(Minghui.org) Master told us:
“When you are truly able to let go of the thought of life and death, you can truly go there. This is the difference between a human and a God. If you can let go of life and death, you’re a God; if you can’t let go of life and death, you’re a human—this is the difference.” (“Teaching the Fa in New York City” from Lectures in the United States)
“If you cannot relinquish the attachment or concern for illness, we cannot do anything and will be unable to help you.” (Zhuan Falun)
As Falun Dafa practitioners on the path to godhood, we go through the test of life and death at some point in our cultivation.
I have observed that after the persecution began, those Dafa practitioners who were able to let go of the attachment to life and death and step forward to validate the Fa experienced less severe sickness karma. By “severe sickness karma,” I am referring to life-threatening illnesses.
Of course, what I have observed is not absolute. Sickness karma can also have to do with one's own karmic debts, cultivation state, old forces' interference, and persecution factors; they all play a role.
Below is my experience of letting go of life and death. It is my hope that it will give those fellow practitioners going through sickness karma some help and encouragement.
In the winter of 2000, I went to Tiananmen Square in Beijing to protest the persecution. I was arrested and held in the Chaoyang Detention Center. Some fellow practitioners decided to start a hunger strike to protest the persecution.
I joined them even though my xinxing was not yet up to par. I was having my menstrual period at the time, which usually made me thirsty.
This notion made me experience extreme thirst. My lips cracked, and even my tongue felt stiff. The next day I was delirious and hallucinated, seeing fruits and beverages.
On the third day, the guards woke us up at 3 a.m. to line up. I passed out and fell down. When I regained consciousness, I was in the hallway. A fellow practitioner gave me a bun and told me to eat it on our ride in the police vehicle later.
As soon as I sat in the car and put the bun to my mouth, a policeman hit me hard on the forehead. Feeling dizzy, I dropped the bun. He said, “You watch, I will bury you alive when we stop; we buried several people alive yesterday.”
I thought: "I know you stop at no evil. But even if I were buried alive, I'm still a Falun Dafa practitioner." I didn't know about righteous thoughts back then, but now I know that my righteous thoughts emerged.
Having no fear, I was at peace and not afraid of death. Immediately, I no longer felt thirsty or hungry. My body felt warm and comfortable, beyond any words to describe. Life and death no longer restrained me after I let go of my attachment to them.
The second hunger strike occurred during the last week of 2000. I was held in a brainwashing center, along with many other fellow practitioners. I began a hunger strike and shared my experience with them; many joined me.
When the guard found out that I was the one who had encouraged the others to go on a hunger strike, they moved me to another room. Fellow practitioners in that room also began a hunger strike, so the guard put me in isolation.
I experienced no discomfort during the hunger strike. Instead, my mouth was moist and sweet. I used the bathroom as usual, surprising the guards. After four or five days, the prison doctor came to examine us; there was weight loss, but otherwise our health was normal. They found it perplexing and difficult to believe.
The beauty and magic of Falun Dafa reflected through practitioners' righteous thoughts and deeds. On the sixth day, New Year's Eve, all of us were released.
After that hunger strike, I realized that the wonderful next realm appears after one truly lets go of the attachment to life and death.
I feel that if fellow practitioners experiencing severe sickness karma can totally let Master decide their fate, circumstances will change. Don't hold the thought of asking Master to allow you to live. That thought indicates that one is not able to truly let go of the attachment to life and death.
Human beings have to go through birth, old age, illness and death. If one cannot let go of his illness, isn't he a human being? If one wants to go to the hospital, doesn't this show that one doesn't trust the principles Master teaches us?
We should simply continue doing the three things with dignity and at the same reflect on ourselves: What are we living for? Is it to validate the Fa and save sentient beings? Do I still harbor the human fear of death?
Only humans value this time space; a god will not care about life and death on the human level. When one dies, it is just like taking off a piece of clothing. How can that be scary?
As long as we completely trust Master and the Fa, there will be no tests we cannot overcome. And when we truly stand on the basis of the Fa, who still dares to meddle with our cultivation? Then the false impression of sickness karma will go up in smoke.
Category: Improving Oneself
