(Minghui.org) I’m from Vietnam and I began practicing Falun Dafa three years ago.
Last year, a coordinator in France asked if practitioners could come there to help with Shen Yun. At that time, I was doing research work at a well-known university in South Korea. I applied but soon learned the show schedule fell into the best time for my job hunting, which meant that I had to postpone my job application if I helped with Shen Yun.
I thought it over. I knew the opportunity to help with Shen Yun was precious, and I also wanted to elevate in cultivation. I thought, “I have always tried to arrange my own life, but this time I will follow Master’s arrangement. I don’t want my attachments to fame and personal interest to interfere with the path Master has arranged! I will help with Shen Yun and not let Master down!” That night, I felt a powerful energy surrounding me when I did the second exercise. I knew that I had chosen the right path.
On the plane to France from South Korea, I looked at Master’s photo. Master smiled at me. With my flight to France, my cultivation also entered a new phase.
Letting Go of Ego
One of my jobs was to help hold the two curtains together before and after each program because they could not close completely. This had to be done two or three seconds after each program when the lights were dim, so I had to run very fast to the stage and leave the stage at the right time. Otherwise, the audience would see me.
I’m not a fast-paced person, and I don’t move quickly. I felt nervous and worried that it would affect the show if I didn’t do it right. Knowing that I could not do this job on my own, I read the Fa more and asked for Master’s help.
I realized that as a practitioner I should not view the task from the perspective of everyday people. I was a practitioner whose mission was to save sentient beings, so I had to have firm, pure, and righteous thoughts.
I managed to do the task without any problems during the first show. The two hours of waiting beside the stage during the show felt like a year, but I got it done without any mistakes.
However, during one afternoon show, I accidentally showed myself on stage for two seconds, and the audience saw me. I was terrified and felt overwhelmed. I looked at Master’s photo and burst into tears. I asked Master in my mind if I could continue doing this work. If I couldn’t do it, I asked Master to find someone to replace me.
Suddenly, I remembered Master’s teaching,
“Put another way, would it work if when you, a Dafa disciple, made a mistake I didn't allow you to be a Dafa disciple anymore and replaced you with someone else? (Disciples laugh) But when that person made a mistake he wouldn't be allowed to be a Dafa disciple, and we'd swap in another person--would that work?” (“Fa Teaching at the 2007 New York Fa Conference,” Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume VIII)
Master used every way to encourage me not to give up. Nobody blamed me for this mistake. The other practitioners encouraged me to let it go and do better next time.
Gradually I realized that all beings in the three realms came for the Fa, and so did the theater. As a disciple in the Fa-rectification period, I had the responsibility to help Master save people and help the theater fulfill its mission. I recited Lunyu and spent more time sending righteous thoughts. Before I went to the stage, I always recited Master’s teachings.
Master said,
“Dafa disciples are Gods who have descended to the human world with the responsibility to assist Master in saving sentient beings, shouldering the responsibility of saving sentient beings in the lower realms.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2016 New York Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. XIV)
When I later shared this incident with another practitioner. She said, “Ask yourself why this happened. When something was not done well, it added to Master’s burden. Did you look inward and find out why you made this mistake?”
I was startled and immediately looked inward. I found a hidden attachment. I was proud of myself for being able to take on this task as a new practitioner and thought I was superior to others. How was this mentality different from the example of the self-centered people described in Zhuan Falun? How wrong and dangerous such a state was! It was a stick awakening. Cultivation is very serious; one bad thought can lead to severe consequences. Yet, I may never know how much Master endured for me when I did not do well.
When Shen Yun came to the city for the third time, one practitioner joked, “We have eliminated your ego.” Indeed, after traveling with the tour group in France for several months, I no longer took myself so seriously and could let go of self. I was willing to do any work, even when it was time to sleep or have meals. I no longer complained about others. For example, if the curtain swayed due to other factors, I used to ask other people to take care of the problem. But I learned to solve the problem by myself.
My xinxing improved gradually when I toured with Shen Yun in France. By the time Shen Yun arrived in that city for the third time, which was also the last stop in France, I was able to finish my work smoothly without stress.
Persist in Telling the Truth to Chinese People
When I was touring with Shen Yun, I wanted to set up a truth clarification site in Chinatown in Paris since there were many Chinese people there. I decided to do it myself without relying on other practitioners. I looked for the right location and applied for permission. My application was approved after going through the complicated administrative procedures.
However, I found I was the only one who went to the truth clarification site on the first day. At first, I was a little upset, but then I saw my negative thoughts and eliminated them. I told myself that everyone was very busy and had their own projects. Since I wanted to do it, I should do it well and not depend on anyone else.
So I put up the banners and distributed materials by myself. No matter how people treated me, I kept smiling and was friendly to everyone. It worked out very well in the end, and I soon distributed all the materials. Many Chinese people read the informational materials about the Tiananmen self-immolation hoax, and others came and asked for a copy of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party.
After I shared my experience with the other practitioners, more than ten practitioners went to Chinatown on the following days. We distributed many materials there, and many Chinese people agreed to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations. Indeed, it worked out very well when we had open minds and persisted in what we did.
Before I went to Poland for the European Fa Conference this year, I looked online for a location where I could clarify the truth to Chinese people. I found many Chinese people like to go to a wholesale market near Warsaw. So I planned to distribute the Epoch Times there.
At first, about four or five practitioners joined me, but soon few practitioners went because it was so far from the city, and we had to leave early in the morning. On the last day, nobody else wanted to go.
I was discouraged and asked myself if I wanted to go there alone. If no one gave me a ride, then it would take nearly four hours two ways by public transit. I felt tired, and it was raining. I was hesitant about getting up early the next day and carrying very heavy truth materials on the bus and train. I then thought about what gods would think of me if I promised to save the sentient beings there but failed to do so.
I finally decided to go. Amazingly, as soon as I made up my mind, a practitioner said he would drive me there. Three more practitioners joined us. I was touched and realized that everything was a test. Master arranged the best as long as I had righteous thoughts.
We quickly distributed all the materials. Many Chinese people read them as soon as they received them. One girl was very happy and grateful when she received the newspaper. She said a Chinese practitioner distributed the Epoch Times there several years ago, but he didn’t come back. She said she always wanted to read it.
Master said,
“Cultivation depends on one’s own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one’s master.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun).
I am grateful to Master. He arranged everything for me when he saw my persistence in saving sentient beings and my firm belief in Dafa.
Cultivating Like When We First Began Practicing
It was always difficult for me to balance doing the exercises, reading the Fa, and telling people about the persecution. When I was busy with projects, I found it hard to concentrate when I read the Fa.
I still remember how much I cherished the book Zhuan Falun when I first read it in Singapore and embraced it in my arms. The book was like a golden key to finding my true home. I still remember all the joy I had when I first began practicing. However, as time went on, this thought faded, and I no longer felt enthusiastic about practicing.
Recently, I received a scholarship to study Chinese in Taiwan. I have always wanted to learn Chinese well, and I thank Master for arranging this opportunity to learn Chinese and improve in cultivation.
Fellow practitioners in Taiwan were very warmhearted and helped me a lot. I felt surrounded by a very powerful and pure energy field and felt I improved my realm when I participated in the group exercises and group Fa study. Although my Chinese was not very good, I could still understand new Fa principles when I read Zhuan Falun in Chinese. When I sent forth righteous thoughts with other practitioners, I felt my body in other dimensions was huge and could eliminate all evil beings.
My Chinese progressed rapidly, and it would have taken me many years to progress if I had not been in Taiwan. This precious time has been a great help to my cultivation.
Looking back at my cultivation, I knew Master was always by my side, giving me everything I needed in my practice. I wept while I wrote this experience-sharing article. When I made mistakes, felt frustrated, or depressed, Master always created more opportunities to help me overcome the hardships, allowing me to continue cultivation.
My heart was shaken when I read one poem from Hong Yin VI. (There is no official English translation of Hong Yin VI yet. This is only a rough translation.):
“...Returning to our holy home by saving others and oneselfHow many people can achieve this and how many are just making empty talk?”(“The Difficulties in Saving Others and Saving Oneself,” Hong Yin VI)
I want to fulfill my vow and not just make empty talk. I want to cultivate diligently and not let Master down. I hope that one day I can stand before Master with my hands pressed together and tell him: I have fulfilled my mission.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, fellow practitioners.
(Selected submission to the 2022 Taiwan Fa Conference)
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