(Minghui.org) My mother passed away when I was 14 years old. Five years later, my father married another woman to complete our family, thus bringing the most difficult stepmother that one could imagine into our lives. At that time I envisioned that if I ever got married, I would treat my mother-in-law like my own mother. But my marriage didn’t go well, and in a few years I was emotionally near the brink of collapse. To top it off, I had just lost my job.
I felt so close to giving up on my life, yet I did not want to die. With no other alternatives, I divorced my husband and left behind my beloved 5-year-old son. The subsequent, numerous and painful hardships I went through can’t be described in a few sentences. However, for some inexplicit reasons I wanted to live for at least a few more years, as though I were waiting for something.
Cultivating Dafa and Resolving My Grievances
I started practicing Falun Dafa in 1996 and have been cultivating in the Great Law for over 10 years. In the process, my illnesses disappeared, I elevated in my xinxing and I managed to resolve many of my past grievances.
Winters in Northeast China are very cold. One day my colleague and also roommate told me that she couldn’t stand the cold winds that blew through the window cracks. I suddenly realized with a start that I used to have very bad rheumatoid arthritis, which made the wind and cold intolerable for me. The rheumatoid arthritis had never gotten better, despite of my having tried all sorts of treatments. But now my arthritis had completely disappeared without my realizing it!
After starting a job outside the city, I found myself with less free time. I was also alone and far away from other practitioners. Although I knew that Dafa is good, I wasn’t able to do all five exercises each day, much less study the Fa every day. Even so, I never felt as tired as my other colleagues. Although I slept fewer hours than they did, I always felt energetic at work. I was really moved by how miraculous Dafa is.
I also had very bad migraines that didn’t improve with treatments of medication or acupuncture. I suffered these extremely painful migraine attacks every 2 or 3 days. But after cultivating Dafa the migraines never recurred. I can very profoundly feel Master’s compassion and the goodness of Dafa! Everyone says that migraines are incurable. However, in my 10-plus years of cultivation, my migraine headaches have never recurred.
In cultivating Dafa I began using the requirements for a cultivator to govern my thoughts and my actions. For example, if there were obstacles that I could not overcome, I thought of the words “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance”, and then I was able to let go of my grievances. By thinking of these three words, I would recall that I’m a practitioner and shouldn’t treat the situation as an ordinary person would. As my xinxing improved, my work environment got better as well. Some of my colleagues also began cultivating Dafa with me. The practitioners at my workplace and at home are all very selfless and get along well with others. As such, I feel like the most fortunate person in the world.
With regards to elevating my xinxing, one of the biggest issues I faced was my stepmother. Before cultivating Dafa, one can say that I really hated my stepmother to the bone, and I swore never to return to that home. But as my understanding of the Fa grew and my xinxing improved, I realized that everything in our lives happens for a reason. Perhaps I had hurt her very deeply in a past life, and so she treated me like this in my present life. Through continuous study of the Fa, I let go of my hatred for my stepmother.
My father is already in his 80s, and we hired a housemaid to look after both my father and stepmother. However, my stepmother still insisted on making my father work for her. My siblings were very angry about this, but I was able to diffuse their anger with a calm heart. I told them that our father doesn’t complain about what she makes him do; so as their children, we just have to make sure we’ve done our best.
However, in the past two years my stepmother became bed-ridden from a severe illness. Every housemaid we hired eventually quit because she aggravated and scolded them harshly. As such, we had difficulty finding a housemaid to look after her, and even her own son angrily told her that my father had spoiled her. When I went back to my hometown over the Chinese New Year holiday, I set aside all my grievances and visited them. Every day I washed her clothes and made her meals, and I helped her clean up after going to the toilet. She was moved to tears and said I had a good heart, and she expressed her regret over what she had done to me in the past. I told her not to think about the past anymore and to focus on getting well. I told her that, as a practitioner, I don’t nit-pick about things in the past. I also told her to recite, “Falun Dafa is good; Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” frequently, which she did.
One Cannot Be Selective in Saving People
Towards the end of 2008, I came to Beijing. I’ve switched jobs quite a few times, and all the while I’ve been using myself and my behavior to validate the Fa and save predestined sentient beings.
One of my jobs was working as a housekeeper. When I first met my employer, Xiaozhao (not her real name), I could tell that she wasn’t an easy person to work for. But then I remembered Master’s words:
“When someone is placed before you, there isn’t a choice—you’re wrong if you become selective in terms of saving people. As long as he is someone you run into, you should save him, regardless of his position or social status, or whether he be the president or a beggar.” (“What is a Dafa Disciple”)
A predestined person doesn’t have the words “predestined” written on his or her face. Since she had chosen me, it was my duty to save her.
After starting to work at her home, she continuously and increasingly gave me extra work outside of my contract. She was also very picky, and when it came to meals, she insisted on not repeating any food dishes in a week. She also often made me wait outside the house; once, I waited for 2 hours outside before she came home to let me in. Although she created a lot of difficulty for me, I recalled Master’s words,
“Did you know that in order to save you the Buddha once begged for food among everyday people?” (“True Cultivation” in Essentials for Further Advancement)
I would then be able to let go of the animosity inside me. I never complained or retorted, but thought, “I want to show you that cultivators are different from ordinary people, I must save you all.”
Now that I think about it, I believe that it was because of Master’s help that I could do all this. I come from a less-privileged background, but many rich people are more conscientious about the taste and variety of foods. As such, she often asked me to prepare dishes that I had never heard of, so I would have to look up the recipes online and follow them. They were all very happy with the dishes I prepared, even saying that it was better than what they ate in restaurants. As such, they often invited friends to their home for meals (which included at least 7-8 dishes each time), further increasing my workload.
One morning, I had a vivid dream of myself washing away a piece of dirt from a newborn baby’s neck. Without a clue, I spoke to a fellow practitioner about my dream, and I went to work.
That evening, Xiaozhao had again invited her parents over for dinner. After dinner her mother praised me and said her daughter frequently told her about my good character. (Conversely, Xiaozhao had never praised me before, and her husband Xiaoqian hardly ever spoke to me. Once I saw Xiaoqian bowing in a certain direction with his palms together in “worship”, but I didn’t understand why he was doing that and felt something sinister about his actions. On the whole, the couple often gave me the feeling that they felt superior to other people.)
I overheard Xiaoqian say to his mother-in-law: “There were several times while driving that I suddenly passed out like a dead person, and I lost awareness of my surroundings. But the doctors at the hospital have never been able to find the cause.” When I saw the worried looks on his family members’ faces, I seized the opportunity to tell them about how many people in my hometown have recovered from serious illnesses after practicing Falun Dafa. I also told them about how my migraines and arthritis vanished after practicing Dafa. I then told them the truth about the “Tiananmen SquareSelf-immolation” and how Dafa taught people to be good. I told them, “You tell me that I have good character, but that’s because I follow the requirements of Falun Dafa.” I also answered many of their questions about Dafa. At this point, his mother-in-law said, “A long time ago, I had a colleague who practiced Falun Dafa, and she had excellent health.” Xiaoqian then turned to me and asked about how to practice Falun Dafa. I demonstrated the first set of exercises for him, and he started learning how to do them.
Although I got home very late that day, I was very happy that one more family had finally understood the truth about Dafa. After I arrived home, I shared the day’s occurrences with my fellow practitioner. At that point we suddenly recalled my dream and realized that Xiaoqian had indeed gained a “new (born) life”.
The next day when I got to their home, I saw Xiaoqian getting ready to leave for work. He was performing his daily “worship”, and when I glanced in the direction that he was bowing, I was shocked to see a bronze statue of a toad surrounded with coins. He had been worshiping that evil toad! Suddenly I remembered my dream and understood what the dirt on the baby’s neck symbolized. I said to Xiaoqian, “I know what is causing your illness now.” “What is it?” he asked. As I saw that he was in a hurry, I said, “This is not something that can be explained in a few sentences. I’ll explain it to you when you have more time.” He left looking mystified. At that time, I had been working in his home for about a month.
One Sunday, while I was resting at home, I received a call from my family saying that something had happened. So I decided to take a trip back home the next Sunday to settle things, and I had even bought my train tickets by spending 3 hours traveling to the train station. I was hoping that Xiaozhao would give me two days of rest instead of one. But if that wasn’t possible I would catch the night train back to Beijing. But the next day Xiaozhao was very angry when she heard that I was planning to go back to my hometown. She berated me for not discussing it with her beforehand, and she even refused to let me have Sunday off. Her mother-in-law just had an operation and was going to be discharged in two days. She wanted to fulfill her filial duty as a daughter-in-law by having her mother-in-law recuperate at her home. So during this time I was not allowed to have any days off, and I was required to continuously look after her mother-in-law. After hearing this I felt that it was unfair, but I didn’t know what to say. I had a lot of things to do on my days off, and this time I had things to settle back home. I was also supposed to have at least one day off every week. Why was she so inconsiderate of my situation? She didn’t even want to look after her own mother-in-law for one day, yet she berated me for even thinking of having one day off? Furthermore, she made this decision without consulting me beforehand. It appeared that she was using me to “fulfill her duty of filial piety”! I thought to myself, “I’m not your slave. If I quit, I’ll at least have more time to save other people!” At that time, all sorts of human thoughts surfaced.
However, in that instant I recalled Master’s teachings and the Fa’s requirements. This family still had not fully been saved, and her mother-in-law was coming. Weren’t they all people who should be saved as well? How can one be superficial in saving people? I should solidly ensure that each person understands the truth and ensure that each has been saved! Why can’t I think clearly when I encounter a little bit of discomfort? No matter how badly they behave in society, as long as they can accept Dafa, then they can be saved. I’m not entitled to choose whom I should save! I thought to myself, thank goodness I didn’t voice my grievances to Xiaozhao, or I would not have demonstrated basic Forbearance. Moreover, the couple really trust in my abilities. From the day that I told them I am a cultivator, I no longer represent just myself. Validating the Fa is not just empty talk, it’s about putting it in action!
I immediately told Xiaozhao that I changed my plan to travel to my hometown and I returned my train tickets. I settled my family’s issues over the phone so I could attend to my present duties without worry.
When Xiaoqian’s mother arrived, I looked after all her needs. When I first gave her a sponge bath, I thought that during all these years I never waited on someone before. But then I realized that the social and financial status is just a distinction made in human society. As a cultivator I should hold myself to an even higher requirement based on the Fa. I would just treat this as showing filial piety to my already-deceased mother! With that thought, I let go of my attachment. I frequently spoke to Xiaoqian’s mother about the truth of Dafa while looking after her. The old lady was an intellectual in a senior position, and she had been indoctrinated and poisoned by the evil party’s education for many years. I gradually tried to convince her using content from Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party and examples of how Dafa taught people to be good, as well as my own experiences in cultivating Dafa. I finally managed to remove the doubt she had in Dafa and Master, and she started reading Zhuan Falun.
One day, when Xiaoqian was at home, he asked me sincerely, “You told me that you know the cause of my illness. Please tell me.” I replied, “Yes, I must tell you as we must have some sort of predestined relationship for us to have met. But it’s your choice as to whether you believe me. That bronze toad that you have been worshipping, it may be sold everywhere on the streets, but I must tell you that when you worship it, it absorbs your vital essence. This is written in the books, and it’s true. That’s why the hospital can’t find the source of your illness.” After that, I gave him a few more examples. He realized with a start, “That’s right, my illness started when I first brought the bronze toad home.” I said to him that this toad would cause harm to anyone who has it. Although I had explained it all to him, it was up to him to decide what to do next.
The next day he said to me, “I’m going to put that toad on the porch, please help me get rid of it.” When his mother, wife and myself saw the rapid change in his attitude, we were all very happy for him. I felt that, although I recently had to endure greater hardship, I was very moved to know that this family now understood the goodness of Dafa, that they deeply trusted me, and that they completely changed their attitude since I first started working for them. The next day, Xiaoqian’s mother and I sold that 500-yuan toad to the rag-and-bone man for 5 yuan. We also told the rag-and-bone man that the toad was no good, and to melt it when he got back.
During the following days, Xiaoqian’s mother watched Master’s Guangzhou lectures with me and persisted in reading Zhuan Falun. When it was time to send righteous thoughts, she reminded me and asked me to stop whatever work I was doing to send righteous thoughts. Xiaoqian actively sought me out whenever he had time to do the exercises together. (When I first taught him the exercises, he learned all four standing exercises perfectly, with very accurate movements). His wife, Xiaozhao, also practiced the exercises with us, and we all got along together very well. After staying with us for one month, it was time for Xiaoqian’s mother to go back home with her husband and her eldest son. That day she went home with a healthy and smiling face, taking with her Dafa books and CDs of Master’s lectures that Xiaoqian had prepared for her.
It is impossible to find enough words to describe the miracles and goodness of Dafa.
Since obtaining the Fa, there have been times when I wasn’t diligent, had become more passive, and didn’t understand the Fa well. But regardless of how much the evil slandered Dafa and Master, I never wavered in my faith in Master and Dafa. From now on, I must do the three things even better, so that I can be worthy of Master’s benevolence and salvation.
