(Minghui.org) Greetings, revered Master! Greetings to all of my amazing fellow practitioners who work on Minghui!
I entered Dafa cultivation as a fifty-year-old wreck, body and soul. I had no income and a broken family. Twenty years later, I am full of energy, my “wooden legs” can sit in the full lotus position, the smile returned to my face, and even my financial situation is satisfactory. The path I have walked, both in cultivation and in the Minghui project in particular, is a miracle in my view. I feel that this is the manifestation of Dafa’s power. Master Li (the founder of Falun Dafa) has bestowed wisdom and ability on me.
I started practicing in 2001. I immediately started to translate and proofread for the website we had before we had Minghui in my native language. I was a total disaster with computers. All I knew was split screen and how to send emails. In early 2004 the then-coordinator of this website casually told me that she was passing the job to me. She said, “Go to Clearwisdom, select some articles and send them to the translators.” I asked, “What do you mean ‘Go to Clearwisdom?’ How does one ‘go to Clearwisdom?’” – I didn’t know what a website or what a link was. I believe she did not realize how wide my ignorance was, and I neither did I— otherwise I would not have gotten the job.
What I did have, however, was the heart and the predestination to do this.
For several years I had been “chasing my tail” with work, with no technical support. Sometimes practitioners asked to join and then left. I got through it all because I had faith in Master and in Dafa. I believed that my path was arranged for me to walk, in spite of the hardships.
With time I gathered some computer skills from practitioners with those abilities. My capacity grew and I dared to probe the computer myself. I was even able to help other practitioners that knew nothing about computers. I didn’t want them to experience the despair I went through.
Later, I learned how to upload articles to the website, so I would not be as dependent on other practitioners. When the website was rebuilt, I learned the new uploading system, which was much more complicated. I learned through trial and error, and could see how my abilities expanded. You could say that I went from knowing almost nothing to being able to handle coordination well.
For instance, in the uploading system something went a certain way and I didn’t know how to correct it. One day when I began sending righteous thoughts an image appeared in my mind showing me how to do it. When I did it, it worked.
Master said while answering a practitioner’s question,
“Dafa disciples are Dafa disciples, after all. Just get down to it and do a good job at what you are supposed to do, and as you gain more experience you will be able to succeed. With things that require a high level of skill, just master the skills and you’re all set. With certain things, you may not need that kind of study. Actually, with whatever Dafa disciples do, if you put a bit of heart into it you’ll get twice the results with half the effort. If you ask me, it’s a question of heart.” (“Fa Teaching on World Falun Dafa Day”)
And:
“You have to give your very best in whatever you are supposed to do, and it will go well.” (“Fa Teaching on World Falun Dafa Day”)
I repeatedly thank Master each day. It helps me remember the order of things and maintain my humility. I clearly know that all my wisdom comes from Master, and that everything we do is for saving sentient beings.
I always gave my work related to Dafa priority over my personal issues. While I dedicated myself to doing the three things, my financial problems were resolved. Each time I was nearly out of money, a surprising solution occurred. After all these years I can say that as long as I do my part, Master takes care of my well-being.
Our Minghui project has existed for a long time now. Few team members persisted, yet they are very committed. To be able to persist and be committed for a long time, one needs to be continuously aware of why this project exists, and to understand the requirements of Master and the Fa-rectification. Without this it would be nearly impossible to do such strenuous work for so long. This is especially so for me as a 17-year coordinator, and a 20-year proofreader in the project.
Master said,
“It can be said that among the websites that Dafa disciples run, this is a crucial one. From the day it was set up it was firmly established as a vehicle for Dafa disciples’ cultivation and their sharing of experiences, and meant to report on the persecution of Dafa disciples in a timely manner. So the role that Minghui has assumed has been particularly decisive, becoming a thorn in the evil’s side. This has meant that the site has had to emphasize security more than other websites, not letting the evil capitalize on any gaps, since the site is able to, in a timely manner, directly report on the persecution that Dafa disciples are suffering; [Minghui’s reports] are not based on third-hand information, but rather, on firsthand material that is acquired directly. Minghui has its own means of connecting with Dafa disciples in mainland China, and has managed to be quite steady in its operations over the years. This is directly related to the cultivation states of those involved with Minghui, particularly the Dafa disciples at the forefront, and their sense of responsibility. This has thwarted the evil. The unique nature of Minghui has meant that some of its participating Dafa disciples are relatively isolated, and have somewhat fewer opportunities to share with other students. That makes things all the harder for them.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the Fa Conference Marking the Tenth Anniversary of Minghui’s Founding,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. X)
Last year some extra work was added to the project. Extra topics were added, such as reports about the CCP virus, and many excellent perspective articles about the virus and the U.S. election. These articles are for immediate release, and since we are a small team, we worked longer and faster during that eventful year.
We also paid attention to the CCP's “Zero-out” persecution campaign in China. As I understand it, this is a cunning war of attrition (long-term battle) against practitioners. Practitioners in China shared on Minghui how to deny this campaign, and zero-out their attachments while clarifying the truth to officials.
I believe that practitioners outside China are also being subjected to a similar war of attrition from the old elements. They are taking advantage of our loopholes and exert seen and unseen pressure on us. Their goal is to exhaust us and erode our willpower. Many fellow practitioners have problems, mostly family issues, which cause them to worry, lose sleep, waste time and to feel tired and despondent.
Thus, I place importance on articles which talk about denying this sort of cunning persecution, and how to turn the tide with righteous thoughts. I discussed these articles in our group Fa-study, and recommended that practitioners be alert to this kind of interference. Some things look trivial or like mere harassment but this is actually a form of persecution that can erode us and knock us down. Several practitioners approached me later to say that it opened their eyes.
Reading experience-sharing articles on Minghui to select for translation is part of my work, but this is also part of my cultivation. These articles are insightful and a great help in tough times, here’s an example:
In February 2020, just as the lockdowns related to the virus started, my family went through an ordeal that directly impacted me. I will not get into the specifics. For me it was a life and death ordeal, and it spanned quite a few months. Since it happened exactly during the lockdown, I was not alone in my home as before, thus the whole circumstances completely changed.
Master said,
“When your friends or family suffer, are you moved? How do you weigh these things? Being a practitioner is just so difficult!” (Lecture Eight, Zhuan Falun)
In the past, I had similar tests of life and death related to myself and to my immediate family, and I managed to pass them well. My mindset was right, and I could quiet down and send righteous thoughts even though it was indeed a very worrying situation each time. Yet this time everything in my life was disrupted, as we were confined to the same home for a long time and all sorts of things happened. In addition, this time it touched on more painful and hidden karmic causes. This time I had to give up the ordinary-person’s way of thinking that was hidden under apparently “logical” motives. In this painful process I gained a lot of understanding and a lot of gray hair.
In those tough days I read some very relevant experience sharing articles on Minghui. I knew the situation was not by chance. It was a great help to me. I also had support from a fellow practitioner who experienced a similar situation years ago. In the stolen moments I could call and talk to her, she kept reminding me that everything happening in front of my eyes was in fact a delusion and that I shouldn’t believe any of it. She told me how she dealt with extreme situations. During that period of time I was aware of how my mindset dictated the outcome of a situation.
Although I knew all along that I was, first of all, a Dafa disciple who was only following Master’s arrangements, the reality posed a lot of uncontrolled parameters and unpredictable situations. Each time, I was able to realize what I should correct – meaning, what Fa principle I had not fully assimilated to – and that there was something else behind it which I had not identified. Thus, after a short relief, things would get complicated again. The pressure exposed my human notions which disguised themselves as good things.
Master said,
“It does not matter if an everyday person gets involved in the affairs of everyday people, as he or she will apply the principles of everyday people to size things up. You must use supernormal principles to look at things.” (Lecture Nine, Zhuan Falun)
During this ordeal I let go of some hidden knots in my heart. I placed in Master’s hands the decisions concerning the suffering, and the life and death, of my family members.
Master said,
“If this qing is not relinquished, you will be unable to cultivate. If you break free from this qing, nobody can affect you. An everyday person’s mind will be unable to sway you. What comes and replaces it is benevolence, which is a nobler thing.” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)
I should mention that during that period of time – as well as the time period in which our main translator could not participate due to ordeals in her family – our website did not suffer many losses. We covered for one another and worked as a team.
I avoided interacting with people before. After I improved my xinxing I started both to look inward instead of outward and to cherish my fellow practitioners rather than notice their shortcomings.
Recently, I was able to change the way I communicated with a practitioner on our team. He is very devoted and persistent in his work despite his hardships. I cherish him a lot and I told him so. I started thinking about his situation rather than about my convenience (or about “the good of the project” as it was disguised sometimes). Consequently, I was able to talk to him peacefully, and he changed too.
The improvement in my cultivation is a validation of Dafa, and it reflects Dafa’s power.
It is clear to me that Fa rectification will succeed, and that Master is watching over me – everything else is only fog during the battle. In these circumstances I need to blaze my unique path.
Every cell in my body echoes with gratitude to Master, who saved my soul from darkness. I will express my thanks by staying on the path Master arranged for me.
Heshi!
(Presented during the 2021 Minghui Website Fa Conference)