(Minghui.org) I was fortunate to start practicing Falun Dafa in 2009. Soon, many of my illnesses, such as rheumatism and stomach problems, went away. Over time, I truly felt the wonderfulness of Dafa.

I turn 77 this year. Recently, I felt dizzy a few times and would break into a sweat. When this happened, I didn't dare open my eyes; I just laid on the bed. After a few instances of this, I felt that my life was coming to an end. I began to think: My father passed away when he was 75 years old, my brother who happened to have the same birthday as me, also passed away at the age of 77. Was I going to follow in their footsteps?

For a while, it was all that I could think about. I felt that my mind was not clear, but couldn't find the root cause of these thoughts. Later, through reciting the Fa, my state of mind significantly changed for the better. Just as Master told us:

“The Fa can break all attachments, the Fa can destroy all evil, the Fa can shatter all lies, and the Fa can strengthen righteous thoughts.” (“Drive Out Interference” in Essentials for Further Advancement II)

I realized that although I had studied the Fa for a long time, I hadn't managed to memorize it—yet other practitioners had recited it many times. Why was I so behind?

How could I have the thought that my life was finished? All the old forces want is to have us give up our cultivation journey before reaching the end. Hadn't I fallen into the trap that the old forces set for me?

Late last year, I began to memorize the Fa. I can now recite six chapters of Zhuan Falun and am working on lecture seven. Through reciting the Fa, I obtained a deeper understanding of what Master said,

“Old age, illness, and death are also forms of demons, but they are created to maintain the characteristic of the universe.” (Zhuan Falun)

I came to realize that because of the old factors, it was the superficial me that thought my time on earth was over. I needed to eliminate this negative thought.

Regarding my age, with the passage of time, I felt that I was truly old because my hearing had deteriorated, and I walked slowly.

Master said:

“A Buddha is holy and solemn, and most of them are quite young and attractive, for the higher their level, the more beautiful. The real Buddha Amitabha looks around twenty years old, Bodhisattva Guanyin about seventeen or eighteen years old, and Bodhisattva Mahāsthāmaprāpta about fifteen or sixteen years old.” (“Teaching the Fa at the International Experience-Sharing Conference in Beijing)”

My main spirit is far from old. When I enlightened to this, I felt much younger and began to feel more energetic.

This is how I understand illness: A practitioner should not have any illness. It comes down to one's karma.

When you always think you have an illness, it will manifest in your body. Because I was afraid of dizziness, I became afraid of going downstairs and even getting together with friends outside my home. Thus, I chose to stay home a lot. Actually, this fear triggered my dizziness and it happened multiple times. Fear itself is an attachment. But if it is not an illness, what is there to fear?

Master said:

“Some people find their tribulations very big in cultivation practice, but actually they are not. The bigger you find them, the bigger they will become and the smaller you will become. If you do not care and do not put them on your mind, with the master and the Fa here what is there to fear? As long as the green mountains remain, there is no fear of having no firewood to burn. Ignore them! Once you give them up, you will find that the tribulations have become smaller and you have become bigger. You will overcome them in one step, and the tribulations will become nothing. It is guaranteed to be this way.” (Lecture in Sydney)

As soon as I started thinking about Master's words, the dizziness went away.

I also would like to share Master's words about death,

“If a cultivator can truly let go of [the fear of] death, then that death will forever be far removed from you.” (Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York)

Master also said:

“In that case, when you can truly understand the Fa during cultivation, you will be able to get rid of any attachment. You will think, "I've obtained the Fa, and I am not afraid of anything. If I die, so be it. Even if I die, I have obtained the Fa. What's going to happen to me after I die? I won't end up in hell. I've obtained the Fa, after all." A person like that will not encounter anything that endangers his life and he won't have any health problems (Applause). That is because the state of mind he demonstrates is that of a true cultivator. He has truly understood [what cultivation is] and has truly elevated himself, and he has let go of all attachments. At least in this one regard he has transcended humanness, he has gone beyond the realm of humanness. Only ordinary human beings have health problems. Once he lets go of his attachment to being healed his health problems will be gone.” (Teaching the Fa at the 2004 International Fa Conference in New York)

I came to understand that only by studying the Fa well and often, and having a firm faith in Master and Dafa, can one walk solidly on the path of cultivation. This is how the power of the Fa can truly manifest itself.

“A Great Enlightened One fears no hardshipHaving forged an adamantine willFree of attachment to living or dyingHe walks the path of Fa-rectificationconfident and poised” (“Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions” from Hong Yin Vol. II)