(Minghui.org) In honor of the 25th anniversary of Falun Dafa's public introduction, I would like to share some of my recent cultivation experiences.
I am a 56-year-old doctor from a small rural town in Taiwan, and I obtained the Fa in 1999. My academic record enabled me to go to Taiwan’s most prestigious high school, where my interests in religion and cultivation practices were first nurtured.
I began medical school in 1999 and subsequently joined the campus Buddhist society. I studied Buddhist scriptures in earnest for several years. Although the teachings were decent, Buddhism didn't alleviate my chronic depression or insomnia.
An earthquake struck Taiwan in 1999 and killed more than three thousand people. This incident made me realize how fragile life is. I then encountered Falun Dafa. The first time I read Zhuan Falun, I was amazed to find answers to the lingering questions I had after reading Buddhist scriptures. It was then I resolved to cultivate myself in Falun Dafa.
Searching Inward
I had a sudden onset of abdominal pain in early 2015 that left me unable to stand or sit. Confined to a bed, I constantly tossed and turned because staying in one position for more than a few minutes resulted in excruciating pain. The pain continued for 24 hours.
Throughout that time, I recited the phrase "Falun Dafa is good." My family and other practitioners encouraged me to sit up and send righteous thoughts. Finally, by the next day, the pain disappeared.
Searching inwards for my shortcomings was key to overcoming this tribulation. For many years, the animosity between me and two elderly relatives had remained unresolved. Moreover, in order to avoid this issue, I purposely stayed away from them. While searching within in the midst of my pain, I resolutely decided to face this issue head on. In an instant, my symptoms vanished.
The following day, I made a special trip to visit the relatives, offering a sincere apology for my mistake. In this way, our harmonious relationship was restored.
Because I seldom felt ill, I used to be curt and dispassionate towards practitioners who came to me for advice about their illness tribulations. The suffering from this experience made me feel ashamed for the harsh manner in which I had treated those practitioners.
I believe the reason some practitioners remain plagued by illness karma is that timely support wasn't provided by other practitioners. After my recovery, I changed the way I treated practitioners who were dealing with illness karma. Besides discussing our understanding of the Fa in depth, I made sure we spent time studying the Fa and sending righteous thoughts together.
Letting Go of Attachments
Over the years, although I took on coordination work for an ever-increasing number of truth-clarification projects, my cultivation level remained low because I did not make looking within a top priority. Overconfident in my abilities, I rejected all other opinions and treated dissenters with hostility. My complacency only increased if the outcome showed that my suggestion had been the most effective. A number of costly mistakes resulted from my pride.
Another practitioner and I were coordinating a major project. This practitioner also had strong opinions of his own, and I found it exceedingly difficult to work with him. The resulting conflicts made me realize the error in my attitude.
Over time, I tried to defer to him whenever possible. However, my reluctant tolerance didn't improve my cultivation level, nor did it improve our interactions.
In December 2016, our acrimony intensified to the point that he started behaving irrationally. Although I was not in the wrong, in order to defuse the conflict, I conceded the point and I apologized. However, on examining my behavior later, I realized that I had unwittingly encouraged his incorrect behavior.
In a subsequent experience sharing session, I stood up and highlighted my deficiencies, which included attachments to conflict and material benefits, a competitive nature, pride, and a tendency to look down on others. I publicly apologized to the practitioner I'd been working with and expressed hope that we could let go of our past differences and work together to complete our project for the benefit of the other practitioners.
This resulted in a major improvement in our working relationship, and the other practitioner's overbearing attitude began to soften.
Over the past 17 years, I have matured from a weak, introverted person into a physically and mentally healthy Dafa practitioner. With gratitude to Master for his boundless compassion, I will continue to strive to fulfill the requirements of a Fa-rectification period Dafa practitioner.
