Russian Practitioner: Cultivating While Collecting Signatures

(Minghui.org) I have been cultivating in Falun Dafa for 12 years and experienced many ups and downs on my cultivation path. We’ve experienced many good opportunities to clarify the truth to people face to face, such as collecting signatures on the petition initiated by Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH) and the petition to bring Jiang Zemin to justice for his role in persecuting Falun Gong, and distributing the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, as well as distributing truth-clarification fliers in Russian, Chinese, English, French, Italian, Spanish, and German languages.

I would like to share some cultivation experiences of collecting signatures to “End the CCP: End the Evil Chinese Communist Party.”

Master said:

“We have arrived at the stage where both the tests that Dafa practitioners face as well as their own cultivation are just about done, and we are at the final phase of saving the people that we should save. Everything is about done. It’s gradually being wrapped up. The communist specter’s existence no longer has much significance, so it’s about time that it was eliminated.” (“2018 NTD and Epoch Times Fa Conference”)

“But for as long as the communist specter still exists, it remains evil. It is like poison, and it will surely continue to poison people for as long as it exists. It can’t be changed, for that is its nature, and its very being was created that way. It has to be eradicated.” (“2018 NTD and Epoch Times Fa Conference”)

At the start of our “End the CCP” petition, fellow practitioners from Irkutsk joined us to collect signatures at the events approved by the government. We later expanded the signature collection to Angarsk. Meanwhile, the old forces also began to put pressure on us. I could feel it more when I collected signatures alone. Nonetheless, I always remembered Master’s Fa:

“But all the same, Master doesn’t acknowledge them. And you shouldn’t acknowledge them either. Do things well in an upright and dignified way, negate them, and strengthen your righteous thoughts some. “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.” (Teachings Given on Lantern Festival Day, 2003)

We tried our best to collect signatures every day. We eliminated the CCP evil spirits as their interference showed up in various forms, such as making us feel sleepy, lazy, or afraid. For a period of time, a police car passed by me as soon as I went out, which made me feel a little nervous. One police vehicle passed by and honked when I was handing out truth-clarification materials. I was afraid at first, but soon calmed down and told myself this was a good opportunity for me to improve. Later, my fear disappeared, along with the police car.

Some people who passed by said bad things about Dafa, then walked away from me as fast as possible. Sometimes I was affected by it, but after I looked within I felt at peace. The majority of people who signed the petition were young people. However, when we looked within and got rid of our human notions, we could break through all the interference, and people of different ages started to sign the petition.

I was tired one night after working late, and was reluctant to get up the next morning to collect signatures. I then thought that Master does not have a day of rest while rectifying the Fa. This thought strengthened me, and I got up and went out with the petition letters. My righteous thoughts helped me a few times to overcome my laziness and forced me to go out.

Master said:

“To follow a sacred path requires the ultimate dedication and effort.” (The Ninth Talk, Zhuan Falun)

I also realized that I needed to study the Fa well so I could strengthen my righteous thoughts. I have read many experience-sharing articles from practitioners who memorized the Fa, but I felt I was not ready to do that yet. Recently, I decided I was finally ready. I had already transcribed Zhuan Falun three times, and was now reciting Lecture Two of Zhuan Falun. I feel it really helps me to clarify the truth and save sentient beings more effectively.

I also often recite Master’s Fa to encourage myself:

“Clarifying the facts and saving sentient beings are what you need to accomplish. There is nothing else for you to accomplish. There is nothing else in this world that you need to accomplish.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference”)

I also found many of my attachments, including excitement, zealotry, showing off, and pursuit of fame. For example, I discovered that I formed an attachment to feeling inspired and excited. If I felt inspired and excited, I went out to collect signatures. I thought, “What if I did not feel excited, should I wait for it to come?” Saving sentient beings is urgent and cannot wait. We should rely on righteous thoughts instead of excitement, as righteous thoughts come from my true self.

I also needed to eliminate my showing off mentality. It is a critical issue and can lead to demonic interference if we do not pay attention to it.

Master said:

“A person could go off track and bring on entity attachment, or seek to show off by using a supposedly higher “energy state,” and both of these involve impure states of mind.” (The Sixth Talk, Zhuan Falun)

I liked to show off in the past, which included emphasizing my ideas, going to extremes, and leading others. I was putting myself in the primary position, and putting the Fa in the secondary position. This was very dangerous. I tried my best to get rid of it after realizing this.

I also pursued fame. For example, I saw a group of young people walking toward me when I was collecting signatures. I thought I would accomplish collecting many signatures if I got them to sign. It was only afterwards that I realized my thought was not righteous, and I was pursuing fame and quantity. It turned out that this group of people refused to listen to my truth-clarification.

A young man even burned the truth-clarification materials with his lighter after I handed them to him. I remained calm, but firmly told him to return the materials to me. I got it back and put out the fire. I then continued to clarify the truth to them without giving up, and eventually a few of them signed the petition.

Zealotry is another attachment and form of interference that can surface during truth-clarification. The cultivation path we walk is narrow, and any deviation from it can lead to problems. We must walk righteously, as there is no other choice.