(Clearwisdom.net) I became a practitioner in May 2003. Although I knew at that time that Falun Dafa was very good, I didn't participate in the 9-day lecture class or the local practice due to various reasons. One afternoon in November of that year, I turned on the music and started to do the exercises. When I was practicing "Holding the Wheel in Front of the Head," I felt the Falun rotating strongly. I was thrilled, "The benevolent Teacher never gives up on me." Tears of gratitude rolled down my cheeks. From then on, I decided to study the Fa seriously, even though I was extremely busy writing my thesis for a Master's degree. I studied the Fa and Teacher's other lectures at a certain time each day. Gradually I developed a deeper understanding of the Fa and its profoundness.
Cultivation in the army
Six months later when I got my degree, I had to face another test--joining the army. According to the law in Taiwan, all adult young men, unless they have specific physical or psychological problems, have to serve in the army. Daily life in the training center for new recruits was filled with intense drills. I was not allowed to do the Falun Gong exercises. We were not even allowed to talk to each other. I told myself that if I could not do the exercises, I would focus on cultivating my xinxing. There were so many things to endure in the army. At critical moments, I always remembered Teacher's words that we were cultivators. We should be kind to other people while holding ourselves to a high standard. Everyday I could either read Zhuan Falun or to talk to my classmates about the truth of Falun Gong for half an hour before going to bed. To those who could accept what I said and showed an interest in Falun Gong, I would lend them Zhuan Falun or give them the book, as they were pre-destined.
After two months of preliminary training and three months of specialty training, I was appointed captain of a troop of coastal patrols. My responsibility was to command the troops and take care of the soldiers. Since there was not a deputy captain in my unit, I had to assume that position as well. In addition, I was appointed to the Catering Committee. At the same time, I was the only Officer on Duty in the unit, and I was busy every day. Although as a captain I had my own small room, I could not have more than ten minutes of private time before someone knocked on the door and said, "Captain, so-and-so is looking for you." Most of my time was thus consumed. But I just held to one point: cultivating my xinxing.
I kept on reminding myself that Teacher wanted us to be a good person in every aspect, so I did daily work with the soldiers. Whenever I had some time, I would talk to the officers and soldiers, trying to learn their family situations, if they felt O.K. in the army, and if they had any difficulties. I tried my best to help them solve their problems. At the same time, I took the opportunity to introduce Falun Dafa and tell them about the persecution by the Chinese Communist Party.
Since the soldiers were very young, slightly over 20, or only teenagers, it was easy for them to understand when I talked about the persecution and human rights abuses. Yet it was not easy to introduce Dafa to them. They often thought that Buddha and gods were something abstract and only existed in legends.
I only gave the book Zhuan Falun to a few soldiers who had a strong pre-destined relationship and were quite receptive to Dafa, so they had a chance to understand the profoundness of Dafa by themselves. As to other people, I chose to talk about the miraculous effects of Falun Gong in eliminating illnesses. They liked to hear stories about that.
Every time I told them my own experience, they looked amazed, but they could accept it. Some started to ask questions about Falun Gong. I tried my best to tell them what was said in Zhuan Falun. Some started to introduce Falun Gong to their families .
When any soldier was depressed or felt wronged and upset, I made time to offer comfort and help with the situation. Depending on the occasion, I would tell him about the principles in Falun Dafa to let him know that there was a reason for everything so that the boundless Fa could open up his mind. One day a veteran soldier came to me and said, "Captain, if someone else talked to me about Falun Gong, I would take him as a lunatic. But you have a good education and a rational mind. Hearing what you say, I have started to believe in Falun Gong." I am grateful for Teacher's arrangement for me to spread Dafa in the army. I realize that as a Dafa disciple, our every word and action are to validate Dafa, and they certainly have an impact on everyday people and their views on Dafa and Dafa disciples. Cultivating xinxing at all times, treating everyone kindly in our lives, and watching our words, thoughts, and actions is the best way to clarify the truth and validate the Fa. It is natural and peaceful, reaching deep into the heart. It is also a way to spread to the sentient beings the great benevolence Teacher has imparted to us.
Two months before I left the army, I was appointed as a Counseling Officer, and I did not have to take care of so much routine business every day. I had more time. If nothing special happened, I would do the four exercises during the lunch break and the mediation before going to bed. My supervisor gave orders to move the counseling office to a bigger room and asked me to decorate it myself. Seeing that there was a blank wall right behind the desk and the paint on the wall had peeled off, I went to the Yiqun Bookstore in Taipei on a holiday and bought a big poster with the words "Falun Dafa is good." I put it on the wall to cover where the paint had peeled off. The poster itself played the role of clarifying the truth and spreading the Fa. Everybody who came into the room, before speaking to me, would look at the poster and read aloud, "Falun Dafa is good." Then they asked, "What indeed is Falun Dafa?" I would take the opportunity to clarify the truth to them. As a result, almost everyone in my troop learned about Dafa and knew that Falun Dafa was good.
One night in December, at around 10 o'clock, a soldier who was about to leave the army came into the counseling room. He said directly to me, "Captain, I often heard you mention Falun Gong. But I had no time to ask you about it. What indeed is Falun Gong? Is it really so miraculous? How different is it from Buddhism?" I gave him a brief explanation and handed him the book Zhuan Falun. He was very happy and said, "I will read it right away."
At 12:30 a.m., someone ran into my room without knocking. It was him. He looked a little shocked. He came in, threw himself in the chair, and said, "Captain, I have never encountered anything so spectacular." Hearing that, I relaxed. At first I had thought something bad had happened to him. He then told me that, when he went back to read Zhuan Falun, he concentrated and read very fast. Soon he came to the second chapter. While he was reading, he started to wonder, "Why didn't I feel anything about the celestial eye being opened as described in the book?" He told me that he just leaned back in the chair and thought, "Teacher says to let go of any attachment of pursuit. The thought I just had, isn't it an attachment of pursuit? Isn't it something I should give up?" The moment he thought about that, he experienced what was said in the book of opening the celestial eye. His heart started to beat fast and he started to tremble. It took some time before he calmed down. He immediately ran to my room. I told him that it meant he had a strong pre-destined relationship. The minute he realized he should give up the attachment, Teacher immediately helped him to open his celestial eye and cleansed his body.
The next day, he finished reading the whole book. When he returned the book to me, he said, "Captain, I had thought my days in the army would pass in such a boring, fruitless way. Now I am grateful to Teacher who arranged for you to introduce Dafa to me. Teacher would not leave me behind." Although both of us were about to leave the army, we seized the time to do the exercises in the Counseling Room during the noon break. Later the medical officer joined us, too, until we left the army in January of this year.
Conclusion
Please kindly write down your experiences and understanding to validate Dafa
I often read fellow practitioners' articles on the Clearwisdom website but never thought of writing an experience sharing article myself. When I read a practitioner's article about the importance of experience sharing and communication, I decided to write about my cultivation experience.
In doing so, I realized that writing down cultivation experiences is a process guiding us to review the path we have walked since we attained the Fa. It gives us a chance to reflect on what we have encountered. Even though we may have not walked the path well, the process of writing is also an opportunity for self-reflection and examination of how diligent we have been. It makes us see when we are righteous and when we deviate from the standards of the Fa so that we can make improvements and walk the path of cultivation properly. I believe writing an experience sharing is also part of our cultivation and validating the Fa. In fact, during the process of writing this article, I felt much stronger energy in sending forth righteous thoughts.
When we write down our personal experiences of how we attained the Fa and how we cultivate, it can help the new practitioners to understand cultivation, just as I have benefited greatly from veteran practitioners' understandings. Also they can learn how to help others to attain the Fa and clarify the truth. The readers of Clearwisdom who have not attained the Fa can learn how Dafa is playing an endlessly positive role for people from different walks of life, social classes, and age groups. They will learn that Dafa has improved the physical health of the cultivators, rectified their minds, and uplifted social morality.
I hope that our sincere words, true stories, personal experiences, and insightful reports will help more people attain the Fa, withdraw from the Chinese Communist Party, and get to know the truth. Thus we can assist Teacher in saving countless pre-destined people.
The above is my understanding limited by my current level. Please kindly point out any mistakes.
