(Clearwisdom.net) The following was written by an elderly practitioner from Nanchang. He never went to school and was illiterate before he practiced Falun Gong.

My whole life was full of tribulations, and it was worse than death. When I finally learned of Falun Dafa and started to practice, I couldn't express the feelings of joy with words. I have never been to school in my life and I've never thought of studying in my old age. Some people told me, "You are illiterate and your body is full of illnesses, how can you learn Falun Gong?" I was very anxious, and when I went to group study, everyone could read except me. Yet Dafa gave me the strength, and later I decided to learn how to read Zhuan Falun ¨C a heavenly book. So I tried to read it every day, and when I had time I would copy it, and stick the words all over the walls at home. As an old man, I became almost as happy as a little child ¨C I have never experienced such joyfulness in my life.

My wife was moved by the changes in me, and started to teach me to write every day. Later, I started to write the words, and even though my writing is not good, I've copied Zhuan Falun five times now, and I can read the book out loud along with other practitioners.

My left arm was once badly injured, and it would swell up and become very painful whenever the weather changed. After learning Falun Gong, not only has this sort of illness gone, many others of my illnesses that couldn't be cured by the hospital were all healed. I have never needed to take any medicine for eight years now, and my body feels as light was that of a young man. I like to tell people about Falun Dafa because of my personal experiences, so that other people can also enjoy a better life like I do. From now on, I will do what I should do in clarifying the truth of Dafa, and do it better than before.

During the past eight years of cultivation, Dafa not only gave me a second life, but more importantly, I learned the principles of the Fa (1) and I now know how to walk a righteous path in life. When the persecution started and Dafa was being defamed, the police arrested me and interrogated me, and asked me to tell them who the "leaders" were. I told them, "Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance are the leading principles; they are in my heart, and you can never take them away." They then asked me where our "communication network" was. I told them, "Teacher's words are the communication network." They burst into anger upon hearing this, but I was not a bit afraid; I know that as long as I have the Fa in my heart, nothing can break a Dafa practitioner. We should let go of the attachment to life and death, and cultivate until the end of the path. What could I be frightened of now that I've already attained the Fa!

Sometimes, it can be more difficult than you can imagine, and there are times when I could not pass a test at the heart of the moment. When this happened, I felt terrible, and I couldn't even eat or sleep and felt very pained in the heart. People around me said. "If they hit you and scold at you without reason, why don't you hit him back! We will help you, don't be scared of them." I replied to them, "I won't hit back when being hit." In fact in my heart, I was very angry and when I got home, and I would kneel in front of Master's picture and say, "Master, this is too hard to endure, please help me to pass this tribulation." Master would be smiling, and I would recall what Master said in Chapter Four of Zhuan Falun, "But, usually when a conflict comes along, if it doesn't provoke you, it doesn't count, it doesn't work, and you won't be able to improve from it." Cultivation is difficult, it is even more difficult when we want to improve ourselves; it is not easy to be a genuine practitioner, and we must study the Fa well. Slowly, my heart would calm down.

When the evil attempted to transform (2) me, I said, "Are you going to transform good people into bad people? Our Master never told me to do bad things, and I have not done any bad things ¨C why are you transforming me?"

When the authorities asked me if I would continue to practice Falun Gong, I replied, "Why wouldn't I? I will continue to practice even if you behead me." They were all shocked by my words. The security personnel and my employer held meetings to discuss what to do, they then they called me in and asked me if I would go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Dafa. I replied, "Yes I will go there to tell people the truth about Falun Dafa, to tell them that Falun Gong practitioners are the best people. Why do you treat me like this? You won't even let go of an old man like me! We went to appeal because we have trust in the government, yet your treated us as the biggest threat and as your enemy, and ironically, you announce that China is now in the best period in terms of human rights." Then they tried to force me to promise not to practice Falun Gong. I said, "No way! I would like to tell you, I have not done many right things all my life; it is only now that I attain this great practice at such an old age. This Fa is more precious than my life. I only made one right decision in all my life, and that is practicing Falun Gong. I will be a Falun Gong practitioner as long as I live or even after I die! You want to transform me? No way!"

My words angered them all, and the executive officer announced immediately that I was fired! I stood up and said, "Thank you," and walked out with my wife. One person called out, "The meeting has not ended, you can't leave!" I replied, "I'm already being sacked, shouldn't I leave?" So I left and the meeting was void.

After that, I always took the Fa as my Master. Only by studying the Fa well can we behave according to Master's requirements, and be able to pass every trial and tribulation.

(1) Fa: Law and principles; the teachings of Falun Dafa.

(2) To "transform" refers to a practitioner renouncing Dafa under brainwashing and torture.

2004-6-22