(Minghui.org) The 21st Peru Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Lima on November 26, 2023, at the Convention Center of the Catholic University of Peru. Twelve practitioners talked about how they followed the teachings of Dafa in their daily lives and at work and experienced positive changes. Practitioners from across Peru including many new practitioners attended the conference.
The 21st Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Lima on November 26.
Practitioners spoke at the conference.
Solid Cultivation and Improving Oneself
Violeta said she experienced many incidents related to her cultivation looking back over the past year. As a result, she even gave up important projects and events. “This gave me an opportunity to see the attachments that I must eliminate, including ego, resentment, jealousy, blaming others, attachment to fame, and sentimentality to family members,” she said. “I’ve now realized I must cultivate solidly and improve my xinxing because I did not do well.”
With her technological and marketing skills, Violeta raises awareness about Dafa on social media and post related articles. She works diligently and cooperates with other practitioners with righteous thoughts.
Violeta also knows time is limited and she needs to improve quickly in cultivation. “Master has reminded us that we have to do better in the final steps and cannot slack off. I also feel the urgency to overcome resentment, jealousy, criticizing others, and other attachments so that I can improve quickly,” she said.
When facing xinxing conflicts, Violeta said we have to handle these with righteous thoughts. “Every conflict is an opportunity to elevate myself, is a test to see if I can remain undisturbed, and to see if I can handle issues like a practitioner and get rid of wrong notions.”
Considering Things Like a Practitioner
Maria said that when she first began practicing Falun Dafa she felt an immense joy. Her body felt light, her mind became calm, and she had great inner peace. As her attachments surfaced, however, she did not understand that getting rid of them was an important part of cultivation. This included resentment. “Some practitioners became resentful and stopped [practicing]. The old forces took advantage of their weaknesses, pushing them to abandon cultivation,” she said.
While cooperating as one body, practitioners are able to advance quickly, Maria added. She believes practitioners need to do better at helping each other. “We have a sacred mission that requires us to consider things like a practitioner, not an everyday person. We have to put our human notions and sentimentality aside.”
The pursuit of happiness, attachment to comfort, and fear of suffering slowed her down in cultivation. Although she’s practiced for over 20 years, Maria noticed she still has not been able to eliminate these attachments. The old forces took advantage of this and left her confused. She even doubted cultivation and her mission in Dafa. This brought her additional suffering, making it more painful to cultivate.
“Nonetheless, I could feel Master Li's (Dafa’s founder) compassion and care all along. This is powerful and helped me cultivate,” Maria explained.
The interaction with her children also helped her to see her attachments, and she became more tolerant and compassionate. She expected them to love and comfort her and make her happy. That was why she could not understand their bad attitude. “Then I realized this is part of my cultivation and improvement, not so-called injustice. Their attitude toward me also changed,” she said.
Gratitude Beyond Words
José from Venezuela began to practice Falun Dafa in 2019, but he felt he did not cultivate seriously until 2022. At age 20, he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a disease modern medicine considers incurable. Because of the communist system in Venezuela, José went to Peru for treatment.
Although José took all the prescribed medicines and went on a special diet, his condition persisted. Considering himself a good person, he began to doubt if God existed. He also understood God with everyday principles. “One day a relative visited me in Lima and explained it was me who caused my illness and that I should meditate,” José recalled.
His parents also found a group of Falun Dafa practitioners who were doing the Dafa exercises at a local park, so José joined them. A month later, he was able to meditate for one hour and he was able to do the second exercise for 30 minutes.
José also understood Falun Dafa could not only improve physical health but also lead a person to higher levels. “I understood that it was a method of cultivation and that I have to make more effort to eliminate my many attachments. I stopped drinking, having lustful thoughts, and I gave up my attachment to being thin. No words can thank Master for everything he has done for me,” José said.
A New Beginning
Nagdelis is also from Venezuela and has lived in Lima for five years. After she began practicing Falun Dafa over a year ago, she experienced many surprising changes.
Although she comes from a conservative family that emphasized moral values, Nagdelis said she was also still influenced by the lifestyle of young people in modern society. For example, people around her often talked about women’s rights, homosexuality, drugs, promiscuity, social media, and indulging in pleasure.
One day at work, however, Nagdelis began to have a severe headache and the pain continued even after taking medicine. A coworker who practiced Falun Dafa asked if she would be interested in listening to a practitioner’s cultivation experiences. Nagdelis agreed and the pain disappeared immediately.
Surprised by this, Nagdelis asked her coworker to show her the exercises. “From the moment I started to practice and read Falun Gong, I had a series of supernatural experiences,” she said. Furthermore, she stopped her bad behavior such as drinking alcohol, swearing, and wearing clothes that accentuated her figure. “I understood that all these things were messing up my nature and generating attachments,” she continued. “In a few months with the continued study of Falun Dafa’s teachings, my skin improved, the circles under my eyes were less dark, the color of my hair brightened, and even the calluses on my feet disappeared. In general, everything about my body was improving.”
After being in a relationship with another practitioner for a while, Nagdelis realized that it was not appropriate and that they should get married. They scheduled a wedding. “This whole experience helped me to respect Dafa and the cultivation process. Instead of finding excuses for myself, I should focus on looking within and becoming more diligent. I am very thankful for Master’s boundless compassion,” she said.
Feedback from Attendees
Diana began practicing Falun Dafa three months ago.
Diana, who started to practice Falun Dafa three months ago, was pleased to attend the experience-sharing conference. “I am very happy to be here today and to listen to the experience-sharing papers,” she said. She was impressed that other practitioners could overcome difficult situations, be guided by Dafa’s teachings, and be protected by Master. She said it was a wonderful experience.
Julia said the conference helped her a lot.
Julia has practiced Dafa for several years and said she was motivated by other practitioners’ experiences. “This is like a reward on my cultivation path. I believe these stories will motivate us to do better and help each other cultivate diligently,” she said.
Young practitioner Azaleia.
Azaleia, a young practitioner, was very moved by what she heard at the conference. “I am clear that the Falun Dafa teachings of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance will help us become better people in various fields. I will work hard on my cultivation path to keep improving,” she said.
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