(Minghui.org) The Udumbara is an extremely rare plant that Buddhist teachings say will manifest when an enlightened being is on the earth. I found one growing on my finger. I believe this occurred because I practice Falun Dafa.
Since an early age, I had always wanted to learn some kind of qigong but couldn’t find a suitable one. In 1998, Falun Dafa became very popular in our area, and everyone in my family started practicing it. My parents used to have illnesses and took medication all the time. After practicing Falun Dafa they became healthy and energetic. As a result, I believed in Falun Dafa and started practicing in late 1998.
Before practicing Dafa, I didn’t have any goals in life. I smoked, drank, and played mahjong all day. After following Dafa's principles, however, I found the real purpose of life and gave up my bad habits.
I changed from being a selfish person into a thoughtful one. I became a caring father, a good employee, and a law-abiding citizen.
When Jiang Zemin, former leader of the Chinese Communist Party, launched the persecution of Falun Dafa in July 1999, I came under immense pressure from my relatives, friends, and employer to stop practicing.
My parents were arrested when they went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Dafa. They were able to leave the detention center with the help of others. However, police officers frequently came to harass them at home. They verbally abused and beat my parents. As a result, they were severely injured, and both of them later died.
Over the next few years, I saw other Dafa practitioners experience similar situations in the persecution. Some were forced into divorce, and some even died. I couldn’t stand to see such things, so I reluctantly gave up my practice.
My heart felt deep regret with the knowledge that I had let Master down.
I felt lost after I stopped practicing and started smoking, drinking, and playing mahjong again. I felt dizzy day and night, and old illnesses resurfaced.
When I saw practitioners being severely persecuted because they wouldn't stop following the Dafa's principles, I thought they were silly. When I talked to them about ordinary things, these practitioners talked to me about the beauty of Dafa, told me facts about the persecution, shared the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, and gave me Shen Yun DVDs to watch.
I talked with them over many years, but they didn't waver or give up their belief. I then began to think about the choice I had made. It was unbearable to live like I was. I didn't want to miss following this precious Dafa. Thus, I started practicing Falun Dafa again.
I hadn’t cultivated for ten years, and my wife was strongly against me starting again because of what had happened to my parents. I did my best at home and never argued. Even though my wife had a hot temper, I always spoke calmly to her.
My parents left an old house that my brother rented out. My wife and child said that I should tell my brother that I deserved to have the house. I knew that if I asked my brother for the house, there would be a conflict because he wanted to make money from it. I remembered what Master had said:
“If something is yours, you will not lose it. If something is not yours, you will not have it even if you fight for it.” (Lecture Seven, Zhuan Falun).
I let go of my attachment to personal gain and didn't fight about the house with my brother. When someone gave me money that they owed my parents, I divided it equally between my brother, sister, and myself.
I assist Master in saving sentient beings by talking with people I meet about the persecution. I wanted to produce truth-clarification materials, and Master arranged for fellow practitioners to help me do it. I bought a computer and learned how to use it. Master opened up my wisdom, and soon I was able to produce brochures, keepsakes, DVDs, and other items.
Master encouraged me by showing me the miracles of Dafa. One day, I saw Udumbara flowers growing on an iron frame outside the window at my workplace.
Then, one morning when I got up, I saw an Udumbara flower on my finger. I was very surprised, and so were others around me who also witnessed this miracle of Dafa.
Udumbara flowers growing on a piece of rusted metal
Udumbara flower growing on my finger
I feel Master is always with me, taking care of me, and encouraging me. I am more determined and steadfast than ever in my cultivation.
