(Minghui.org) Greetings, Master! Greetings, fellow practitioners!
I’m a 24-year-old practitioner from Vietnam. I started practicing when I was almost 20. At the time, I was facing a lot of challenges in my early adult life, often asking myself, “What’s truly meaningful in life?” I was under a lot of pressure, trying to balance a full-time job, volunteer work, studies, and internships, hoping to prove my value through career success, relationships, and financial stability. Living in a foreign country, I felt lost—I didn’t know what I could rely on, whom to trust, how to live, or whether to stay or leave.
During this time of confusion, I was fortunate that a college friend introduced me to Falun Dafa. With the support of local Vietnamese practitioners in Sydney and other young practitioners, I gradually began my cultivation journey and have continued practicing to this day. Looking back, the past few years feel like a series of miraculous and meaningful experiences I never imagined having. The happiest moments were when I connected with people from all walks of life, learned their stories, and introduced Dafa to them.
I began working at a childcare center in August 2023. The environment was harmonious, supportive, professional, and welcoming, and I was grateful for Master’s arrangement that allowed me to be in such a setting. With Shen Yun coming earlier this year, I wanted to introduce the performance to my colleagues from China and Hong Kong.
However, when I gave the director of the childcare center a Shen Yun calendar, she and another colleague burst out laughing, saying, “Oh, Falun Gong,” and made a comment in Chinese that I roughly understood as, “Maybe she doesn’t know.” I was taken aback, as I hadn’t expected that reaction. I tried to stay calm and explained that Shen Yun is an excellent performing arts show that I had seen many times and wanted to share with them. They laughed again and ignored me.
Even though I felt uncomfortable, I knew I had to set my feelings aside and start my shift. When lunchtime came, I walked into the staff room and saw the same colleague who had laughed at me sitting there. I was a bit startled, thinking, “What a coincidence.” I stepped back out of the room to gather my thoughts and reflect on the situation.
Two thoughts popped into my head. The first was, “I need to clarify the truth to this person; this is clearly an opportunity for her to be saved.” But almost immediately, a second thought followed: “What if she ends up feeling hostile toward me and forms a negative view of Falun Dafa? Maybe I should wait until next time, when she can see me as a better person, and then I’ll speak up.”
I realized that this thought was selfish and self-validating. I was afraid this person would dislike me and stop talking to me just because I practiced Falun Gong. This showed that I was more concerned about validating my own image than truly thinking about others.
I reminded myself that my life wasn’t about seeking superficial things like being liked by others. We all came for the Fa, and the opportunity to help was right in front of me. I asked Master for the strength to overcome my fear and to help this person. Taking a deep breath, I walked into the staff room and sincerely asked her what she meant about the connection between Shen Yun and Falun Gong.
She explained that while growing up in China, she was exposed to daily propaganda against Falun Gong. I could see her fear when she talked about it, as if it were something very dangerous. I smiled kindly and told her that I understood her perspective. Then I introduced myself as a Falun Gong practitioner.
I truly felt sorry for her and for many other innocent Chinese people who had been misled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). I shared the truth with her and explained the CCP-staged Tiananmen self-immolation incident.
I looked at her sympathetically and asked, “What do you think about the CCP, are you afraid of it?” She answered, “Yes, we are watched everywhere, and if we say anything different from the CCP, it won’t end well.” I laughed and replied, “Then why do you still believe what the CCP says about Falun Gong; how do you know it is true? It’s just like what happened with all of their propaganda to suppress groups of people that they consider enemies, just because the groups do not fit with what they want to control.”
She agreed, but then mentioned the slanderous propaganda. I told her about my own experience, saying, “I have been practicing Falun Dafa for the past few years, you can see me as a small testimonial. I became healthier after practicing Falun Gong. I cherish my life and existence more after learning Falun Gong. I try to live meaningfully every day and become a better person, no drinking, no smoking, and I focus on doing my assigned tasks well, treat people around me well, and I try every day to follow my Teacher’s teachings and the values of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.”
She listened attentively, and her face gradually became more relaxed. She asked me what Falun Gong is really about, and why such a young person like me practiced it. I patiently explained, while also listening attentively to her responses.
I also showed her pictures of young practitioners in Sydney doing activities, from spreading the Fa, to group exercises, to networking activities such as camping, hiking, playing badminton, and so on. I told her that not only me, but also many other young people in Sydney are practicing Falun Gong, because we share the same values of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, which can resonate with people of all ages and from all walks of life. Finally, the conversation ended when I had to return to my shift. After that experience, my colleague took the initiative to approach me and asked me more questions about the activities I usually do with other young practitioners.
When I had to move to another branch, I wrote letters and gave origami lotus flowers to all the staff before I left. In the letters, I shared the value of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance with them, which I believed would be guiding principles for their lives. On the last day, the educational leader in the center, who was also from China, asked me to teach the staff there one of the exercises, because he had heard about it for a long time but had not had the chance to practice it.
At first, I thought he was joking, but after realizing that his intention was truly genuine, I asked everyone to form a circle and I showed them the first exercise. The staff came from many countries, like China, Nepal, and Iran. The education leader also spoke up about the persecution, and told the staff about the humanitarian crimes that the CCP had committed. I also told them about the CCP’s forced organ harvesting. The staff were all horrified and agreed that the persecution should end immediately.
To this day, that moment is still vivid in my mind. To me, it was a manifestation of Master’s boundless compassion in arranging for me to come to the childcare center to clarify the truth to the people there. I realized that in the past, when clarifying the truth, I only relied on my emotions when thinking about Dafa and the persecution.
At the same time, I was afraid that if I didn’t explain all the information to my colleague, she may no longer have a chance to hear the truth again.
However, through studying the Fa and improving myself day by day, I came to realize that I need to put myself in the other person’s shoes. I need to give them a chance to express themselves and understand the truth from their perspective, instead of forcing them to listen to my opinion. I am truly grateful to Master for giving me the opportunity to extend my understanding of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance while clarifying the truth at this workplace.
Interestingly, my branch manager once told me that she remembered there were two people who came for an interview before me, but the manager didn’t want to hire them. But when she saw me, she knew that I belonged there. That moved me greatly and I immediately thought of Master’s compassionate arrangements for the sentient beings and for my own cultivation. I’m deeply grateful for Master’s blessings!
In the beginning, when I clarified the truth face-to-face, I only had one approach: standing on the street in front of the booth, giving out flyers, and asking “Have you heard about Falun Gong?” If passersby were willing to listen, I would talk in more detail about Falun Gong and the persecution, going on and on until I had nothing else to talk about. Then I would let them go. I wasn’t sure if they understood me or not, but I made sure I said everything I could, to any type of person. If they asked me questions, I would get frustrated and offended because I didn’t know how to answer, and it would expose my lack of understanding of the truth and my lack of faith in Dafa. When I encountered people’s objections, I would respond with emotion, thinking, “Why don’t you just believe that it’s good? Why don’t you feel empathy when people are going through such a tragedy?”
Things started to change when I was invited to get involved in a Dafa media project as a journalist in 2022. My role was to interview ordinary people from all walks of life about their opinions during different Dafa events. At first, I felt disheartened when people refused to do an interview with me. I had lots of doubts and worries when I thought about whether people would view us as a political group or not. Then I teamed up with other veteran practitioners when they clarified the truth. I would try to get to know the person’s point of view and help them understand what we’re doing first, before asking them for an interview. From then on, I gradually adjusted how I approached people.
Over time, I realized my job was not just about interviewing people and asking them questions, but it was also a chance for me to clarify the truth. To do this, I tried to expand my own knowledge, engage them in a two-way discussion, and clarify the truth from their perspective.
Master said,
“Validate the Fa with rationality, clarify the truth with wisdom, spread the Fa and save people with mercy.” (“Rationality,”Essentials for Further Advancement II)
First, to improve the quality of my interview and truth clarification, I did lots of research, read widely, and watched many videos and documentaries on various topics, including events in China and around the world. I also learned a lot from my journalist partners. This helps me talk from a historical and humanitarian perspective and helps people resonate with the topic.
As a result, when people asked me questions, I could provide them with a more in-depth answer and give them a broader picture, rather than focusing solely on the persecution and asking for their empathy. It’s a shift from clarifying the truth with emotion to clarifying the truth with rationality.
Second, I realized that when I asked thought-provoking questions and gave them a chance to voice their own opinions, they were more open to sharing their thoughts, receptive to the truth, and interested in the discussion. They also show more appreciation toward practitioners’ truth-clarification efforts. A lot of people spoke with genuineness, justice, righteousness, and dignity. I realized that it’s not that we are asking them for help, but that they came to fulfill their vows with Master and to validate Dafa. This helped me to overcome fear when talking to people.
For example, instead of telling them that Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good, I would ask them what they understand about each of these principles, and how they would apply them to their life and relationships. Most of them expressed appreciation for the values, while some people said it was hard to apply, although it seemed to be simple.
Through heart-to-heart conversations, I could see how Truthfulness-Compassion- Forbearance are not confined to our practice but are universal values that have different manifestations in everyone’s life. I started to view the people I came across as my old friends, and they were just reflecting on their life journey based on these values.
Before, when people didn’t listen to me, I felt they were offending my faith and I tried to save face and protect my ego. I also realized that when I first took part in truth-clarification activities, I had the intention of treating it as humanitarian work to give my life meaning and a sense of accomplishment.
However, from the Fa, I understood that when a divine looks at a person, they look at the person’s whole journey throughout different lives instead of the surface of that person.
Master said,
“Each person is like a chronicle of history. Each and every person is like a long, lively historical tale. It’s rather amazing to look at all the things that an individual has gone through over his many lifetimes. So, with the cosmos being so massive and its sentient beings numbering so vast, for all of this to be destroyed would be such a shame.” (“What a Dafa Disciple Is,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume XI)
This made me treasure people and their existence more. I value the journey that they’ve been through and can see that their life is sacred and they were predestined to be here, so I can’t take it for granted. With this understanding, clarifying the truth no longer felt like a massive and scary task, or a far-fetched goal that I needed to accomplish.
Looking back, the lesson that I have learned is to focus on the sentient being in front of me and not on the result, such as how many people I can interview, how receptive they are to my presentation, or how much information I can give out.
Through my experiences with truth clarification, I have learned to understand people’s point of view, share a different perspective with them based on the Fa, and show them the kindness of a practitioner. However much they share or receive the message is up to them. Their enlightenment is not up to me, it’s up to Master’s arrangements. I can’t decide the outcome, but I can improve the process, such as by making the discussion more engaging.
Everyone came for the Fa. I only bring them closer to the universal values and helped deliver them to the path of salvation arranged by Master.
That concludes my sharing. If there is anything not in accordance with the Fa, please kindly point it out.
Thank you for your compassion, revered Master.
Thank you, fellow practitioners!
(Presented at the 2024 Australia Falun Dafa Cultivation Experience Sharing Conference)