Young Practitioner: Finding My Way Back to Cultivation

(Minghui.org) I am a young Falun Dafa practitioner, 28 years old, and fortunate to have been born into a family of Falun Dafa practitioners. From a young age, I memorized Hong Yin with my mother and did other things for Dafa with her. I often went out with her at night to distribute Dafa informational materials and post truth-clarification signs, unafraid of the persecution at that time. My mother and I encouraged each other, and, as a young child, I was happy and content.

Getting Lost in the Mundane World

As I grew older, various temptations came my way, and my mother got busier due to changes at work, and she was less available to guide and supervise me. Consequently, I started to relax and drift away from Dafa. Even with Master’s support, I barely passed the entrance exam for a local good high school. My classmates and teachers called me lucky. I knew that it was all due to Master’s blessings, but I failed to cherish the hard-won opportunity.

As I spent more time living at school, I gradually fell into bad habits, losing myself in online games and even engaging in romantic relationships, smoking, and fighting. I eventually became a problem student. I neglected my studies, and before the university entrance exam, I chose to get out of it by taking an easier exam to go to a vocational college. I then began a three-year college program.

After I graduated, I was assigned to work in a state-owned enterprise. During this time, I fell in love, got married, and my wife and I had a son. Tempted by the chaotic mundane world, I indulged in it without restraint, lingering at the crossroads of cultivation without truly stepping onto the path of cultivation.

Awakening from the Pandemic and Returning to Cultivation

In 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19 shocked me as I saw vibrant lives suddenly snuffed out. I wondered if this was the beginning of the great elimination. When the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) abruptly lifted its strict pandemic control measures, and everyone around me except my mother got infected, I realized something significant.

My wife and I were not spared. We had body aches, persistent coughs, and severe throat pain. My mother advised us, “You two should practice Falun Dafa. You’ll recover faster.” I readily agreed, and my wife and I began practicing with my mother.

That evening, my righteous thoughts were extraordinarily strong while doing the Dafa exercises. For the first time, I followed my mother to do exercise two, the Falun Standing Stance, for an hour, and at that time, a strong desire to cultivate arose from deep within me. The next day, our COVID-19 symptoms began to subside, and we fully recovered in a few days. My wife and I marveled at the miraculous nature of Dafa. From then on, I started studying the Fa and doing the exercises, slowly returning to the path of cultivation.

Master Helped Me Avoid a Potentially Disastrous Car Accident

One December, I drove my parents, wife, and one-year-old son back to my hometown to visit my grandfather. We were on a country road, approaching a fork, when my mother suddenly warned me to be cautious of a car on the left.

Due to poor visibility, however, I didn’t see the speeding car that struck us from the left and flung our car to the side of the road on the edge of a deep ditch. Fortunately, the only large boulder on the roadside stopped us. Otherwise, the car would have overturned, and we would have been seriously injuried.

The car hit us on the driver’s side. I was stunned, and my son began to cry in shock. My mother and wife immediately started reciting, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.”

My son had a large bump on his head, but after a nap at home, it disappeared. When the insurance agent asked if I was injured, I recalled Master’s teaching about how good or bad outcomes arise from a single thought. I firmly said, “I’m fine.” Although my back hurt a little, I maintained righteous thoughts and did the exercises that night before going to bed.

The next day, perhaps as a test, the pain worsened, but I continued to do the exercises with steadfast righteous thoughts, and by the third day, I had recovered. Protected by Master, I was safe and overcame a significant tribulation. The car was totaled.

When I think back on this incident, I’m still fearful, but my entire family was unharmed, and I am deeply grateful for Master’s compassionate protection.

I Quit Smoking

Young as I was, I had smoked for over 10 years. After I began to cultivate, I knew that, as a practitioner, I should quit. However, due to my lack of determination, I struggled to do so. One day after smoking, my heart started to bother me and I had shortness of breath, and I realized that Master was giving me a hint. I made a resolute decision, threw all my cigarettes and lighter into the trash, and vowed to quit smoking this time.

The next day was the hardest. I felt weak and drowsy, and had to keep reminding myself that, to be a true cultivator, I had to face this challenge head-on. I thought the difficulty would pass since there were no cigarettes at home. But just then, a neighbor invited my wife, son, and me to her house for dinner. I was the same age as the neighbor’s son and daughter-in-law, and we got along well.

After dinner, they invited us and a male friend to the night market. Both men started smoking at the market and offered me a cigarette. Seeing how uncomfortable I was, my wife said, “If you’re really suffering, just have one.” At that moment, a voice in my head urged me to take the cigarette and have a puff to ease the discomfort. But another voice reminded me to stay firm in my righteous thoughts. Finally, I recited the formula for sending righteous thoughts, rejected the unhealthy thought, and got through the ordeal.

From that day on, I read Master’s teachings on quitting smoking several times daily, and eventually, I completely kicked the 10-year habit. My wife was astonished, knowing how many times I had unsuccessfully tried to quit. This time, however, I treated it as an attachment to be eliminated, and with Master’s support, I quit smoking. My wife was impressed by my willpower and marveled at the miraculous nature of Dafa.

Master Arranged Time for Me to Cultivate

After the New Year, I was doing the exercises and studying the Fa daily. However, since I work on the front line in a production workshop, there are times when production volume increases in my department, and it is common to have to work overtime until 11 or 12 p.m. This was going to make it difficult for me to study the Fa and do the exercises consistently.

I had not been cultivating for long, and I was eager to have time for Fa study and the exercises, but I knew we were about to get busy. I silently asked Master for help. It turned out that my former team leader was transferred to another department where, during the busiest times, we would only have to work overtime until 7 p.m., and the pay was slightly better. He then contacted me, saying he wanted to transfer me to his department to assist him. Miraculous! When I told my wife about this, she exclaimed, “Master is truly great!” This gave me ample time for Fa study and the exercises. I am very grateful to Master.

I had wandered in the polluted world for decades, but compassionate Master did not give up on this unworthy disciple and finally led me aboard the last ship to sail in the Fa. I will always remember Master’s teachings, diligently cultivate, and follow Master to return to my true home.