(Minghui.org) One of my high school classmates has been my good friend for many years. One day in 1996, she brought me the book Zhuan Falun and asked me to read it. She often invited me to her home to practice the sitting meditation. It was hard for me to sit in the full lotus position, and it was painful for me to put one leg on top of the other and sit for half an hour.
My friend encouraged me, “Don't worry. You can do it.” We often went to group study sites to participate in Fa study and practice the exercises. I was so happy every day that I spent after work with her in group study and practice.
One day, I talked with my mother about Falun Gong (also called Falun Dafa). She got up early the next day and found a group practice site near our home. We went there to practice the exercises and joined a group study nearby until the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) initiated the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999.
I was implicated when a fellow practitioner was arrested in the second half of 2001. I was arrested and detained. Seeing the cell, the metal doors and windows, I trembled and did not know what to do. I was so afraid.
A fellow practitioner was detained in the same cell. She had been beaten and tortured many times for refusing to wear a vest for detainees. However, she was determined to not wear the vest, as she had broken no law and was not a criminal. I was moved by her firm resolve. Later, this practitioner was transferred to a forced labor camp. My righteous thoughts became stronger and I decided to not wear the vest.
I was transferred to another cell. There were four practitioners there. They were forbidden from practicing Falun Gong and had been beaten for practicing the exercises during a break outdoors.
The cell head asked me what my job was. I told her that I was an English translator in a foreigner-owned enterprise. She was pleased and asked me to teach her English. She had been incarcerated for over two years and was lonely. I taught her English and she learned carefully.
Gradually, the cell head changed her attitude towards me and my fellow practitioners. She became less fierce. She even learned the Falun Gong exercises from us when we practiced outdoors during breaks. She protected us from the guards and the prison authorities. I taught her to recite Master Li's “On Dafa” as well as some of his poems.
Every Monday there was a scheduled search of all the cells. The cell head hid our papers and pens and returned them to us afterward. Later, she brought Master's teachings from other cells to us. Thus, I started to memorize Master's teachings every chance I had.
It was hard to get a piece of paper in the detention center. In the extremely difficult environment of the prison, a practitioner transcribed Master's teaching “Path” on a toothpaste box and transferred it to us. I wept upon reading it. I recited Master's teachings every day and sent righteous thoughts. My fear became less and less.
One day a fellow practitioner called us together and suggested that we protest the persecution with a hunger strike. I agreed but did not enlighten to the principle of doing so. Several practitioners were assigned to other cells after we started our group hunger strike. Except for the practitioner who proposed the hunger strike, we all resumed eating.
The center guards force-fed the practitioner. Each time she was taken out of her cell for force-feeding, she passed by my cell. I could see her through the window. I felt miserable for her and was frightened.
I was transferred back to her cell. We shared our understandings based on the Fa. One day I said, “I will start a hunger strike tomorrow.” I started my hunger strike the next day. By the sixth day, I was too weak to stand.
The guards intimidated me to get me to eat. I refused. They inserted a rubber tube into my nose and force-fed me with a concentrated salt solution. There was blood on my face and body afterward.
I became weaker as my hunger strike progressed. I lay on a wooden bed in agony. I often lost consciousness. However, as soon as I regained consciousness, I recited the Fa and sent forth righteous thoughts.
By the ninth day, I could not open my eyes or speak. I was sent to a detainee hospital. Before I left, the cell head washed my hair. Others in the cell helped me by bathing me. Everyone wept.
In the hospital, a doctor said that I was on the verge of death and ordered medical bail. Seeing how I was emaciated, weighing just forty or fifty pounds, a detention center guard cried. She came to see me every once in a while as she was afraid of my passing away.
On the fourth day in the hospital, the head of the hospital came to see me. He said gently, “You are great. Falun Gong is great. We are processing the paperwork as soon as we can to release you. You must take care!” Thus, I was released on the 12th day of my hunger strike.
I recovered not long after going home. One day, officers from the 610 Office went to my home and intimidated me, trying to force me to give up my belief. I refused. A few days later, my father and I went to a bank. On our way back, we saw a police vehicle entering our neighborhood. The police rushed upstairs to our home unit. I knew they were there to arrest me. I left the place quickly and went to a fellow practitioner's home.
I was forced to stay away from home in order to avoid arrest. After overcoming many difficulties and with the help of other practitioners, I went to a small town in my province. A local practitioner and I set up a production site for Falun Gong truth-clarification materials.
It was strenuous to maintain the production site. I often worked in the morning at one site and moved to another site in the afternoon to avoid arrest. I got used to moving around. A fellow practitioner dropped off some money for the house rent one day. The next day she was arrested. The production site was severely short of funds.
For safety reasons, I worked alone to make the informational materials. After a few moves, the production site was finally settled in a relatively safe location.
Once a day, a practitioner came to the production site to bring me supplies and take the materials that I'd prepared for local practitioners to distribute. She also brought me the news, often telling me about other production sites being shut down and asking me to prepare more materials.
I did my best to prepare informational materials and had little time to rest. Sometimes I worked through the night and continued working through the following day. Even with this schedule, I could not meet the needs of fellow practitioners for truth-clarification materials.
To celebrate World Falun Dafa Day, May 13, local practitioners needed lots of informational materials. Due to the large workload, two practitioners came to assist me. We prepared lots of banners and printed informational materials day and night. Local practitioners distributed the materials and hung the banners, which had a big impact in the area.
Later, the coordinator of the production site was followed by the police. She and I were arrested and taken a detention center in another area.
We did not reveal any information about the production site to the police, so they instigated death-row inmates to beat us brutally. We held a hunger strike to protest. Later, we were sent to a hospital for emergency treatment as we were on the verge of death. I was released, but unfortunately, my fellow practitioner died in the hospital.
I was arrested in 2003 for talking to people about the persecution and was sentenced to three years in the provincial women's prison. We practitioners suffered brutal persecution there.
Because we refused to recite the prison rules, we were often punished. My visitation rights were revoked and my parents were not allowed to visit me. It was essential for a practitioner to have righteous thoughts in that harsh environment.
Once, the prison guards instigated criminal inmates to torture me by tying my hands and legs together with ropes. I was immobilized on the cold cement floor. I sent righteous thoughts, recited the Fa and asked Master in mind, “Master, help me to transfer all the pain to the perpetrators.”
I did not feel the pain no matter how brutal the torture. I shouted, “Help” every once in a while. The inmates untied me after a few rounds of torture. There were deep marks from the rope on my wrists and arms, but they soon disappeared. However, the inmates suffered pain in their limbs for a whole week.
Once, the National Public Security Bureau dispatched representatives to inspect the prison. They needed to talk with a Falun Gong practitioner. I was asked to talk to them. I went to the guards' office under the escort of inmates.
A representative asked me for my opinion on “transforming” Falun Gong practitioners. I knew that this was a good opportunity to clarify the truth. I said, “Falun Gong is a great practice. Master Li teaches us to be good people. What are we 'transformed' to? Falun Gong practitioners should be released. Falun Dafa is good! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good!”
They asked me to leave in a few minutes. The person in charge of forcing Falun Gong practitioners to renounce their belief was upset and said that my words meant their failure. They started a new round of torture on me.
I was held in a cell alone. Four criminal inmates were ordered to take turns beating me. I sent righteous thoughts: let all the pain be transferred to the perpetrators! Later they did not dare beat me anymore.
Next, they deprived me of sleep. It is cold in November in Northern China. The criminal inmates had warm coats and trousers but forced me to stand in the hallway barefoot, wearing shorts at night.
I recited the Fa. The calm night and moonlight accompanied me. I did not feel cold at all. After midnight, I was tired and fell asleep while leaning against the wall. When I woke up every several minutes, I felt a flow of warm air against my body. My eyes filled with tears.
Master's law body protected me! Master was beside me!
One day, I said to the inmate head of the prison unit, “Let's have a talk.” We entered a temporary storage room. I said, “You have been imprisoned for years and have been in contact with Falun Gong practitioners. Which one of them is bad? Falun Dafa teaches people to be good. Falun Dafa is a practice of the Buddha school. You will be rewarded for treating practitioners nicely.” I introduced Falun Gong to her and we talked for about an hour. Later that day, she said to the inmates monitoring me, “From now on, let her sleep normally at night.”
I enlightened that clarifying the facts to the perpetrators was to eliminate the evil factors in other dimensions.
To reduce the persecution and raise awareness among the prison guards, I talked with a head guard for more than one hour before I was released. I introduced Falun Gong and explained the principle that good will be rewarded and evil meets with karmic retribution. She advised me to pay attention to my safety when doing Dafa work and to not come back again. She saw me off from her office with a smile.
I was going downstairs one evening during the 2012 Chinese New Year and accidentally fell down the stairs. I couldn't move my left leg. My first thought was, “I am all right. I am a practitioner.” I stood up half an hour later and went upstairs by hopping on my right leg. I still couldn't move my left leg at all.
My father, a non-practitioner, said to me, “Go to the hospital!” I said, “Dad, I am a Falun Gong practitioner. I will be all right. Go ahead and go to bed.”
I had no feeling in my left leg. I thought that I am a Falun Dafa practitioner and my father shouldn't have to take care of me. I must recover soon.
My father said to me the next day, “Go ahead and practice the Falun Gong exercises.” I agreed. I attempted to stand on my right leg. Listening to Master's instructions with the exercise music, I stood firmly and practiced the first four sets, though I could not squat down as usual in the fourth exercise.
Seeing that I finished the four sets, my father said happily, “There's also the sitting meditation.” I was hesitant initially but sat on the bed to do the sitting meditation. My left foot was very swollen and purple. It was painful to touch my left foot, but with great endurance, I sat cross-legged and kept a thought in mind: I will not move my legs until the end of the exercise music.
I felt agony from my left foot to my thigh. I could not enter into tranquility. I was in so much pain that I had tears running down my face. My sweater was wet with my tears.
My father was moved and asked me to stop if it was too painful. I said, “This is nothing compared to Master's bearing of immense hardship.” I practiced the sitting meditation for an hour, enduring the pain.
I studied the Fa and practiced the exercises for three consecutive days. Miraculously, I could walk on the third day. I went to school on the fourth day.
Within three days, I was cooking and doing household chores to take care of my father. He witnessed the miracle and said with emotion that I wouldn't have recovered like that even if I'd stayed in the hospital for a month.
My father was hospitalized with heart problems during the 2014 Chinese New Year. His condition improved two weeks later. One day, he expressed interest in learning Dafa. I gave him the book Zhuan Falun, and he started practicing Falun Dafa.
He got up early and read the book daily. He could see the words in the book becoming golden and three-dimensional. Now he and I practice the exercises together in the morning. His illness disappeared. He is 83 years old, healthy, with good eyesight and hearing, and he is clear-minded.
I began teaching English as a tutor in order to make a living. My students listened carefully and improved quickly. I took every opportunity to introduce Falun Gong to them, expose the persecution, and advise the students and their parents to renounce the CCP and its affiliated organizations.
One student was a juvenile delinquent. He did not listen to his teachers at school or do his homework. His parents and teacher couldn't manage him at all. His mother had tried many tutors but gave up as he fought with each of his tutors.
He came to me and decided to work with me. His father heard of this and made a special visit to see me. He wondered what kind of teacher I was to convince his son to learn.
I taught the young man English and talked to him about principles of life. He listened carefully and trusted me. Gradually, I came to know that he used to fight with others and had connections with gangs.
I introduced Falun Gong to him and suggested that he recite, “Falun Dafa is good.” He often chatted with me about his thoughts. Under my influence, he gave up his participation in gangs and fighting. He said emotionally, “I wouldn't have fought with others if I'd met you earlier!” His parents appreciated me a lot.
There was another student in my area, whose grandmother had a hot temper and beat her for her poor performance. The girl became defiant. Her grandmother was distressed.
I gave her grandmother a Shen Yun DVD. She said excitedly after watching, “Wonderful!” I introduced Falun Gong to her and the young girl. Both of them started practicing Falun Gong.
The grandmother listened to audio recordings of Master Li's teaching whenever she had free time. She said excitedly, “Thank you! I fully understand now.” She also advised her family members to quit their membership in the CCP and its affiliated organizations.
I offered to teach the granddaughter English during school breaks in summer and winter. My sessions last two and a half hours. The three of us sat down to read Zhuan Falun for the first hour, then I taught the young woman English for one and a half hours. Her English improved quickly.
My student's school teacher visited her parents to praise her for her fast improvement in English. Her mother came to see me. Her daughter held her English test paper with a perfect score and couldn't believe her eyes. She said, “Why can't you be my mother or grandmother? Let me call you aunt.”
Ever since elementary school, I've loved to read and recite poetry. I also had poems published in local newspapers. I had a schedule to learn one poem a day after I started working.
I believe that Master's poems are the best, with their great and profound connotations. After I began practicing Falun Dafa, I started to memorize Master's poems whenever I rode the bus. A fellow practitioner learned about this and asked me to memorize Zhuan Falun. “Take some time to memorize Zhuan Falun. As long as you are determined, you can do it,” she said.
I nodded reluctantly, feeling that it would be too difficult. But after getting home, I thought, “She is ten years older than me. She can recite Zhuan Falun. I should do so too.”
There was a lot of interference when I started trying to memorize Zhuan Falun. On and off, I spent about a year memorizing it. However, I did feel the wonder beyond words of reciting the Fa. Memorizing and reciting the Fa enhanced my understanding of the boundless connotations contained in the Fa.
I plan to continue the memorization. I have set a daily quota for memorizing, and have completed it every day. The results are very good. Once a month I visit the fellow practitioner who asked me to memorize the Fa.
We recite the Fa together. The more I memorize the Fa, the better understanding I have, and the calmer I am. Sometimes when I recite the Fa, I have felt the myriad things in the world disappear and there is only me and the book Zhuan Falun in front of me. It is a marvelous feeling! Nothing can interfere with me! I have truly experienced the state of being fully assimilated to the Fa.
It has been over 20 years since I started practicing Falun Gong. There are many marvelous experiences and stories that I have not written down. There has been difficulty every step of the way. But Master has taken care of me every time. My eyes fill with tears when I think of great compassionate Master bearing the immense hardships for me and all sentient beings in the universe. As a disciple, all I can do is treasure the time that Master has extended for us, study the Fa, send righteous thoughts and clarify the truth to the public.