(Minghui.org) I started practicing Falun Dafa in March 1999, and I’m 72 years old. In my 26 years of cultivation, I have always been under Master’s protection and guidance, and fellow practitioners have helped me. I’d like to tell you about two of my cultivation experiences.
My husband has two older brothers, an older sister, and a younger sister. His family lives in the old town area. His sisters are married and have their own homes. His mother lived in their family’s old house (his father passed away), a single-story house. My husband told me that he used to work in another city but transferred back to his hometown to work so he could take care of his frail mother. After my husband and I married, we lived in the old, single-story house.
Before our child was born, we planned to bring my mother to live with us to help take care of the baby. People in the neighborhood all used a public restroom up the hill. Considering my mother had bound feet, we thought it was not safe for her to walk up and down the hill to use the restroom, so my husband and I planned to build a small, one-story house (with a restroom) in front of the old one. My husband discussed the construction with his two brothers. They did not want any part of the new house and told us to go ahead and build it. We borrowed money and had the three-room house built.
In 1995, my mother-in-law passed away. My husband’s siblings talked to him about selling the old house. We agreed. Since we didn’t have the money to buy a new home, we decided to move into the small new house we’d built.
When the buyer came to sign the contract in September and make the payment, my husband’s oldest brother talked to him about selling the house we built along with the old one. My husband asked, “Where will the three of us live? We can’t sell it.” My husband went to the buyer and said, “If you buy the small house, we won’t have anywhere to live. We can’t sell it now. Let’s talk about it later.”
The buyer responded, “I didn’t want to buy the smaller one. Your brother asked me to buy it with the old one.” My husband got angry and went to his brothers to ask them about it. They didn’t say anything.
However, they held onto the proceeds after selling the old house and did not divide it up among the five siblings. When my husband asked his oldest brother for his share, his brother said, “We all said that the value of your small house should be included and divided equally among the five of us.”
My husband said, “I asked you before I built the house. You all said that you did not want any part of it and told me go ahead and build it. You didn’t contribute any money or effort to construct it. Why should you get a share of the smaller house?”
I was angry and felt they were unreasonable. They always ate and drank at my place, and I fed them all every Chinese New Year. They kept saying we were good people, so how could they turn their backs on us when it came to a share of the money? Only after my husband pressed them many times did they gave us our share from selling the old house. After that, we stopped talking to them.
After I started practicing Falun Dafa in 1999, I realized that I should follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and should change myself from within. My mission is to assist Master in saving lives. They are our family members and are lives waiting for Dafa’s salvation. I should not resent them. I should treat them kindly and resolve this family conflict.
I started to take care of them and help them. One day, my husband told me that his eldest brother was very ill, so I suggested we visit him and bring him some gifts. My husband was initially reluctant, but after I explained the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, he agreed.
When we got to his brother’s house, his brother was in bed. He held my husband’s hand and wept. He said, “I’m sorry, I was wrong. I should not have pressed you to sell your new house and split the money.”
I responded, “I practice Falun Dafa now, and we don’t hold grudges like that. Master Li teaches us to be good and to treat others kindly. We don’t blame you. We will still be a harmonious family as we were before.” I told him to sincerely recite, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.”
As we were leaving, he told us that their two sisters hadn’t talked to him for two years. On the way home, I said to my husband, “See how difficult life is! Full of fighting and struggle. We haven’t talked to your brother for four years, and they haven’t talked to him for two. You should start cultivating Falun Dafa to escape this sea of suffering!”
He said, “I will!”
I talked to my sisters-in-law to try to resolve their conflicts. I told them about their eldest brother’s situation and asked them to visit him. When they brought up their old grievances, I said, “That’s all in the past. Please don’t dwell on them. Please also tell your other brother about your oldest brother. I will also make time to visit him.” I asked them to remember ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’ A few days later, my second brother-in-law called me and said, “My sisters told me everything. We went to see my brother yesterday. You are such a good person.”
I followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, cultivated my mind, treated the siblings with compassion and kindness, and was considerate of them, and four years of resentment melted away. Thank you, Master! Thank you, Falun Dafa!
During my years of cultivation, I’ve distributed truth clarification materials, hung up banners, sent letters, and talked to people face-to-face almost every day to tell them about Falun Dafa and the persecution. However, I only focused on doing these things, and I neglected studying the Fa and cultivating my heart. The old forces took advantage of my gaps, and I was persecuted. I was arrested, my home was searched and I was detained three times. Police officer Bing participated in all three arrests. He was also a key figure who actively persecuted local practitioners. I resented him and I was afraid of him.
In May 2014, three practitioners and I were released from the provincial brainwashing center. After I got home, Bing called and said he wanted to come over to check on me. I put him off. He called me again, and I told him that I wasn’t home. However, I realized that avoiding him wasn’t good and that I should face him. I also realized that my unwillingness to see him included the mentality of fear, but I was still unsure about seeing him. I studied the Fa and sent righteous thoughts.
One day, I remembered Master said, “Compassion is the Divine’s eternal state,” (“Why Do You Reject It?” Hong Yin III) I asked myself, “Do I have compassion for officer Bing? I obviously resent him, but I cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and I am here to assist Master in Fa-rectification and help him save sentient beings. How can I help save Bing if I resent and fear him?”
I set aside my resentment and fear and correctly positioned myself in our relationship. I realized that Bing was waiting to be saved and that I should tell him that Falun Dafa was saving lives. I also realized that he was coming to my home to hear the truth about Falun Dafa and to be saved. I sent righteous thoughts to disintegrate the evil spirits behind him so that I could communicate with his main consciousness, wake up his Buddha-nature, and eliminate his demonic nature.
Two days later, Bing called yet again and asked to come over. This time, I agreed. I asked for Master’s strengthening. That afternoon, he came with a young policewoman. I welcomed them in and offered them a seat on the couch and some tea. The policewoman sat down, but Bing headed toward my reading room. Since he was always the one who seized Master’s picture from my reading room when they searched my home, I said to him, “You’re here as a guest today. Please sit on the couch.” He obediently headed to the sofa.
When he asked me if I still cultivated, I didn’t answer. Then he said, “I see you have the character ‘Fu’ [meaning ‘good fortune’] in the artwork on your wall.” The artwork also had the characters that read “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.”
I calmly asked, “Can’t Falun Dafa practitioners have the ‘Fu’ character on their walls?”
“Yes, yes, you can,” he said. The policewoman kept playing with her cell phone and didn’t say a word.
I said, “Falun Dafa is righteous. It is a cultivation way in the Buddha School and teaches people to be good. Its practitioners are healthy and have high moral standards. The CCP [Chinese Communist Party] persecutes Falun Dafa practitioners. Jiang Zemin [once head of the CCP] vowed to eliminate Falun Dafa in three months, but more than 20 years have passed, and Falun Dafa is now practiced in over 100 countries worldwide and loved by people of all cultures. Article 36 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of belief. What will you do when the whole world condemns this persecution? How many sins have you committed by persecuting Falun Dafa practitioners? You are just a tool of the CCP, but you will still be brought to justice, and your family will be implicated. Wake up! By protecting Falun Dafa practitioners you will be blessed and your sins will be lessened. Falun Dafa can save you. I sincerely wish you and your family well.”
Bing held up his phone and said he had something to do and had to leave. I said, “I hope you will treat Dafa practitioners kindly in the future and be blessed. Please remember ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’ I wish you a happy and peaceful future!”
When he thanked me, I said, “You should thank Master Li!” He muttered in agreement and went downstairs.
He has never bothered me since! I was truly happy for him, that he understood the truth about Falun Dafa. I sincerely thanked Master for his strengthening and blessings! Thank you, Master, for your compassionate salvation!