Elevating in Cultivation While Working for Minghui Radio

(Minghui.org) I joined the Minghui Radio team in November 2020. I’d like to tell you about some of my experiences while participating in this project.

My task included writing the daily news and some editing. I previously worked as an editor for other media, so I assumed that writing and reviewing articles for Minghui Radio would be easy.

However, it was not as easy as I imagined it would be. I thought my articles were well written, but the editors made many changes. I was upset at first. I didn’t understand why other people changed my writing since I was an editor in other media. I even questioned the editor who revised my article, “I couldn’t tell much difference between your changes and my version. Why did you edit my writing so much?” She said, “I mainly revised the sentence structure.”

I found that the requirements were strict. For example, each sentence had to be complete and structured well to include a subject, predicate, and object. The use of punctuation should be logical. The article should be easy to understand. The tone could not be emotional. We cannot use language that Falun Dafa practitioners use among themselves. We should not use words created by the Chinese Communist Party over the years. The language should be concise and professional, and have no unnecessary words.

I never considered most of these things when working for other media. I couldn’t get used to it. As a result, all the articles I polished were drastically revised. I felt a lot of pressure, and I had all kinds of negative thoughts. I even regretted joining this team.

While I was torn, I studied Master’s teachings at the Fa Conference Marking the Tenth Anniversary of the Minghui Website’s Founding.

Master said,

“You need to build up this vehicle [that is Minghui] further, and do even better with it. At the same time, you mustn’t slack off in your personal cultivation, for Minghui will do better and be more remarkable only if you can manage to do better as individuals and in cultivation.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the Fa Conference Marking the Tenth Anniversary of the Minghui Website's Founding,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. X)

I knew the issue at work showed that something was wrong with my cultivation. I realized that I had to work on my cultivation and improve to stay with this project and do it well.

So I started from scratch and put my heart into learning to write the basic news. I copied the correct and frequently used phrases and vocabulary in a notebook and memorized them. After I wrote a news article, I read it a few times before submitting it. I gradually improved. I no longer regretted joining this project, but felt privileged to be part of the team.

When I started writing news, It took me more than five hours a day. After my mindset changed, two hours was enough to finish my assigned tasks. Later on, I gradually took on some polishing work and did it well.

A few practitioners who joined the team when I did left the project. They did not like having their articles revised by others, felt they lost face when their articles were corrected, or because of health reasons.

My Hidden Attachments Lead to a Tribulation

When I audio proofread the broadcast articles, I found it more challenging than it sounds on the surface. Sometimes when I had a problem with my xinxing or my cultivation state was poor, I overlooked obvious mistakes. I always concentrated when I listened to an article being broadcast. Especially when I listened to the part of Master’s Fa, I requested every cell of my body to focus. I usually listened to them several times to ensure there were no mistakes.

I was happy to have the opportunity to read fellow practitioners’ articles. I felt every article was a mirror for me to look inward and find my attachments.

In July 2022, I couldn’t concentrate when sending forth righteous thoughts and fell asleep many times. I often fell asleep when I meditated. I tried to stop, but could not.

I was in pain, so I asked Master to enlighten me and point out what was wrong with me. Soon afterwards another practitioner said she noticed that my body looked crooked when I walked. I didn’t believe it. I asked another practitioner, and she said the same thing. I asked, “Which way does my body lean?” She said, “To the left.” So, I straightened my body to the right. However, when my sister saw me she said I leaned to the right when I walked.

I was at a loss. I realized that there must be some problems in my mindset.

Master taught us,

“What’s not a righteous mind? It refers to a person’s inability to always treat himself as a practitioner. A practitioner will come across tribulations in cultivation. When a tribulation comes, it may manifest as an interpersonal conflict. There will be mind games and the like involved, which directly affect your xinxing. There will be many cases in this regard.” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun)

I knew my physical problem was a manifestation of my cultivation state, so I began to look inward. I found my attachment to fame, showing off, comfort, and self-interest. However, there was no fundamental change in my body. Instead, my situation worsened. My body began to deform, and my back became S-shaped when I sat. Soon the right side of my body began to shrink. I walked with my body leaning forward, one shoulder high and one low.

I realized that I looked within in order to solve the problem instead of wanting to improve my cultivation. This was not in accordance with the Fa, and was not cultivation. I was worried and afraid. That’s when I realized that the wrong mentality can be reflected in a person’s appearance.

While I was at a loss, I proofread an experience sharing article, and the author seemed to have the same issue. It was an article published on the Minghui website on September 8, 2022, titled “Not Cultivating My Speech Leads to Troubles.”

The author said, “After he left my teeth hurt, which made me realize that I must have said something wrong. Later my hip tilted to the left. I couldn’t straighten my back or my neck. Whenever I walked or meditated, my shoulder was out of alignment, and my back hurt. I avoided looking in the mirror because I looked like an old woman with a hunchback.”

I knew it was not accidental that I proofread this article. I then looked inward to see if I had loopholes in cultivating speech. However, that didn’t seem to be my root attachment. I realized there were no role models on the path of cultivation, so I had to cultivate myself solidly and identify my problems on my own.

Master hinted at me again with his boundless compassion. One day when I was meditating, Master’s voice sounded in my mind.

Master said,

“What a strong attachment to fame!” (Lecture Two, Zhuan Falun)

Suddenly, I discovered that my fundamental attachment was to fame. I realized that I had been defending my image. When I encountered problems, my first thought was whether it affected my image. I appeared calm on the surface despite my inner turmoil whenever there was a conflict. However, I looked calm out of my strong desire to protect my reputation, not because I could take it lightly. When I chose which project to participate in, I also measured it against my reputation to see if it was something fellow practitioners would envy or admire.

I had been pursuing fame and never identified or removed this attachment. I felt I was not a true Dafa disciple and didn’t cultivate myself at all. When I thought about it, I felt the problem was severe and that the old forces were coming down on me.

I told Master, “I was wrong. I made a big mistake. I have practiced for over 20 years and have passed countless difficulties and dangers under your protection. However, I thought too highly of myself. I indulged in self-satisfaction and self-appreciation. I failed to live up to Master’s expectations.”

At the same time, I also sent forth righteous thoughts to deny the old forces’ arrangements. After I discovered my fundamental attachment to fame, I felt relaxed, physically and emotionally.

Everything changed after I looked inward. I recovered quickly and no longer needed to look in the mirror to correct my posture, and I was not afraid anymore. I finally passed this difficult time!

I am incredibly grateful to Master for allowing me to be a Falun Dafa practitioner, allowing me to cultivate in the Fa-rectification period, and to participate in the Minghui Radio project.

I no longer treated assignments as tasks. I worked quickly so that other practitioners could listen to and benefit from them as soon as possible. I even proofread the recorded articles during off-duty hours. I hope that practitioners who have become less diligent can learn from my experiences.

I also take the monthly mispronunciation test seriously. I regard it as a privilege to improve my professional skills. Radio Minghui has been my “gas station” on my journey of cultivation. Participating in this project how shown me that I have much to improve on and I can do better.

No matter how far the path of cultivation is or how long it takes, I will be strict with my cultivation and never slack off. I want to cultivate as if I had just started.