(Minghui.org) Many fellow practitioners came across vital tests right after they started cultivation. However, I only felt the great change in my health after I began to cultivate and didn't experience tests until recently.
When I was working in a factory, a grinding wheel suddenly shattered, and a fragment hit me. I fell to the ground and became conscious again seconds later. Although I was in serious pain, I thought I wouldn't have a problem. My colleagues were scared and later told me that I looked deathly pale. I said, “The master of Falun Dafa is protecting me. I am okay.” But I couldn't get up and was helped to the bed board.
The scattered grinding wheel can smash one's head and bones. But my clothes were not torn, although I felt excruciating pain. I understood that this tribulation was arranged by the old forces. I immediately tried to look inward to look for loopholes and attachments. I tried to endure the pain, do the Dafa exercises, and listen to the Fa. By the next day, I had fully recovered!
Master said,
“Actually, don’t think that nothing happened to you after being hit—a you, made up of karma, really died. What’s more, that body had thoughts, a heart, and limbs that were made up of your bad karma; it died in the accident, and it was composed entirely of karma. We’ve done such a tremendous good thing for you, and have removed such a huge amount of karma and paid for lives with it—no one else does this. We do this only because you’re able to practice cultivation. When you realize this you will have no way to thank me.” (“Teaching the Fa at a New York Meeting,” Lectures in the United States)
From this accident, I understood that our lives have been rearranged by Dafa cultivation and don’t belong to ourselves anymore. Thus, I got rid of many attachments and became more diligent.
Contributing Selflessly
I lost my job because of the Communist Party’s persecution of Dafa. I then validated the Fa full time but soon ran into a roadblock. I began to set up my own business but lost the tens of thousands of yuan I had borrowed.
I wanted to escape, thinking that fortunetellers had told me that I would have financial problems throughout my life. But I finally let go of that thought because I believed that such a powerful Fa could definitely rectify me.
Upon reflection, I found that although I was not enlightened when I studied the Fa, I was often given hints when I sent forth righteous thoughts, meditated, or had dreams. Those hints were to warn me, but I didn't pay enough attention to them. I finally knew what to do. I began to follow Master's hints and got rid of the financial adversity.
After I built up extra funds, I maintained a simple lifestyle. Instead of buying a property or car, I used the money to help Dafa projects.
Master said,
“Yes, their energy did reach very high since it was sure to be that way once they had progressed to an advanced stage and the point of enlightenment, and of having all of their powers accessible to them. But right at the point when that would occur, eighty percent of their energy would be snapped off and taken down together with their measure of character. The energy would then be used to enrich their very own paradises, which I was just referring to.” (The Fourth Talk, Zhuan Falun)
I could contribute eighty percent of my income to Dafa projects. When I contributed 400,000 yuan to different projects, I felt very relaxed. By that point, I had donated all of my savings from my business, so I rebuilt the business. Though I felt depressed and was close to bankruptcy, I firmly believed in the Fa and successfully overcame the dilemma by following Master's hints. In less than three years, I made a large profit and established a virtuous cycle in business.
Studying the Fa More
Before, I often listened to the recorded Fa lectures when I was working. Fellow practitioners later told me it was disrespectful to Dafa, so I stopped. But I soon found that I was too busy and didn’t have enough time to study the Fa. My progress at work also slowed down, feeding a vicious cycle. I began to listen to the Fa at work, especially when I had a tight schedule. Unexpectedly, I enlightened to higher understandings of the Fa, and my work efficiency improved.
Master said,
“You are still working your way through the various stages of practice, however, and will find that you keep making progress and arriving at new insights, with new rewards in store for you, as you keep listening to the recordings of our teachings. And that’s even more the case with reading the book.” (The Third Talk, Zhuan Falun)
My understanding of the above paragraph is that although reading the book is the best way to study, it doesn't mean we cannot listen to the recording, especially when we don’t have the opportunity to read the book. It is always good to try to use all available time to study the Fa. Being respectful to Master and Dafa does not depend only on the form we follow but more so on our heart and the effort we give.
We Have to Let Go of Ego to Succeed
I used to be easily complacent about my little achievements at work and in cultivation and Dafa projects. But later I realized it was a loophole.
In ancient times, a cultivator with a pure mind would always attribute every step of success in his cultivation to his master. Actually, many ancient people who did not cultivate also knew to chalk up their achievements to the divine. But today, people talk about “humanism.” In actuality, this trend is driven by demons and leads to deviation from the original nature of human beings.
Master taught us,
“You put in the effort and your teacher will handle the rest.” (The First Talk, Zhuan Falun)
I enlightened that the “rest” handled by Master should also include the success in every step we take in cultivation and doing Dafa projects.
I realized that when we experience adversities, business difficulties, and other challenges in cultivation, a practitioner’s effort is only superficial, while it is more important that we believe in Master and follow his arrangements. Only by letting go of ego can we succeed. Otherwise, we can't even reach the lowest standard of the old cosmos.
Prehistoric Oath and Mission
What specifically is each practitioner’s prehistoric oath and mission? My understanding is that as long as we do not go awry, we will realize it in the process of cultivation even if we are unclear in the beginning. When we move to the next period, we may still be confused in the beginning, but we will gradually understand what to do.
When I was imprisoned, a few of the inmates gave me evil stares, while others looked upon me kindly. I felt that every one of them was my child. Undoubtedly, my mission during that period was to help them understand that Falun Dafa is good.
Doing little things also helps to save sentient beings. Some practitioners only want to do big things. This is an attachment, and the result can easily turn out to be the opposite of what one desires.
Master said,
“But if you can stay on the Fa all the way through, and not let up in your personal cultivation at any point, you will find that everything you do is truly befitting a cultivator. That is simply essential if a Dafa disciple is to complete his mission, and what ensures it on a fundamental level.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2015 New York Fa Conference”)
Only Master knows fully what is our mission, and what Master arranges for us must be the best. If we just do our best and do everything well, we will surely fulfill our mission.
Not long ago, I faced a difficult choice of whether to take up a project that had been given up by other practitioners. Many practitioners were against my taking it over because they thought it was too difficult and took too much time. They didn’t think it was practical and worried it might be fruitless after one spent three or four years on it.
After repeated Fa study, I believed this project would save a lot of people, so I insisted on going forward with it. After I began, I met a person and a few practitioners who were willing and able to help on the technical side. Although we followed a wrong path for a while, Master soon woke us up by having us experience some setbacks. Now this project is functioning well and continuously saving people. There is a long road to perfect it, and we will try harder and cooperate better.
Master said,
“… all the things you're doing, including the small and insignificant things, all of them are done for yourselves, and not a single thing is done for Dafa, nor is a single thing done for me, your master.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Western U.S. Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. V)
If we can really let go of our ego and do everything as required by Dafa, we will not only do well on our cultivation path and with our Dafa projects but also see improvements in our personal environments. This is because what Master arranges for us is the best, and we just need to follow it!
Category: Improving Oneself
