(Minghui.org) Saving sentient beings is one of the three tasks practitioners vowed to do during the Fa-rectification period.
The Falun Dafa projects I participate in are mostly technical in nature and supplementary to what else I am tasked with. I rarely clarify the truth to people in person. Recently I came to understand that I should save people that I have predestined relationships with. But I have not really done anything about that, partly because my living conditions do not allow me to turn on a cell phone and partly because of my attachment to seeking comfort.
Two days ago I had a dream that a tall building near me was on fire. I was watching it from below. I saw even the electric wires above the roof start to burn. I thought that I should do something to stop the fire, yet it seemed I did not have any sense of urgency. People were running all over while I was wondering, “What number am I supposed to call about a fire? Is it 119 or 911?”
The next scene was in my room. I was surrounded by gifts from many of my childhood friends.
After I woke up, I almost forgot about the dream. When I was sending righteous thoughts at 6 a.m., Master showed the scenes from the dream again. What was Master trying to tell me? Suddenly, I realized that Master was showing me that it is urgent to save people, that I must save those people in my world!
This was not the first time Master had given me a hint that I should save people, but I had never sensed it was urgent like I did this time!
After sending righteous thoughts, I tried to warm up a frozen bun in the microwave for my breakfast. The microwave seemed to be working all right, turning and lighting up as usual, but when I removed the bun, it was still frozen.
I wondered, “Was Master giving me another hint? What was it?” I talked to another practitioner, who first said my microwave was too old. Two days later, she shared her understanding that I might have been doing something in a rush and that I should calm down. I tried the microwave again—it still wouldn’t warm anything up. Even now, I still don’t understand what Master tried to tell me.
One morning, a practitioner told me to pay attention to my safety. She said my identity might have been exposed to the authorities and suggested that I leave this city.
I was worried. Then, there was a knock at my door and I could hear voices—they sounded like a man and a woman.
I live in a rental. I did not use my true identity when I rented the place or when I registered for internet service. I do not have any relatives or friends in this city, so I was guessing they might be neighborhood committee members coming to get people vaccinated or police officers who noticed I was using software to circumvent the internet firewall. I didn’t open up. I did not cultivate well enough that I would dare to open the door to clarify the truth to whoever knocked on my door.
I thought I heard a voice outside say, “Call the police” or something similar and was suddenly fearful. I have a lot of electronic equipment and provide technical support to other practitioners, so my safety concerns them, too.
I heard more people talking outside. Someone said, “No one is home. Let’s come again in the evening.”
I was worried. What should I do? Should I send righteous thoughts? But I was not sure who those people were. I thought, “Well, they knocked on my door very hard. No matter who they were, they were disturbing me. They must have been sent by the authorities. I will send righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil.” I sat down, crossed my legs, and started sending righteous thoughts.
Recently, I was trying to memorize the last paragraph of Lecture One in Zhuan Falun. I hadn’t memorized it completely although I’d been trying to for several days. Whenever I tried to memorize this paragraph, I cried uncontrollably. I thought of how difficult it was for Master to rectify the Fa, how kind Master is to us practitioners, and how I did not live up to the standard of a practitioner. I kept sobbing when I recited the paragraph.
But each time I recited it, I understood more. This part especially touched me deeply:
“Our Falun Dafa will protect students from deviating. How does it protect you? If you are a true cultivator, our Falun will safeguard you. I am rooted in the universe. If anyone could harm you, he or she would be able to harm me. Put simply, that person would be able to harm this universe.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
Just a few days before, I was talking with a fellow practitioner about Master protecting me many times in dangerous situations. This was a new test—I knew it was a test. I knew all the “danger” was a false illusion. Yet, I was nervous.
I began to recite these teachings repeatedly:
“...When disciples have ample righteous thoughtsMaster has the power to turn back the tide”(“The Master-Disciple Bond,” Hong Yin II)
““I’m Li Hongzhi’s disciple, I don’t want other arrangements or acknowledge them”—then they won’t dare to do that. So it can all be resolved. When you can really do that, not just saying it but putting it into action, Master will definitely stand up for you.” (Teachings Given on Lantern Festival Day, 2003)
“Should you have fear,it will seize upon youIf thoughts are righteous,evil will collapseThe cultivator’s mindis loaded with FaSend righteous thoughts,and rotten demons explodeGods walk the earth,validating the Fa”(“What’s to Fear?” Hong Yin II)
Then I began to send righteous thoughts.
However, I was still nervous. I thought, “I could not warm up food like usual. Was that a hint from Master that I should leave this place?” I planned to pack and look for a chance to leave.
I could still hear voices outside. I looked around the room. There were so many things! How could I take them all? I could take the important equipment with me. But what about the Dafa books? I could not leave the books! And what about all the electronics? What should I do with them? Were those people still outside? Would they keep monitoring me?
I shut down the internet and changed the password on the computer to a longer one. I began to put the computer and router into a bag. I thought, “I should not tell other practitioners now so I can keep them out of danger."
Another thought told me: “No human method can keep me safe. Why don’t I ask Master for help?”
I sat down, crossed my legs, and started to send righteous thoughts again.
I stood up, washed my hands, and opened the bookcase with Dafa books. I pressed my palms together, begging Master to tell me whether I should leave or stay.
I picked up Zhuan Falun, tried to empty my mind as to which part in Zhuan Falun I wanted to read, and opened the book. I looked at the opened page and smiled. It was Master giving me a hint:
“As a practitioner, if you always think that it is an illness, you are actually asking for it. If you ask for an illness, it will come inside your body.” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun)
“Fear is also a kind of attachment.” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun)
I am a relatively new practitioner. Master has been pushing my level up. In the past, several times I experienced serious tests of my xinxing. I had a strong attachment of fear. When I overcame my fear based on the Fa, I could feel my xinxing improve greatly. However, none of the past tests was as direct as the one that day.
When I spoke with a practitioner the day before, she pointed out I had strong attachments to jealousy, arrogance, and looking down on others. I realized it was true. When I saw her attachments of fear and self-protection, I looked down at her, and I was even sarcastic when I talked to her. Now, I saw my own fear and realized that I was no better.
After packing up some essentials, I turned on the computer and started to work.
After sending righteous thoughts at 6 p.m. it was dark. I was too scared to turn on the light. I remembered the voice I heard during the day say they would come again in the evening.
Would I stay in the dark the whole evening? Would human methods keep me safe? Even if I could pretend that no one was home this night, what about the next day, and the future? I thought, “Master arranged this place for me. I will stay here! No one should disturb me!”
I started to recite the Fa. And I sent righteous thoughts again. The evil elements in another dimension were being dissolved. I felt at peace, so I turned on the light. My fear was gone.
A thought suddenly came to me: “Following Master and saving people in a dignified and upright manner.” Was it my own thought, or was it a hint from Master? I wasn’t actively thinking at that moment. It must have been a hint from Master!
I wrote “Following Master and saving people in a dignified and upright manner” in a notebook. I reminded myself to believe in Master and believe in the Fa.
By this time, most of my fear was eliminated, but I could still feel a little bit of it lingering. I locked the door and closed the curtain. I was working, but my heart jumped whenever I heard a noise outside my door.
I realized I had never paid attention to fear and I had not deliberately cultivated this attachment. Facing a real test, I found my belief in Dafa was not solid. I told myself that Master can take care of anything! I am a divine being myself, and my duty is saving people! How can I let fear dominate me? When I held fear, I treated this persecution as something human. I was wrong!
Late in the night, my mind finally reached complete peace. I know I passed this test in the end. I chose to believe in Master and eliminated my fear—I chose not to leave.