(Minghui.org) Greetings Master! Greetings fellow practitioners!
I searched for the meaning of life for years, and felt fortunate when I found Falun Dafa in 1998.
I was reluctant to write an article about my cultivation experiences, but deep down, I also wanted to write. I felt I hadn’t cultivated well enough to write about my experiences, so I always hesitated. It’s actually a sacred act that encourages and elevates the entire body of practitioners. With other practitioners’ encouragement, I finally found the courage to share some of my cultivation experiences.
A breakthrough in my cultivation happened three years ago. I woke up one morning and turned on the Chinese language truth clarification media as usual. It reported that Chinese citizens in various provinces shouted, “Down with the CCP! Down with Xi Jinping!” Some of the demonstrators were simply holding up a white piece of paper. I thought that if people in mainland China dared to shout those words, it meant the evil no longer had as much power and Fa-rectification would soon end. I asked myself, “Have you sincerely and truly cultivated yourself?”
At that moment, it was as if I had obtained the Fa for the second time. I was deeply shaken inside. “How and what should I do to become a steadfast, qualified Falun Dafa practitioner?”
I remember Master said that everything comes from the Fa. From that day on, I attended the online Fa study more often with other practitioners. However, I somehow couldn’t achieve a breakthrough. I couldn’t manage to finish reading an entire lecture in Zhuan Falun. I was often distracted by negative thoughts, laziness, or by people asking me for help.
Dafa is so magnificent, profound, and an immense treasure. Even though I couldn’t read the Chinese characters, I had strong righteous thoughts. I picked up the thick Chinese language book Zhuan Falun one day and said to myself, “I want to memorize this book!”
Perhaps my wish was granted. Through Master’s arrangement, a Chinese practitioner helped me join an online Fa-study platform in the U.S. so that I could memorize the Fa in Chinese with others. I was overjoyed. This is exactly what I wanted. So, every day, after sending forth righteous thoughts, I memorized the Fa in Chinese.
Another practitioner pointed me to an app to help me learn Chinese better. In this app, you can listen to the characters and follow them if you don’t know how to pronounce them. Delighted by his suggestion, I installed the software. This is how I studied the Fa in Chinese online for six months. Afterward, I switched to other encrypted software to memorize the Fa with three other practitioners who were native Cantonese speakers. When we weren’t sure how to pronounce the characters, I sent them to my sister-in-law. Everyone appreciated her pure Chinese accent. After studying, we often talked to each other.
Since I work shifts, the timing wasn’t always ideal for me. During the night shift, starting at 8:00 p.m., I could study the Fa undisturbed with others. From 9:00 p.m. onward, things were usually very busy at the office, and I could only listen. After midnight, everything was much quieter and I could dedicate myself to studying the Fa.
I feel that our group has benefited from our significant focus on cultivation. I also see that I’ve changed. I now have a greater inner buffer. When xinxing tests come up, I’m able to remain much calmer.
The practitioner from Hong Kong told me one day that I was too complacent because I still couldn’t recite the Lunyu (the preface to Zhuan Falun) from memory. He said that if someone in Hong Kong couldn’t recite Lunyu from memory, the other practitioners couldn’t even imagine it. This encouraged me and I was determined to memorize Lunyu. After three months, I was able to recite it from memory. When I read Chinese Zhuan Falun, I can now recognize almost all the characters and I read fluently. Reading one lecture every day is no longer impossible for me. Through constant study, I understand many Fa principles, and I can feel myself elevating. I owe all of this to our merciful Master.
Looking Inward
My wife is not a practitioner. At the beginning of our relationship, we had many disagreements and arguments. Since she didn’t know anything about Falun Dafa, she surfed the Internet and read information about it, mostly published by media outlets that defamed Falun Dafa. She sent these to me. I tried to explain to her that this information was taken from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that it was lies and hate propaganda. Furthermore, many facts had been distorted. I explained the true situation to her. Because I didn’t know enough about the Fa at that time, I sometimes reacted very impatiently, irritably, and impulsively. This led to tension in our relationship.
When we had another conflict, she said, “You always say that cultivation makes you a good person. But I don’t see anything different in your behavior. I don’t see any change in you.” When I heard this, I was shocked. I was aware that this advice most likely came from Master, and that I needed to improve.
“What should I do to be a good person?” I asked myself. I started taking on more housework at home. But I wanted to show off after doing housework and wanted to prove myself—even though I worked full-time, I could keep the house clean. When my wife comforted me by saying that I was doing a lot, I realized that I had a strong attachment to showing off. Since then, whenever I do something at home, I think of others first and do my work silently and responsibly.
One day, while driving home, my wife and I had a disagreement over something trivial. Our daughter was in the car. Not knowing how to properly look within, I said to myself at the time, “No matter what happens, this time I won’t say a single word. I must learn to at least keep myself under control and not argue about who is right.” But attachments like pride, competitive mentality, and self-righteousness were still very strong, so it wasn’t easy for me. Afterward, though, I felt a great sense of relief.
Through the increased Fa study, I was gradually able to handle interpersonal conflicts more easily and look inward. It doesn’t seem so difficult anymore.
There was another similar incident. For my wife’s birthday, I ordered a portrait of her online. The painting was very well done. I was in good spirits and happily assumed she would like it. A week before her birthday, I gave her the gift. She was very pleased but she also seemed annoyed. “Why did you give me the gift so early?” she complained. I realized that I had been too hasty and too effusive. I apologized and agreed that it had been a mistake to give her the painting so soon. If I hadn’t cultivated, I would have been hurt and upset by her reaction, which would have led to a major argument.
Xinxing tests occasionally reappeared. But recognizing them and looking inward was crucial. However, if I had slackened my Fa study, they were difficult to pass. Then many human thoughts, notions, and attachments surfaced. There were also times, though, when I was able to be compassionate and feel mercy towards others.
My transformation made the home environment much more harmonious. My wife even came with me a few times to watch Shen Yun performances or Falun Dafa parades. She also supported me when I participated in various Dafa activities.
Eliminating Jealousy
For a long time, I hadn’t thought I had such deep-rooted jealousy. Shen Yun performances have been held in Basel for several years. Most of the practitioners and I participate and support the project to save sentient beings. My younger brother coordinates for this project. From the very beginning, I felt a growing sense of dissatisfaction. But I couldn’t immediately grasp what it was really happening. Occasionally, when we met at meetings, he forgot to greet me. Over time, a kind of resentment developed within me: “Aha, now that you’re the coordinator, you just ignore me!” At the time, I simply practiced forbearance and suppressed this feeling.
The day Shen Yun Performing Arts company arrived and I was guarding the tour bus, I was overcome by intense resentment. I thought, “As the older brother, I have to guard the bus outside in the cold, while you enjoy the warmth inside as a valued coordinator.” I tried to suppress my resentment. But it kept resurfacing. One day, I had an argument with him on the phone. This woke me up, and I realized that something was wrong with me, and it was this intense jealousy.
I didn’t acknowledge this recurring, envious thought and was determined to eliminate it. Since negative thoughts shy away from the light, I talked about it in my Fa study group.
Overcoming My Gaming Addiction
The online game StarCraft is a real-time strategy game, and I played it for several years. Because of playing online games, I very rarely did the three things that Master asks us to do. I often missed dinner and then ate later. There were days when I played from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. and only went to bed after eight hours of playing. In bed, I unconsciously had the feeling that I had two extra legs or hands. I didn’t know what it was and ignored this sensation. Over time, this gaming addiction caused me to develop severe migraines. Although I knew it wasn’t a good sign, I kept playing.
However, my addiction was so strong that I couldn’t simply give it up. Because of gaming, I did almost nothing at home and neglected my responsibilities. This led to many arguments. I finally realized what was happening and deleted the game. After some time, however, the addiction returned, and I reinstalled it. This happened several times. Only after reading Master’s teachings and some related sharing articles, was I shocked and deleted the game for good.
Master told us,
“I’d like to give you my take on what people normally refer to as “addiction.” In the medical sciences it’s believed that addiction occurs when the part of the nervous system associated with addictive behaviors is stimulated and develops to a sufficient degree. But that’s not it. What’s happening, then? Over time, that addictive substance accumulates, and forms inside of your body an identical version of you that comes to control you. Because it is composed of strong attachment, and has your appearance, it has an equally strong desire to control you; it was formed out of strong desires, after all.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2019 New York Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. XV)
I also had the game installed on my phone because I thought it wasn’t that addictive. Nevertheless, it was very difficult for me to get rid of it. It shouldn’t have come to this, because getting rid of it took a lot of time. It also took several attempts to delete it completely.
I now understand: If one has righteous thoughts, whether in cultivation or in clarifying the truth, Master will help us achieve our goal. However, if one clings to human attachments, the old forces will interfere. Therefore, every righteous thought, whatever one thinks and does, is very crucial.
Since then, instead of indulging in worldly pleasures like surfing the Internet or playing games on my phone, I read Zhuan Falun in my free time.
I thank our compassionate Master for guiding me so well every step on the path of my cultivation. I will do even better on the rest of the journey.
Many thanks also to my fellow practitioners.
(Selected article presented at the 2025 Swiss-German Fa Conference)
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