(Minghui.org) There is a marketplace very close to my home, where I often go to both shop and clarify the truth to people. For over a decade, the marketplace has become a cultivation environment for practitioners to validate the Fa and elevate our xinxing. As Falun Dafa practitioners, being compassionate is one of our foundations, and we try to let go of self-interest, be tolerant, and think more about others. This has allowed many people to see the beauty of Dafa.
I never bargain over prices when I buy things at the market, because I do not want to take advantage of others. If I’m accidentally given too much change, I always return it. However, I had a habit of always picking through produce to find the best ones. Although everyone does this, from a cultivator’s point of view, isn’t it being selfish? When I pick the good ones for myself and leave the poorer ones for others, how is that any different from everyday people? After realizing this, I stopped being picky when buying things.
I was once buying eggplants when they were less than one yuan per pound. I picked up one that was quite large and noticed a big scar on it. I thought to myself: “This time, I will just take it.” The seller saw it and said, “So many people have picked this one up, but no one ended up wanting it after seeing the scar. Since you’re taking it, I’ll charge you 50 cents less.” I told him that I practiced Falun Dafa and would not take advantage of him. He was very moved. He had already withdrawn from the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) organizations. From then on, whenever I gave him truth-clarification materials, he always accepted them. Even in small matters, we must cultivate ourselves. If we do well, people will feel the kindness of practitioners and sincerely accept the truth about Dafa.
I met a woman selling grapes one day in February of 2025. I greeted her, and said, “You’re selling grapes again! Last December I gave you a calendar. Did you read it?” She told me she had. I then remarked, “Last year your complexion didn’t look good. But you look much better, and you’ve gained weight.” She told me she had undergone a major surgery that greatly affected her health. In addition, the grapes she stored were not selling, which made her very distressed.
I didn’t ask the price and bought some of her grapes. After weighing them, she said it was 10.5 yuan, but she would just take 10. But I gave her the full amount, and she said, “Dafa practitioners are all so good!” I gave her a booklet and urged her to read it carefully, as she would benefit from the miraculous stories. I also asked her to often recite, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” She readily agreed. When I got home and washed the grapes, I noticed that some were quite mushy already. Yet there wasn’t a single negative thought in my mind. I was only happy for people coming to understand the truth about Dafa.
Some years ago, while talking to people at the market, I got to know a woman in her late eighties who was very kind. Her home was nearby, and despite her age, she often took strolls around the market. When I first told her about Dafa, I didn’t intend to give her a booklet, because I thought that she might be illiterate. But she said she could read and wanted to have one.
When I ran into her another time, she said she wanted to buy softer pears but hadn’t found any. When I passed a fruit stall, I saw some Nanguo pears, which looked very good, and were suitable for seniors. I bought 10 yuan worth for her, and she was overjoyed. After that, every time I met her at the market, she asked for Dafa materials. She told me she liked reading the materials and would pick them up if others threw them on the ground. She also gave them to her daughter-in-law. In order to read them clearly, she even bought a pair of glasses.
I talked to her about the extent of moral decline in today’s society and why disasters are so frequent. I told her that Falun Dafa teaches people to be good and has come to save people, and that only by being a good person according to the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance can one avoid calamities.
She was intent on listening, and fully agreed. There was a period of time when I didn’t go to that market. When she saw me there again, she said she missed me and was concerned that something might have happened to me. Several times she invited me to visit her home.
About two years ago, close to the Chinese New Year, the market was very crowded. I was standing behind a parked electric tricycle and clarifying the truth to people. Suddenly, I was hit by another tricycle coming from behind. Both I and the parked tricycle were knocked forward. It turned out that an elderly man had lost control of his bike and had already knocked down another person before crashing into me. The impact was quite strong.
The people standing nearby were startled, and the man on the tricycle was terrified. After the impact, I didn’t feel much physically, but my mindset was very righteous. I even comforted the man. However, the person who was hit first insisted on going to the hospital for an examination. Many people gathered around. Seeing them arguing, I didn’t say anything, and left. When I got home, I saw that my thigh was purple and blue. It hurt for a few days and then healed. I knew that Master had protected me.
After the Chinese New Year, when I was distributing truth-clarifying calendars at the market, I met that elderly man again. I asked if he recognized me, but he didn’t say anything. I said, “I’m the person you hit. I practice Falun Dafa, and I won’t extort you.” I asked if the matter with the person he knocked down had been resolved. He told me that his son came, and everyone persuaded the guy to let it go since the injury wasn’t serious. In the end, he gave the victim 1,000 yuan to settle the matter. I asked if he wanted a Dafa calendar, and he accepted one without hesitation. I had often seen him looking gloomy, but that day there was a smile on his face.
Although living standards have improved, people’s morality has declined, and interactions have become cold and distant. People are also more self-centered. If I didn’t practice Dafa, I too would go along with the tide. In such an environment, we must not only cultivate ourselves well, but also validate Dafa and convey its beauty to people. We must hold ourselves to a high standard and treat everyone with compassion.
There is a garbage collection point near my home that many people use. Sometimes, trash is scattered all over the ground, obstructing the road. When I see this, I always quietly clear the area. Once, after the garbage truck finished collecting trash, garbage was left all over the ground, and everyone walked around it. I went home, got a shovel, and cleaned the area thoroughly. A neighbor who lives nearby came out and sincerely thanked me. I simply said, “Anyone who saw it would clean it up. Now it’s more convenient for everyone to walk in the area.”
Every year when it snows, I always clear the snow in the nearby alleys so people can walk conveniently. I was afraid at first that others would laugh at me and say I was beig foolish, because people nowadays only care about clearing the snow in front of their own doors. I then thought, “I’m a cultivator, so I must be a good person. I can’t compare myself with others, and it’s worth the effort for people to be able to walk safely.”
Over time, people have praised my character. My neighbors also began to help clear the snow. When I clarified the truth to a neighbor, she said, “I’ve already withdrawn from the CCP. After seeing how good you are, I know Dafa is good.” Whenever I offered her truth-clarification materials, she was always willing to accept them.
Some people didn’t understand the truth about Dafa, or why practitioners were going out to clarify the truth. But over the years, they’ve come to know that Dafa practitioners are good people. Sometimes, when I give out materials, I see a joyous expression on their faces. After all, everyone has a knowing side!
We had a heavy snowfall before the Chinese New Year in 2025, and after clearing the nearby roads, I noticed that the last household in our alley had their door locked. They were still at their daughter’s home and hadn’t returned. So I went ahead and thoroughly cleared the snow from their doorway. On the fifth day of the New Year, I visited them to offer New Year greetings. She asked me, “You cleared the snow in front of my house, right?” She said she knew only I would do such a thing.
In the past, she wouldn’t even pick up the materials I left at her doorstep. But now, she accepted them, and she also wanted a Dafa calendar. When I ask her to recite “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” she readily agreed. Once, when several of us were chatting, she exclaimed, “You’re such a good person!”
These are just a few stories from my cultivation journey over the past several years. They cannot compare with fellow practitioners who cultivate well. But reflecting on these small matters, my understanding is this that, “Even a tiny bit of kindness or a small good deed can give people repeated opportunities to gradually awaken to the truth. We are people’s hope of salvation. Cultivating ourselves well and saving sentient beings is our mission. I thank Master for his compassionate salvation.