(Minghui.org) I joined the German language Epoch Times eight years ago, which is an important platform for clarifying the truth and saving sentient beings.
Letting Go of Human Emotions
In the past eight years I’ve seen some practitioners leave the project while others remained. I initially felt a certain attachment—similar to the feeling of losing an old friend. Over time, however, I realized that not participating in a Dafa project does not mean one has stopped cultivating, nor is it a measure of progress in cultivation. Cultivation is possible everywhere and in every environment, at work, in the family, and in all situations of daily life. As long as we constantly look inward, improve our xinxing, let go of our attachments, and align ourselves with Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, we can cultivate and improve ourselves in any environment.
This is my realization in letting go of “feelings”: it is not about denying the feelings between fellow practitioners, but about letting go of attachments to external forms and human ties so that the heart can become bigger and more forbearing. The feelings between practitioners are the compassion that arises from the Fa (teachings), and they are fundamentally different from ordinary human emotions. I have come to understand that when we let go of all human attachments—including the attachment to feelings toward fellow practitioners—we manifest the pure compassion that arises from the Fa: broad, comprehensive, and unconditional. Who comes, who goes, and who stays may appear random on the surface, but Master has taught us that nothing happens by chance on the path of cultivation.
When similar situations arise or something makes my heart uneasy, I remember Master’s words and tell myself: This is not a coincidence, but a good opportunity to let go of human emotions, raise my xinxing, and make my heart bigger and more compassionate. When I study the Fa a lot and look inward thoroughly, attachments can be let go of naturally. I trust Master’s arrangements: Everything is for the best.
My Daughter Helps Me See My Attachments and Let Go of Them
When my child was born, at first I didn’t know how to balance my work on the project and caring for her. Sometimes I even felt annoyed and thought she was hindering my work. During important meetings, I wanted peace and quiet, but she would cry or come to my workplace and disturb me. In the mornings, my fellow practitioners would study the Fa together in the office. I longed to be there again, but didn’t know how to make it work with a small child. After I gave birth, I took her with me in her stroller to do the exercises or to study the Fa with other practitioners.
When I took her with me to the Fa study group in Berlin, she began crying as soon as I sat down. I wanted to leave so as not to disturb the others, but they asked me to sit back down. The coordinator said I could stay—it was okay. They saw my strong desire to study the Fa and were very forgiving. I suddenly felt surrounded by their strong, compassionate energy field. My child abruptly stopped crying, looked around, and fell asleep. I was so moved that tears came to my eyes. Yes—only the compassionate field of Fa-rectification can change everything.
When I recalled this incident, I thought: Why not try taking my child with me to study the Fa at the office? So my husband and I decided to bring our child to the office early in the morning to study the Fa with the others. She gradually got used to it and knew to stay quiet when everyone was reading. Sometimes, when I wasn’t reading along myself, she would even remind me, “Mom, read the Fa with the group!”
Suddenly, I realized that I’d only been thinking about myself—that my “work should not be affected”—I wasn’t thinking about my child. My starting point was egocentric; I put “me” first. That’s why there was interference. Instead of looking inward, I looked outward and considered my child a form of “interference.” Wasn’t that exactly the opposite of looking inward? Now, my husband and I can take our child to the office every morning to read the Fa, then to kindergarten, and then we return to work.
In the evenings, when I am busy with work, my daughter sometimes reminds me, “Mom, I want to hear the Fa.” Sometimes I still get impatient when she doesn’t listen to me right away. Then she looks at me sadly and asks, “Why are you getting so mad at me?” When this happens I usually recognize my mistake immediately, apologize quickly, and hug her. What is particularly striking is that as soon as I sincerely apologize to her, her mood instantly improves. This made me realize that no matter the situation, if I look at everything from the perspective of the Fa, remain calm, look inward, and acknowledge my mistakes, the situation becomes positive.
Sometimes I think that perhaps my child became my daughter in this life precisely to help me in my cultivation. I remember a situation where I was very upset about failing a tribulation; my heart was really heavy. Suddenly, my little daughter started singing, “Let it go, let it go” — a song from a movie, which she loves to watch. At that moment, I felt as if Master was speaking to me through my child’s mouth, reminding me: Let go of your attachments! I had to smile and said to her, “Yes, thank you, Mom really needs to let go of all attachments.”
A fellow practitioner asked me, “You have a small child, yet you work full-time on the media project and also support other projects. You must think carefully before taking on additional responsibilities.”
I have taken on additional tasks lately, and sometimes I find it difficult to make such decisions. Sometimes I think: Master has taught that it doesn’t matter what role you have or what work you do—the only thing that matters is improving your xinxing. I thought, so why take on additional tasks? Wouldn’t it be better to do something which had less responsibility and pressure? So, what ultimately prompts me to take on additional tasks? I replied: When faced with difficult decisions, I often think of the sentient beings who are waiting to be saved. Looking back, I realize that I am often more efficient and diligent in a challenging environment.
I don’t like weekends because they make me feel lazy. Even a little bit of striving for comfort often leads to me feeling guilty after the weekend because I haven’t done as much as I did during the week. During the week, I remember that my time is limited—that’s why I get up early to do the exercises, then go to the office to study the Fa with the others, so that I can manage my time better at lunchtime and in the evening.
When I was pregnant, I got up around three in the morning to do the exercises—I often practiced the second exercise for an hour every day. My body was full of energy, and the baby was calm. I continued working normally until shortly before giving birth. About three months after she was born, my husband and I were able to take our child and participate in performances by the Tian Guo Marching Band (we both play instruments). Each time, compassionate fellow practitioners helped us look after her so that we could concentrate on the performances.
Through all this, I realized: it is not that a small child hinders the work for Dafa. On the contrary, I firmly believe that Master arranged the very best for each of us. As long as we let go of our attachments and truly cultivate, everything will be smooth and harmonious, and the path of cultivation will be wide.
Letting Go of “I” Is the Key to Good Cooperation
I recently received a message from a fellow practitioner: A reader said that the code wasn’t working. Fellow practitioner B said you created the code incorrectly and sent it to her. Can you create a new one and send it to her? I was surprised and replied that I never created barcodes—I only sent a purchase link with a simple UTM code for campaign evaluation. I felt uncomfortable for a moment because I was misunderstood and wrongfully accused. The practitioner continued, “Practitioner B is currently working under a lot of pressure, so mistakes can easily happen. Could you ask someone who knows about barcodes and help her?”
I replied, “Okay, I’ll ask.” It was as if I received a hint from Master: What does it matter who’s right and who’s wrong? Why did I want to justify myself immediately? Wasn’t this clinging to my ego—the fear of losing face?
Then I remembered what Master said,
“As gods see it, for a cultivator to be right or wrong in the human world is not important in the least, whereas eliminating the attachments that come from human thinking is important, and it is precisely your managing to eliminate those attachments rooted in your human thinking as you cultivate that counts as important. (Applause) If you can manage to handle things calmly no matter how wronged you may feel, if you can remain unmoved and not try to come up with some kind of excuse for yourself, then with many things you won’t even need to argue. That’s because on your path of cultivation there is nothing that is by chance.” (“Fa Teaching Given in Manhattan,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume X)
In the project, we do not work to compete or prove ourselves, but to validate the Fa and help Master save sentient beings. Only when everyone lets go of their ego, looks inward during conflicts, and lets go of attachments, can our cooperation be harmonious and the project manifest its greatest power. This little incident made me realize even more deeply that letting go of selfishness is the key to good cooperation as one body.
I also realized that in projects, it does not matter whose idea is better or more perfect, but how we work together as one body. Even if an idea is not perfect at first, it is the process of compassionate, forgiving cooperation, of looking inward together, and of sincere commitment that is recognized by Master and the gods.
One day, fellow practitioner D suddenly suggested launching a new campaign that very same day—Christmas was coming, so the sooner the better. We ran this campaign the previous year, but with moderate success, so our team didn’t have high expectations at first. After a period of exchange and discussion, however, he insisted on trying it this time in the simplest way possible—similar to another campaign that had been implemented by the customer service team. At first, I thought it would be very difficult to implement the campaign on the same day, as it involved many practitioners the year before and needed at least a week of preparation time. But after listening calmly and carefully analyzing his reasoning, I realized that this campaign actually had potential. I then discussed the details with him and contacted the customer service team.
Thanks to the open and sincere exchange, the marketing and customer service teams were able to agree on a course of action and work together harmoniously, so that the campaign could be launched smoothly that day. Just a few hours after my colleague sent out the Christmas campaign email, numerous orders for the printed newspaper came in—as gifts for family members, friends, or even for the readers themselves. Many readers who previously only read the online edition now opted for the print edition for the first time. The unexpectedly positive result surprised the entire team.
I gained a valuable insight from this experience: Not everything has to be perfect from the start. The key is that we work together as one body, do our best, don’t shy away from difficulties, and act wholeheartedly. It is precisely through this process of improving our character that a project can exercise its true power and save sentient beings more effectively.
Cultivating Every Thought—The Key to True Cultivation
I recently realized that everything I see or hear repeatedly as a third party is actually a reflection of my own attachments. For a long time, I wondered why I kept seeing and hearing the same things—but I didn’t look inward. I remembered my early days of cultivation, when I was able to look inward immediately when problems arose. My heart was light, ready to let go, and my body felt so light that I almost floated when I walked. I understood that this was the state of true cultivation—a state in which no human attachments weigh down the heart and Master elevates you accordingly.
Sometimes I think about fellow practitioners in China. Although they suffer under extreme conditions and are imprisoned and brutally persecuted, they can quickly elevate their righteous thoughts and even develop compassion toward their tormentors. In comparison, I live in a relatively free environment—and yet sometimes I only see the weaknesses of other practitioners, develop dissatisfaction, or wish they would “change.” When others don’t treat me well, I sometimes lack compassion. Even when I think I’ve already looked inward, I later realize with surprise that my thoughts were actually focused on wanting to change others according to my own ideas.
I realized that even though we work on Dafa projects, we are still caught up in illusion. What we consider “wrong” is not necessarily wrong. Perhaps Master deliberately arranged this environment so that we would look inward in such situations, let go of our stubborn egos, and recognize our attachment to our own opinions or to the mistakes of others. I realized how inappropriate it is to want to change others. Instead of wanting to change others, I should cultivate and change myself.
I also remembered an example from Zhuan Falun in which a practitioner at a textile factory in Shandong Province positively influenced his entire environment through his own transformation—without criticizing or coercing others.
This is precisely where the power of true cultivation lies. When my surroundings do not meet my expectations, can I cooperate harmoniously and share responsibility—or do I insist on my opinion and look for others’ faults? Only when we truly look within, let go of all human attachments, fill our hearts with compassion for all beings, and cast aside egoism and selfishness—the nature of the old cosmos—can we break through disturbances and develop strong willpower. Only then will the heart grow larger, coordination become seamless, and the project will manifest its full power to save sentient beings.
Eight years of cultivation in the media project has exposed many of my attachments. I was able to quickly overcome some tests, but hidden attachments kept reappearing because I did not study the Fa sufficiently and did not look inward consistently. Only later did I realize this. I was grateful for Master’s boundless compassion—he repeatedly gave me opportunities to improve.
In his Fa teachings, Master repeatedly reminds us: When we study the Fa, send forth righteous thoughts, or do things to validate the Fa, if our hearts are not sincere and pure, the effect will be minimal or even non-existent.
I also realized that when my cultivation state is good, I always see the strengths and good sides of fellow practitioners. When they are not yet well cultivated or have not yet fully elevated, I smile inwardly with tolerance and forbearance, without feeling dissatisfaction or aversion. In this state, my heart is big and full of compassion. I realized that this is the sincere and correct cultivation state—a state that I can only maintain naturally and permanently if I study the Fa solidly and have strong righteous thoughts. Conversely, I noticed that when I am not in a good state, when I study the Fa less, my human thoughts emerge—I focus on others’ mistakes and forget to look inward.
As I write these lines, I appreciate the cultivation environment at The Epoch Times Germany even more. I am grateful for every single interaction with fellow practitioners, and every opportunity to work with them. There are ups and downs on the path of cultivation, but I know deep in my heart that it is anything but a matter of course that we were able to come together here. Each of us has come here from infinitely distant, vast cosmic realms to validate the Fa together. When we one day succeed in our cultivation and return to our original worlds, we may not meet again. That is why I deeply cherish this precious time.
These are some of my personal insights while working for The Epoch Times. If anything is not in accordance with the Fa, I sincerely ask fellow practitioners to kindly point it out.
Thank you, revered Master, for your merciful salvation! Thank you, fellow practitioners!
(Presented at the 2025 Germany Fa Conference)
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