(Shared at May 2001 Ottawa Conference)
I am a Falun Dafa practitioner from Ottawa, Canada. Time seems to pass so quickly, for it has been two years since I obtained Dafa. When I go over the progress of my cultivation practice, the changes that happened both physically and mentally are so great that I want to exclaim from the depth of my mind, "Falun Dafa is wonderful!" In the 9th celebration year since Master Li spread Dafa in 1992, I would like to render my experience during the period of my cultivation practice to Master and co-practitioners.
I. "April 25th" -- the turning point of my life
Before practicing cultivation in Falun Dafa, the pain in my whole body was so intense that none of the anodyne medicines could work for me. The pain even made me roll on the ground. I got down on my knees to pray to God, the Virgin Mary, Buddhas and other Heavenly Beings to save me. But none of them could help me. Later I was diagnosed with Cazenave's lupus. I needed to take medication every day to stop the pain. I have to go to the hospital to exsanguinate [have blood drained] and to take the chemical examination every three months. Many friends recommended that I try many kinds of Qigong, none of which would work.
The first time I heard about Falun Gong was when I saw the report about the peaceful appeal of Falun Gong practitioners in Zhongnanhai from the CBC news on April 25, 1999. I inquired about Falun Gong to the people around me. But there was no one who knew anything about it. It wasn't until July 3, 1999, when I got my hands on the book -- Zhuan Falun, the content of which shocked me. I read the book, in a heartbeat, and suddenly I understood many principles and realized the true meaning of life. I knew this was what I had been looking for. The feeling from the bottom of my heart is beyond any expression. That day was the most significant day of my life, the turning point of my life. From then on, I've taken the path of cultivation practice.
II. I lost the severe illness and gallipot, and got a new lease on life
Master Li requires that if we are to truly practice cultivation, we must cultivate our mind; this is called xinxing cultivation. Meanwhile, we should take fame, gain and sentimentality lightly, and he also requires us to follow the principle of "Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance". Since that day, I've found that Zhuan Falun is a book from heaven. I knew the real reason of my illness. Now that I have made up my mind to cultivate, I would consider myself as a true practitioner. From that day, I stopped taking all my medicines, including traditional Chinese medicine, Western medicine and vitamins. My husband thought that I was crazy. But I am the one who understands these things: Don't mention the misguided things that I had done in previous lifetimes; even in this life, I had done so many things that were improper and had said so many harmful things. So I really appreciate the benevolence of Master who helped me obtain Falun Dafa.
I attended the nine-day-Falun Dafa seminar when I returned to Tainan to spend the Chinese New Year in February 2000. On the first night, my motorcycle had a collision with another one on the way back to my home, and I was knocked off of the motorcycle. And several days later, I collided with a car as well. These cases are just like the accidents described in Zhuan Falun: "What is owed must be repaid. Therefore, some dangerous things may occur in the course of cultivation practice. When these things take place, however, you will not be scared, nor will real danger be allowed to happen to you." After the nine-day seminar, I kept on riding the motorcycle to a park to do exercises and read Dafa books with co-practitioners of Tainan at 4 or 5 o'clock every morning. After about 3 months, when I returned to Ottawa in May, the practitioners here found me changed so much that not only did I become healthy, but also the wrinkles on my face faded and spots on my skin disappeared as well. Just as it was written in Zhuan Falun, "Those practices that cultivate both mind and body make one look very young in appearance, and one looks quite different from one's actual age. " Your complexion will become fairer and better, and the wrinkles will decrease.
I was an actual beneficiary of Falun Dafa, which not only brought great changes to my body, but also purified my mind. Nowadays I feel serene and peaceful. It is Falun Dafa that made me break away from the abyss of misery of serious illness. And I was born-again by Falun Dafa.
III. Obtained Dafa during Fa -- rectification, and assimilated within the Fa -- rectification process
During these two years when the government of Jiang Zemin stigmatized and attacked Falun Gong and extremely, and cruelly persecuted the practitioners in China, all of these have been condemned by the international society. During the specific period of Fa-rectification, I luckily obtained Dafa. So I feel even more the rarity and sanctity of Dafa. The infinite sacredness and firmness raised from the bottom of my heart: I will by all means be steadfast in the righteous conviction and thought to follow Teacher closely, steadfastly cultivate Dafa and do my best to take a role of a Dafa particle: "Validate the Fa with reason, clarify the truth with wisdom, spread the Fa and offer people salvation with benevolence."
The first time for me to attend an Experience Sharing Conference was in Boston on New Year's Day of 2000. This experience let me know why I should attend the conferences because I actually realized that the experience conferences are really clean and pure environments. The benefits and shocks, from the heart-to-heart communications between the practitioners on how to upgrade within Dafa, are so great that I cannot describe it with words. I've seen my shortcomings and I pledge to catch up with the advanced practitioners. Hereafter, once there is an experience sharing conference, I will go to attend it without passing up any chance. At the same time, I consider it a nice opportunity to spread Dafa and clarify the truth about the persecution in China. I returned from Taiwan to take part in the group study in Toronto in May. After listening to the experience of the practitioners there, I actually found the significance of studying the Fa [law and principles]. I knew that I should not rest on the state of understanding Dafa based on perception, but I should actually upgrade within the Fa and realize the Fa within the Fa, at the same time assimilate myself into the process of Fa-Rectification. During the cultivation practice, we should search within ourselves unconditionally and sublimate within the Fa- Rectification process.
In September, 2000, I attended the New York Experience Conference. We held a demonstration of the exercises in front of the UN building, walked in a parade, and distributed the materials of Falun Gong. You could see our brightly colored T-shirts whenever you looked along the streets. The gang of Jiang became terror-stricken at the news, which strongly suffocated the evil, and clarified the truth to the public.
I got the good fortune to catch sight of our Master at the Great Lakes Conference in North America in December, 2000. Maybe I was so excited and agitated at that time that I found my mind go completely blank and I remembered nothing after Master had left.
During the Christmas holidays of 2000, I made up my mind to return to Taiwan to attend the Conference in Taiwan. During the candlelight vigil evening party, the serene, peaceful and pure scene touched me so deeply that it encouraged me to make earnest advances to keep up with the Fa-Rectification process. On the way back from Taiwan, I attended the Conference in Vancouver. Although the scale was not that big, through sharing experiences with the practitioners, I felt that I advanced very quickly.
In March 2001, I attended the Conference in Los Angeles, where I really experienced how ferocious the influence of the evil forces is. There were some people, controlled by the evil forces, who were holding a board standing there shouting. One righteous mind can subdue one hundred evils. We did not give them any chance to interrupt.
During the period of March and April, 2001, I have been to Geneva twice. I think I have the responsibility to expose the evil deeds of the criminal gang of Jiang, clarify the truth to the world, and stop Jiang and his accomplices from contaminating the innocent people in the world. With this kind of pure heart, I went to Geneva. The feelings between these two arrivals of Geneva are quite different. In the former time, I found the number of the practitioners was more than the latter time. There were so many activities then that it seemed that everyone did not need to figure out what we should do, everything seemed to have been arranged already. But for the latter one, the conditions were totally changed. Because we had trouble finding hotels, we were kept in an unsteady state. During the first four days, there was no large scale activity arranged and only two persons were allowed by the local law to go outside to spread the Fa and do exercises, which offered a much more strict requirement than the former one to spontaneously search after the position of each particle and "shine with pure radiance". During a group study, we discussed the topic that it is most significant for us to realize our behavior within the Fa. At the same time, we realize how our righteous convictions and righteous thoughts are important during the Fa-rectification process. Wherever we are, we will come forth with the pure fields of righteous thoughts. Once we do that, none of the evil beings will be left. I think that only when we are in the state of Fa-rectification cultivation, will our well-cultivated part naturally know what to do. It is also the moment when our practitioners fully bring into play every Dafa disciple.
At 9am on April 18, 2001, there were about 800 people from 20 countries and regions all over the world who came to the Global Square to stand there quietly and appeal to the international society: 'Stop the human rights violation in China.' The view of that time was very touching. Among the crowd, you could see an elderly woman in her 80s, the young mothers carrying their babies, and even a pregnant woman. All of them were standing there peaceful and quiet. But from their imposing and firm expressions, I could strongly feel their firmly righteous minds and determination.
At that time, I stood in the front part of the line, wearing a T-shirt, which was made specially for the journey to Geneva by the practitioners of Toronto, and holding flowers in both hands. Time passed quickly. I imagined the circumstances of the United Nations Human Rights Commission: the last flight of the evil, the righteous support of virtuous nations. It is really a battlefield without weapons and soldiers.
In no time two hours passed. April in Geneva--the wind was chilly and it was very cold that day. Because of the haste, I barely wore enough clothing in the morning. The cold and hunger made me a little agitated. At that time, a western practitioner from Toronto seemed to notice my condition. She said to me in a friendly tone, "Carry on a little longer." Just a few minutes later, the sunny sky clouded, which was just like the spreading force of the evil. I told myself in my heart, "You, Dafa disciple, show your divine side. Eradicate the evil!" Upon these righteous thoughts coming out, I felt a boundless power grow up from inside my body. It seemed I was even higher than before. It was strange to say that neither the feeling of cold nor that of tiredness did I feel. Time seemed halted. An hour had passed since, the practitioner beside me had spoken with me. The sun broke through the clouds and was shining again.
On the way back to our hotel, a practitioner from Ottawa told me that she was standing behind me. She also felt tired for a time, but while she watched me standing upright in the cold wind, a kind of supernatural power made her felt inspired again.
The journey to Geneva made known to me many things, especially the fact that the most important thing for us is the heart for the Fa and Fa-rectification. Master said, " Whether you're in China or outside of China, how you perform is the same; there's just the same difference in whether you step forward or aren't able to step forward, and how much effort you give to this matter of Fa-rectification." [Master Li Hongzhi's Lecture at the Great Lakes Conference in North America]. Through communication, I understand that the so --called "step forward or not" doesn't mean if we can step forward physically, the most important thing is whether we can put our heart on the Fa, and step out of humanness from the hearts of ours, and from the human's shell.
During the period of Geneva, I also realized that the omissions, such as speaking loudly etc., have brought certain negative influence and loss during our activities of both spreading the Fa and Fa-rectification. In the scripture of Master "Dafa Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful", Master has already brought forward the requirement "with righteous thoughts at all times". I think it is also the time to change our surface dimension.
And another experience of mine is that if we can bring out the purest heart to spread the Fa, the effect will be the best. And Master's Fashen [law body] will bring the predestined persons to obtain the Fa.
There were many tourists around the lakeshore. While we were practicing in groups of two persons, many interested people came to watch us. A gentleman would learn the fifth set of exercise on the spot and he could immediately put up both legs on top of each other. He asked us many questions about Falun Gong, and he said he would help us. He also said that his step-father is an official of a human rights organization, but he was spending holidays in Hawaii, and he had other friends who also could help us. Seeing his faithful expression, I really felt pleased to see that another predestined person had known the truth.
Another time we had our breakfast at the railway station. A lady went by and said to us that she worked for the U.N. She said she had seen what we had done and told us to continue to the end. She wanted to learn further about Falun Gong, and hoped that we can visit her family next time. At last she left her name card with us. At that time I could hardly stop my tears from flowing. Suddenly I enlightened that it was not what I could do for the Fa, but how all of us need the Fa.
I'm grateful to Master for his benevolent compassion. I made up my mind to strive forward all the more, and keep on breaking through the conception of human beings, clarifying the truth, exposing the evil "with righteous thoughts at all times". And I will really live up to the promise: follow teacher closely, steadfastly cultivating Dafa.
Also, I want to tell people in the world that it is Jiang Zemin's government's groundless fabrication that Falun Gong got financial support from CIA of the U.S. We benefited from Falun Gong both physically and mentally, and what we want is to clarify to people that Falun Gong is good. Wherever we go to attend conferences, appeal, spread Falun Gong or distribute flyers, we all do it out of our own expense, because we, from the bottom of our hearts, want more people to know the truth about Falun Gong, not to get deceived by the lies. And we want more people to benefit from practicing it. We're not against China. Rather, we do all these things selflessly just for the bright future of more people.
The above is the experience on my cultivation practice. If there are some things that are improper, please kindly point them out so that they can be corrected.
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