Eliminating Selfishness, and Thinking of Others First in All Environments

(Minghui.org) I started practicing Falun Dafa in August 1996. I have since endured many hardships and tribulations, but also experienced Master’s protection.

Even though I realized that the cultivation process involves letting go of selfishness and becoming a person who always thinks of others first, for many years my starting point for doing things was myself.

The following are a few stories about how I discovered and removed my attachment to selfishness.

Eliminating Selfishness When Clarifying the Truth

One of my local coordinators asked me in the winter of 2013 if I could go door-to-door in the surrounding countryside with another practitioner to clarify the truth about Falun Dafa and the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) persecution. I immediately refused without considering it.

I felt regretful and sad after saying no. I looked inward and found the attachment to fear and eliminated it, but I still felt upset.

I continued to look inward, and I realized that I was afraid of being left behind by other practitioners. After all, they did better than I when doing truth clarification. Wasn’t this selfishness and ego?

Master said,

“The old forces don’t dare to oppose our clarifying the truth or saving sentient beings. What’s key is to not let them take advantage of the gaps in your state of mind when you do things.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2002 Conference in Boston, U.S.A.” Collected Teachings Given Around the World, Volume II)

I understood the Fa principles after finding my attachment. It is my responsibility as a Dafa practitioner to clarify the facts and save all sentient beings.

Two days later, a practitioner came and asked if I wanted to go to the countryside and clarify the truth to people door-to-door with her, and I readily agreed.

We worked well together. We treasured every person we met and clarified the truth with knowledge coming from deep within our hearts, and our sincerity touched people. Some thanked us for telling them the facts despite the cold winter, and some invited us to stay for lunch.

When clarifying the truth, I found another attachment that stemmed from selfishness, which was the mindset of comparison. I always asked the other practitioner how many people she persuaded to withdraw from the CCP and its youth organizations. I had a sense of pride and achievement if I had persuaded more people to quit the CCP than she had. I discovered that the root of these thoughts was also selfishness.

I later shared my thoughts about this attachment with other practitioners. I understood further that we clarified the truth to help sentient beings genuinely understand Dafa. We didn’t do it for our own sake, so we shouldn’t validate ourselves and show off.

I now go out daily to help save people, and I no longer think about how many people quit the CCP organizations. Instead, I focus on how to help more people learn the truth better.

Recognizing Selfishness When Facing Persecution

The leader of my workplace once pressured me to write a guarantee statement to give up practicing Falun Dafa, which I refused. They then forced my husband to write the statement on my behalf. Upon hearing about this, I immediately went to my workplace and asked for it. I thought I had to get it back and destroy it. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to achieve consummation, and would lose my virtue.

Looking back, I didn’t think about clarifying the truth to the leaders who were involved. I didn’t realize that I should stop them from doing a bad thing that would harm themselves. I knew that my starting point was selfishness.

On another occasion, I was arrested and detained for 15 days because I told people about Falun Dafa. I felt relieved and thought, “Fifteen days will soon pass.”

While being held, I looked inward and asked myself why I felt relieved when the police announced they would detain me for 15 days. I was afraid of being taken to prison, and thus losing everything. I felt relieved because I could go home after 15 days. The root of all those thoughts, again, stemmed from selfishness.

I understood that the selfishness came from the fake self, because my true self is a being who thinks entirely about the needs of others. My true self got stronger after I was able to find the fake self and then found my true self. The thoughts that originated from the fake self left. For example, I sometimes thought about what I should do if they pressured me to sign a guarantee statement after the 15-day term expired. I knew I would not give up practicing Falun Dafa, and I would not slander Dafa. Then what would be the consequences if I refused to sign the guarantee statement? What would the police do with me in that case? The more I thought about it, the more scared I became. I was so afraid of the police, and so afraid of being persecuted.

I knew the fear did not come from my true self because my true self would not be afraid. I was determined to overcome the fear and eliminate the selfishness. I started to recite the Fa to strengthen my righteous thoughts.

I remembered Master’s words:

“…every person in the entire world was at one point part of my family…” (Teachings Given on Lantern Festival Day, 2003)

I thought, “If every person in the world was part of Master’s family, then they were my family too.” My heart lit up. I was enlightened that I should treasure everyone, and treat the police as my family. At that moment, I was no longer afraid. As a Dafa practitioner, I should clarify the truth to all human beings, and not allow them to commit crimes against Dafa and Dafa practitioners. I told myself I would let go of everything and follow Master’s arrangement.

The afternoon before I was released, the police asked me to sign a lengthy, three-page statement slandering Dafa. I refused and clarified the truth to them with compassion. The head of the detention center said, “It is fine. Let her go.” I returned home without any problem.

Discovering Selfishness When Helping Fellow Practitioners

I also discovered my selfishness when interacting with fellow practitioners.

A practitioner’s wife, who was also a practitioner, died. He missed her very much, often cried, and couldn’t do the three things well. Our local coordinators suggested that another practitioner and I study the Fa with him every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning. She also asked me if we could go out to clarify the truth with him. I agreed, but I was very reluctant because he lived far away and the commute was time-consuming. I thought, “Why didn’t he find someone near his home? Then he wouldn’t need to bother me!”

While thinking this way, my true nature told me, “Isn’t this thought selfish? It is too far from the selflessness required by the Fa. Wasn’t this thing arranged to help me discover my selfishness? This was really a good thing!” I further understood that my fake self was selfish, and always thought about itself. While my true self was completely focused on others, and always put others first.

Therefore, whether it was a hot or a rainy day, I insisted on going to this fellow practitioner’s home and studying the Fa with him. I spent time sharing my experiences with him. He asked us to wait for him at a place so he could join us to clarify the truth. Sometimes he was late 30 or even more than 40 minutes, and sometimes he did not show up. I didn’t have any negative thoughts about him and always thought positively. If he didn’t show up several times, we went to his home, shared with him, and encouraged him to cultivate diligently. I felt that I did what I should do as a practitioner. I wanted to help this fellow practitioners so we could all remain diligent in cultivation.

Disintegrating the Persecution

During the evil party’s so-called “zero out campaign,” many practitioners in my area were harassed by the officers from the local police stations and communities. They were pressured to renounce Falun Dafa, and threatened that their children and grandchildren’s work and college admissions would be affected. The atmosphere was very intense.

A provincial inspection team came to my city to check on the status of the “zero out campaign” situation, and stayed from April 6 to 20, 2021. The police carried out video calls with them at practitioners’ homes so the provincial officers could directly ask practitioners if they still practiced. The police arrested the practitioners in their homes if they refused to give up their faith in Dafa.

The police harassed me as well. Several officers knocked at my door sharply on April 19, 2021. They yelled from outside and asked me to open the door. At that moment, I was very calm. I was not afraid, and had only one thought: I would never let them commit a crime against Dafa.

I looked through the door's viewing glass and saw two police officers in uniform. I said to them from inside, “Please forgive me for not opening the door for you. If you had come to my house as guests, I would welcome you. But you came to persecute me today. Falun Dafa practitioners are good people. You are doing a bad deed if you persecute us. I don’t want to see you do bad things, so I won’t let you enter my home today.”

I had no other thoughts at that moment. I had only one thought, I could not let them do bad deeds because it was not good for them.

I sent forth righteous thoughts while the police attempted to enter my home, but they finally left. My husband saw the local police go with four or five other people waiting downstairs from the balcony window.

I continued to send forth righteous thoughts when the police went downstairs. I felt strong energy within my body. I knew I had done the right thing. I knew I passed this test, because I could finally think of others when I encountered problems.

I still need to eliminate many attachments. I am determined to study the Fa well and live up to the requirements of the Fa. I want to strengthen my true self and do the three things even better.