(Minghui.org) I was born in 1994 and began practicing Falun Dafa with my mother in 1999. I want to share some of my cultivation experiences with fellow practitioners.
My mother began her cultivation in Falun Dafa with the hope of recovering from illness. She was overjoyed when discovering herself to be completely free of illness after starting to practice Dafa. I often listened to her recite the words of Li Hongzhi in Zhuan Falun, the main book of Falun Dafa. Back then, I was too young to understand anything, so my mother had to explain what she understood from the Fa to me. I used to be a sickly child, and my condition did not seem to improve despite frequent trips to the hospital.
One day, my mother told me that when I experience pain and suffering, I am actually eliminating karma. I replied, “If so, then why are you sending me for injections?” My mother realized that I had obtained the Fa, and from then on, I never went to the hospital again.
Master Helps Me Understand My Cultivation Path
When I was young, I did not understand what cultivation was. I only knew that bearing hardship eliminated karma. I did not notice any signs of miracles, and even if they did happen to me, I would think of them as coincidences. Since I did not uphold righteous faith toward Dafa, I gradually became like an everyday person.
Things changed after I started high school. Studying was stressful, and I felt lethargic all day, so I downloaded some divinely imparted cultural stories to listen to before sleeping each night. After listening to all of the stories, I opened the recording of Master’s lectures, and the familiar tones of his voice brought me to tears. However, due to a lack of Fa study and interference from thought karma, I could not remember the details of Master’s lectures, and it seemed like I was doing pointless work. I told myself to listen to Master’s Fa lectures for only ten minutes each night, but each time with my full attention span. Little did I know how impactful this thought was going to be.
Sometime before my high school final exams, I realized that my friends had distanced themselves from me. I was downcast but realized that people in the human world live for their own gain and that there are no eternal friends. When I was younger, I constantly tried to find something everlasting. In primary school, I had those cartoon cards that I vowed to love forever. However, the recipient of my “love” changed every time there was a new cartoon. Looking back at my first set of favorite cards, I did not feel the same joy as when I was younger. It was then that I understood that neither of these can be eternal.
Master said that we can become Buddhas through cultivation. I thought, “Aren’t Buddhas eternal? If Master’s Fa is for cultivation, then isn’t the Fa the eternity that I’ve been searching for?” Tears welled up in my eyes. The “eternity” that I’d been seeking high and low finally found me! I could only blame my poor enlightenment quality for not realizing it earlier. I told myself to reread Zhuan Falun and all of Master’s teachings again in great detail. I wanted to cultivate!
Master’s Guidance in Truth-Clarification
I was accepted into college under Master’s guidance. Initially, to better assimilate into college life, I spent time with my classmates every day. Once, students in a nearby dorm invited me and my friends over to play cards. To my dismay, their conversation topics were perverse, as they regarded the good as bad and bad as good. I was shocked and despaired that I had to spend my college life living with people like this. I had frequent thoughts of leaving the dorm, but I was worried that people would think of me as a loner.
Then, I had a thought: “It’s okay. No matter if it is a good or bad thing, Master can change it into a good thing!”
Because of that thought, the demon-nature in my dormmates subsided the following day. However, they still spent their free time playing cards and surfing the Internet. I felt that it was a waste of time, so whenever I had free time after classes and schoolwork, I went to the school field to listen to Minghui podcasts. Once, I heard a cultivation experience shared by a fellow practitioner on using righteous thoughts and righteous actions against persecution. I was inspired and thought, “I’m so envious, Master! I want to be like them too!”
Perhaps it was my strong will to help that persuaded Master to make arrangements for me. One day, someone asked me to sign up for an interview for the student council, and I was soon accepted. I also participated in the school broadcasting committee. Initially, I had no thoughts of auditioning–it was my dormmate who had called to ask me to give it a try. I was accepted after the interview. I realized that this was Master’s way of helping me to develop courage as well as public speaking and interpersonal skills, because I had always been a timid, introverted, and inarticulate child.
Soon, I started to study the Fa every day. I transformed from a socially awkward person to one who speaks clearly and articulately. Master started to hint to me to clarify the truth to people.
Master said,
“...you are not in fact saving those people for Master’s sake, and neither is it done for others. You are saving them for yourselves, for very possibly those are to be the future sentient beings of your paradises, or are to belong to your expanse. You can’t let it become that when you return to your rightful place, you are like a commander-in-chief without an army, with it completely empty there, just one lone figure occupying that massive cosmic body.” (“Dafa Disciples Must Study the Fa,” Collected Fa Teachings XI)
When I first came across this paragraph, I thought, “Master, I know that Dafa is good, but I can’t do it! I don’t dare to, and I don’t know how to. I’ll just be a commander-in-chief without an army then. There’s no other way.” My cowardice was so laughable, so silly. Thankfully, Master did not give up on me but instead continued to enlighten me with his endless compassion.
In my sophomore year, I began to understand the importance of truth-clarification after reading “Fa Teaching at the 2013 Greater New York Fa Conference” and “Fa Teaching at the 2013 Western U.S. Fa Conference.”
Recalling the past two years of my cultivation journey, I knew that Master was enlightening me and guiding me to the righteous path by granting me wisdom and reminding me of the reason for my existence in this world. I should really do something to fulfill my vows as a Dafa disciple during the Fa-rectification period.
Fulfilling My Vows
After making up my mind to fulfill my vows, I often met up with my friends in the school garden. The place has benches to rest on and is secluded enough for my friends to feel comfortable voicing their thoughts on the quitting the CCP and its youth organizations. Each talk with friends might last between two to three hours. Since I was inexperienced and there were no practitioners to talk to, I was not fixated on numbers and instead made it my priority to ensure that everyone understood the truth first. Master bestowed me with wisdom, and I have strong logic and a strong energy field. Once, a friend mentioned that he felt full of positive energy after listening to my words.
Perhaps this is what Master meant by “Fulfill your vows, so your wisdom will shine forth.” (“Heavenly Secret,” Hong Yin IV)
I’ve spotted many areas to improve on during truth-clarification, so those are good opportunities to elevate my xinxing. I felt that I improved a lot during my third and fourth years. Since I had strong righteous thoughts and a strong Main Consciousness, I overcame many obstacles quickly. During those times, I was happy every day. Many people asked me why I always smiled. How could they know the joy I had that I could fulfill my vows? My mind was filled with things related to truth-clarification, and I even had dreams about it!
However, I also made a serious mistake. At the end of my sophomore year, the chair of the student council encouraged me to take up the role of the vice chair. I felt that I should focus on truth-clarification, so I declined. I was a little pleased at the time and was aware that it was my attachment to fame. He came to me again, and I rejected him, assuming that this was a test of my attachment to fame. Not giving up, he approached me for the third time and tried to persuade me for an hour. Still, I rejected his offer. Initially, I was rather pleased with myself because I thought that I had let go of my attachment to fame. However, this was not the case. At the end of my third year, I suddenly realized that some people are here to establish a karmic relationship with me, and many of them were on the student council. Only then did I realize that all those attempts to persuade me to be the vice chair were arrangements made by Master. I had not understood the Fa's principle of “...following the course of nature...” (Zhuan Falun) and missed the best opportunity to save people.
Master saves all sentient beings in the world with his compassion and refuses to give up on anyone. Master’s compassion has enlightened me and guided me with his meticulous arrangements to become a true Dafa disciple. I can only repay his compassionate and arduous salvation by cultivating with diligence and fulfilling my vows.
