(Minghui.org) I grew up in a religious environment, which gave me a solid moral foundation during my childhood. However, after many years, my family stopped diligently following this religion, and my life turned upside down. There was a lot of tension in my family, so my brother and I decided to leave home when we were 16 years old.
By living in a hostel and going to college, I met people of different faiths and walks of life. By debating and eventually becoming friends with them, I gradually understood that I needed to put my differences of opinion aside. I realized that my formed notions, created by my religious beliefs, prevented me from truly respecting and listening to people and understanding the world I was living in.
Obtaining the Fa
I soon met a Falun Dafa practitioner, who taught me the five Dafa exercises. We did the exercises together a few times, but I didn’t think much of it and so didn’t become a practitioner at that time. Later, after I began to practice Falun Dafa, I realized that Master had arranged everything perfectly for me. It took 7 years for me to remove my religious notions and change my understanding of the world, and this gradually prepared me to obtain the Fa. Master was so patient with me.
While at the university, I found it very hard to balance time for exercise and study, let alone spirituality. I also believed that in today’s world, spiritual and physical development took separate paths, as religions do not teach exercise and exercise does not encourage moral conduct. I was lost and felt sad. I told a friend that I wanted to find something that incorporated both spirituality and physical exercises.
When I found a peaceful place, I often did the first Falun Dafa exercise. However, I just couldn’t let go of my desire to do martial arts. After I graduated, I wanted to understand the true essence of martial arts, so I began to study the books of many martial arts masters. I quickly changed from external to internal training, as I understood that this was much more powerful and better for health. I experienced many qigong phenomena, such as energy passing through channels in my body, and so on.
One day, just as I finished my martial arts exercises, a lady came over and asked, “Are you practicing Falun Dafa?” My martial arts movements had superficially resembled the second exercise of Falun Dafa. I said no. The lady told me that she was “involved in the protection of Falun Dafa practitioners and had lived in China for 6 years.” I spontaneously asked her if she knew of anyone practicing Falun Dafa locally. The lady told me about some practitioners in London.
I went home and read through the whole U.K. Falun Dafa website. I was amazed when I found out that the classes, books and videos were free of charge; the masters I'd met in the past all charged for classes and books. I soon found the video of the 9-day “Lectures in Guangzhou” and started watching Lecture 1. Many questions that I’d spent years researching (about ancient civilizations, qigong, etc.) all became clear.
When watching Lecture 2, I felt my Celestial Eye open at the exact moment when Master asked the audience if they felt it! I asked myself, “How can a video from 1994 have such a powerful effect on me?” Afterward, I studied the Fa every day for hours, over and over again, for over 1 month. I couldn’t stop thinking about it all day long. One of my family members even suggested that I was getting brainwashed because he always saw me watching the lectures. I decided that no one could stop me from listening to the Fa.
I also started doing the Falun Dafa exercises and taught them to my family members. Nothing happens by coincidence. It was Master’s arrangement that allowed me to obtain the Fa.
Promoting Shen Yun
Last year was the first time I participated in promoting Shen Yun. I’m really grateful to Master for this opportunity. Promoting Shen Yun played a big part in my cultivation. Through interacting with other Dafa practitioners, I realized the importance of cooperation. Due to my work situation, I don’t get to be with practitioners often, so I cherish the times when I'm among them.
When distributing flyers, there were many wonderful experiences. One time I approached a middle-aged Chinese man who was just about to enter his house. After I explained what Shen Yun was, he said, “Maybe I can find out where I came from [by seeing the show]. Thank you so much.” I was really touched.
Cultivation experiences at home and work
One time, a family member woke up upon hearing the “Pudu” music playing from my room. He was very annoyed and told me to turn it off. I thought that his karma was probably resisting being eliminated in this music's special energy field, and it made him react this way. His wife said, “The kids and I all like this music. Why should we turn it off?” He then quickly went to his room, found a heavy-metal rock CD and played the most demonic song he could find on an extremely high volume and with heavy bass.
I remembered Master's words:
“The evil people act as they do because evil is propping them up from behind. … Only when you deal with the factors behind the scenes will you manage to resolve the problem at the root. Only then will you cause a given situation, or that person, to change.” (“20th Anniversary Fa Teaching”)
I quickly remembered that I shouldn’t look at a person's surface and get angry with my family member, as his original nature is benevolent. It was only the demon nature and interference controlling him at that moment. So I decided to send forth righteous thoughts. In my mind I held a thought that clearly distinguished his original self from his demonic side. I also made sure that I didn’t feel negative toward him and only concentrated on eliminating the evil that was manipulating him. Then, after a minute I opened the door and there was silence! After I showered and went to the kitchen, he approached me with an apologetic look and said, “I’ve cooked pancakes for you. I really want you to have one!” I was really touched. It's because I studied Master’s Fa the night before that I managed to handle this situation well.
I also had many positive experiences at work. One day as I was walking toward the staff room, I heard a lot of shouting and swearing coming from that room. The minute I entered, however, the woman who had been screaming and swearing covered her mouth with her hand and froze. The other people in that room also went silent, and then they started laughing. The woman felt very embarrassed and asked why I had to come into the room, as now she couldn’t swear. One of my colleagues said to another colleague that he felt calm around me. The other colleague responded, “I just need to look into his eyes and I become completely relaxed.”
Many of my colleagues have deep respect for me and praise me a lot, saying things like, “You are the only genuine person here. Others work to please the boss and get promoted, and slack off when no one is watching, but you are naturally good and genuine. I’m trying to find some fault with you, but I really can’t!” I've told everyone that I'm like this because I practice Falun Dafa, as I didn't behave this way before. Because of Falun Dafa, I've understood the principles of why it’s important to be a good person. Because of my conduct, my colleagues know that Falun Dafa is good, and some said they would read the book Zhuan Falun.
Promoting Falun Dafa at work
I work in a recreation center, and I wanted to hold a Falun Dafa class there. People learn all kinds of exercises there, so I thought, “They should try Falun Dafa.”
After a lot of thinking, and with Master’s help, I was able to arrange a meeting with the head manager. I felt a huge righteous force present with me. At one point the manager voiced doubt about giving the studio space for free, but as he finished saying that, he quickly changed his mind, reiterating that unlike other classes, this class would be free of charge for everyone.
Before the meeting ended, the manager asked me, “How are you going to promote your class?” I said that I would post flyers on the information board and asked if I could also put up a banner. He said, “You can have a banner and a table right next to reception to demonstrate the exercises and speak to people about Falun Dafa any day of the week. That way every person coming into the center will see you.” I thanked Master in my heart for giving me hints all the way and allowing me this opportunity.
With the encouragement and support from fellow practitioners, we had our first setup to promote Falun Dafa in the center one and a half weeks ago. On that day I spoke to a lady about the free Falun Dafa class being offered in the center. As she walked toward the practitioners meditating, she started to cry. She thanked me for letting her know about the class.
So far, 9 people have come to the class. A retired man said he quit smoking after attending the first class!
I would like to thank Master for looking after me throughout all my lifetimes, and I would also like to thank fellow practitioners for their support.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, all!
