(Minghui.org) By nature, I enjoy life and make friends easily. In the fall of 2007, I met a kind and sincere elderly woman who told me about Falun Dafa and quitting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Much of this resonated with me, and I passed on this message to others.
Yet it took five years before I actually started practicing Dafa.
Here is my experience before I practiced Falun Dafa and how I learned to remove my attachments after I started practicing.
Telling Others the Facts as a Non-Practitioner
Meeting such a good person in China's materialistic society was a new experience. I felt different when I was with her.
I was willing to interact with her and tell her what was on my mind. We quickly became friends.
At first, I didn't know that she was a Dafa practitioner. She soon told me about her experience of cultivating Dafa after she saw that I was puzzled by her positive personality.
She explained many things about Dafa and why it was important to quit the CCP. I quit on the spot without hesitation.
Even though I was not a practitioner, I understood the reasons behind withdrawing from the Party, so I talked with my friends and family about quitting the CCP in the way I saw her do it with others on the street.
The elderly practitioner encouraged me to cultivate Dafa many times, but I was comfortable with my life. I wanted to enjoy life while helping people quit the CCP.
Five years passed and I helped quite a number of people quit the CCP. Wherever I went and whomever I met, I told people about Dafa, be it at friendly gatherings, karaoke sessions, or while traveling for leisure. I had no fear. I even joked with the elderly practitioner that “I'm here to save people.”
I did read Zhuan Falun and other Dafa books. I even did the exercises for a year, but never considered myself a practitioner.
Cultivating After Five Years of Helping People Quit the CCP
I became a Dafa practitioner in 2013. I regretted not listening to the elderly practitioner and delaying my cultivation by five years. But I am grateful that Master has given me a chance to catch up and make up for the precious time that was lost.
Every morning regardless of the weather, I went out with my younger sister, who was also a practitioner, to tell people about Dafa.
As I had just started cultivating, I had a strong attachment of fear and worried that someone might report me to the police.
I began to imagine what might happen to me and could not eat or sleep well. My heart began to beat furiously whenever I saw police cars.
It dawned on me that something was wrong with this. I studied the Fa and understood at once: I am a disciple of Master Li Hongzhi. I am doing the most righteous thing in this universe. Who would dare to touch me?
This attachment to fear isn't me. It is those rotten demons that are controlling my human notions and thoughts who are afraid. I will not acknowledge that “fear.” I'll negate it completely.
Once I understood this, I sent forth righteous thoughts with my sister every night to eliminate those elements of fear in my dimensional field.
Master has helped me remove it. My attachment to fear gradually disappeared within a month. I now no longer feel afraid when clarifying the truth.
Removing Attachments and Cultivating Compassion
Soon after I started to cultivate, I encountered my first test. A friend called me one day. “I'm not well. Come over quickly and go with me to the hospital.”
Although I didn't protest, I was unhappy. “Why doesn't she call her family instead?” But I went with her anyway.
The doctor said that my friend needed treatment at the hospital for several days. My friend made me accompany her every day and even had me cook for her.
I was very unhappy about this situation. I thought she was impeding my cultivation, but I didn't say anything because she had a quick temper. This continued for two weeks.
I came to understand that nothing is coincidental in cultivation. I began to memorize Master's writings every day as we walked to the hospital. My friend was a mirror that allowed me to reflect on myself, to remove my human attachments, and to improve my cultivation.
I enlightened that Master was testing my forbearance and ability to endure, so that I could cultivate into a selfless being.
When I enlightened to this, my attitude changed and so did she. I told her Dafa has spread to more than 100 countries on every continent. I explained why it was important to quit the CCP. She quit on the spot and even persuaded her friends and family to do so.
When I passed this test, another soon appeared. I have another friend who treated me very well before I cultivated. When I told her about Dafa and quitting the CCP, she quit. But she told other friends that she wasn't sincere in quitting the CCP and even talked behind my back.
When learned of this, I was angry. I could only think about how she hurt me, and I didn't treat her with compassion. I was jealous when I saw others being nice to her. Various human attachments surfaced.
We started to drift apart. She sent me a message: “You sowed discord between my family and me because you practice Falun Dafa. Stay away.” I was full of antipathy and wanted to cut all ties with her.
Then one day she called to say one of our friends had passed away and wanted me to attend the funeral service. I thought this would be a good opportunity to tell her more about Dafa. Unfortunately, she didn't attend the service because of work commitments.
After the funeral, I reflected on how I had behaved. After studying the Fa, I felt greatly ashamed. I realized that I was a cultivator but my friends were not. Yet, I acted like an ordinary person in my interactions with them. I realized that I had behaved even worse than they did.
After deep reflection, I found my human attachments to fame, reputation, friendship, kinship, and enjoying life. After these attachments were exposed, I decided to eliminate them. I sent forth righteous thoughts for one hour with my sister every night.
I have persisted for almost four months and I felt that I have changed. I have become diligent in doing the three things every day. I feel that life has become meaningful. Now that Master removed various attachments for me, I can now be more compassionate with my friends.
During the process of cultivating and saving people, I have removed various human attachments and cultivated compassion. I have become more broad-minded as I study the Fa. No words can describe how fortunate I am.
Only when I believe in Master and Dafa, have righteous thoughts and actions, do the three things well, save more people, and fulfill my prehistoric vows, can I return to my origin with Master.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, fellow practitioners!
If there is anything incorrect in my understanding, please kindly point it out.
Category: Improving Oneself
