that I won’t include here, but will share some other time, but I can say that I am thankful for each and every tribulation, and still learning with an open heart. Even though I have been practicing cultivation for only six months, I can truthfully say that I am determined to continue improving my xinxing and being diligent in the years to come.
Each and every word here is my own interpretation, so please do point out if any inaccuracies appear in the text.
Thank you Master, Thank you, fellow practitioners!
(Sharing paper submitted to the 2022 European Fa Conference)
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