(Minghui.org) I was nervous about posting this experience sharing, as I felt that my experience is very superficial compared to fellow practitioners who have cultivated for a long time. On second thought, Minghui.org is a platform for global Dafa practitioners to share their experiences, and I decided to think of this as my interaction with fellow practitioners who are diligent in their practice. If there is anything inappropriate, I hope practitioners will kindly point it out so that I can catch up with the Fa-rectification period.
I was born during the Cultural Revolution to a landlord family. During the crackdown on landlords, the evil Chinese Communist Party (CCP) not only divided my family’s land, fields, and forests, but also had the entire village publicly humiliate us and physically assault us at will. My grandfather, who was locked up and beaten by the CCP, was eventually starved to death.
I remember when I was young, all the kids went to the pond to play in the cool water during the hot summers. Once, as I was playing in the water, the village chief’s daughter pushed me into the deep end. I started struggling and quickly lost consciousness since I didn’t know how to swim. I later learned that a passing adult spotted me in the water, picked me up, and slapped me on the back until I revived. No one blamed the village chief’s daughter for endangering my life and I didn’t dare to tell my parents either, as they faced criticism regularly and had to do the dirtiest, most tiring, and hardest farm work every day despite not receiving much food. Having no place to vent their anger, they often vented their anger on me.
My father said that the only way out for me was to get into college. I studied very hard and was admitted to college. However, I had no connections and had no one to help me secure a desirable job when I graduated. I found a job in a remote small city. There were some years when this small city had many heavily guarded places surrounded by high walls and iron fences. Some units and residential areas were closed with barbed wire, like zoos, with people standing guard with guns.
Among my friends, there were some who were temporarily transferred to work in these places, and once they went in, they didn’t come out for half a year. Curious, I asked a few times what happened in those places and was told that people detained in those places were specifically given lectures about the CCP’s policies. I understand now that those were actually brainwashing centers. What was even stranger was that one day, all the wires and guard posts were removed within a few hours. People with insider information said that representatives from international organizations were coming to inspect and the CCP was afraid that these places would be accused of human rights violations, so they removed the fences and wires.
Before I was even 50 years old, I already had many health issues, including endocrine disorders, severe insomnia, and hair loss. I had a hysterectomy and surgery for thyroid cancer. I had to take thyroxine tablets and calcium tablets with vitamin D3. All my joints were red, swollen, and painful, and my finger joints were deformed. I took many blood tests, but the tests showed that it was not rheumatism or rheumatoid arthritis. The doctor still prescribed rheumatoid treatment so I took rheumatoid drugs, anxiety drugs, and sleeping pills every day.
Due to my illnesses, my temper became worse and my husband and children left me. I had a sallow complexion, and was alone, old, and destitute.
After I retired, I moved to a city in Guangzhou Province and started a business. In May 2022, when I was expanding my business, I met an older woman (I called her sister) who gave me Falun Dafa materials containing stories about how one can turn misfortune into good fortune. I felt incredible after reading it. The woman gave me a tablet a few days later and suggested that I read the book, Zhuan Falun. She said the book taught people to be a good person by following the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance. This was what I’d been looking for!
This book touched something deep in my heart. I had fantasized more than once, if everyone’s thoughts and actions were noble, how beautiful would the world be. It turns out that this is not a fantasy, but a memory from long ago. Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance awakened me to the original purpose of my life. How lucky I am to have received the most precious book in the world, containing the most precious Buddha Fa at nearly 60 years old!
I closed my store and concentrated on studying Dafa. The tablet contained videos of Master Li, the founder of Falun Dafa, teaching the exercises, audio recordings of Master Li’s lecture in Guangzhou, and articles such as Hong Yin and Essentials for Further Advancement. I couldn’t wait to read them. The more I read, the more I felt that the content of the books was really good and every word was very important. I started copying the Fa and reading the book whenever I got tired from copying. When I got tired from reading the book, I would listen to the audio recordings. I didn’t feel like sleeping, as I wanted to remember the Fa by heart.
Very soon, Master started cleansing my body. Layers of skin peeled off from my body. My body started emitting a bad smell and I had watery diarrhea. I had my period even though I didn’t have a uterus. I had no thyroid or parathyroid glands, but I stopped taking the thyroid medication and calcium tablets that the doctor said I must take for life. My joints no longer ached. I could sleep better, and I stopped taking all other medications, including rheumatoid medications. I stopped taking medications in general and have never taken any since. I became gentle, gained weight, and my skin became fairer. I became considerate of others.
When I first started reading the Fa, I always wondered, why is the CCP persecuting such a good practice that helps people to keep healthy and elevate their morals? It wasn’t until September that I got onto Minghui.org with help from sister and read more of Master’s articles, which helped me gain a better understanding about the deeper reasons behind the persecution.
Master said in “For Whom Do You Practice Cultivation?” (Essentials for Further Advancement):
“As a matter of fact, from ancient times to the present, human society has had a principle called mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition. So where there is good, there is bad; where there is righteousness, there is evil; where there is benevolence, there is wickedness; where there are humans, there are ghosts; where there are Buddhas, there are demons.”
I understood that Buddhas are saving humans, but demons are destroying humans. This unprecedented persecution was launched by the devil using the CCP. The evil Party used lies to deceive the world and created the Tiananmen Self-Immolation Hoax to incite hatred among people who did not know the truth about Dafa, causing Master and Dafa practitioners to be wronged. However, the persecution and smearing of Dafa by the CCP did not stop Dafa from being spread to more than 100 countries and regions in the world, with more and more people taking up the practice.
After coming to this understanding, I became more firm in my practice of Dafa and made a vow in my heart to only walk the path arranged by Master, and use all the power that I have developed from my cultivation to eliminate the evil that is trying to destroy Dafa.
Having started practicing Dafa at an old age, I feel that time is very tight. In less than two years, I have copied Zhuan Falun three times and all of the Hong Yin and Essentials for Further Advancement books once. I have started memorizing Zhuan Falun and have not slacked off in reading the books and doing the exercises every day.
In reality, cultivation is difficult. It’s like peeling the layers of an onion. Various human notions that have been engraved in me for hundreds of millions of years hinder me time and time again, making me regretful after things have passed. But this is also something that is necessary in cultivation. Below are some of the tests that I have experienced. I passed some of them in one go, but some tests took a few tries.
Once, not long after I started cultivating, I suddenly developed a pain in my lower back and couldn’t straighten my legs. I could only walk using a stool. I knew this was to help me reduce karma. Since I couldn’t move, I lay on the bed and listened to Master’s lecture recordings and the podcasts on Minghui.org. I could straighten my back after two days and the pain completely disappeared after seven days. I was able to do the exercises normally. I used to suffer from vertebrae bone slipping forward and herniated discs in the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae for more than ten years. I had pain in my lower back, buttocks, and right leg, and had difficulty walking. Since then, this problem has never reoccurred. Master helped me remove this karma.
Once, I was on the bus when the driver braked hard and I tumbled from the rear of the bus to the middle, as I wasn’t holding the handrail properly. At the time, I thought, Master is helping me to eliminate karma, I am fine. However, I couldn’t get up and felt pain everywhere. The driver stopped the bus and helped me to a seat before driving again. A piece of skin had scrapped off the side of my left thumb. It was very swollen and had turned purple. I endured the pain, closed my eyes and recited silently, “Falun Dafa is good; Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” Master wants me to be more diligent in my cultivation and gave me a chance to improve my character. When I reached my destination, I could walk normally again.
Once, when I was riding my bike, I fell face down when turning downhill. My upper lip split and my two front teeth hurt a lot. My whole body was in pain. I knew this was yet another opportunity to eliminate karma and improve my character. The pain would not count if it did not bother me psychologically. A kind passerby helped me get up. He said, “Go home and rest.” He thought I was going to work. I thanked him. I moved my arms and legs and saw that all was good. I told myself, "You are not an ordinary person and nothing will happen." I put on a mask. got back on my bike, and took care of my errands. After returning home, I saw that my face looked deformed. I was covered with dust and my lips were very swollen. I washed my face and carried on with my day. I was completely recovered in a few days.
One day in May 2023, I suddenly developed chills, a cough, and an itchy neck. Three days later, my whole body started aching. All my joints were sore and uncomfortable, and my voice was hoarse. I rolled around on my bed, unable to get comfortable. I knew that this was a good thing, as I had wanted to remove all my karma quickly. Moreover, Master has said that the difficulties will be greater when one is increasing one’s level. I did not treat it as an illness, but as a big tribulation. When I coughed out a jelly-like substance, I regarded it as the process of completely eliminating karma from the most original particles of my life. I was very happy. I thought that the thyroid cancer was the area where the karma was most intensive and Master was helping me to eliminate it completely. Gradually, my voice stopped being hoarse and I stopped coughing. After five days, I felt light and relaxed.
I was preparing a meal one day when my middle finger accidentally pressed on the sharp edge of another knife. When I pulled my finger out, I saw that my middle finger’s fingernail had been cut in half along the nail cap. It was very painful and the blood kept oozing out. I immediately thought, this is a good thing as Master saw that it is too difficult for me to cultivate alone. He is using such methods to improve my character. I changed the band-aid once a day and completed recovered after more than a month. There was no scar at all. I can’t even tell where the cut was made.
I returned to my hometown once and was faced with an unreasonable property fee of 3,000 yuan incurred from a few years ago. The property management charged us high fees though their work was sub-standard. Later, the charges were lowered but we still had to pay. Hence, many owners refused to pay. I hesitated if I should pay or not. When I studied “No Loss No Gain” in Zhuan Falun, I suddenly enlightened to the fact that what I would be losing was not my fortune, but karma. I gladly paid the fees.
Once, I suddenly lost 15,000 yuan in cash and was very sad as that equated to a few months of my salary. I knew who had stolen it, but I didn’t have proof and couldn’t get it back. That day, I happened to read “No Loss No Gain” in Zhuan Falun and thought, this is to help me give up the attachment to gain and improve my character. If I hold onto these things tightly, it would be like grabbing the rope that is holding me back. I must quickly let it go and thank the person for giving me such a good opportunity to improve my character. I was able to finally let it go after a few days.
I always want to buy cheap and high-quality things when shopping and would bargain and compare prices. Am I not trying to gain more benefits from spending less? Wanting to gain more from ordinary people is a strong attachment to benefits and I will lose virtue. I have obtained the Fa so late and at such an old age. If I didn’t seize the time to cultivate diligently, I will regret it if I missed this hard-to-come-by opportunity. I finally enlightened that as a practitioner, the most important thing is to do the three things well and not focus on other things.
My cousin, who had just divorced, wanted me to accompany her for a period of time. She was full of complaints and resentment. Sometimes she wanted to file a lawsuit, and sometimes she wanted to use my cell phone to send messages and curse at people. She was in a daze and felt restless, with two very dark circles under her eyes.
I bought some meat, eggs, and vegetables, and cooked her favorite foods every day. I washed the dishes and tidied her house. When she wanted to throw away her leftovers, I told her not to waste them and to leave them for me to finish.
Sometimes, my cousin would say, “Sister, you served me so well. I feel that I owe you a lot.” I told her that I could do it because I practiced Dafa. Sometimes, when she felt the food I cooked was not delicious or I didn’t clean the house properly, my resentment would surface and I would quarrel with her. Afterwards I thought, she is an ordinary person. If I argue with ordinary people, won’t I become an ordinary person too? I’m here to help her and should help her well. The key is to change her mind. I used Dafa principles to patiently guide her and told her that everything is due to karmic relationships. I read Dafa books to her. Gradually, she said she wanted to read the books and understand some of the principles such as to be considerate of others, think from the other person’s perspective, and not just think about herself. After a few days, she calmed down and gave up on the idea of scolding or suing her ex-husband.
In less than two weeks, she seemed like a completely different person. Her sleep was better and her daily life became normal. She said many times, “Sister, you were really sent by Master to save me! Thank you, Master!”
Jealousy is hidden deeply and difficult to get rid of. For example, if I heard that someone had bought a villa or luxury car, someone’s children had made money from running a factory, or someone’s children were doing well and working abroad, I would think, “What’s so great about it?” or “Why should they be better than me?” I would even find the areas where the other party was not as good as myself to achieve a balance in my mind.
Master specifically talked about jealousy in Zhuan Falun and said that jealousy must be eliminated. I finally understood this principle when studying the Fa. I am a cultivator. why would I want the enjoyment and wealth of ordinary people? Is it to show off to ordinary people? Or so that I can meditate comfortably? Poverty and wealth in one’s life is due to karma from past lives. Wealth is not obtained through struggle but through the exchange of one’s virtue. If the virtue is used on cultivation, wouldn’t one have higher power? What a pity to use it for short-term enjoyment. It is a good thing to suffer more hardships.
Of course, cultivation is difficult. I have just started cultivating and do not have any idea how many tribulations and tests I will encounter. But no matter how hard it is, I will brave them one by one.
Through studying the Fa, I now know the power and importance of righteous thoughts. I started to send forth righteous thoughts at the global unified time. I could clearly feel that when I studied the Fa well and was diligent, my righteous thoughts would be very powerful, penetrating the earth, transcending the three realms, and rushing towards the universe to eliminate the evil. When I slacked off in studying the Fa, my power would be very weak. I was very sad when I read on Minghui.org that practitioners in my area and nearby counties and cities were arrested and sentenced. I didn’t meet any local practitioners and the only thing I could do was to send forth righteous thoughts for them so that they could escape from the persecution.
I remember I was in Guangdong when Jiang Zemin (the former CCP dictator who ordered the persecution) died. I saw the materials about Jiang on Minghui.org and asked sister to print some materials for me to distribute. I thought that the materials would be printed like a newspaper, but what I received were beautiful booklets.
Sister told me to find a way to distribute them myself. I followed what was said in the articles shared by fellow practitioners on Minghui.org, packing them in a sealed bag, rolling up the booklets slightly with the beautiful cover facing out, and putting them on the door handle of a car or in the basket of bikes. If I could enter a residential area, I would put them in an envelope and stick them to the door frame with tape. However, I didn’t distribute them to every house or every car. I asked Master to help me to distribute to those who have a predestined relationship to see them. Hence, sometimes I only distribute 20 copies in a building or 10 copies in a parking lot. Like all the miraculous deeds that fellow practitioners encounter, I was often very focused when distributing materials, and only after finishing the distribution do I wonder how I can get home. However, very often when I looked up, I would find a familiar landmark building that guides me home.
One evening after the rain stopped, sister took a few practitioners and I to a park to remove seven public banners smearing Falun Dafa. When I was tearing off a sticker, a practitioner said, “Let’s go. Someone is coming!” They left quickly, but my heart wasn’t moved. I thought, even if someone comes, I must finish the task before leaving. When I finished removing the slanderous materials and looked around, I didn’t see anyone. I thought, “That thought must have come naturally from the side that I have cultivated well.”
Once, when I was in a taxi, I told the driver about Falun Dafa. He said that when he visited the ancestral temple during the Chinese New Year, he found a table with a large character message pasted on it that read, “Falun Dafa is a righteous Fa.” No one touched it. It was still there when he left. I really admire the practitioner who placed it there.
When telling my friends and relatives about Dafa, I would mostly use myself as an example to illustrate the facts that cannot be explained by modern medicine and science: I was a person who had undergone thyroid cancer surgery and stopped taking thyroxine tablets for seven years, but is still doing well. I also printed cultivation articles from Minghui.org and gave them to my friends and relatives.
Once, I was shopping in the market when I discovered a bill that had “Remember: Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good, Falun Dafa is good. When danger strikes, your life can be saved” printed on it. It enlightened me that this is also another way to validate the Fa. Hence, I started writing information about Falun Dafa on bills and spending them.
I am Master’s disciple. I obtained the Fa late. Compared with fellow practitioners who are diligent, there is still a big gap between us. I must cultivate more diligently and catch up with the Fa-rectification period. Only by doing the three things well will I not disappoint Master for saving me.