(Minghui.org) The 2024 Finland Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Helsinki on October 20. Eighteen practitioners talked about how they dealt with difficulties at home, work, and in Dafa-related projects, while being guided by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. They also described how they improved their hearts and minds through studying the Fa teachings.
Practitioners talked about how they improved through studying Falun Dafa’s teachings.
Getting Acquainted with a New Lifestyle and Language
Ms. Dong spent most of her life in China before she moved to Finland. She didn’t understand Finnish and couldn’t do much. She realized that unless she learned the language, she couldn’t assimilate to the society in Finland, let alone help save people.
In the process of learning the language, she saw her impatience and frustration, and she she wanted to give up. Through studying the Fa, she understood that learning the language was a necessary part of her life and she was determined to do it well.
Finding Attachment Through Working with Shen Yun
Nazareno from Italy worked as security during Shen Yun and helped unload the equipment and set up the stage during tours. He didn’t imagine that anyone would damage Shen Yun’s buses until one day he heard someone slashed the tires of a Shen Yun bus in the U.S. He realized that, as a security team member, his incorrect thoughts could have led to the bus being damaged.
While helping with Shen Yun, Nazareno saw his mentality of showing off. He often went to the gym and was able to lift heavy weights, so when he unloaded the equipment, he always wanted to show off his strength.
Shen Yun’s projector was very heavy and he couldn’t lift it alone. It took four people to move it. He understood that coordination between practitioners was very important. He also realized that when practitioners coordinate well in doing Dafa work, they can shoulder and take care heavy tasks.
Participating in the Tian Guo Marching Band
Ms. Lin tried to register the Tian Guo Marching Band so they could perform in various events this year. She felt like she was doing her ordinary job, and she realized she was doing sacred work with an ordinary mindset. She no longer felt the excitement she had when she first joined the band. Was it because she’d been in the band for a long time?
Last summer when her ordinary job became demanding, she had little free time to perform in the band and do other Dafa work. She didn’t keep up with her Fa study and sending righteous thoughts. Without righteous thoughts, she knew she was doing things related to Falun Dafa as though she was doing an ordinary job. She knew she had to stop depending on others and being lazy, and find time to study the Fa.
When they later performed, her righteous thoughts returned when she saw the band members’ coordinated movements and the spectators’ smiles when they learned about Falun Dafa. She once again felt the sense of her mission as a Falun Dafa practitioner.
Sudden Illness Karma
Mr. Chen collapsed in his kitchen and couldn’t stop vomiting. He couldn’t move his arms or legs and thought he was going to die. He looked within trying to find the attachment that led to such a severe illness.
He and his wife had conflicts and he argued with her every day. The situation became so intense that he had thoughts of wanting to leave the world early. In his sharing he said, “My family and friends know that I practice Falun Dafa. If I died, wouldn’t I be sabotaging the Fa? I waited eons to become a human when Dafa is taught here. If I did something to sabotage our efforts to save people, it would create a huge amount of karma. I was fortunate to learn the Fa, which is an opportunity that infinite number of divine beings do not have, and I wanted to give up my life for a trivial matter? How stupid.”
He felt depressed and stopped smiling, and sometimes he even behaved badly. He lay in bed and looked within for his shortcomings. His wife took good care of him. Slowly his resentment melted away, and his health started to improve.
However, the tribulation was not over as he suddenly developed a high fever. The fever caused him to have illusions, and his arms and legs hurt. He realized that something was wrong, “This is endless interference. I couldn’t do anything, including telling people about Falun Dafa. Why did this interference go on for so long?” He realized that when he looked for his shortcomings after he was hit by the illness, he unknowingly acknowledged the old forces’ persecution. When he walked around he wore a helmet because he was afraid he’d fall and injure his head. He treated himself as though he were a sick person, and didn’t fully negate the persecution.
The next morning he woke up, he could think very clearly. He knew that he had passed the test.
Overcoming Sentimentality
Ms. Liu’s daughter, who was a practitioner, passed away last year. Her daughter was twice imprisoned for a total of 6.5 years in China because of the persecution. Her daughter’s passing traumatized her. “During that time, I frequently memorized the Fa. My faith in Master and the Fa allowed me to pass the test,” she said.
When she felt her sentimentality for her daughter got stronger, she recited the Fa repeatedly to strengthen her main consciousness, and the emotion subsided. She did this each time the sentimentality came back. Gradually her emotional attachment to her daughter became weaker and she felt lighter.
The day her daughter passed away, she couldn’t focus when she studied the Fa. Her head felt heavy, and she couldn’t stop her random thoughts. “How can I study the Fa like this?” she asked herself. Knowing that she needed to study the Fa even more, she was able to stay focused, and Master’s every word penetrated her heart. After she read the Fa, she felt relaxed mentally and physically, like she was washed clean. She knew that Master removed the bad elements from her. Afterwards a practitioner told her that she seemed like a different person.
Finding Attachment to Lust, Desire, and Jealousy
After Thao practiced Falun Dafa, her appearance improved, and she received many compliments. She welcomed the compliments and enjoyed the fact that she received more attention from men. Her attachment to vanity, lust, and desire grew.
She had a dream, and saw the demon of lust which looked ugly, filthy and covered in slime, and it tried to lure her. From the dream she knew that it was a big problem and that she must eliminate her attachments to lust and desire. She sent righteous thoughts to destroy the demon, and spent less time on social media. Whenever a man talked to her, she tried to keep her mind righteous.
She also talked about how she worked hard in her life but things did not turn out the way she wanted it. She felt she was behind in life. People her age moved up in their careers, had gotten married, had children, and enjoyed their lives.
She looked within and found she had jealousy, which compelled her to compare herself to others. Whenever jealousy surfaced, she treated it as a substance that wasn’t part of her. She constantly reminded herself that she’s the luckiest life because she is a Falun Dafa practitioner.
From Resentment to Gratitude
Giang began to clash with her mother when she became a teenager. She resented her mother for being controlling and uncaring. Feeling hurt, she was rude to her mother and disrespected her. She didn’t care how her mother felt, and became outraged when her mother asked her about money, marriage, or other personal information.
After Giang began practicing Falun Dafa, she understood that she was not deprived of love like she thought she was. “I always had a loving family, and never truly suffered. The suffering I believed that I went through came from my inability to be grateful. The suffering came from my selfishness, greed, and jealousy. I always felt empty and was never satisfied. I thought everyone was trying to hurt me.”
Now when Giang chats with her mother through video, she no longer has a long face or has the urge to end the conversation. She smiles and tells her mother about the little things in her life. She feels that her mother is happy because Giang now cares for her, listens to her and respects her.
Attendees Find Areas to Improve in Cultivation
After the conference, practitioners shared about what they learned from their fellow practitioners’ stories.
Practitioners attended the Falun Dafa conference in Helsinki
Heikki from Turku found that he also had an attachment to showing off. He said that he plans to work harder and improve himself.
Ilmari became a father recently, and had been struggling to keep up with his daily schedule. He was reminded during the conference that he not only must ensure enough Fa study, but must also have a calm mind during Fa study.
Jaan from Estonia learned from other practitioners that he needed to pay attention to his thoughts. When he catches a bad thought emerging, he should negate it. By studying the Fa he became more gentle and patient. When he can stay calm, things are easily resolved.
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