(Minghui.org) Lan Shizhe, a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor in Taiwan, and his wife Li Yiling, a nurse, grew up in Falun Dafa practitioner families. They met at a Falun Dafa activity and eventually got married. Under the guidance of Falun Dafa’s principles, they encourage and help each other on their mutual journey of cultivation and in their medical careers.

Lan Shizhe and Li Yiling

Lan Shizhe, Li Yiling and their children do the Falun Dafa exercises together.

During the summer of 2003 when Shizhe was in the second year of medical school, he noticed that his mother was reading a book titled Zhuan Falun. His mother strongly recommended that Shizhe read the book. After reading Zhuan Falun once through, Shizhe decided to practice Falun Dafa.

Shizhe wasn’t in the best state of mind at that time, and had shown symptoms of depression. Although he was a Chinese medicine major, he had to study both Chinese and Western medicine, based on the requirement of his university. Without any time to rest, he had to take the Western medicine courses during the regular semester and the Chinese medicine courses during the summer.

After being stressed out for a long time Shizhe found himself becoming anxious and restless. He couldn’t concentrate during classes and wanted to get outside for a break. He felt that life was meaningless and gloomy. He often asked himself, “What’s the purpose of life?”

Shizhe suddenly saw the light when he read the section in Zhuan Falun about qigong being a cultivation practice. He said, “I realized that’s how life should be. I have always enjoyed reading about prehistorical civilizations and legends. When I read Master’s teaching about cultivation principles, it echoed in my heart. I naturally agreed with what he said.” 

Shizhe didn’t do any Falun Dafa exercises at that time. He read the book often, and felt himself being reinforced by a warm flow of energy, which filled his heart with hope. The symptoms of depression, including pessimism, anxiety, and negative thoughts began to disappear bit by bit, and eventually were gone. He was grateful for Master’s compassion from deep in his heart.

Shizhe used to have problems rejecting bad thoughts, as if struggling in a muddy abyss. Even though his rationality told him to reject the bad thoughts, he simply couldn’t. He couldn’t help break out into tears when thinking that Master probably wouldn’t be able to accept a disciple who had such bad thoughts. A few days before the end of his winter break, he asked his mother to teach him how to do the Falun Dafa exercises. 

Shizhe was excited to start practicing Falun Dafa. He couldn’t wait to share it with his best friend in school. To his surprise, his friend said, “My roommate is practicing Falun Dafa too.” As he uttered this sentence, his roommate happened to walk over and heard their conversation. He mentioned that he and another student in the School of Nursing did the Falun Dafa exercises every morning. Shizhe joined them in doing the exercises as a group. When his friend’s roommate graduated, he passed the Falun Dafa banner to Shizhe. Although he was a new practitioner, Shizhe started a Falun Dafa student organization during the pandemic, hoping that more people would be able to benefit from this great practice. 

A Desire to Practice Falun Dafa

Yiling’s mother started practicing Falun Dafa when Yiling was little. She didn’t require that Yiling practice with her. Yiling had always thought Master’s teaching were great, but thought that beliefs were for adults. She considered herself not ready for cultivation.

As she had an independent and outgoing personality, Yiling left home for a nursing school after graduating from middle school. She stayed active in student organizations and served as a leader in activities and camps. As the most important exam approached on her fifth year of nursing school, she realized that she was behind and wouldn’t be able to pass. She felt stressed. Her mother suggested she calm down and read the book Zhuan Falun. It took Yiling six months to finish reading Zhuan Falun, and she decided to cultivate. She attended a nine-day Falun Dafa lecture series.

After Yiling started to concentrate on her preparation for the exam, her mind became amazingly clear. She passed the exam and was admitted to her dream university, the National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences. Yiling was happily surprised to find three Udumbara flowers on her dorm windowsill. She viewed them as Master’s encouragement for her to cultivate Dafa.

Yiling used to have a habit of gossiping among girls, but got rid of the habit once she decided to cultivate. “Ever since I read the book Zhuan Falun, I became strict about my own speech. I quit talking about others. Sometimes I heard about what other people had said about me, but I dismissed this issue,” Yiling said. “Several of my classmates told me that I looked prettier once I started cultivating. They also said I was kind and sincere. Under my influence, their relationships got better. It’s all because they benefited from the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.”

During her college years, Yiling attended group exercises and Fa-study sessions regularly. She read all of Master’s teachings during the Youth Falun Dafa practitioners’ camp. She later got involved in making NTDTV programs and felt that her previous experiences had been put into good use. 

Getting Married and Cultivating Together

Shizhe also joined a team of Falun Dafa practitioner musicians to write music, and later joined the Tian Guo Marching Band. He met Yiling when working on a health program for NTDTV. 

They got married and started a happy family. Under the guidance of the same principles, they reflect upon themselves for any shortcomings and attachments at times of disagreement, and advance in cultivation hand-in-hand with mutual respect and support. They are also raising their sons in the same way, leaving room for their self-development. The key to their happy family life are Falun Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.