(Minghui.org) I am a farmer in the Southwest mountainous region of Sichuan Province, and I started to practice Falun Dafa in 2002. The Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) persecution of Dafa practitioners was rampant by that time, and practitioners were constantly demonized by the state-run media. So why did I start practicing?
Waiting to Die
I contracted rheumatoid arthritis in my 40s. Both of my knee joints became deformed and I often felt dizzy. I also had a hernia, but could not recover despite several surgeries. The medical system was not very good where I lived, and I didn't have money for treatment at a larger hospital in the city. My lower abdomen was often swollen and painful, but I couldn’t do anything about it.
I had to use two wooden sticks as crutches when I walked, and I could only move slowly with small steps. I was later bedridden and couldn't take care of myself.
I have five children. The youngest was only four years old at the time, and my eldest had not reached adulthood, but they had to take over the family workload. My situation worsened, and the doctor said that I had little time left. My family had even prepared the coffin for me.
An old friend came to see me in 2002, and brought me a copy of Zhuan Falun. I was 58 at the time. He told me that the book was very good. “Take a look at it and learn the exercises.”
Falun Dafa had not spread to our region yet, so all I knew about Dafa was from the state-run media.
I read the book while in bed, and finished it in seven days. On the eighth day, the bulge on my stomach was gone, and I felt very comfortable.
I had been ill for eight years and bedridden for two, but the day after I finished reading Zhuan Falun, I was feeling much better and got out of bed.
Cultivation
The illness seemed to come back a day later, and I felt even worse than before. I again lay in bed and couldn’t move, but then I remembered Master Li’s (the founder) Fa:
“You should not always worry that it is an illness, for this fear of illness is an attachment and it can bring you trouble just the same. In cultivation one needs to eliminate karma, and that is painful. How can one increase gong comfortably?” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun)
My family wanted to call a doctor, but I told them not to. I also didn’t take any medicine. The hernia disappeared the following day. My body felt so light and refreshed – Master had cleansed my body. I had been tortured by these illnesses for so many years but had recovered within a short time.
It has been 18 years, and to this day the hernia has not come back, and I haven't had arthritis or dizzy spells.
After hearing my story, even the most stubborn of people believed in the miraculous power of Dafa and many of them agreed to quit the CCP and its youth organizations.
During the early days of my cultivation, I had a tribulation that helped me eliminate the attachment to money. A business wanted to buy wood from me, and they agreed to take care of all the documents. But after taking away the wood they didn’t do it. When the forestry officials found out they confiscated the 800 yuan that I had made from the sale.
So I lost both the wood and the money, which was not a small amount for me at the time. The wood was from the trees that I had grown from saplings, which took a long time to grow, and much effort. If it had happened before I started practicing cultivation, with my strong personality, I would have retaliated.
Master said,
“In this complicated environment of everyday people, you should be clear-minded and knowingly lose in terms of interests. When your vested interest is snatched away by others, you will not go to compete and fight for it like others. With different xinxing interference, you will suffer losses. In this difficult environment, you will temper your will and improve your xinxing. Under the influence of different ill thoughts from everyday people, you will be able to reach above and beyond.” (Lecture Eight, Zhuan Falun)
I followed Master’s teachings and put down my thoughts of getting the money back, which would have been impossible for me in the past. As a result, I was able to take a step forward on my path of cultivation and improve my xinxing.
Master Li Protected Me
Soon after I started to practice Falun Dafa I understood why practitioners were all clarifying the facts of Dafa – it was to help Master awaken the conscience of people. I understood that many people were previously divine beings and came down to earth to wait for Dafa. However, because of the lies and slanderous propaganda by the CCP, many people were deceived and lost their way. If they were to go on like that, they would not only lose their chance to learn Dafa, but they would be eliminated along with the CCP. Therefore, Dafa practitioners must clarify the facts to awaken their conscience.
I also understood that certain Dafa practitioners had made vows with Master, and must fulfill their mission to reach consummation.
Knowing this, I began to go out and let people know about Falun Dafa. It had only been about 40 days since my illnesses had disappeared, but I walked 30 miles roundtrip one night and posted stickers that read “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” along the way. I returned home by dawn.
I was reported to the authorities in 2003. I had only been studying the Fa for a year at the time and didn't have a good grasp of Fa-principles. The first two times I was reported, with the human thought of “a wise man knows when to retreat,” I left home and stayed away for half-a-year each time to avoid being harassed by the police. I had traveled over half of China and sometimes got by with only a bottle of water and a bun each day. I had suffered a lot and wasted precious time to clarify the truth to people.
The next time I was reported I had a better understanding of the Fa and decided not to go into hiding. Master said,
“Gather up and rescue the beings that you are to save! Have righteous thoughts and righteous actions, dissolve all hindrances, and spread the facts widely. Divine beings are among men.” (“To the European Fa Conference in Stockholm,” The Essentials of Diligent Progress Vol. III)
I thought that practitioners were doing the most sacred things, so why should I hide if I hadn’t done anything wrong. I figured that if the police came, they would want to hear the truth about Dafa.
A man reported me to the police when I told him about Falun Dafa near his home. It just so happened that a group of people came at the same time to seek revenge on him for something he had done to them. They broke his windows and beat him up badly. When three police officers arrived they said to him, “You were beaten up. Why do you make a false accusation that it was Falun Dafa?” The police refused to process his complaint about me and left.
I realized that when my mind was on the Fa, Master would protect me. It was also a warning to that person who reported me. From then on, he didn't report me again.
Losing Two Sons In 10 Days
My youngest son became extremely ill while he was working in Guangdong Province, and returned home on April 21, 2018. I spent over 100,000 yuan and sent him to the city’s hospital for treatment. However, he passed away several days after leaving the hospital. Then, 10 days later, my eldest son died in a motorbike accident.
Losing two sons in 10 days is not something most people could bear, but I knew that as a practitioner I must use the Fa to measure everything and do things in accordance with Master’s teachings.
Master said,
“You are unable to interfere with the lives of others, and neither can you control others’ fates, including those of your wife, sons, daughters, parents, or brothers. Can you decide those things?” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)
One’s life and death are pre-determined and everything has its arrangements. I spent 100,000 yuan on my youngest son and then he left; and so the debt between us was paid. My eldest son died in an accident and our predestined relationship of father and son was over. Each person has his or her own fate.
How could I still be confused, sad, and angry over their deaths? A lot of sentient beings are still waiting to be saved. If I were to get stuck in sorrow, I wouldn't be able to fulfill my prehistoric vows. Moreover, my sons witnessed the miracle that happened to me after I started practicing Dafa. They really respected Dafa and so Master has already arranged a good place for them.
My grandson came home to make arrangements for his father’s funeral. Many people urged him to get compensation from the motorcycle rider that caused the fatal accident and said that he should at least pay for the funeral costs. I thought that as a practitioner, I should follow a higher xinxing standard and told my grandson, “Everyone is sad when this kind of thing happens. The motorcycle rider didn’t do it on purpose. We are all fellow villagers and we see each other all the time. It’s best not to form resentment between the two families. Be kind to others. It will be better in the long run.”
Not Fighting for Personal Gain
After losing two sons, I encountered two tribulations that tested my attachment to personal gain. I maintained my xinxing and tried to follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.
Just before my youngest son passed away, he had bought a piece of land to build a house. After he passed away, the seller took back the land and farmed it, without giving any money back to us. My friends were outraged and said that I must get the money back. From an ordinary people’s point of view, it may be the right thing to do, so in my mind I agreed with it.
However, my legs began to hurt that night and I couldn’t even stand. I looked inward to see where my xinxing was off. I realized that it was not a coincidence the land was taken back by the seller. Master said, “If a debt is owed, it must be paid.” (Lecture Three, Zhuan Falun)
My youngest son must have owed that person something in a previous life and he paid them back in this lifetime. If I went and fought for the land then wouldn’t I be carrying the debt? How could I go home with Master then? Once my mind was clear on the Fa, my legs felt a lot better.
I partnered with another person and bought a large buffalo to help farm a field. After he used it, he secretly sold it for 16,000 yuan and didn’t give any of the money to me. My apprentice was very angry. He said, “They know that your sons have passed away, and think they can now bully you!”
He got some friends together and planned to go to that family to forcibly take their cows and pigs and sell them. From an ordinary people’s perspective, my partner had really done something unreasonable and was taking advantage of me. I couldn't hold back my anger and didn’t oppose my apprentice’s idea.
But two days before they were set to do it, my legs suddenly worsened. They hurt so bad that I couldn’t get off the bed. I immediately looked inward and thought about things from the Fa's perspective.
My mind became clear. I judge things from the Fa and do not follow everyday people. I realized that I probably owed my partner in a previous life and I needed to pay him back. If I got back the money, then wouldn’t I be refusing to pay back what I owed, and wouldn’t I be acting just like an ordinary person?
When my mind was straightened, the pain in my legs disappeared. So I stopped my apprentice from doing what they had planned.
When I was young, I was deeply influenced by the CCP's ideological education and had formed many bad habits and had a vicious and aggressive mentality. I was impulsive, often got into fights, tended to go to extremes, and just did whatever I felt like. If I hadn't practice Falun Dafa, I would for sure be fighting for things when I suffered losses like that.
But, with Master’s guidance, I am paying attention to my thoughts and actions at all times. When I speak, I watch my language and make sure I don’t say any hurtful words. This is completely different from my past, when I often hurt others because I only cared about venting my anger.
I can now peacefully get along with everyone around me. They all say things like, “Your temper has completely changed. You're now so calm and kind.”
They respectfully call me “uncle,” as someone they regard as a close acquaintance. I tell them that my changes would not be possible without Master’s help.
People Are Waiting to Be Saved
The CCP virus exploded around the world earlier this year due to the Chinese communist regime purposely hiding information on this deadly virus. My brother-in-law passed away in February and I needed to travel to his place for his funeral. I thought it was also a great opportunity to clarify the facts to the people there because there were few Dafa practitioners in that area.
I put a Falun Dafa sticker on a telegraph pole near my brother-in-law’s home that was in a very visible location. Soon someone stood there to read it and then called others around, “Come here! This is the secret of how to avoid the plague.”
Then others surrounded the pole, and someone read it out loud, “The secret of how to avoid the plague: sincerely recite the nine characters. ‘Falun Dafa is good; Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’”
Then, more and more people came to look at it. I was very touched and felt how sentient beings are eagerly waiting to be awakened.
