(Clearwisdom.net) I learned about Falun Dafa about nine years ago in an unusual place--prison. I was defamed by someone and sentenced to over ten years.
During my early days in the detention center, I could barely calm down. I was angry, pessimistic, desperate, and unable to face the reality. Every day I thought of ending my own life. I collected all the sleeping pills that I got from the prison doctors. After being in the detention center for three months, one night I suddenly had a heart attack. I begged the police to take me to the hospital, but their attitude was very poor and they refused to take me. I felt sad and angry and completely discouraged. Secretly, I swallowed a handful of sleeping pills to end my life. Unexpectedly, I woke up the next morning no worse for the experience. I thought that was very strange. I wondered, "Could it be that someone saved my life?" Later I told a Dafa practitioner what had happened, because at that time many Falun Dafa practitioners were illegally detained there. He told me that the Teacher of Falun Dafa saved my life. He said, "It's because Teacher's law body takes care of each student. Our Teacher is here to save people and to teach us to be good. Our Teacher said it's wrong to kill others or oneself. Seeing you in difficulty, he saved you." After I heard this, I understood. I told myself that even though many everyday people hurt me and wanted me to die, God saved my life. I then decided that for the rest of my life I would follow Teacher and put all my heart in studying the Fa and improving myself.
That Dafa practitioner later taught me to memorize Hong Yin and some articles. I was afraid that I couldn't remember them correctly. He told me, "As long as you want to remember, Teacher will help you to remember." Every day I learned several poems from Hong Yin. I remember all I learned.
After learning for about two weeks, one afternoon when I took a nap, I felt very cold. Even when I covered myself with a blanket, I was still cold. Veteran practitioners told me that this was karma elimination, something good, and not to be feared. So I was no longer scared. I then began to practice meditation, the fifth exercise. Just as I sat down and began the movements, I felt my hands become quite warm and felt something turning in my body. After a while I felt as if my feet were no longer there, nor my hands or body. My body seemed to be so light that it floated. I only knew that I was sitting in meditation with my hands conjoined. Suddenly I saw scenes from outside. I saw mountains and rivers as well as clouds. At that time I felt as if I was floating in the sky. I was wondering whether I was still in the cell. I opened my eyes, and all these scenes disappeared. After consulting with other practitioners, I understood that my celestial eye had opened. Ever since then I have studied the Fa and practiced every day. I also listened to veteran practitioners telling me about Teacher's Fa. Because I was learning the Fa in such an unusual environment, I did not read Teacher's book, Zhuan Falun. I could only learn from other practitioners in the detention center. They recited to me what they could remember. I also tried very hard to remember everything I heard.
Before I began practicing Dafa, I was sick with many illnesses. For example, I had cerebral disease, heart disease, gallstones, high blood pressure, and much more. Also my back ached due to a fractured vertebra from a car accident. At that time I also had many dark spots on my face. I needed to take many different kinds of medicine every day. After I began to practice, I felt that my whole body was incomparably light and comfortable. The black spots on my face faded gradually. The changes were very evident and clear. I no longer needed to take medicine. My cell mates and guards were so amazed when they saw me. Many of them said that they would also learn Falun Gong later on.
Two months later, the leaders of the detention center talked to me one day. They pressured me a lot and told me to stop practicing Falun Gong right away, otherwise they would report me to their superiors and prolong my term. I said to them, "My life as an ordinary person has already ended. The Teacher of Falun Dafa saved me, so I will surely follow Teacher. If you want to increase my term, just do it. I'm not afraid." After that I was more diligent in studying the Fa, practicing the exercises, and promoting Dafa to newcomers. Soon after, Teacher opened my celestial eye and allowed me to see the contents of the books with my celestial eye. Also, I saw many things in other dimensions, beneath the ground, and under the sea. This gave me more confidence in studying the Fa. Despite the persecution and the pressure, my faith in Dafa never wavered, and I have persevered in practicing Dafa all along.
Later I was transferred to prison. I could not practice the exercises in that environment, so I could not relax on my Fa study. I recited the book while I worked, improved my inner nature, and unceasingly told others about Dafa.
One year on Teacher's birthday, I put my hands together (heshi) to express my respect for Teacher. Other prisoners saw me and reported me to the prison warden. The chiefs of the brigade, squadron, and squad all talked to me many times and pressured me to write a self-inspection report and a guarantee statement, promising to stop practicing. Under the intense intimidation, I very calmly asked them to give me three days to consider. Three days later, I handed over an article detailing my cultivation experiences. I wrote about how I obtained the Fa, how Teacher saved me, my physical improvements after practicing, and some things I saw through my celestial eye. The chiefs again spoke to me, pressured me, and arranged for people to watch over me around the clock. I had no fear as I had already let go of concern for life and death. How could I fear that? Moreover, I did quite well in other respects, so they had no other way to persuade me to stop practicing.
Because of this, I was then moved to the production brigade. The work in the production brigade was several times heavier than the new workers' brigade. I worked until 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. daily. The chief talked to me many times. Upon seeing that I was quite steadfast, he said that he respected my belief, but told me not to teach others.
After ten years of prison life, in this kind of unusual, high-pressure environment of persecution, as a Dafa practitioner, I thought I should do some things for Dafa, so I unceasingly explained the truth to everyone, and then advised others to make the three withdrawals (withdrawing from the Chinese Communist Party and its two youth organizations).
Because I had been framed and put in prison, I lost my enterprise that I had laboriously managed for several dozen years. Nearly all of my property was illegally taken, several houses were also held by others, and tens of millions of credits also became bad debts and could not be recovered. But I am not scared since I've learned Dafa, I have Teacher. I believe Teacher won't let me wander about destitute on the streets.
After I got out of prison, my life was quite difficult. Without family or a job, I temporarily lived with relatives. I couldn't get back what others owed me. I wanted to reclaim my houses through legal channels but I had no money to pay legal fees. In that case, I thought I probably owed them from a previous life, so I was paying them back in this way in this lifetime. If I do not owe them, then they will give me virtue; therefore, I take these things lightly.
As I am a new practitioner, I want spent all my time studying the Fa, practicing the exercises, diligently striving forth, and improving my xinxing.
I've seen Teacher's picture and Dafa books, which is what I have waited day and night for all those years. Now my wish has finally come true. I am so excited to see Teacher's lectures and videos. I thank Teacher for saving me and thank those Falun Dafa practitioners in prison who suffered persecution, but made so much effort to allow me to obtain the Fa and improve.
