Cultivate Each and Every Unrighteous Thought

(Minghui.org) I am 70 years old, and started practicing Falun Dafa in 1998 to treat my illnesses, including lumbar disc herniation, hyperthyroidism, itchy skin, pharyngitis, and a weak heart. I wholeheartedly believe in Master’s teaching that “True cultivators have no illnesses...” (“Explaining the Fa for Falun Dafa Assistants in Changchun” in Further Discussions on Falun Dafa)

All of my illnesses disappeared within a few months of practicing. I’ve never worried about my health in over 20 years of cultivation. Even when I fell and injured my legs and arms, I didn’t take it seriously, thinking I was eliminating karma and taking it as a good thing. I quickly passed through it.

However, in the last two years, I experienced some illness symptoms: bloating, chest tightness, shortness of breath, frequent urge to use the restroom, and having five to six bowel movements a day. I was not afraid, and didn’t consider it an illness, but I became noticeably thinner. I searched within, but couldn’t find the reason for these problems. I didn’t neglect studying the Fa, doing the exercises, or clarifying the truth, and did the three things daily. It was interesting to notice that I didn’t need to use the restroom while staying out to talk to people about the persecution, but frequently needed the restroom at home. I believed that Master was adjusting and purifying my body—it was a process of eliminating my karma.

It came to me one day, while listening to a practitioner’s sharing article on Minghui Radio, why I had to go through this tribulation. The author of the article, said that when she was in a forced labor camp, she told the guard unintentionally, “You guards have persecuted me to the point that my health is deteriorating. I feel sick.”

As a result, corresponding symptoms appeared. She realized that it was like asking for the illness, and she shouldn’t have acknowledged it. After she found the problem, her symptoms disappeared. Hearing those words, I recalled a conversation I had with a plainclothes police officer in 2020, where I also had a similar issue of unintentionally acknowledging the illusion of illness.

A practitioner and I went to distribute truth-clarification materials in February 2020. Someone reported us, and we were taken to a police station. Under Master’s protection, we were released on bail the next day. However, we were followed and monitored by the police around the clock. An officer often visited me at home and interrogated me. Each time he came, I clarified the truth to him and advised him not to come anymore, treating him with kindness. He replied, “This is my job. I have no choice. I’m just enforcing the law.” He repeatedly came to harass me, no matter what I said.

One time, I took out my medical records from 2011, saying, “Look! I suffered from several illnesses before, including heart problems, but I got well after I started to practice Falun Dafa. I’ve been in perfect health since then. Yet, your coming here has affected my heart.”

He questioned, “How can I affect you just by coming here?”

I responded, “When you, wearing a police uniform, come and go from my home, how do you think my neighbors view me? It’s like I’ve committed a crime.” He never came to my home again.

After listening to the sharing on Minghui Radio, I looked inward and realized that I had brought the illness symptoms upon myself with that casual statement “Your coming here has affected my heart,” and I didn’t take that statement seriously. However, after I said it, those negative substances attached to my body. That was why I experienced various problems over the past two years. After realizing it, I immediately denied it from my heart and refused to acknowledge those fake symptoms. Once I identified the root cause, all the symptoms miraculously disappeared.

From that incident, I understood that cultivation is very serious, and I must pay attention to each and every thought of mine. At the same time, I truly experienced the power of Master’s teachings, 

“For a cultivator, looking within is a magical tool.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2009 Washington, D.C. International Fa Conference,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World, Vol. IX)

I am grateful for Master’s protection. Thank you, Minghui, and thank you, practitioners.

Let Go of the Mentality of Rejecting Criticism

I joined four other practitioners in a Fa study group in 2016. During a casual conversation, a practitioner said to me, “I can’t see kindness from your face because you never smile. You always look very serious.” That unexpected comment was quite hurtful, and I found it hard to accept. However, I immediately thought of Master’s teaching, “...one should not fight back when being punched or insulted...” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)

As a cultivator, I had to endure it. But I still felt resentful. I tried to explain, “I’m already in my 60s, and it has become a habit for me not to smile. Besides, my father was a judge, and our home environment was always like a courtroom, very serious. We have never seen my father smile because of his profession. We have lived in this environment for decades. It’s not easy to change.”

After getting home, the more I thought about it, the angrier I became. I couldn’t stop crying, thinking to myself: “Why did she speak to me like that? She didn’t consider my feelings and hurt my pride. I can’t accept it.” It was really challenging for me to change my nature, and I couldn’t force myself to smile.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Practitioner Ying had come to visit me. I recounted the incident to her with tears in my eyes. Seeing that I was quite upset, she comforted me, saying, “I know you. You are indeed a kind person, but they don’t know you yet. As time goes on, you will get to know each other better. Smiling is not difficult, think about what Master said about the preparation for the fifth exercise: “Compassion should arise in the heart, and the facial expression should be peaceful.” (Chapter II, Illustrations and Explanations of the Exercise Movements, The Great Way of Spiritual Perfection) Take it step by step, and you will do well.”

“You’re right,” I replied. “I should wear a smile on my face.” I made a facial expression to demonstrate, and we both laughed. Ying suggested that I read more of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party and Disintegrating the Party Culture. She said the two books could help me eliminate many bad things.

After reading and listening to the audio files of the two books, I came to realize that I had many habits from the CCP’s culture. I had a quick temper, refused to let go of my position when I was right, engaged in conflicts, harbored resentment, cared about my reputation, couldn’t accept criticism, only wanted to hear favorable words, and was jealous, among other things. I discovered many attachments and notions within myself.

I immersed myself in studying the Fa, and persisted in studying one to two lectures of Zhuan Falun and other recent lectures daily. I looked within and cultivated myself diligently in conflicts, aligned myself with the Fa, and followed Dafa’s requirements. I tried not to argue in conflicts, let go of reputation and gain, put down attachments, cultivated kindness, and considered others first in everything I did.

Gradually, my thoughts changed, and my xinxing improved. My temper and character underwent a transformation, and my skin became finer and more radiant. I began to exude a sense of serenity and kindness on my face, which was evident when I looked in the mirror. Many people commented on how much I had changed.

With Master’s protection, and other practitioners’ help, and by diligently studying the Fa and cultivating my xinxing, I have eliminated many attachments in the past few years. I can now restrain myself and look within when facing conflicts. Practicing Dafa is truly amazing, it has made me become a better person.