(Minghui.org) The 2021 German Fa Conference was held in Berlin, Germany’s capital city, on July 18, 2021. Master addressed the conference, teaching his disciples, “It is the responsibility of Dafa disciples to help me in saving all lives. To carry out your mission well, you must first do well in your own spiritual development.” (“To the Fa Conference in Germany”)
After the conference, some of the practitioners shared what they learned from attending the event. Many practitioners said they felt the protection and encouragement from Master and that this is a chance given to everyone to save more sentient beings and elevate oneself in cultivation.
Falun Dafa practitioner, Mr. Wollner, from the Alps region in Germany
Mr. Wollner from Germany spoke at the conference about his cultivation experience of going through the low points in his life, such as losing his job, his company, his house, and his properties and assets. Then, when he felt that his life had reached its lowest point and all the worst had passed, his son suddenly passed away. In the face of this calamity, he talked about how he followed Falun Dafa’s standard of cultivation to overcome all these tribulations.
“I felt a bit uneasy. As I sat in the front row, I was worried that I might be overwhelmed by my emotions when I speak on stage later,” said Mr. Wollner. Just when he was feeling so, he said, “I felt very strongly that Master is right here with me. He spoke to me quietly. It is as though he is there. That gave me strength. I really felt Master’s help.” As Mr. Wollner spoke, tears filled his eyes.
The conference left a deep impression on Mr. Wollner. He said it was touching that many more practitioners talked about how to improve in one’s cultivation instead of stopping at what they had done. “Many people’s sharing came from the bottom of their hearts and touched me. From them, I gained strength and was able to calmly finish my sharing.”
Mr. Wollner described listening to sharings at the conference as “just like listening to a song.” He said, “It’s as though when listening to the sharing, there would be segments that tug at my heartstrings. It’s very hard to describe.”
Master’s message to the Fa conference also touched Mr. Wollner. “These words are also directly meant for the disciples who are present in the conference, asking us to cultivate more diligently,” he said. “This is also a very important point. Only when I do well in my own spiritual development will I be able to withstand the disturbances from the external negative forces. In other words, only by doing so will I be able to resolve all these problems.”
“If not, there will bound to be some things where we have no resistance, which will cause us to be struck down and be frustrated by the setback. After that, we will put the blame on others,” he said.
“Looking within and listening to one’s own inner thoughts are of the most importance, and only by persisting in our cultivation will we be able to do so,” he reflected.
Mr. Luca Wohlers grew up in a Falun Dafa environment since he was young.
Mr. Luca Wohlers followed his father to cultivate in Falun Dafa since he was young. In today’s society, many unhealthy elements are influencing teenagers’ moral values. “Once I turn on my mobile phone, I will get dragged in,” Mr. Wohlers said.
When asked about how he resists the influence of these bad elements, he said, “The very important point is to meet up with other practitioners. Not only when I participate in the Information Day events but also at normal times, I need to maintain the interaction, understand each other, and cooperate with each other better. Don’t get addicted to the computer and do more traditional things, such as joining outdoor activities, doing handicrafts and, most importantly, study the Fa more.”
Mr. Wohlers will soon graduate. “As I am grown up now and am about to look for a job, I have to face issues like what kind of job to take on, how to take on the job, how to cultivate in my job, and what the important things in life are,” he said. “There were many sharing articles about monetary gain and looking inward, which left deep impressions on me.”
In particular, Mr. Wohler was moved by practitioner Ms. Thelen, who had lost everything from her family to her money and her house. “That is a truly difficult period for one to go through, and the way she dealt with it is really touching,” he said. In the face of injustice, Ms. Thelen repaid the grudges with kindness, resolving her resentment for others.
Mr. Wohler also mentioned another practitioner who had a very good job, but after his boss gave him a chance to be promoted, he was asked to work longer hours, which would force him to give up his participation in a media project. Later, this practitioner gave up the job and concentrated fully on the media project to become a full-time employee.
Although that practitioner’s salary was much lower than before and he had to share his house with others, through studying the Fa, the practitioner improved in his cultivation state and realized that whatever he lost would be compensated in one way or another. Therefore, he was very thankful to Master for giving him the chance to work full-time in the media project.
Ms. Xie said she felt honored to listen to Master’s address to the conference.
Chinese practitioner Ms Xie said she felt very honored after hearing Master’s address to the German Fa Conference. “This is Master’s expectation for us, and it is also Master giving us chances to do well,” she said.
Ms. Xie said she learned a lot from every sharing article. “What I learned the most is to be humble and cultivate myself,” she said.
“Being humble is not just towards Dafa and Master, it is also towards fellow practitioners and every living being, be it other people or your family. Whether they cultivate or not is the same. I have to treat them with kindness and compassion rather than sentimentality,” she said. “In particular, one of the practitioners said just now, every thought [should be] for the good of others.”
Ms. Xie said that as she listened to the sharings, she thought about the things that had happened around her for the past few days. “Did I abide by the standards of the Fa in my behavior? I felt that I still have many areas to improve on.”
Having participated in promoting the New Tang Dynasty TV’s International Chinese Vocal Competition, Ms. Xie said, “Sometimes, I feel that I don’t have enough courage and strength... The vocal competition requires us to interact with many singers and professionals. In Europe and Germany, these people are mainly people from the upper class, so I felt that courage is very important.
“My understanding is that Master has already gotten many things ready a long time ago for us to do. Master sending his address to Germany is an encouragement to us,” she said.
To those who do not understand Falun Dafa, Ms. Xie would like to say a few heartfelt words: “Cultivators like us are all normal people who try to be a good person in our lives. Be it in the family, at work, during studies, etc, we try to abide by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance in all the things that we do so as to become better people.”
She hopes that more people can learn about Falun Dafa practitioners and not be misled by slanderous propaganda by the China Communist Party (CCP).
Quincy, who has cultivated in Falun Dafa for two years, is a Vietnamese who immigrated to Switzerland. He said, “Attending Fa conferences helps me a lot every time. Other practitioners are at different levels of cultivation, and they’ve run into different kinds of challenges.” He said that some of the incidents that were mentioned in the sharings were quite similar to his, so they were a great help for him.
Quincy cited the example of one practitioner who realized that his arrogance had formed a barrier between him and other practitioners. On one information day, the other practitioners changed the way they did things. He could not accept it, as he felt the original way was quite good. Later, through studying the Fa, the practitioner saw these attachments in himself and managed to get rid of them with Master’s help. “Using another approach can also work,” he realized. Quincy said the way this practitioner broke down the barrier between him and others inspired him greatly.
When Quincy was still a student, he had always been searching for things at the spiritual level. “I always felt that I should maintain my spiritual health, so I tried many ways to achieve that. Through having a religious belief, I looked at my inner self and I tried to find a way out.” Later, Quincy’s wife started to cultivate in Falun Dafa. “Our relationship became open and bright. I could feel the difference in her before and after she started practicing cultivation,” he said. With this experience, Quincy started to come into more contact with Falun Dafa.
“Dafa answered the questions about life that I had pondered when I was a student and a teenager. It inspired me and helped me to become a better person. I felt that the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance are very important as they are the universal law, and everyone can cultivate in Falun Dafa,” he said. Quincy then knew he had found the right path.
“After cultivating in Falun Dafa, I got rid of my bad temper, as I felt there was nothing to fight about. When I think about problems, I no longer just use my brain, I also use my heart. I am also no longer calculative when it comes to money. I just let nature take its course,” he said.
“Master said that Dafa is boundless and limitless. I was given the chance to cultivate in this boundless Dafa, so I started to cultivate in Falun Dafa,” Quincy said. He hopes that people who have been deceived by lies fabricated by the CCP can be more open-minded and understand what the real Falun Dafa is all about.