(Minghui.org) My family members have changed a lot since I started practicing Falun Dafa. I used to dislike my husband's smoking and his laziness, and I even wanted to divorce him. After I started practicing Falun Dafa, my family became harmonious and my husband quit smoking.
My husband worked in a government department, but he was not corrupt and didn’t accept any bribes. He was kind to everyone and had a good reputation. He was in a car accident but came off totally unscathed even though the car rolled over. My daughter retired early from her government position a few years ago because she felt that she didn’t fit in that CCP (Chinese Communist Party) environment of cheating and bullying people. Master protected her several times. She said, “I only believe in Master. I don’t believe in anybody else.” My family lives happily thanks to Master’s blessings and his grace.
I moved to a new city after I retired, and I didn’t know any practitioners there. I kept up with Dafa information and practitioners’ sharing by reading the Minghui website. I knew that I must cultivate diligently, but I was not strict with myself and followed everyday people’s trends from time to time.
My husband was introverted and seldom pointed out my shortcomings. Even if he did point them out, he spoke in a way that I could accept. He was very tolerant with me. We get along very well and rarely have conflicts. Master arranged for my daughter to look out for me so that I would not get lost in everyday society.
Below are some examples to show you how my daughter urges me to be a genuine practitioner.
I was very concerned about who would be the next President of the United States during the election. I said that a prophecy predicted that the former president would definitely become the next President and that he was chosen by the divine. My daughter reminded me, “That has nothing to do with you. You are a practitioner. How come you are so concerned with politics?” Whenever I talked about politics, she immediately criticized me. She has scolded me so many times that I now remember “No Politics” and stop talking.
My daughter learned the exercise movements from Master’s exercise demonstration video. She corrected my exercise movements a few times. When I dozed off during sending forth righteous thoughts or the meditation exercise, she shouted, “Are you sleeping?” I found that even if I had not dozed off at those times, my palm had fallen when my mind was not focused while sending righteous thoughts.
Getting Rid of the Attachment to My Cell Phone
I deleted the WeChat app from my cell phone. I thought I wouldn’t be attached to my cell phone anymore. One day I learned that there were short videos on many apps. I opened a short video and watched it. This invigorated my attachment again. I couldn’t help opening one short video after another. I sometimes told to myself that I would stop watching after one video, but then I didn’t stop and continued watching. Sometimes I regretted wasting my time. I even vowed that I would never watch them again. But it didn’t work. I asked my daughter to give me her old-fashioned cell phone so that I couldn’t watch videos at all. She said, “You cannot solve your fundamental problem using this method. You must sort it out from your mind. Can changing a cell phone get rid of your attachment?” I wasn’t convinced and said, “I want to change my cell phone so that I can control myself.” I was looking outwardly and using everyday people’s methods.
I was not able to put my SIM card into the old cell phone so I didn’t switch my phone. Whenever my daughter saw me watching short videos, she shouted, “How come you’re watching again? Weren’t you determined to change your cell phone? Isn’t the problem in your mind?” I felt guilty every time I watched short videos, but I am now able to control myself and rarely watch short videos.
My First Thought Was Not Righteous
I cut my fingertip deeply one day with a kitchen knife. It hurt so much that I cried out. My daughter said, “Didn’t you say that the first thought was the most important? How do you behave at such a time?” I realized I was not behaving properly and stopped screaming. I told myself that I would be alright. I didn’t feel pain anymore and my fingertip stopped bleeding a short time later.
When I felt uncomfortable, sometimes it showed on my face. I wanted to cure my discomfort using everyday people’s methods. My daughter would scold me, “Where are your righteous thoughts? I cannot see that you have practiced cultivation for over 20 years.”
Human Attachments
The temptation in everyday society is huge. Even a tiny thing can drag me in sometimes. I have hereditary gray hair and started dying my hair when I was in my thirties. Recently I became attached to a shampoo that claimed that it could turn gray hair black. My daughter satirized me, “You even believe in this stuff. As a practitioner and an intellectual, you can be cheated so easily. Now I know why monks and nuns shave their heads.”
I wanted to lose some weight and didn’t dare to eat. She scolded me by saying that I didn’t behave like someone who had practiced Falun Dafa for more than 20 years. I sometimes even realized that I was like an everyday person as soon as I said something.
She didn’t just scold me once about one particular thing. She would criticize me on a series of things sharply or with sarcasm. Sometimes she went too far and my heart would move. I would defend myself and argue with her. She then criticized me even more. I gradually learned to not lose my temper, and I knew that it was time for me to look within.
Master said,
“Maybe you only get upset when it’s a case of someone saying something that really provokes you or hits a sore spot. And maybe the person really did treat you wrongfully. But, those words weren’t necessarily said by that person. Perhaps they were said by me. (Everyone laughs) I want to see how you handle things at the time. When you butt heads with that person, it actually equates to butting heads with me.” (“Fa Teaching Given in Manhattan”, Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume X)
At that time, I would think, “Master let her say it. This is what Master said.” I didn’t dare to rebut her. I just looked within.
I truly feel Master’s compassion. He takes care of practitioners. My daughter indeed plays the role of helping and supervising me. She does her best to remind me that I am a practitioner and should behave like a practitioner. Of course, I don’t always rely on her. My main consciousness must be strong, and I must be strict with myself all the time.
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Category: Improving Oneself
