(Clearwisdom.net)
Greetings Master! Greetings fellow practitioners!
I am an elderly practitioner who began practicing Falun Dafa in 1997. During my thirteen years of cultivating in Dafa, I have felt blessed and very grateful for this grand opportunity. I will continue to treasure this practice, as I have gained so much. I would like to share my experiences with Master and my fellow practitioners.
1. Obtaining the Fa and Believing Firmly in the Fa
I suffered many illnesses after I turned 30, yet I became healthy again only after a few months of practicing Falun Dafa . At that point I realized I had a new life.
In 1999 the CCP started its illegal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. This terror has reached every corner of China, and more so in Beijing. I have been arrested, lost my job, was monitored, harassed and endured pressure from my own family. Despite all of that, I became even stronger in my belief in the goodness of Dafa. I know this strength comes from Master's Fa which has influenced me deeply.
Master said:
"Then, as a cultivator, you should make use of all feasible conditions to spread Dafa and validate Dafa as a correct and true science, rather than preaching or idealism--this is every cultivator's obligation. " ("Validation" from Essentials For Further Advancement)
I wanted everyone to know how good Falun Dafa is and how it had made me a better person. I talked to the leaders of my company and to the police, and I used plain and honest words to share the facts of Falun Gong through my own personal experience.
One director of the local police station was very rude and cursed at me while pointing his finger at my face. When I had an opportunity to talk with him one on one, I asked him whether he knew of any Falun Gong practitioners committing murder, robbery, or using drugs or getting involved in prostitution. He answered, "No."
Another time, two policemen came to my home and at first I refused to open the door. They tried to kick the door down and shouted that they would take action against me. I thought, "What am I afraid of? I want to be a good person, and I am not afraid of anything." So I opened the door. Master's portrait was hanging on the wall and Dafa books were on the table. They left after just two minutes. The next time they came to my home, we talked for two hours, and as they were leaving I said, "Good is rewarded and evildoers are punished," and one policeman continued my sentence by adding, "It will show up in due time."
On one of the days that the CCP considered to be politically sensitive, a local policeman called me. Master's words came into my mind:
"Why should you, a Dafa disciple, fear the evil ones when enduring persecution? The crux of the matter is that you have attachments. If not, do not endure passively, and face the evil people with righteous thoughts at all times. No matter what the situation, do not cooperate with the evil's demands, orders, or what it instigates. If everyone does this the environment won't be this way." ("Dafa Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful" from Essentials for Further Advancement II ).
During the telephone call, I recited Master's Fa to him:
"And we've said, too, that if every one of us cultivates inward, if every one of us examines his own character for causes, if when we don't do well we look inside ourselves for the cause, and we try to do better next time, and if we think about other people first any time we do something, then the world will change for the better, morals will go back up, people's civility will improve, and crime will go down. Maybe we won't even need policemen. There will be no need for things like neighborhood watch, and everyone will watch over himself, and they'll look inside their own minds to fix things. Wouldn't you say that'd be great?" (Zhuan Falun).
I continued talking to him, saying that human hearts have changed, and morality has sunk to an all time low. So why are you trying to harm good Falun Dafa practitioners' hearts and minds? Are you afraid of society having too many good people? Since then, he has never returned to my home or called me again.
One time three bosses from my company followed me to my relative's home in another city. They detained me and sent me to the brainwashing center to try to force me to give up my belief in Falun Dafa. I thought to myself, "Since I am here, I'll take this opportunity to clarify the facts to them." After hearing the facts about Dafa, one of them said with obvious emotion, "It's so hard to be a good person," and they left.
I have seen many different policemen and leaders from our workplace. I know that they were predestined to learn the facts about Falun Gong from me. I clarified the truth to them one after another. Especially during the hard times of 1999 to 2003, I felt deeply that our compassionate Master was protecting us at every moment. When I studied the Fa, I could see a golden light shining from Master's portrait, and each of the words in Master's articles were golden. There were many hints to encourage me. The path Master arranges for each of his disciples is the best, and in perfect order. Master really has made very detailed efforts to make sure every disciple can walk well on their path.
2) Cultivating Myself While Doing the Three Things Well
In the beginning, I found it hard to read Zhuan Falun because I had only completed junior high when I had to leave school. Because of this, I thought I wouldn't be able to enlighten to the Fa principles. The key factor was changing my notion that I was at a low literacy level, so I re-affirmed Master's Fa to get rid of all my human notions.
Master said:
"The Fa can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts." ("Drive Out Interference" from Essentials for Further Advancement II ).
I decided to study the Fa more, and I learned to recite the Fa. I can recite Lunyu, Hong Yin, Hong Yin Vol. II and Essentials for Further Advancement. I have recited Zhuan Falun once, and I recited the first lecture three times. This made a good foundation for my future cultivation.
I have Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance in my heart. I use these principles to guide my life every day. I believe in Master and Dafa, and always remember that people will judge Falun Dafa practitioners based on our actions. I need to do well and will not let Dafa down. I pay attention to even the smallest of things. Master has shown us many good examples when he taught the Fa in China.
When I buy things, the salespeople sometimes give me more change back than they should. I find out later after I get home. These types of things started to happen more often after I began cultivation. I always returned the money the next day. I believe these opportunities were provided by Master Li to save those people.
One time, a sales person told me, "Nowadays there are still especially good people around. My boss said one person returned 50 yuan several days ago." I said, "That was me. All Falun Gong practitioners would do the same." She quit the CCP Youth League after I spoke with her.
Even one hundred thousand yuan will not move my heart to do something bad. The property left by my parents was to be demolished by the government. I am a Falun Dafa practitioner, and I already have an apartment. So I told my siblings that I would not take my share of the reimbursement, which touched my sibling's hearts.
Master said:
"Now, you know that in our discipline we don't avoid the ordinary world when we cultivate, and we don't shy away from or try to escape from conflicts. Right in the thick of this complicated ordinary people's environment you're clearheaded, you get shortchanged while you know full well what's happening, and when other folks compromise your best interests you don't fight tooth and nail like they do, and you're taken advantage of while all kinds of things try to drag your character down. In a grueling environment like this you temper your will, you improve your character, and here, with all kinds of bad thoughts from ordinary people preying on you, you manage to come out of it detached." (Zhuan Falun)
If I did not practice Falun Dafa, I would not have been generous or been able to handle that situation well, because before learning the Fa I was a selfish and competitive person.
The 1999 CCP propaganda and brutal persecution towards Falun Gong practitioners scared my family members. Some did not visit me any more; some refused to have any contact with me; some said, "You should stop practicing since the government does not allow you to practice." Some suggested for me to lie by saying that I don't practice. I would never give up in trying to help my family understand that Falun Gong is good. I used the changes in both my health and my demeanor after practicing to prove to them that Dafa is good. Now over fifty of my relatives and friends have quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations. My mother often repeats to herself, "Falun Dafa is good". It helped her to get over several illnesses. My husband started to practice half a year later than me, and has kept doing the three things. I give out to every family I know an MP3 player with Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party and Dissolving the Party Culture as gifts during Chinese New Year. My family members asked me to add Master's lectures onto the MP3 player too. Master said, "...with one person practicing, the whole family benefits." (Teaching the Fa at the Fa Conference in Australia)
It's true in my family. Although I am retired, I still use every opportunity to clarify the truth about Falun Gong to my former co-workers and friends. After several tries, most of my colleagues have quit the CCP, including retirees and the current Party secretary and deputy director of my company. Thank you Master for helping me save them.
3) Setting up Truth Clarification Materials Centers
Many of my human notions such as fear, selfishness, seeking comfort, resentment, complaining, worry, dependence, and show-off mentality have been exposed while doing the three things. Sometimes we have conflicts and misunderstandings among practitioners, but we are all studying the Fa and cultivating. Those things should not affect our doing the three things.
I did not know how to operate a computer before. Master said: "Cultivation is up to you, gong is up to the master." (Zhuan Falun) As long as you want to do it, Master will help. Practitioners who are familiar with computers will come to you. Master arranges all these things. Doing things well together is also an important process of cultivation. Sometimes when facing difficulties, I want to cry, and can't eat or sleep while having conflicts with fellow practitioners. As always, I calm down and look inward, and find many attachments within myself, which then changes the outside environment to be more harmonious. During the process of setting up a small family truth clarification materials center, I realized how difficult it must be to run a big materials center, and how hard it is for the technical coordinators. I realized through this project just how selfish, and very picky I was. I was so ashamed of myself at that time.
I wanted to do this for saving sentient beings, so I knew that Master would give me the wisdom. When I did not know how to do it, my finger would touch the right key. It's righteous what I wanted to do for Dafa, so miracles naturally happened. I felt that Master's Fashen was right next to me. In this way I learned how to print, make DVDs, get online, install operating systems, and type. I can handle some small jobs now. It's very important to read Master's articles and print them out on time for everyone. I can get whatever I need for the truth clarification materials, and can make as much as I need. It saved a lot of time and helped other practitioners who had been shouldering the responsibility of that Dafa project for so long.
We treasure the DVDs and truth clarification material. We package them nicely, and then put them out at the right place. Because we treasure them, sentient beings will treasure them too and be saved. We do whatever Master wants. This is the best way to assist Master to rectify the Fa.
Like Master said,
"When it comes to the Fa-rectification and what I choose, all beings' harmonizing and completing things according to my choices and contributing their best ideas and approaches--not to change what I want, but to harmonize and complete things according to what I've said--is the best thought a being in the cosmos could have." (Fa-Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference)
4) Sentient Beings are Waiting to be Saved
I can now clarify the facts about Falun Gong face to face. In the beginning, I felt I was not able to do it. Every day I studied one lecture of Zhuan Falun or other lectures in the lotus sitting position after sending forth righteous thoughts. Then I read practitioners' experience sharing, as well as good articles from Minghui Weekly.
Recently, I have had a big breakthrough. My heart is no longer moved by whether everyday people quit the CCP or not. I use various methods to persuade them to quit the CCP. I will also give them flyers after they quit to read later.
To those people who have good enlightenment quality I give DVDs and materials, and ask them to watch it and then pass it on. I can now persuade people to quit the CCP in a very relaxed manner. Some cases were very moving for me.
One time I was waiting at a bus station. A lady was there, who had practiced Falun Gong for two years and then stopped. She quit the CCP in a hurry and raced to get on her bus. In the crowd, she waved her arms and shouted to me, "Thank you Master Li!" Then she got on the bus. My tears were full of joy for her.
While I was discussing the facts about Falun Dafa with a young person on the bus, a lay Buddhist heard me talking. The young person quit the CCP and got off the bus. This Buddhist came over and sat next to me. She said she felt like she knew me, and said my eyes were very bright and looked very kind. I said we must have a predestined relationship. I told her it's because I practice Falun Gong. She was a party member, and she quit the CCP quickly.
One time I was talking to a middle-age couple, and the lady started to cry. She said her father was a party member and participated in the civil war. He told her not to join the CCP as he was dying. I said we would help them quit CCP too, and we gave her the name Fuan. She then asked me to submit names for her children to quit the CCP, too. I gave them a set of flyers and DVD's, and asked them to pass them on. They held my hands and thanked me. I was very touched, too. I told them to thank Master Li, instead.
5) Cultivating Solidly and Looking Inward All the Time
Sometimes I cannot let go of my attachments, and cannot pass my xinxing tests. I often have conflicts with my husband. Sometimes I do better, sometimes worse. The main reason is that I do not treat him as a fellow practitioner, and instead I just treat him as my husband. I need to get rid of this emotional attachment. I cannot be attached to self and force my opinions on him. From now on, I will share understandings with him compassionately. We are a small body and need to treasure this environment. I realize that I am not compassionate enough, and I often complain when I talk to people. I have discovered that I am competitive too. Others do not like to hear my complaining and the result is not good when I do that. Often the problem is not solved, so I get angry. I realize that I have the same problem when sharing experiences with fellow practitioners, and I need to get rid of this attachment.
I know that nothing is an accident. I need to let go of self more and develop compassion. I have many attachments, and I hope that Master won't be too worried. So far, I have persuaded 500 people to quit CCP successfully, but I know that I can and should do more.
Master said:
"In cultivation a cultivator takes hardship as joy, purges all of his attachments, is compassionate and looks to make progress, and without letup diligently progresses in cultivation--and that, I'll tell you, will make me happier than your doing any ritual." (Teaching the Fa at the Conference in Houston)
I want to do better and to have Master not worry about us any more. I cannot use words to express my gratitude to Master. My tears fell often while writing this experience sharing. It's an expression of deep gratitude for our Master, who has saved me.
Thank you all practitioners who have helped me. Please kindly point out where I have incorrect understandings.
I heshi and kneel before Master.
I heshi to fellow practitioners.
