(Minghui.org)
Master said:
“Cultivation is hard. It’s hard in that even when a terrible calamity strikes, even when evil madly persecutes, and even when your life is at stake, you still have to be able to steadfastly continue on your path of cultivation without letting anything in human society interfere with the steps you take on your path of cultivation.” (“Path” in Essentials for Further Advancement II)
I realized from studying the Falun Dafa teachings that practitioners can only walk their cultivation path well when they are in the Fa all the time.
My husband was diagnosed with cancer and hospitalized in 1998. A patient in his room told us that practicing Falun Dafa had amazing health benefits and suggested that my husband try it. I didn't really believe it and I worried that the practice might have some bad side effects for my husband, so I didn't listen.
Two weeks later my husband's condition got worse so we decided to try Falun Dafa. My husband asked me to try it first to see what would happen. I was doubtful, but to save my husband, I started to practice.
Although my reason for practicing Falun Dafa was not pure, Master Li purified my body and I soon recovered from chronic illness. After seeing this my husband started to practice. His health improved tremendously as a result, and he was soon discharged from the hospital. Our family was happy again.
Jiang Zemin’s regime launched the persecution of Falun Dafa on July 20, 1999. My husband got scared and stopped practicing. As a result, his health quickly deteriorated, and he passed away in 2002. In September of that year I was arrested and taken to the local brainwashing center.
At that time I didn't view the persecution from the perspective of the Fa. I practiced the exercises diligently but neglected Fa study. Although I didn't give out any information on other practitioners to the authorities so that they could persecute them, I used human means to counter the persecution.
One day the brainwashing center played the Tiananmen self-immolation hoax to brainwash us. This time I really watched it. The director of the 610 Office talked to me that night and asked for my thoughts.
“It's a hoax,” I told him. “The plastic bottle between that man's legs was intact in the fire. It was reported that the bottle was filled with petrol. It was staged.”
He looked at me in surprise and didn't say a word for quite a while. “For a so-called powerful government to use such a cheap trick to frame Falun Dafa,” I said, “that proves that Dafa does no harm to society, that it is beneficial.”
Then I said, “I started practicing Falun Dafa with doubts, but that was not true cultivation. From now on, I will genuinely cultivate Dafa and never give it up.” He looked at me with no expression and told the guard to take me back to my cell.
After that I had more time to myself and my environment improved. I really wanted to recite the Fa, but I couldn't remember even a single poem from Hong Yin because I had not studied the Fa enough before. This caused me a great deal of pain and Master saw my purity of heart and displayed a dozen poems from Hong Yin on my cell wall. I was so happy! It gave me a deeper understanding of the word “Master.”
As I recited the Fa more, my xinxing quickly improved. I no longer hated those who persecuted me; my heart was full of compassion. A month later the director of the 610 Office talked to me again. He told me that I was supposed to be sentenced to three years in prison but that he spoke in my favor at a municipal meeting and they decided to release me. He asked me jokingly if there was a Falun Dafa God protecting me. I laughed.
The next day he sent me home in his car. After two months in the brainwashing center, and thanks to Master's protection, I returned home without giving up my belief.
I am a sales manager at a large finance company in China. My company's profits have been declining in recent years due to the bad economic situation in China. However, my sales increased, and because of this, my colleagues admired me.
Last year I was detained in a brainwashing center for almost a month because I had filed a lawsuit against Jiang Zemin (the former head of the Chinese Communist Party) for initiating the persecution of Falun Dafa. Despite that, my total sales were the second best in my company nationwide, and my colleagues congratulated me with flowers and applause. I told them that the honor belonged to them because they had treated this Dafa practitioner kindly, even though I had been persecuted. The managers even went to the brainwashing center several times and demanded my release.
The company branch where I worked was a small one, with fewer customers than the larger branches. Because I was a top salesperson, I was invited to speak at the annual elite sales award conference. I talked about some of my successful cases and told the attendees that the secret to my success is that I cultivate Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.
Everyone seemed to enjoy my speech, and many people asked for a copy and took photos with me. The conference organizers sent the “secret” of my success to all of the attendees via WeChat messenger.
Late last year I encountered some trouble when one of our clients suffered huge losses due to market fluctuations and demanded compensation. Our company rule is that the salesperson has to pay any compensation out of their own pocket. The employees complained about this rule, and sales dropped dramatically in what became a vicious cycle.
When the client demanded compensation, I looked within to see if the old forces had taken advantage of my loopholes.
Master said:
“These are matters of work in human society and work is not cultivation, but your cultivation will be reflected in your work.” (Teaching the Fa in San Francisco, 2005)
I thought hard about this but didn't find the source of the problem. I did realize two things, however. First, a practitioner's income provides Dafa resources, and second, we shouldn't allow the evil to manipulate people into committing crimes against practitioners. I sent righteous thoughts repeatedly to clear out any interference, but the results weren't good.
The day before I was due to talk to the client, I told another practitioner about my predicament. He recited a verse from Hong Yin: “Puts a stop to its downward slide.” (“Illuminating All,” Hong Yin Vol. II). “Dafa practitioners have to validate the Fa, not follow social trends,” he said and suggested that I read some experience-sharing articles on the same topic on the Minghui website.
Looking within, I realized that I had always thought of myself first when a problem arose. I would humanly think about how to deal with it instead of leaving it to Master. On the surface it seemed as if I had ample righteous thoughts, but in reality I didn't believe in the Fa and Master one hundred percent. Because I didn't truly let go of the attachment to self, I hindered my own efforts to validate the Fa.
After I realized this, my anxiety disappeared and my confidence doubled. I had a good talk with the client, displaying the sincerity and calmness of a practitioner for him to see. I explained to him the relationship between gain and loss. I talked to him for two hours, and at the end of our discussion, he agreed with me. With Master's help, I prevented a huge loss.
One day the head of my department called me into her office. She said that one of our clients reported that I had told people about Falun Dafa and handed out flyers during a company event. I was a bit surprised as this wasn't true. I knew it was the evil's trick, so I asked for Master's help. Although I had omissions, I refused to allow the evil to persecute me and destroy those that I was responsible for. I sent righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil factors in other dimensions.
I calmed down and explained to her that a client had fainted during the event. Another client who was a Dafa practitioner told her to say, “Falun Dafa is good and Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” The other client gave her a Dafa keepsake and a pamphlet, and the client who'd fainted expressed her thanks.
My director nodded her head after I finished and didn't say anything. I told her how wonderful Falun Dafa is and about the principle of everything having a reason behind it. She looked at me and said, “You know manager Amy brought in that client. You should be careful.”
My director softened a bit and said, “I know you are kind and work hard, but you should try to discern what to say in different circumstances. If someone reports this to an upper-level manager, I might not be able to help you.”
I thanked her for the reminder. Thanks to Master's protection, a would-be tribulation was dissolved.
Master said:
“People now must give their stance. How a being acts as Dafa disciples clarify the facts and save people determines his or her future.” (Fa Teaching at the 2015 West Coast Fa Conference)
So what reason could the old forces use to destroy an opportunity for someone to be saved? Looking within, I realized that I should have clarified the truth to my colleagues better. I thought that they saw what kind of person I was, and from that they would know what Falun Dafa is. I only touched upon Dafa to Amy but didn't clarify the truth to her thoroughly. I decided to save her and not allow the evil to persecute her or those around her.
Master said:
“If we take to heart the saying about just putting in the effort and leaving the rest to your teacher, then the initial intent that you had—to develop higher energy and progress—is enough, and there’s nothing more to dwell on.” (The First Talk, Zhuan Falun)
Our company held a two-day event to thank our clients in March this year, and Amy took part in the event.
According to the itinerary, we would introduce our new products to the clients on the way to a scenic spot. But the microphone on the bus didn't work. The tour guide got worried and repeatedly asked the driver to stop and look for another microphone. When they didn't find a good one, I asked Amy to say, “Falun Dafa is good” and “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” with me. I told her that the tour guide might get a better microphone at the next stop. Amy looked at me doubtfully but didn't say anything.
About fifteen minutes later, I asked the driver to stop at a small rest area. The tour guide didn't find a microphone at the service desk, but she saw a local bus and asked the driver if he had one. The driver did have one and lent it to her. Amy clapped her hands, saying, “It's amazing! It's amazing!”
That evening Amy asked me a lot of questions about cultivation, and I answered them in detail. She ended up saying that I should have freedom of belief and that no one should interfere with it. Thank you, Master, for saving sentient beings!
Looking back at my cultivation journey over the past 20 years, I was initially skeptical about Dafa but later became determined in my cultivation. I let go of life and death and finally let go of my attachment to self. Every bit of elevation in cultivation was a manifestation of Master's protection and compassion. Thank you, Master! I will cultivate ever more diligently.