(Minghui.org) Greetings benevolent Master! Greetings fellow practitioners!
It is a great honor to share my cultivation experiences with you.
Master has been watching over me during the past three years, protecting me, and encouraging me. Step by step, I have been guided by Master on the journey home.
Letting Go of the Attachment to Money
I retired from my job last April and focused on doing the three things. However, I had not completely eliminated the attachment to money. The old forces took advantage of this and caused some trouble.
My former supervisor phoned me in May, and asked me to return to work. I felt happy and thought that they could not find another diligent worker like me. If I returned to work, I could still go to tourist attractions and talk to people in the morning, work in the afternoon, and be able study the Fa at night. This arrangement would be ideal. I would be able to make money and also do the three things. When I mentioned this to my daughter-in-law, who is also a Falun Gong practitioner, she reminded me, “Your life has been prolonged by Master so you can cultivate and save people. It is not meant for living the life of an ordinary person.” I did not pay attention to what she said.
When I went to distribute the Epoch Times newspapers the next morning, I sprained my foot. Even though it became swollen, I continued distributing newspapers. When I finished, I could not move my foot at all. The pain was so severe that I could not put my foot on the ground. I became anxious and called my daughter-in-law. She said, “You should ask Master for help, and also look inward. Only Master can help you. You must believe in Master and believe in the Fa.” I asked Master for help. I thought, “I am a Dafa disciple. Master is looking after me. I believe in Master and the Fa.” I then realized that I could walk, so I went home by train.
That afternoon, I was asked to distribute newspapers at another train station. I thought, “What should I do? Should I get someone to replace me?” I then had another thought, “I am a Dafa disciple, how can I ask other people to do my work? No, I should go as usual.”
After I returned home, I sent forth righteous thoughts. I also studied the Fa and looked inward. I found many attachments, one of the most obvious being the attachment to money.
I was excited about the possibility of going back to work and making money. I forgot that I was a Dafa disciple, and forgot about my responsibility. I forgot that Master had prolonged my life so that I could save people. Once I realized this, I felt bad. I felt that I had let Master down. I do not have to work. I have three sons who all give me money. Why did I want to go back to work? Did I need more money? What am I going to do with more money? I had not let go of this attachment. I must try to discard it.
Even though I identified my attachment, my foot was still swollen and very sore. That afternoon, I endured the pain and distributed newspapers. My son and daughter-in-law drove to the station to pick me up. My son saw my swollen foot and said, “Mum, I don’t think you will be able to participate in the parade in Hong Kong the day after tomorrow.” I immediately said, “I can make it. I am fine. Nothing can interfere with my saving sentient beings.” When I returned home that night, even though I was exhausted, I meditated with my daughter-in-law and we sent forth righteous thoughts.
The next day, the swollen foot was too big for my shoes, so I bought a bigger pair for my Hong Kong trip. My fellow practitioners encouraged me, saying, “We must believe in Master and the Fa. Strengthen your righteous thoughts. Master will help you.” I agreed. In my heart, I asked Master for help.
I boarded the plane to Hong Kong as scheduled on May 8. On my way to the airport, my foot was not that sore. I knew that Master was helping me and encouraging me. I thanked Master for His mercy. I knew I must cultivate diligently and should not bring so much trouble to Master. I participated in the big parade. We walked for 3.5 hours. It felt like there was a soft cushion under my swollen foot, and I did not feel any pain. After the parade, I took off my shoe and saw that there was no shoe pad! It was miraculous! I realized that Master was supporting me during the parade. I am extremely grateful to Master!
After I returned from Hong Kong, my foot was still swollen. It hurt, but I did not pay attention to it. I just continued doing the three things. I practiced the exercises and studied the Fa every day. I always meditated for one hour or longer, despite the pain. My foot soon returned to normal. It would have taken an ordinary person more than 100 days to recover. I sought no medical treatment. I just believed in Master and the Fa, and did not stop doing the three things. I recovered within one month. This shows that Dafa is truly extraordinary.
This was not the end of my test however. One day, while I was distributing the Epoch Times, I met a newspaper client. He said that he was supportive of Falun Gong, and admires practitioners and their spirit. He asked if I could distribute brochures for his company and he would pay me $10 an hour. I immediately thought, “I will not do it. I am not interested in making money.” So I politely said no. I know that it was another test, targeting my attachment to money. I promised Master that I would definitely let go of this attachment.
Righteous Thoughts Clear Away the Interference of Sickness Karma
One morning in October, I woke up in severe pain. Something heavy seemed to be pressing on my chest, and I could not breathe. My heart felt uncomfortable. I had never felt so uncomfortable in my entire life. I felt that I was going to die. I thought, “Do I need to go to a hospital? No. I am a Dafa disciple. How can I go to a hospital? I will not go along with this interference. It is an illusion. I am supposed to go to Mount Faber to save sentient beings. The old forces don't want me to get up, so I will get up.” I struggled to take a shower and then left home. Although I felt very uncomfortable, I did not pay attention to it. I still did everything I was supposed to do. I remembered Master’s Fa,
“‘I'm Li Hongzhi's disciple, I don't want other arrangements or acknowledge them’—then they won't dare to do that. So it can all be resolved. When you can really do that, not just saying it but putting it into action, Master will definitely stand up for you.” (“Fa-Lecture During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference”)
I realized that as a Dafa disciple, Master is looking after me. I should only follow Master’s arrangements and not want anything else, nor should I acknowledge it. The old forces may make me suffer physically, but they cannot interfere with my doing the three things.
My righteous thoughts were strengthened, and I quickly recovered. I felt fine the next morning. My body felt light, and the pain was gone. It was as though nothing had happened. I truly thanked Master for eliminating the interference.
It was just as Master said,
“When disciples have ample righteous thoughtsMaster has the power to turn back the tide”(“The Master-Disciple Bond” from Hong Yin Volume II)
Thank you Master!
Letting Go of the Attachment to Television
When I came home from Mount Faber each day, I sat in the living room after dinner. My husband usually watched television, and I watched with him. I was attracted to some programs, such as a Hong Kong TV series. I watched until it was over, before I studied the Fa. Sometimes if I got tired, I would take a little rest in the living room, watching television with the family. I thought there was nothing wrong with doing that, and I was not attached to it.
My daughter-in-law came by one day and read a Minghui article to me that talked about the harm of watching TV. The writer described what he saw with his celestial eye, that beings in other dimensions were saying, “We are on the side of the CCP. We came to destroy human beings. We cause strokes and cardiovascular disease.” This shocked me and my daughter-in-law. TV programs are so bad! They are full of violence, sex, and attachments to fame, money, and emotion.
Master pointed out, “No matter what it is, be it on television or on a computer, it enters once you look at it.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2010 New York Fa Conference”)
As cultivators, we are supposed to eliminate our attachments to fame, profit, and human emotions. However, if I watch TV programs every day, such bad things will enter my dimension. I do not want these things. My daughter-in-law and I decided to stop watching TV.
We did not watch television for a couple of days. One day when my daughter-in-law came home from work, she said she was very tired and sat on the couch to rest. My son turned on the television, and my daughter-in-law watched it. I said, “Haven’t we decided not to watch TV anymore? Why are you watching it now?”
She said, “I'm resting now. I'll study the Fa soon.” She kept watching, and so did I. After a while, we went into another room to study the Fa, but neither of us paid any attention to what we were studying. We drifted back into the living room to watch TV. Our excuse was to take a rest and cool down in the living room.
A month passed. On the 8th day of this month, I came home from Mount Faber and suddenly had a severe stomachache. The pain was the same as before I began practicing, a twisting of the small intestines. I was shocked, “Has the sickness come back?” Then I thought, “I am a Dafa disciple. I have nothing to do with sicknesses. I should not worry about it.” Usually as long as I do not pay attention to discomfort, and continue doing what I normally do, the pain goes away. So I did not think much about it, but I also did not look inward.
I did not try to deny the old forces, and instead just endured the pain. I cooked dinner and then studied the Fa for a while. The pain did not go away. After studying the Fa, I laid down on the floor and could not move at all due to the pain. I could not even breathe. While I was laying there, my daughter-in-law came home. She asked me to search inward to find what caused the interference.
We both realized that it was because we watched TV. We both knew that it was not right to watch television, but we could not help it. We refused to correct our mistake again and again! This is why the old forces dared to persecute me. My daughter-in-law and I sent forth righteous thoughts together to eliminate this interference, and I felt better afterwards. We also did the exercises. I began to burp and I felt much better. I will never watch TV again. Looking inward is indeed the magical tool!
Now, although it's easy to say that I won't watch TV, it's hard to do. My family members are not cultivators. I cannot stop them if they want to watch TV. My house is not large. Once the TV is on, we all see it. It's not easy to cultivate in this environment.
Master said,
“Nude pictures are just hung up right there, or they’re strung up right in the middle of the street. Lift your head and it’s right in your face.” (Zhuan Falun)
What should I do? I have decided not to watch TV anymore. My family environment cannot be the excuse I use to watch TV. I decided that I will eat meals in the kitchen instead of in the living room. After tidying up in the evening, I study the Fa in my room. I intend to eliminate the attachment to TV programs. It is all about enduring hardship. I am a Dafa disciple. I am not afraid of hardship.
I know that I am far from meeting the requirements of Master and Dafa. In the future, I will cultivate diligently and try my best to do the three things. With firm belief in Master and the Fa. I will return home with Master.
Thank you Master! Thank you fellow practitioners!
(Presented at the 2015 Singapore Falun Dafa Cultivation Experience Sharing Conference)
