(Clearwisdom.net)
I'm a young practitioner who was lucky enough to begin cultivation in Falun Dafa in March 2000. What a great honor it is to be a Fa-rectification period Dafa disciple! Thanks to Teacher's saving grace, my deep gratitude is beyond description. On the cultivation path of assisting Teacher to rectify the Fa, I have often witnessed the miraculous, sacredness, and wonders of Dafa. Without Teacher, who has been compassionately safeguarding us, and without the power of Dafa, I would not have been able to make it to where I am today. Only by cultivating diligently, and following the Fa-rectification process closely by doing the Three Things well can I fulfill my great vow and not let Teacher down.
1. Study the Fa and Cherish This Millennial Opportunity
When I began to practice, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was already illegally severely persecuting Falun Gong. At that time, the CCP tried to discredit and slander Teacher Li, and practitioners were feeling the weight of the heavy hand of the persecution. The friend who taught me Dafa went to Beijing to validate the Fa and to clarify the facts to the Chinese people. At that time, without anyone around to help me, I didn't know how to do the exercises, and there was no Fa-study group, so I was unable to share with others. However, with my faith in Dafa, I was not subject to any outside interference from the CCP. I believed in Teacher and Dafa, have been studying the Fa diligently, and have often copied Zhuan Falun and other Dafa books with a pen. Many times when I was copying the Fa, I truly came to feel the happiness of being immersed in the Fa.
When I first read Zhuan Falun, I saw a few "V" shaped symbols flashing on the book, as if it was playing some wonderful musical notes. I understood that it was Teacher encouraging me to study the Fa well. I was holding myself to the standards of Fa in everything, and my mind and heart nature had improved a great deal. I always recited Teacher's words in Zhuan Falun: "To tell you the truth, the entire cultivation process for a practitioner is one of constantly giving up human attachments." I sensed that this was the righteous Fa that I had been searching for all my life. I would follow Teacher and cultivate to consummation. I made quick breakthroughs on every level, and I often felt that I was elevating. Every time I studied the Fa, I had a feeling of being regenerated. I was strict with myself and lived by Dafas' principles of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance, and this laid a solid foundation for me for validating Fa in the future.
2. Pay Attention to Sending Forth Righteous Thoughts
Two years later, at a time when I felt very lonely and in need of support, through an arrangement made by our compassionate Teacher, I finally got to meet some local practitioners. As I learned the exercises and began to read Teacher's articles, I learned how to send forth righteous thoughts and also discovered there was a Dafa website called Minghui (Chinese version of Clearwisdom). When I first learned to do the exercises, my righteous thoughts were not strong enough, so I couldn't remain tranquil the whole time, and my mind often slipped back into human thoughts. Through Fa-study and solid improvement in my cultivation, my xinxing level elevated, and I began to possess the key components to sending forth righteous thoughts. I have experienced many miraculous outcomes during sending forth righteous thoughts. One time when I was walking, there appeared around me many rotten demons and evil specters. When I immediately began to say, "Mie," they disappeared right away. I knew it was Teacher reminding me to pay attention to sending forth-righteous thoughts. Besides the four set times, I also sent forth righteous thoughts five more times each day. When I send forth righteous at the four set times, I tried to do it for 30 minutes. The battle between good and evil and the magnificent scenes in other dimensions demonstrated the reality of Fa rectification to me. I clarified the truth to people at work and helped to save fellow practitioner from being persecuted. I very rarely forget about sending for righteous thoughts and do my best to clean out the evil beings interfering with and harming sentient beings. I can send forth righteous thoughts at any time and can keep strong righteous thoughts in my day-to-day life, whether I'm walking, riding a bicycle, or taking a bus. I'm not interfered with very much, and, through sending forth-righteous thoughts, I have managed to eliminate many evils and thereby reduced many Dafa losses.
3. Letting Go of Sentimentality and Saving Sentient Beings
In the beginning when I lacked the environment of group Fa-study or support from fellow practitioners, I didn't know how to look inward to solve the tribulations as they surfaced. I had the attachment to sentimentality and was still longing for love and a cozy home in the human world. As a result, I was persecuted by the old forces, causing me to waste some of my precious time for cultivating. The old forces took advantage of my attachment to sentimentality, and they made use of my family members by making them hide Zhuan Falun from me for a year, which caused many detours in my cultivation path. However, benevolent Teacher did not give up on me, and, through renewed solid cultivation and measuring myself against the standards of the Fa, I finally came to understand and turn off the path the old forces arranged for me. It was just as Teacher said in "Cultivators' Avoidances:"
"Those who are attached to affection for family will definitely be burned, entangled, and tormented by it. Pulled by the threads of affection and plagued by them throughout their lives, they will find it too late to regret at the end of their lives." (Essentials For Further Advancement)
Beginning in 2004, I began to work with local practitioners to assist Teacher in validating the Fa. Later I read the Minghui Journals, which helped me improve greatly. We learned from each other. I went with other practitioners to put up posters exposing the violent persecution illegally inflicted on Falun Gong practitioners and handed out truth-clarification materials I was able to talk to everyday Chinese people to help them understand the truth about Falun Gong. After the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party was published, we began to hand them out to help the deceived Chinese people wake up to the evilness of the Chinese communist regime.
In 2005, our local material-printing center was ransacked and almost destroyed. After that, we decided to develop family material production centers everywhere. Fellow practitioners and I set up small-sized material printing centers. We managed to solve the printing material shortage problem, thereby helping practitioners in clarifying the facts and saving sentient beings.
Teacher said in "Hurry Up And Tell Them"(Hong Yin Volume II):
"As Dafa disciples clarify the truth
Sharp swords shoot forth from their mouths
Tearing open the rotten demons' lies
Lose no time and save them,
hurry up and tell them"
On the Minghui website, they managed to clarify the truth so well that I wished I could well, too. I went from reading their experiences to clarifying the truth to others on my own. From initially being timid and not knowing how to clarify the truth, I began to make use of all kinds of opportunities to explain the facts to my family, relatives, friends, colleagues, classmates, and people in society. More people have thereby learned the truth about Dafa, and it also created a good cultivation environment for me to let go of more of my attachments.
My family members are all now very supportive of my studying the Fa and doing the exercises, and, as a result, they also have received good fortune. One of my sisters became a practitioner last year. My parents are in their 60s and 70s, and their health improved dramatically. My other sister, who lives in a different city, is very respectful of Teacher, and she has been reciting "Falun Dafa is wonderful" everyday. My cousin and niece have helped me hand out truth-clarification materials. At my place of employment I work diligently, but I make use of any spare time by reading the Fa and sending forth righteous thoughts. When I have time, I clarify the facts to people who have predestined relationships with me. I completely immerse myself in the Fa. My colleagues and my manager all praise my work, and they all consider me a most trustworthy person. This greatly helps me validate the Fa. In late 2007, when Teacher saw that I had a strong heart for saving people, he arranged a practitioner to set up a small sized material-printing center for me. Sometimes I also supply materials to others practitioners.
Since the Minghui website reported now to clarify the truth by writing messages on yuan currency bills, I have been doing this with good results now, too. Many amazing things have happened, and sometimes I've run into potentially dangerous situations, but they always turned out to be harmless. I have managed to walk through trials and tribulation, and it's all because of Teacher's protection and the power of Dafa that I have never come to any harm. I have always truly felt Teacher's benevolent compassion. Many times I was lucky enough to exchange my large yuan bills for many small notes, which helped me to spread more bills to clarify the truth. I understood that it was Teacher encouraging me. I was also able to provide truth-clarification bills to other practitioners, so that many people were able to receive the blessings of Dafa and the urgent warning that "Heaven will eliminate the CCP."
4. Righteous Thoughts and Actions, Completely Negating the Old Forces Arrangement
In late 2009, I went with another practitioner to hand out informational materials in a residential area, and we were reported by individuals who were not clear about the truth of Falun Gong. The practitioner who came with me was taken away. I asked Teacher for help so that they couldn't see me, and at the same time I had very strong righteous thoughts. I was thinking: "I came here to save you, I was doing the most righteous thing in the universe, and no one should interfere with me nor persecute me." A few of them went all over looking for me, but could not find me, so I was able to escape. I was very thankful for Teacher's benevolent protection. It was me who didn't do well, and Teacher had to worry about me again.
The first thing I did after I escaped was to notify all local practitioners to send forth righteous thoughts for the practitioner who had been taken to negate the persecution. We also moved the Fa materials from this practitioner's home to minimize the loss of our materials. After that, I began to search within myself and came to realize many of my shortcomings, which included attachments to doing things, zealotry and the show-off mentality. I didn't consider other practitioners' ideas enough, nor pay enough attention to the outside environment; I stuck to my own opinions, and the results turned out to be just the opposite and brought about losses. Because of me, many everyday people were unaware of the gravity of their crimes against Dafa, and I caused fellow practitioners and their family members to suffer as they succumbed to following the old forces' arrangement, which brought damage to our one body. I stood in front of Teacher's portrait, feeling very guilty and feeling sorry for my omissions, which had Teacher worrying about me. After all this inward reflection, I made up my mind resolutely that I would cultivate myself well and cultivate more solidly from now on.
In this precious historic time of genuine Falun Dafa cultivation, I have shared what I have witnessed in my cultivation experiences in Dafa.