(Clearwisdom.net) I am 56 years old. I dropped out of school after the 4th grade. I rarely read books and newspapers before I started practicing Falun Dafa, let alone write articles. I felt helpless with my 4th grade education when I saw the Minghui (the Chinese Clearwisdom) website asking for articles. My fellow practitioners encouraged me repeatedly and thus I wrote this article. I truly feel that Falun Dafa has opened up my wisdom.
I Learned the Purpose of Life after Practicing Falun Dafa
I lost my parents when I was little and lived with my brother and his wife. I was in an abusive situation and the family was really poor. This continued still after I was married. Before I started to practice Falun Gong, I had many illnesses and was very pessimistic and disappointed with life. It was very hard to get through each day.
When I was in a very difficult situation, I met a friend in the spring of 1996 who highly recommended Falun Gong to me. I really wanted to learn Falun Gong and went to that friend's place to borrow the precious book, Zhuan Falun. After I read the book, many of the questions I had about life were answered. I was very happy and from then on and I started on the path of cultivation. I persisted in attending the daily group Fa study and exercise sessions. I quickly regained my health and reached the point of being free of illness. I experienced the miracle of Dafa and felt appreciation to Teacher and Dafa from the bottom of my heart. Teacher and Dafa saved my life and made me realize the purpose of being a human. I was determined to practice until I succeeded.
Determined Not to Do Anything That Damages Dafa
In July 1999, the government suddenly started the suppression of Falun Gong nationwide. After only several days, an official from the community committee broke into my house and forced me to turn in my Falun Gong books. I refused. The committee official said the police and officers from the community committee would come to get the books if I refused to give them to her. My husband was very worried and I didn't know what to do. There were quite a few Falun Gong books in my house that belonged to the study group. My husband told me to give the official a couple of the books and get it over with. In order to keep the rest of the books, I turned in two books without thinking righteously. I regretted it afterwards.
Five days later, my righteous thoughts emerged and I decided to ask for the books back. I went to the community committee official to ask for the books. She told me she turned in the books to the city and that I couldn't get them back. I was very sad and disappointed. I caused a loss to Dafa because I didn't do well.
I told the people there the facts about Falun Gong and asked them not to persecute Dafa. Later on, one day, a practitioner asked me if I wanted to sign an appeal letter to the government. At that time, everyone knew that signing the letter might result in arrest and persecution. Still, I thought that I couldn't just protect my own safety; I had to validate Dafa and say something just. So I signed the letter. There were over 40 people who signed at that time.
After I signed, I felt a huge pressure lift off my shoulders; like something which had congested in my heart suddenly melted away. The pain from turning in the books dissipated. I knew I did something right and that I washed off the karma that I had made from turning in the books. I made up my mind that from then on I would never do things that let Teacher and Dafa down.
Validating Dafa in Beijing
In the end of 1999, my fellow practitioners and I went to Beijing to appeal. I was very happy when I got to the appeals office (1) in Beijing. Finally I would get to tell the truth about Falun Dafa to the nation's leaders. Upon our arrival that day, the receptionist said the office would be closed. The people in front of me were discouraged upon hearing the news. I was very worried, thinking that I would have wasted my trip here if I couldn't even deliver the appeal letter. I went there to validate Dafa and I just had to deliver the letter. Even if only one person read my letter, that would make the trip successful.
I didn't leave and when I had a chance, I quickly submitted the appeal letter. I was the only person who did it, and the staff called the police next door who took me and another practitioner to the Beijing police station. There were more than 10 practitioners there from different provinces. A policeman interrogated us one by one and scolded us at the same time. After the interrogation, they turned us in to our provincial government's liaison offices in Beijing. We were detained there for 5 days before we were released.
After I got home, my husband was very mad at me and invited all my relatives to our house to talk to me. They couldn't understand why I did what I did. I told my relatives that the government persecuted Falun Dafa and slandered Teacher. I couldn't just benefit from the practice and not stand up for it. I had to act according to my conscience.
Tearing Down Every Evil Flyer I Saw
One day at the end of 2002, my husband went to pick up our granddaughter. After he came back, he told me that there was an announcement posted at the school entrance saying, "Catching a Falun Gong practitioner is rewarded with 500 to 1000 yuan." It was put up to persecute Dafa and practitioners. I was very worried upon hearing about it. I couldn't let the evil do this at will.
To prevent people from creating karma, I decided to tear down those flyers. Later I found that they were everywhere, to the point that they could be described as "covering heaven and earth." I decided that I must tear down all of the flyers. If I couldn't do it during the daytime, I'd do it at night. I would not overlook a single one regardless of how hard it was to remove it. At that time, the evil was still very rampant and my husband wouldn't let me out at night. I used the excuse of taking a walk after dinner from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
There were many people and cars on the street at that time period and most of the flyers were posted on the walls near the major streets. It was hard to remove the flyers without being seen in the heavy traffic. The first time I tried to tear off a flyer, I saw the stamp of the police department and I was a little scared. I later realized that the "scared" feeling was an attachment of self. I needed to let it go and shouldn't allow the evil to persecute me this way. I wasn't as scared after I had this thought. As long as there was not a car or a person on the road, I would tear off a flyer. Some flyers were stuck to the wall very tight and were hard to remove. It took a few tries and a long time since there were so many cars and people on the street.
But no matter what, if I saw one, I would remove one. I removed many of them each day and this continued for almost 20 days. In fact, not only I was doing that, but many other practitioners removed the flyers as soon as they saw them.
One day I was caught by a policeman hiding in a police car when I was in the middle of removing a flyer. The officer took me back to the station and I refused to cooperate during the interrogation. Policemen kicked me, punched me, pulled my hair, and punched my head for over half an hour. They threatened to beat me to death, but I was not afraid. I knew there was nothing to be afraid of as long as I had attained the Fa. Later the police locked me in an isolated room which was freezing cold. I started to recite the Fa and Teacher's articles in my mind and soon I was not cold anymore. I felt it was the power of Dafa and Teacher protecting me. I was determined to do what I should do well and not allow the evil to win. My family looked for me the whole night and found me the next morning. They asked favors from many people to help release me. After they worked really hard, the police released me that night. My husband was very angry after I got home. I tried to clarify the truth to him. I kept in mind that I was a practitioner and I needed to improve my xinxing and not fight with him. But I knew that I must continue to do what I should do.
Steadfast Until the End and Follow Teacher Home
The persecution of Falun Gong has gone on for 5 years and the police have come many times to my house to harass me. Night and day, they often break in and try to arrest me. My husband's heart became weak after many traumatic incidents. Though the evil was rampant during these years, I never stopped the practice. No matter what, I am a practitioner and should do the three things Teacher asks us to do well and deny the old forces' arrangement completely. I want to eliminate my insufficiencies with the practice and do better in the future and not disappoint Teacher's compassionate salvation. I must be steadfast to the end and follow Teacher home.
Notes:
(1) The appeals office - A governmental agency which is guaranteed by the Chinese constitution by which citizens can resort to for their grievances or report if their cases have been handled improperly by local officials.
