(Minghui.org) Twenty years ago, I was introduced to and started to cultivate in Falun Dafa. Then, I found Zhuan Falun in a small bookstore. Since I had been influenced by atheism, I could not believe much of Master's teachings. I was seriously interfered with. Often when I had just started to read the book, an incoming call or something else would cause me to stop. Nearly half a year passed, but I still had not finished reading Zhuan Falun. Luckily, there were many practitioners with whom I could share experiences and of whom I could ask questions.
Over time, I had read Zhuan Falun twice and overcome those obstacles that had interfered with my Fa-study. I had almost eliminated the poison of atheism in my mind. My body was immersed in a strong, merciful energy field. I felt a kind of happiness that I had never experienced before. That happiness came from understanding the true significance of life. At that moment, I became a true Dafa practitioner and started my journey to my true origin.
However, in history, the old forces, whose actions are based on selfishness. interfered with the Fa-rectification through their arrangements. In the process of descending to the human world, Dafa disciples’ true nature was buried deeper and deeper by the substance of selfishness. Therefore, they gradually developed a strong ego, and this ego is the root of all attachments.
Master told us, “The entire cultivation process for a cultivator is one of constantly giving up human attachments.“(Lecture One, Zhuan Falun, 2014 translation)
Hence, during the course of our cultivation, we must constantly look within and let go of our ego.
Facing a Tribulation
Not long ago, I encountered the biggest tribulation in my career. Someone accused me and my team of having accepted a bribe of one million yuan. The company managers investigated me separately. Facing this, I didn't react as others in my team, who cursed at the person who had framed us, but instead remained composed and determined to treat it with tolerance.
I immediately looked inward. Why were we falsely accused? Had I made a mistake? Since the false accusation was posted on the official company website, it aimed to ruin my reputation. This showed me that I must be attached to fame. Since someone had framed me, it meant I must have hurt someone unintentionally. Then I thought that I should not blame the person, no matter who it is, and that I should seek a benevolent solution.
Right after I had this thought, my supervisor told me, “I know you won't take others’ money because of your belief. And you’d rather give up your job in order to safeguard your faith.” (I had been demoted before for refusing to give up Falun Dafa in the communist regime’s persecution of Dafa). I nodded. He asked me, “Do you know who reported you?” I shook my head. With a sympathetic look, he said that if the truth is not found out immediately, the case would be transferred to the disciplinary department the next day. I could tell that he was willing to help me.
Many colleagues in the company knew that I practice Dafa. I thought that if I were suspended from duty and investigated, it would give many people a negative impression of Dafa. When I was at a loss of what to do, I thought of Master's Fa,
“When you encounter ordeals during your cultivation, you have got to cultivate yourself and look at yourself--that doesn't mean acknowledging the ordeals arranged by the old forces and trying to do well amidst the ordeals they've arranged, that's not the case. We negate even the very emergence of the old forces and everything that they've arranged; we don't even acknowledge their existence.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Chicago Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. IV)
Based on the Fa, I enlightened that I should firmly believe in Master and only walk the path arranged by Master. Even when I have loopholes in my cultivation, Master is taking care of me. I should firmly negate the arrangements and interference by the old forces.
Shortly afterward, a company manager told me that they had found the person who reported me. But unexpectedly, she denied having reported me and claimed that she didn't know me at all. She said she assumed that someone had used her name. Half an hour later, I was told the issue had been resolved.
However, the issue was not really resolved. Days later, a new accusation was posted on the company’s official website. This time, it included many pieces of “evidence.” But these pieces of evidence exposed the real culprit behind the scheme: a company I had never worked with. This proved my innocence.
This time, the company managers didn't ask me but investigated and verified the charges one by one. The result was: instead of accepting bribes, I often used my own income for marketing, sales and client maintenance. The managers were moved and said that only Falun Dafa practitioners would do that in today's materially oriented society. The managers warned that company to stop acting recklessly or they would be expelled from the local market. The mischief thus ended.
Looking Within
I looked within further. On the surface, I was falsely accused by that company because I had refused to accept their poor value proposition and inadequate sales promotions even though they repeatedly tried to persuade me with large kickbacks. I didn't do anything wrong, so what was the real problem?
One night, I had a dream: a black substance surged from the sea bottom to the surface. Someone shouted, “Oil is leaking onto the seabed!” I shouted without thinking, “Stuff the hole, quickly!” People on the seaside were scared and ran away, and nobody dared to stuff the hole.
Looking at those desperate people, I jumped into the sea. When I was sinking, a thought was printed into my mind, “It is impossible to ascend again with greasy dirt all over your body.” But I was not afraid and continued to sink. When I was about to reach the bottom, I saw a shell floating toward me and used it to stuff the hole. The leak stopped. Then I ascended quickly. A voice said, “You will never clean the grease off your body!” I immediately thought, “I am a Dafa disciple. I will definitely clean myself entirely!” All at once, I floated into the sky.
Through this dream, I enlightened that only when I completely let go of my ego can I truly save people. Meanwhile, I noticed how my ego was manipulated by my human attachments to do wrong deeds. When I refused the kickbacks, it seemed as though I was not moved by profits. My real worry was that they had poor value for money; had I worked with them, it would have taken me a lot of time, and the reward would have been meager. I realized that I had only given up tangible benefits but had not really given up the attachment.
Thinking more deeply, I realized that I was also attached to fame. On the surface, I never pursued fame, but I often felt very happy when someone complimented me. Because I only paid attention to letting go of the substance but not the attachment to the substance, the old forces eventually used this to persecute me.
After I overcame this tribulation, I understood how serious cultivation is. In cultivation, we should always look within instead of having to wake up through tribulations.
I now have a better understanding of Master's teaching, “For a cultivator, looking within is a magical tool.”(“Fa Teaching at the 2009 Washington DC International Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. IX)
Category: Improving Oneself
