(Minghui.org) I am 93 years of age, born and raised on the farm, with only a third grade education. I had been growing fruit trees for several decades.
For that, I had become a minor celebrity in the circle of fruit trees growers in China’s three northeastern provinces. I had also given lectures multiple times to thousands of people, and had also been named a provincial, city, district, and township model worker.
Although I had gained much respect all around, I also had a terrible temper that erupted from time to time at home and in my orchard.
Fortunately, in 1994, I got hold of a book called Falun Gong. The book led me to Falun Dafa practice, made me realize my many shortcomings, and helped me understand that Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are our life’s standards.
Now, I’ve been practicing Falun Dafa for 21 years. I put together some experiences to submit a written report to Master, and to share them with fellow practitioners.
It was my nephew who introduced me to Falun Dafa in the spring of 1994 when I paid him a visit. That day, I went home with the book Falun Gong. I read the book the whole night through, marveling at every word and feeling the book is truly great.
The next day, I went to Changchun City to visit my nephew again. He took me to a bookstore where I bought 10 more copies of the same book.
When I returned home, I gave a copy of the book to my brother's granddaughter. Then, I continued to share the practice with family, friends, and neighbors in my village. Soon, every copy of the book was gone. So, I went back to Changchun City several times to buy more.
By 1997, more than 40 people in our village had entered into Dafa practice. Later, we set up a Fa study group and began to read the book and do the exercises together.
During spring and fall, when farm work was busy, we would get up early to do the exercises, leaving Fa study and the meditation exercise to the evenings. On hot summer days, we would do the exercises at noon.
Even during the cold winter days, we would do our exercises outside. We didn’t feel cold. In fact, we felt warmth from doing the exercises.
At the time, I was particularly eager to do the exercises, because they made me feel refreshed and relaxed.
On July 20, 1999, the Communist Party began its persecution of Falun Dafa. I went with fellow practitioners to the provincial government in a peaceful petition to speak up for Falun Dafa.
When I returned home, the Erdao Township Police Station sent for me twice to harass me.
The first time, out of fear, I let myself be coerced and wrote a guarantee statement. Later, I realized that was a bad mistake. So, when the police summoned me the second time, I adamantly refused to cooperate.
Dafa had already taken root in my heart, so that no amount of disinformation, propaganda, and lies, whether broadcasted on television or radio, could interfere with my determination to practice. So, when the government would not let me practice outside, I practiced at home.
For 21 years, I consistently cherish the opportunity to practice. I would strive to be diligent. I would get up at 3 o’clock every morning, wash up, and do all five sets of exercises at once.
In recent years, our local practitioners established a Fa study group where we get together three times a week. To date, I basically have not missed it once.
I also pay attention to sending righteous thoughts at the four designated hours without fail.
In His Fa lectures, Master mentions several times the importance of Fa study.
Now, I’ve increased my reading one lecture every day to two lectures. Sometimes I’ll substitute the second lecture with a recent Fa teaching. I also memorize Hong Yin and check out each Minghui Weekly every time it’s published.
As for the movement to sue the former dictator for launching the persecution, I understood at once it signifies the new Fa-rectification situation and was determined I must be a part of the tidal wave.
I promptly wrote out my legal complaint documents and asked my daughter to refine them. After that, I successfully sent them off to the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Supreme Court in Beijing.
I knew the responsibilities of Dafa disciples during the Fa-rectification period are validating Dafa and saving sentient beings, so I started out by visiting family members and friends at their homes.
In order to clarify the truth to my nine nephews and nieces, I went many times to Jiutai where they live. I also went to the homes of my wife's brothers and sisters in Changchun City, Dongliao Baiquan, as well as Liaoning Province.
I even brought along truth clarification materials when attending weddings, to seize every opportunity to save people.
On one such occasion, I succeeded to talk nine people into withdrawing from the Chinese Communist Party and distributed many copies of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party and Dafa amulets.
The eldest nephew of my younger sister is a brigade secretary who lives more than 30 miles from my home. I went to visit him twice but he wasn’t receptive. I really wanted to give up on him, but the thought of his dismal future kept me going.
One day, I brought along some truth-clarification materials, made three transfers on the train, and set out to pay him another visit.
When I arrived in town, I first settled down in my niece’s home for the night. Early the next morning, I walked four miles of mountain road to get to my nephew’s house.
My nephew was surprised. I said to him, “I’m afraid you may be planning to go out, so I got up early to come to see you. The purpose of my visit today is to speak to you again about withdrawing from the evil Party.”
Perhaps I finally succeeded to touch his heart, he very happily agreed. He also accepted a copy of the Nine Commentaries and other Dafa materials.
He invited me to stay for lunch before we said our goodbyes.
I thanked Master from the bottom of my heart for helping me save another life.
When I was done with my relatives, I proceeded with my friends who live where I originally grew up.
The past two years when I lived in the city, I had often gone with other practitioners to clarify the truth at the malls. Because I was more than 90 years old, I could easily communicate with other seniors, so I was able to persuade a few people each time to withdraw from the Communist Party. Sometimes, the number could go as high as a dozen.
Now that I’m living with my son in his rural home where transportation is insufficient and inconvenient, the opportunity to clarify the truth is small, but I understand that my existence is for validating Dafa.
I remember one day in 2006, the village chief of Dongliao Baiquan asked me to help them design an orchard directly on the ground, for a sum of 200 yuan. I happily agreed. So they came and picked me and my wife up.
First, they dropped my wife off at our daughter’s home in Jiutai, then we continued on to Dongliao Baiquan.
But, soon after we got to the destination, I became disoriented, followed by diarrhea and extreme weakness.
They looked at my condition and rushed me back to my daughter’s in Jiutai, arriving there around midnight.
The original plan was for me to stay with my daughter, but I felt my condition was getting more and more serious, so I told my wife we must return to Jilin, and quick!
Our children said, “In this place in the middle of the night, where are we to find transportation?”
I told them, “I want to return to Jilin even if I have to call for a taxi.”
Having failed to dissuade me about leaving, the children had no choice but to take us to the train station.
To everyone’s surprise, there actually was a train leaving for Jilin.
When we finally arrived at Jilin, we still had more than 50 miles to go, so a taxi was summoned to take us the rest of the way.
It was already 3 o'clock in the morning. I was acutely aware that Master was there watching over me or things wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.
As soon as I arrived home, I plunged right into bed and knew nothing more.
In a drowsy state, I heard someone shouting: “Dad, Dad!”
I opened my eyes slightly and saw a roomful of people. I looked further and saw several vehicles in the yard.
My third son said to me, “Dad, when you want to practice, you practice. When you need to go to the hospital, then you should go to the hospital.”
All of a sudden, I was full of spirit and loudly proclaimed, "The hospital can’t cure my illness. I’ve been practicing Falun Dafa for over a decade but have had neither medication nor injections. I have absolute faith in Dafa. I will not go to the hospital. If I really died, you should just dress me in some yellow clothing, and that’s all.”
My third son and second daughter left after vocalizing their great displeasure.
My third daughter didn’t find out about my situation until the next morning, so she came to see me with my second daughter and a practitioner.
They found me shivering with cold under the blanket even with my down jacket on. I was also running a high fever.
They woke me up and I struggled to sit up.
My third daughter said, “Dad, practitioners have to look inward whenever something happens. You have to find out where you have been amiss.”
When I started to talk about my trip to Dongliao Baiqan, I uncovered my attachments to fame and gain. I was in my 80’s then, why was I still so eager to go the distance of a few hundred miles to help design an orchard?!
All my life, I have loved to hear praise. This heart of wanting name and fame must go.
We spent the next hour sending righteous thoughts. Then, we studied the Fa.
I got better and better. On the sixth day, I completely recovered. I had successfully overcome death.
From that experience, I came to know there’s no small thing in cultivation. A mere thought could end up as a big problem.
And from that time on, whenever anything happens to me, my nine children never mention taking medicine or going to hospital. They all understood Dafa’s power and magic.
One night in January 2014, I felt chills even when the room temperature was 27 degrees Celsius and I was wearing two cotton-padded vests.
My third daughter came over to study the Fa with me. After that, I laid myself down.
The next morning, right after the first exercise, my knees buckled. I went limp, fell kneeling by the side of my bed, and couldn’t continue with the rest of the exercises.
I told my third daughter I dreamed I fell into a deep place when I was doing the meditation exercise.
I knew in my heart I was being giving a hint I was having problems in my cultivation.
I felt cold. I couldn’t eat. I kept coughing and spitting. The existing large sack in my stomach also bloated up. The pain was so severe, I couldn’t even get out of bed.
That sack had been a problem for a few years, and often caused me pain, so severe that sometimes I couldn’t eat. It’s just that this time, I felt it’s worse than ever.
I kept reciting Hong Yin, but in the afternoon on the second day of the Chinese New Year, I couldn’t even send righteous thoughts or do any exercise.
All night, two of my sons looked after me and my third daughter continued to send righteous thoughts for me.
The next day, I was feeling fine. My fourth son was so elated, he decided we needed to celebrate. My children drove me to a restaurant where they ordered two tables.
Because of me, nobody had the mood to enjoy the coming of the new year. Now, we could all finally relax and have a little fun.
In the evening, I was once again in very bad shape. My third daughter asked me to repeat after her what Master says: "I'm Li Hongzhi's disciple, I don't want other arrangements or acknowledge them" (Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Lantern Festival)
I repeated after her, over and over and over. The more I repeated, the more I felt energized.
Yet, all through the night, my coughing and spitting continued. The next morning, I couldn’t do the exercises.
On the afternoon of the fourth day, I was still lying in bed. My third daughter was in my room looking at the Minghui website.
All of a sudden, she ran and knelt down in front of Master’s portrait, saying, "Master, I knew what my dad did. He did wrong. When he got angry, he had declared he would no longer practice. Master, please forgive him. Please save my dad."
I confessed, "Yes, I did say that several times. What do I do now?"
My third daughter said, “Hurry and call on Master! Practice is not child's play. The old forces will seize this loophole, persecute you, and take away your life.”
I quickly put my palms together, placed them in front of my chest, and said to Master’s portrait, "Master, I was wrong. I’ve done wrong. Cultivation practice is a serious matter. I do want to practice. I will practice seriously. Master, please save me."
In the evening, two practitioners came over. We studied the Fa and sent righteous thoughts together.
I did the fourth exercise. When it was over, my knees buckled and I fell. My stomach began to ache.
My third daughter asked me to recite the Fa and to deny all arrangements of the old forces.
Everybody there sent forth righteous thoughts together. After about 20 minutes, I was able to sit up. We continued to send righteous thoughts for another 40 minutes.
When they saw I was okay, they left to distribute Dafa materials.
I slept. When I woke in the middle of the night, I felt well and could get up to have a drink of water.
On the morning of the fifth day of the new year, I was able to finish all five exercises. My strength had returned and I felt relaxed and comfortable.
I shared with my practitioner family members words from my heart. I told them, "I have looked inward.
“At home, I’m your father and you are all children who show me filial piety. I have been in the habit of speaking my mind. I have not practiced speech cultivation. I have not been serious about my practice.
“All along, I thought, if I do the three things, I will be able to consummate and go home with Master. I was wrong.
“To keep thinking of going home is an attachment of pursuit. That’s wrong. I studied the Fa no less, but it’s superficial because I have not allowed the Fa into my heart. That’s not right either.
“I can’t keep letting Master down and have Master constantly worry about me any more."
Later, I had a dream. I dreamed of a vast hillside, planted full of green onions, all tall and thick. Many people there told me I was the owner of this onion field.
My third daughter was happy and said to me, "Dad, these onions have to be your sentient beings."
I came to a sudden realization. Master is so compassionate. He doesn’t give up on me. He saved my life, and is encouraging me.
Seeing me back to health, all my children were overjoyed. My whole family of more than thirty members gathered together to eat a family reunion meal.
At the table, my third son spoke up with emotion, "I thank Dafa’s Master. I thank Dafa for saving our dad's life. I thank all practitioners who helped send righteous thoughts for my dad."
Everybody present all agreed that Falun Dafa is good.
I was also very emotional, I stood up and said: "Thank You, Master! Thank you Dafa! Let’s all give thanks to the life-saving Falun Dafa!"
Since that time, the big sack in my stomach was also completely gone.
From the physical changes in me, everybody once again witnessed Falun Dafa’s extraordinary power.
Now, I am 93 years old. I can hear perfectly. I read without the need to wear reading glasses.
I have no language to express my gratitude for Master's compassion. I have no words to describe the care Master has bestowed on me for the past 21years.
I can only cherish Dafa in all ways possible, to cultivate with diligence, to advance, and advance further!