Looking Within and Becoming a Selfless Person

(Minghui.org) I am a 63-year-old Falun Dafa practitioner. After I had been married just more than a year, I coughed up blood one night, and the blood covered a part of the floor. My husband hurriedly asked one of his colleagues to help take me to the hospital. I was diagnosed with tuberculosis symptoms, and after that I was plagued with minor illnesses.

Just when I felt life was hopeless, I was lucky to obtain the precious book, Zhuan Falun, on March 24, 1998. I have been free of illness ever since. Falun Dafa not only gave me a healthy body and purified my soul, it also helped elevate my worldview. It transformed me from a selfish, self-centered, arrogant, fragile, and narrow-minded woman, to a selfless and determined person who lives for others.

My father-in-law passed away more than a decade ago. I remember that not long after his passing, I had the thought that because I’m a Falun Dafa cultivator I should listen to Master’s teachings. I discussed inviting my mother-in-law into our house with my husband. I thought that she would benefit from a change of environment.

After my my mother-in-law came, my husband and I took her shopping at the market to make her feel more comfortable. We bought her pants and a basin for her to wash her feet. We also bought her some fresh food and vegetables. The next day, I went to the mall again to buy her a pair of leather shoes. I cooked delicious meals for her every day. She had stayed with us for just more than 10 days when my husband’s younger brother called, saying, “My wife fell ill and needs to be hospitalized. Have mom go back home to look after the house.” My mother-in-law had no choice but to return home.

My mother-in-law came to my house once and watched some television programs on the sofa. She initially sat as she watched, but after a while she lay down on her side to watch. A while later, she lay down on her front to watch. I thought to myself, “I have never seen an elderly person watch television programs like that, and her health is quite good.” Just then, “looking within” appeared in my mind, and I was awakened. “Do I also have the attachment to seeking comfort?” Through looking within, I found that I really did have that attachment. Sometimes after I finished reading the book, I felt like lying down for a while. Wasn’t this seeking comfort? I became determined to get rid of this attachment. I continued to look within. I found that I looked down on my mother-in-law. Wasn’t I too self-centered and arrogant? On top of that, I felt agitated. Wasn’t that resentment, hatred, and also jealousy? I wanted my mother-in-law to behave the same way as me. Wasn’t that caused by elements from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) evil specter? I was determined to get rid of all these bad things! I wanted to be more humble, tolerant of diversity, and give my mother-in-law freedom. After that, I felt relaxed all over my body.

I remember that my husband once brought my mother-in-law to our house, and after having dinner he had a chat with her. During their conversation, my husband brought up a conflict that she had with my late father-in-law and analyzed the problem’s cause and effect with her. He pointed out the areas in which she had been wrong, but my mother-in-law refused to admit any wrongdoing on her part. No matter how my husband explained, she just would not admit to it. My husband was so furious that he left and went to bed.

I could hear them very clearly in the bedroom while they were chatting in the living room. I thought to myself, “My father-in-law has been gone for a few years now, yet my mother-in-law still has not repented. Being like that is really unbelievable.” I then had a change of thought, “I am wrong. Isn’t this looking externally? Do I also have the habit of refusing to admit my mistakes?” After looking within, I discovered that I did have such a problem with my husband. I was determined to get rid of this bad substance. “As a Dafa practitioner, I have the mission to defend Dafa and save sentient beings. I go out to clarify the truth to save sentient beings. Aren’t the people at home sentient beings waiting to be saved too? I should treat my mother-in-law with kindness unconditionally.” I saw the light and my heart was filled with joy.

My mother-in-law sometimes also stayed at my youngest sister-in-law’s house. This sister-in-law had complained to me that she could not bear my mother-in-law’s habits, words, and behavior, so she often shouted at her. However, my mother-in-law just would not listen, making her so angry that she got small bumps on her neck. I tried to persuade my sister-in-law, and I seemed to have found a confidant. I then thought, “Am I moved by this? Am I thinking like an ordinary person? As a Dafa cultivator, I should demand myself to abide by Dafa’s standards of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance and totally let go of selfishness and self-centeredness. I should treat my mother-in-law with compassion and become an altruistic being.

My mother-in-law came to my house for the Chinese New Year this year. My husband and I increased her living allowance by 2000 yuan [US $278]. She said happily, “I do not need so much money. I don’t have so many expenses. Isn’t everything I eat and wear bought by both of you?”

On the first day of every lunar New Year, more than a dozen people from my mother-in-law’s side of the family, such as her younger brother, nephew, and grandchildren come over to pay their respects to her. Things were similar this year. We booked a restaurant with a big table that could accommodate 20 people. The whole family gathered together and had a great time.

My eldest sister-in-law took me aside and said, “I often tell my friends that my sister-in-law is especially good. She treats my mother especially well, too. My mother likes to go to her house, and we are especially at ease about that. My sister-in-law buys my mother clothes to wear throughout the year and my brother and her have paid for things for my mother’s relatives too. My mother’s medical bills and all her expenses are basically paid for by them, but my sister-in-law has no complaints. Both of them have sacrificed a lot for us and our children, and they are always at a disadvantage.”

I replied, “You just have to recite ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’ It is Dafa that taught me to do this.” She responded, “I often recite ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion- Forbearance is good.’ I recite them when I’m not feeling well, and I also do so when my grandson has a fever.”

In the afternoon, everyone returned home happily. After sending off all the relatives, I tidied up the living room and bedrooms. Despite tiding up for nearly two hours, not only did I not feel tired, I even felt joy. That is because I had seen everyone eating and drinking delightfully. I thought, “What is bliss?” The reply in my heart was, “To become a being who lives for others is true bliss.”

Thank you, Master, for your immense grace!