(Clearwisdom.net) I began to practice Falun Dafa in October 1997. When recalling my cultivation path, I remember everything vividly. So far, I haven't contributed articles to the Clearwisdom website--not that I didn't think about it, but because I worry about my writing abilities. I was still a child when my mother died, so I dropped out after finishing second grade in elementary school. My family was poor, so I had to take care of our home, and my younger brothers and sisters. After I grew up, I took a job that didn't require a person to have a high literacy level.
I'm not highly educated, so it is difficult for me to write an article. Recently, I read an article on the Clearwisdom website, "From Illiteracy to Editing Articles." That practitioner was illiterate, but she changed through self-study. I thought, "If my fellow practitioner could do this, why couldn't I?" Then, I started to write this article. I debated in my mind, "How to write? Well, it will not be clear! How much detail? No, it will be too lengthy." Finally, I just went ahead and wrote down some of my true cultivation experiences.
I. Truly Believe in Dafa
When I truly believed in Dafa, Teacher purified my body. I kept righteous thoughts and disciplined myself to be a good person.
1. Predestined to Practice Falun Dafa
In 1997, my husband started practicing Falun Dafa. He practiced every morning and evening with fellow practitioners. After one month, I asked him, "What are you practicing?" He replied, "Falun Gong." He said, "Don't you believe in Buddha? This is a Buddha School qigong practice. Here are several books. Take a look."
I began to read the books Zhuan Falun, "Lectures in the United States," "Lecture in Sydney," Essentials for Further Advancement, and others. After finishing reading the books, I knew that Falun Gong was the Buddha Fa that saves people and a cultivation practice that espouses the principles Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I decided to cultivate in Falun Gong. I followed the principles Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, in everything I did. I was strict with myself and not after fame or self-interest and let go of attachments and ordinary human desires.
2. Teacher Purifies My Body
One month into my cultivation, Teacher purified my body. I was again haunted by all my illnesses that I thought had been cured. My heart disease recurred and I had kidney stones again. A toothache made me unable to eat. I even had a high fever just like a bad cold symptom. My body ached and I kept sneezing. Then, I coughed up thick mucus. I had blood in my stool, urine, nose, mouth, and even skin and pores. There were large and small purplish spots and patches on my body. It appeared as if I was hemorrhaging or that I had contracted blood poisoning. It felt as if my body were on fire and it was extremely painful. I wondered, "What is happening to me?"
Because I had read Zhuan Falun, I was not afraid. I did not think that I was ill and did not go to the hospital. I knew that Teacher was purifying my body. I had firm faith in Teacher and the Fa. Teacher said,
"When you feel very uncomfortable, it indicates that things will turn around after reaching the extreme point. Your whole body will be purified and it must be completely purified. The cause of your illness has been removed, and what remains is only this bit of black qi that will come out on its own to let you suffer some and have some pain. It is forbidden for you not to suffer even a little bit." (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)"
I was determined to suffer the pain. It took only two days for me to recover. I wasn't hungry even though I hadn't eaten for several days. I didn't tell my family what was going on, as I didn't want them to worry. I studied the Fa diligently and practiced the exercises.
I had many diseases before I practiced Falun Dafa. I often had to go to the hospital because of heart disease, Hepatitis B, inflammation of the small intestines, kidney stones and a bacterial infection. I had three teeth pulled because of toothaches. Though I was only in my forties, I was exhausted all the time. My face was purplish black and covered in wrinkles. After Teacher purified my body, I felt how precious it was to be healthy. All my illnesses were cured and all the symptoms disappeared. Since that time, I have not had to be checked into a hospital and have not taken any medication. Some people ask me, "Are you around forty years old?" Actually, I am 58 years old. My wrinkles disappeared and I look much younger. I feel younger in body and spirit. My family and relatives know now that Falun Gong is wonderful and miraculous.
Teacher said,
"I do not talk about healing illness here, and neither will we heal illness. As a genuine practitioner, however, you cannot practice cultivation with an ill body. I will purify your body. The body purification will be done only for those who come to truly learn the practice and the Fa." (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun)
I finally understood the purpose of life, which is to return to our original true selves. The fundamental cause of one's being ill and all of one's misfortune is karma that has been accumulated throughout one's different lifetimes. Teacher will protect us and remove our karma only when we cultivate in Falun Dafa. We will be truly free. I wish to return to my original true self. I know that Teacher protects only true cultivators. I didn't enter into Dafa for curing my illnesses, nor did I know that the practice would cure illness. I know that Teacher saw my wish to cultivate. Teacher removed much karma for me. I know that beloved Teacher suffered too much for me. I can show my deepest appreciation by cultivating diligently. From then on, I was firm about practicing Falun Dafa, wishing to succeed and return home with Teacher.
II. Truly Cultivate
Environmental changes do not affect me - I will cultivate, keep righteous thoughts and spread Falun Dafa.
1. Cultivating while Spreading Dafa
Teacher said in "Solid Cultivation":
"Study the Fa and gain the Fa,
Focus on how you study and cultivate,
Let each and every thing
be measured against the Fa.
Only then, with that,
is it actually cultivation"
(Hong Yin)
From October 1997 until April 1999, I participated in group exercises for two hours in the morning and attended group Fa study in the evening. On Sunday I distributed information about Falun Dafa. I hung Falun Dafa introductory banners in places where there were many people. We demonstrated the exercises and taught the practice to people with a predestined relationship. I asked the local television station to broadcast the video about the situation of Falun Dafa spreading in Changchun, Dalian, Beijing and Shenyang for six nights. At that time more and more people got to know Falun Gong and wanted to learn Falun Gong.
After I started practicing Dafa, I became a good person and followed the principles Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance everywhere. I thought, "As a practitioner, I should be a good person at all times." At my workplace, I was honest and sincere and worked hard. All my colleagues saw how I had changed since the day I began to practice Falun Gong. I told them, "I became healthy after practicing Dafa and will save a lot of medical expenses. I improved my moral standard and will work hard. Falun Dafa is responsible for my improvements. As a practitioner, I will be a good person, no matter where I am." Supervisors at my workplace said that I changed a lot because I practiced Falun Gong.
2. The CCP Persecutes Falun Gong
The evil Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started to persecute Falun Gong from "April 25", 1999. Police station officials ordered police to stop Falun Gong activities at the practice sites. Anyone who had practiced Falun Gong were mandated to register and turn in their books. Everyone felt uneasy. Practitioners lost the cultivation environment.
Since July 20, 1999, because of the CCP's overwhelming, slanderous and false propaganda, all media including television stations, broadcasting stations and newspaper agencies attacked, defamed and slandered Falun Dafa. At that time some fellow practitioners were confused, but they knew that there was nothing wrong in following the principles Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and being a good person. Most practitioners who had practiced together for over one year are still practicing today. It was difficult to continue the practice for practitioners who had just started practicing or were into the practice for just a few months. They stopped practicing because they couldn't bear the evil crackdown and were deceived by the slanderous and false propaganda.
3. Living in the Evil Environment
Though I lost the cultivation environment, Falun Dafa was rooted in my heart. I contacted fellow practitioners, studied the Fa and practiced the exercises with them. We encouraged each other. From July 20, 1999 to 2001, we were saddened because we couldn't access Teacher's lectures and new articles, but could listen only to the slander of Falun Dafa. We lived in a mountainous area. We heard that the police arrested the head of the city assistant center and some fellow practitioners and sentenced them to prison terms. The assistant in our local area also gave up practicing Dafa. At that time we were like kites without the string. We could only enlighten from the Fa by ourselves. By the end of 2001, a fellow practitioner from another area brought some information. We shared experiences and found that the practitioners in that area had done many things to validate Dafa and clarify the truth. They brought several truth-clarifying flyers and Teacher's new articles. That's when we found out that the persecution of Falun Gong was extremely severe in some provinces and cities and that many people had been arrested. We decided to catch up with the Fa-rectification process. We made many truth-clarification materials immediately. Then we discussed how we should clarify the truth and validate the Fa.
We went to five cities where the persecution of Falun Gong was at its worst. We distributed the truth-clarification materials about the unprecedented persecution of Falun Gong on every corner.
4. Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions
In August 2002, Teacher wrote a poem,
"Hurry Up And Tell Them
As Dafa disciples clarify the truth
Sharp swords shoot forth from their mouths
Tearing open the rotten demons' lies
Lose no time and save them,
hurry up and tell them"
(Hong Yin II)
After we returned we continued our truth-clarification efforts in our county, town and villages. We sent flyers to thousands of households. Two fellow practitioners were reported to the police. Their homes were ransacked. The police found some truth-clarification materials and DVDs. They arrested these practitioners immediately and took them to the police station. The police interrogated them and asked where they got the truth-clarifying materials and DVDs. The practitioners refused to tell them, but after much pressure they told the police that I gave them the materials. That night the police arrested me and took me to the police station. They interrogated me and demanded I tell where I got the materials and DVDs. I told them that I produced the materials.
The police separated practitioners in the detention center for one day and one night. We were held in cells with criminal prisoners. After I entered the cell, the prisoners were surprised. They said, "Ah, Falun Gong practitioners! I am afraid she will kill us. They've all developed cultivation insanity." I told them, "Don't be afraid of Falun Gong practitioners because they are all good people and rational. Don't believe the slanderous words like cultivation insanity, self-immolation, committing suicide, and killing people. You were deceived and poisoned by the CCP's lies." I told them more about the truth and the reason to be a good person. They found that I was quite normal. Soon they knew what Falun Gong is. They said, "We didn't know that Falun Gong practitioners are so good!"
Whenever the police from the Politics and Law Section interrogated me, it was a good opportunity for me to clarify the truth. They told my leaders in the workplace, "We cannot prevent her from practicing Falun Gong, and won't be able to "transform" her. On the contrary, she wants us to know more about Falun Gong." The leaders in my workplace knew that I am a good person. They paid 2,000 yuan (RMB) for my release and promised to monitor me.
As required, a seven-leader team was set up at my workplace with the intention to "transform" me. I thought that was another good opportunity to clarify the truth. My colleagues all knew that I had become healthy after practicing Falun Dafa and saved the workplace a lot of medical expenses. They knew that I worked hard and that I considered how others felt in whatever I said or did at all times. Later, the other practitioners were also released. The police regarded me as the responsible person. They sentenced me to one year of forced labor.
During that period, Teacher's new poem, "Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions," echoed again and again in my mind:
"A Great Enlightened One fears no hardship
Having forged an adamantine will
Free of attachment to living or dying
He walks the path of Fa-rectification
confident and poised"
(Hong Yin II)
I had to take a physical examination before being accepted by the forced labor camp. The result showed that my liver malfunctioned. Actually, there was nothing wrong with me. I had not taken any medication since practicing Falun Dafa, so these illness symptoms were arranged by Teacher. The officials in the labor camp were afraid that my Hepatitis B might infect others, so they refused to accept me. I returned to my workplace and family. However I was still monitored by the police. I lost my freedom. I could no longer clarify the truth about Falun Gong and the persecution outside my home. Therefore, I clarified the truth through the mail. I asked others to take my mail to other areas and send it to my local area. I also sent mail from my area to other areas. I sent out about 100 truth-clarification materials. I kept on studying the Fa and practicing the exercises. However, at that time I failed to deny the arrangement of the old forces.
III. Truly Obtaining the Fa
I can become a particle of Dafa as long as I truly obtain the Fa, hold righteous thoughts, do the three things well and return home with Teacher.
1. Persuading People to Quit the CCP
I learned that practitioners were very fearful and concerned about the persecution. I invited them to my home and studied the Fa with them. I persuaded them to keep on practicing Dafa, not to lose this once-in-a-billion-years opportunity, to catch up with the process of Fa-rectification, to clarify the truth and save sentient beings, to "assist Master as he journeys this human world" ("Assisting the Fa" in Hong Yin) and to fulfill their sacred prehistoric vows. Gradually most of the fellow practitioners caught up with the process of Fa-rectification. Meanwhile, I made the best use of my time to spread Dafa. As a result, five more practitioners entered into Dafa.
When the Epoch Times published the "Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party" and encouraged the "Three Withdrawals" [Withdrawal from the CCP, the Communist Youth League, and the Young Pioneers] in 2005, I immediately went to visit relatives and friends and persuaded them to quit the CCP. To save more sentient beings, I sent the lists of names of those who had quit the CCP and its affiliates to fellow practitioners in the city, or they came to me for the lists. I felt that this was too troublesome. Also, the transportation cost was close to 100 yuan. In the winter of 2005, I bought a computer so that I could read Teacher's lectures and new articles in time and publish the announcements of the Three Withdrawals. However, I was illiterate. I could not even spell in "pinyin." What should I do? I asked practitioners from the city to teach me. Later I typed characters while learning "pinyin." The first time I published the announcement of the Three Withdrawals for nine people, it took me one hour to type the characters. But I was extremely happy at that moment.
In 2006, I bought a copy machine so that I could download and print Teacher's and Minghui (Chinese version of Clearwisdom) articles. Later, fellow practitioners bought a color copy machine. The truth-clarifying materials that we are doing now are very beautiful. Some are colored and some are black and white. We put one Dafa amulet with each copy of truth-clarifying material. The content of the material is matched very well. This is to help non-practitioners to awaken and understand that quitting the CCP and its affiliates will keep them safe. People heard the good news about Dafa. They held no bad thoughts any no longer and no longer reported practitioners to the police.
I produce truth-clarifying materials for fellow practitioners. To date, I have produced 30,000 copies of truth-clarifying materials and published withdrawal announcements for 2,500 people. I explained the true situation of Falun Gong to everyone who came to my home and persuaded them to quit the CCP and its affiliates. These people came from all walks of life, were relatives, friends, my children's classmates, my husband's colleagues, and people who delivered products or came to fix something in my home
One day my printer broke. I asked a technician to come and fix it. Because he would see the truth-clarifying information on my computer, I was afraid that he might misunderstand me, so I clarified the truth to him. I did not ask him fix the malfunctioning printer until he had agreed to quit the CCP and its affiliates. I told him that the CCP is against what I was doing. Actually, he was a good person, arranged by Teacher to meet up with me. He supported me in clarifying the truth. Later he sent me supplies, such as toner and paper. If he was busy he would have his coworkers bring the materials. Within time all of his five coworkers quit the CCP. I also gave them the truth-clarifying pamphlets and Dafa amulets.
When I have time I talk to people and ask them to quit the CCP. When I buy daily products such as vegetables and clothes, I don't buy them from one person or in one place, even if I have to go out of my way, because I want to persuade more people to quit the CCP. I never bargain. As long as they listen to the truth and quit the CCP, I am happy.
2. What I Could See in Other Dimensions
I was wondering why many practitioners could see the scenery in other dimensions, yet I couldn't. I used to see something while sending forth righteous thoughts. But I only saw the remains of the eliminated demons. They were rotting and scattered everywhere. Their skeletons were still standing there. It looked horrible. I said to Teacher in my heart, "I am afraid of this horrible scenery. I don't want to see it anymore." From then on I stopped seeing these unpleasant scenes.
One day in July 2008, after I practiced the exercises in the morning and sent forth righteous thoughts at 6:00 a.m., I lay awake in bed and my soul left my body and flew up to heaven. I saw many Buddhas, Taos, and Gods sitting on lotus flowers. They were all floating. I wanted to look more, but stopped in one place. I looked down and saw beautiful houses and purple red towers and pavilions. Some of the people there were dressed in ancient costumes, some in modern costumes. The view there was very beautiful. Then, I thought of returning to my body.
After a while, I thought that I wanted to go back to that scenery. I saw a place where many people were practicing the exercises. I went closer and found that they were practicing Falun Gong. They stood there in a straight line, doing the second set of the exercises, Falun Standing Stance. Their movements were very accurate. It seemed that there was an assistant. I went closer to that person. He asked me, "Do you practice?" I replied, "I practice at home." They all left after finishing the practice. Later I dared not think further on this. I was afraid that thinking too much would develop attachments.
Teacher said,
"......but you can see the scenes existing in other dimensions. What benefits does this have? It can enhance your confidence in the practice. When you indeed see something that everyday people cannot see, you will think that it certainly exists." (Lecture Two, Zhuan Falun)
I know that Teacher encouraged me by showing me another dimension. This is our particular fortune. I know Dafa practitioners are walking the divine path. If we truly believe in Dafa, truly cultivate Dafa, then we will truly obtain the Fa.
I really feel fortunate because I obtained the Fa. Compassionate Teacher saved me, purified my body, and let me know that practitioners return to their original true selves. I still have many human attachments. I keep looking within to find my loopholes, I maintain righteous thoughts and righteous actions, and I assist Teacher in Fa-rectification, saving sentient beings and accomplishing the sacred mission as a Dafa disciple. Under the protection of Teacher, I have walked through wind and rain. I will definitely continue to follow Teacher during Fa-rectification, do the three things well, be firm in believing in Teacher and Dafa and be diligent in cultivating until I have fulfilled my prehistoric vow and return home with Teacher.
I wrote this experience-sharing article from my heart. If you find anything inappropriate, please let me know. Thank you, fellow practitioners.