(Minghui.org) Falun Dafa practitioners in Taipei greeted the first day of 2023 by doing the exercises at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Theater before dawn on New Year’s day. They began gathering before 6 a.m. and started out by meditating. They then did the standing exercises and took a group photo to wish their founder, Mr. Li Hongzhi, a happy New Year.

Practitioners meditate at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Theater on New Year’s day, 2023.

After they finished meditating they moved to Freedom Square, the main entrance of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, and did the four standing exercises.

Group practice on Freedom Square

After practicing all five sets of exercises, everyone was beaming with joy. They took a group photo and wished Master Li a Happy New Year, sincerely expressing their respect and gratitude.

Wishing Master Li happy New Year

Video: Practitioners wish Master a happy New Year.

Wu Hsi-chang, who coordinated the event, said that it was encouraging to get up early and do the exercises together to welcome the new year. He hopes to cultivate diligently and do better this year.

Wu Hsi-chang

Wu Hsi-chang thanked Master for always protecting him, “Master has been protecting me on my journey of cultivation. I am very grateful to Master for giving us this opportunity to practice. I wish him a happy New Year!”

Mr. Wu was a professional soldier who graduated from the Army Academy and retired after 20 years of service. He pointed out that because he was the youngest in his family, he was selfish and self-centered. The biggest change after practicing was that he became more considerate of others.

Mr. Wu has realized that looking inward makes all the difference, and he should cultivate his own heart according to the principles taught by Master. “I noticed that some practitioners changed a lot, but when I encountered issues, I still had emotional ups and downs. My xinxing had not improved. I later enlightened to look within and cultivate a peaceful heart. If you remain calm when facing conflicts, your level has been raised.”

Mr. Wu talked about a conflict he had with another practitioner, “When he told me something before, I would explain it to him, or I would try to change his viewpoint, hoping that he would do what I wanted. But recently I realized that when the other party said something that made me uncomfortable, or I wanted to change him, it was a test.”

“I didn't pass the first test. When I explained to the other party and insisted that I was right, I didn't pass the second test,” Mr. Wu said. “After the third test, I realized that I should let nature take its course. It’s not necessary to change others and make them do what I want. The situation then became peaceful.” Mr. Wu noted that many things were arranged by Master in an orderly manner, and there was no need to follow any method to do them. He said, “As long as our xinxing improves and the heart is in the proper place, things will naturally be done well.”

Su Huan-ying, who works in customer service at a TV station, said that before practicing, she was in poor physical and mental condition. She had problems including depression, social phobia, insomnia, hemorrhoids, and leg cramps. All these illnesses disappeared after she had practiced Falun Dafa for three months.

Su Huan-ying

Ms. Su conscientiously reads the Fa, practices the exercises, and cultivates her xinxing according to Master’s requirements. For a while, she had cramps in her feet and it was painful to walk, but she just believed in Master and Dafa and let go of her worries. “From my understanding, these tribulations are helping purify my body. They are being pushed out, so I must endure a little tribulation, but that is a process. I accepted it happily, let go of my attachment, and did what I had to do.”

Ms. Su had to climb five flights of stairs when she got home. One day, her legs had very painful cramps, but she tried her best to overcome the situation. “I firmly believe that Master is helping me purify my body.” She struggled walking up the stairs, but when she was two steps away from the apartment, she recovered, and her leg cramps completely disappeared and have not returned. “The pain just disappeared.”

Ms. Su suffered from depression and always felt that she was out of tune with others. After she began practicing, she found that many things were not what she thought. She said that when one maintains righteous thoughts everything goes smoothly. “If you know where you should go, just go in that direction. All those melancholy thoughts will disappear naturally.”

After practicing, Ms. Su had a deep understanding of the principle of “letting nature take its course,” and her relationship with her husband improved. “My husband no longer feels that I think he is not good enough, so he wants to change. But I take care of him, he feels taken care of, so he will listen to what I say. It’s like water, when the land is dry, the land will naturally absorb water.”

All the practitioners expressed their gratitude to Master and wished him a happy New Year.