PureInsight | June 10, 2002
Greetings Master Li. Greetings fellow practitioners.
My name is Wang Zheng and I'm a practitioner from Toronto.
I obtained the Fa on March 21, 1999. As I now remember, Teacher started arranging my cultivation path since that day. However, things changed dramatically in a month after I obtained the Fa, namely, the events of April 25th. After that, The Chinese newspapers and TV stations in Toronto copied and quoted a lot of slanderous, deceitful and groundless propaganda from Mainland China's media. In the face of everything that happened, I reflected on my own, and I was driven by ordinary human thinking. But no matter how rampant the slanderous propaganda was, my firm belief in Dafa and in Teacher never faltered. It is these two firm beliefs that kept me from ever giving up cultivation practice in the face of cruel reality and challenge. Consequently I became a steadfast and genuine practitioner. At the beginning of my cultivation practice, Teacher opened up my perceptual understanding of the concepts of cosmic dimensions, and guided me into a gigantic cosmic world filled with Budha's, Tao's and God's. The boundless Buddha Fa not only let me step forward from my narrow living space, but also let me step forward from humanness.
I remember that, shortly after I obtained the Fa, one day while sitting on a sofa and reading Zhuan Falun, I suddenly understood why our Master of such high level and such lofty realm would let his disciples go to Zhongnanhai to appeal. At the time my whole body and the heavy sofa were all shaking together. I consequently realized that a correct way of thinking could cause an extraordinary change in my body. As I continued reading Zhuan Falun, Dafa disclosed to me even higher Fa principles and I felt as though I was melting into the Fa.
I participated in appealing in front of Chinese Consulate on April 25th, 2000. This was another big leap to step forward from humanness.
In May of 2000, Toronto practitioners started the broad and wide efforts to clarify the truth thoroughly to the Chinese communities. Two elderly practitioners in our practice site had not only steadfastly safeguarded the Fa when Dafa underwent severe persecution, they also led us to strive forward as a unified body. Every morning they pushed a handcart filled with Dafa newspapers to our practice site, so other practitioners can take the newspapers home and distribute them to the world's people. Their minds were linked with Dafa and they safeguarded Dafa when my cultivation path was still immature. At that time, I told myself: "Wang Zheng, you are a person with ability, a person who can endure hardship and a person that is good at solving problems independently. While Dafa is undergoing such severe persecution, you should devote your strength to Dafa without any reservation; you should take the initiative to clarify the truth to the world's people." With that in mind, I started my own path of spreading the Fa. On weekends, I studied Fa and spread the Fa with other practitioners as a group. On regular days I spread the Fa alone. I overcame a new immigrant's pressures: the language barrier, poor financial support and physical exhaustion. I placed Dafa as the top priority of my life.
I engaged in Canadian social welfare work which offers service to the sick elderly people. I usually spent about 1 to 2 hours with one patient, then I moved to the next patient. This was very advantageous for my truth clarification job. Every day when I went to work, I packed my bag with a lot of truth clarification materials, and distributed flyers wherever I went. For example, at patient's homes, on the streets, on a bus, in a building, in front of a supermarket, in stores, in laundry rooms or in a community—these are all places that I spread Dafa to. It doesn't matter where or when I went, I always took the initiative to introduce Dafa and clarify the truth to people. Usually, when I handed out a newspaper, I always said: "Falun Dafa is especially good." I used the softest language, the kindest attitude to pass Falun Dafa messages to the world's people. I went through half of the city of Toronto and I came across a lot of kind people. Even at the time when Dafa was undergoing the most severe persecution, a lot of people were still interested in learning about Falun Gong. I volunteered to talk to strangers nicely and kindly, and answered their questions about Falun Gong. I told them the huge changes "truthfulness, compassion, forbearance" had brought upon my mind and my body. Because of my kindness, I was often rewarded with people's sincerity. I kept applying higher standard to myself--to distribute one more newspaper, to let one more person learn the truth. I often encouraged myself: "Don't be afraid of rejection. Don't be afraid of misunderstanding. The more severe the condition is, the more kindness I should display. Don't tarnish Dafa." Consequently, through the efforts of clarifying the truth, I was able to let go of a great deal of old and stubborn beliefs and my sense of responsibility toward Dafa became more steadfast.
Because of my past experience of living in Mainland China, I can communicate with new immigrants from China very easily. In the later half of 1999, I realized that working with new immigrants from China should be the focus of my truth clarification effort, for they are the ones that are the most severely poisoned and deceived by the evil's lies and they are the biggest victims amidst the evil's damage. There were a lot of new immigrants from Mainland China near where I lived. In order to spread the Fa to them, I volunteered to go to them to build good relationship with them. A lot of immigrants from China were willing to accept Dafa materials. Some even took them more than thirty times. Some were very friendly and expressed their sympathy and understanding toward Dafa, and said the persecution in China is wrong. I also came across a lot of highly educated immigrants from China, and I clarified the truth to them unrelentingly. When I introduced Dafa to them I would lay it out differently, depending on my audience. My topics were rich and my points have sound foundations, so people listened to me with smiles on their faces. Sometimes I ran into people with bad attitudes, with misunderstanding of Dafa. I would be even more patient with this kind of people, and they usually accepted the newspaper too. Over the past three years, new tenants have moved in and old tenants have moved out, but my enthusiasm to spread the Fa to them has never diminished. Some have gained a very deep understanding of Dafa, some have already started cultivation practice, some have spoken up for Dafa. Some have supported Dafa, some have understood Dafa and expressed sympathy toward Dafa. I feel very happy for them from the bottom of my heart, for all this might just be the foundation of their obtaining the Fa in the future.
After 2001's Fa conference in Washington DC, the significance of clarifying the truth to the Chinese community became even clearer. I thought I should be able to do an even better job. In Toronto, I found ten locations where the Chinese population is high. Every weekend, I took turns going to these ten locations to distribute truth clarification materials to Chinese. As the Fa-rectification progresses, more and more people have learned the truth, and it have been a lot easier to distribute Dafa materials. A lot of people are willing to accept Dafa materials. When I distributed flyers, I often sent forth righteous thoughts to cleanse myself. And I told myself to be more merciful, and even more merciful, so more people can learn the truth and have a wonderful future.
In the last three years of my truth clarification progress, I have a lot of stories. One day while walking on the street with Dafa materials on my back, I suddenly saw Canadian governor, Ms. Wu BingZhi. I walked up to her without any hesitation and handed to her a lot of Dafa materials. She said to me: "Good luck to you!"
One day in 2001, I was spreading the Fa near the lake in Toronto when I ran into two ladies from Mainland China. After they read truth clarification materials, they said to me in tears: "We didn't used to understand Falun Gong. I just saw the photos of practitioners that were tortured to death by Chinese policemen and we felt so sad. The propaganda in Mainland China is not true. We listened to Falun Gong practitioners' speeches in Toronto's conference and they mostly talked about how to be good people. Can we two do anything for you?" I was so moved at the time, and I took a picture with them.
There Are Still Many Other Stories Over the Past Three Years
There's a saying in China, "One thinks harder of one's family during holiday seasons" Since 2000, my family has never celebrated birthdays and holidays together. Whenever there's a holiday, I always think about our Master who has expended his great mercy for the cosmos, and I also think about the fellow practitioners in China who are enduring inhumane tortures in the prisons. However, my thoughts and sorrows are transformed into forces to clarify the truth to the world's people. During Christmas season of 2000, I cut down my weekly working hours and went distributing Dafa materials in areas where there are large populations of Westerners. My pure and clean heart was lifted by the thick snows on the ground. I let the world's people learn about the great Buddha Fa in the midst of the joyful and happy season. On the New Year's Day of 2001, with three packs of newspapers on our backs, my husband and I went to Northwest Toronto to spread the Fa. We were on the road distributing newspapers. After we were done, our feet were wounded with bloody blisters, nevertheless our hearts were warm.
Teacher said in "Essential for Further Advancement": "Shan is the manifestation of the nature of the universe at different levels and in different dimensions. It is also the fundamental nature of Great Enlightened Beings. Therefore, a cultivator must cultivate Shan and assimilate to the nature of the universe, Zhen-Shan-Ren." Over the past two years, during the course of clarifying the truth to the world's people, Dafa has bestowed upon me an ultimately pure heart. I have handed out more than ten thousand copies of flyers and newspapers. I have never had conflicts with anyone. I have never bad-mouthed anybody. I have validated the Fa with rationality, clarified the truth with wisdom, spread the Fa and saved people with mercy. In doing so I have walked my own path righteously.
Once when I was distributing newspapers in East China town, as I looked at the crowd of people that came one after another, my compassion started to emerge just like that. I told myself: " I will treasure everybody I meet on the street just as I will treasure my own life." Instantly, I felt as if my body were connected into one body with those people that passed by me in a hurry, and they were just like every cell in my life. Fa has bestowed upon me a deeper inner contentment, and the tone I used (when spreading the Fa) has become even gentler and softer. When talking to strangers on the street, I talked to them as if I was calling upon their hearts from my heart. As I did that, compassion shone in our hearts like the warm sunshine.
Looking Inward to Perfect My Own Cultivation Path
I learned to look inward ever since I started my cultivation practice. At the beginning it was only limited to my own individual cultivation practice. As I studied the Fa deeply and gained higher understanding of Fa principles, I tried my best to determine things with Fa when I encountered problems in my daily life, and I checked to see if things were complying with cultivators' standard. I applied the standard of "truthfulness, compassion and forbearance" to discipline my conduct. Teacher said in Zhuan Falun: "Almost everyone is born with karma built upon karma, and everyone's body has quite a lot of karma." I faced straight at my own karma, my deviated concepts, selfish mind-intent and a lot of various attachments and desires. Sometimes when dealing with my karma, I had difficulty letting go of it and was controlled by it. Even though I was aware of this, I still had hard time letting go. In the face of deeply hidden attachments, I realized that living beings had deviated so far away from the Fa, it's Teacher's mercy to give this opportunity to Dafa disciples for the first time through out the ages. Once I looked at Teacher's picture with tears in my eyes—someone like me with karma all over my body, to have had the opportunity to obtain salvation from Teacher. Teacher said in "Eliminate your last attachment(s)": "I know all of the suffering of my disciples. The truth is, I treasure you more than you treasure yourselves!" I felt that Teacher's mercy was as boundless as the cosmos; it's extremely deep and far-reaching. What Teacher has offered every genuine disciple is the best—it balances the karma we are in debt for at different levels; it purifies us from the origin of our lives. It changes us dramatically from the microscopic levels of our mind nature. The long waiting throughout the history, the desire from deep inside and the puzzles developed when we went astray—all these have transformed into genuine Dafa disciples' determination. Look inward, keep looking inward and continue to keep looking inward.
As I have gained higher understandings of Fa principles, my cultivation practiced has become more mature. Whenever I have elevated to a higher level, I looked inward from that fresh new start. I dissected myself amidst conflicts and eliminated any substance that didn't belong to the origin of life. Through the process of continuous purifying myself, I have elevated to higher levels.
As Dafa practitioners, our cultivation practice must be linked with Fa-rectification. At this time when the cosmos is undergoing Fa-rectification, treasuring the opportunity of cultivation during Fa-rectification period is the same as treasuring Teacher's merciful salvation. I feel that the more human baggage I throw away, the better job I can perform in spreading Dafa, and the more righteously I can walk my cultivation path. My cultivation practice over the past three years has enabled me to throw away a great many attachments and desires, and the only thing left in mind is Dafa. I am no longer attached to the success and glory that I once possessed in China. I face my current living and working environment with peace of mind and I enjoy it very much. When I have fewer attachments, I experience the wonder of nothingness, and my mind becomes even more tranquil. Now, I have cut down my working hours to 20 hours per week so I can better utilize my time to clarify the truth to the precious Chinese people.
In 2000, I first learned from a veteran practitioner to clarify the truth using a fax machine. I persisted in doing so until now. At that time, the condition was not very good and I was inexperienced. Sometimes I sat by the fax machine for three or four hours and didn't get any good result. But I thought to myself--even if one out of 100 is successful, I will still be persistent, for the practitioners in China are safeguarding Dafa with their lives. Therefore, over the past two years, I have sent over one thousand faxes to different media, industries and even remote areas in China. Once I sent a fax to an export company in China. In the morning, the staff of that company were surprised to find positive information of Dafa on the fax. The whole company was talking about this, and some thought that what the government had reported was too extreme and deceitful. I often sent faxes to TV stations in China. Once, when I called a TV station, somebody answered the phone with a laugh and said: "I know what happened to Falun Gong, and I understand you guys."
Making phone calls to China, to me, is the most efficient, specific and convincing way. At the beginning, I was a little reluctant to make phone calls. I was afraid that my friends and colleagues would ask me what kind of work I have been doing here if I call them. I didn't want to call the police departments or labor camps for fear that they would say mean things or hang up the phone. I was interfered with by various human concepts. I kept looking inward. Through Fa study I realized that this was attachments of vanity and fear that had stopped the side of my original nature from doing Fa-rectification. After I threw away these postnatal concepts of various kinds, I was able to make more phone calls to China. I was able to reach more and more people--including relatives, good friends, news media, police departments and residential areas, and so on. I once called a chief of a police department. At the beginning he had this big talk about how a national machine should protect political power. I told him that the power was bestowed by the people. I told him the principle that "water can make a boat float and also make a boat sink". I told him the true significance of Falun Gong practitioners' peaceful appeal and the spreading of Dafa all over the world. He said: "You Falun Gong practitioners are posting truth clarification materials everywhere." I replied: "That's because the government wouldn't give them any chance to tell the truth. They are actually telling a true story to the world's people at the expense of their lives." Maybe he sensed my sincerity, because at the end he told me sincerely that he would no longer torture Falun Gong practitioners.
I think the news media in China have added fuel to the flame of persecution toward Dafa. However, a lot of them are being deceived by the government, so it's very important to clarify the truth to them. I've made phone calls to newspaper companies, magazine companies and TV stations. Upon hearing my introduction of Falun Dafa, out of their professional instincts, they would ask me some key questions, and I would answer their questions with patience, and clear the doubts in their minds. One editor once said to me: "Thank you for your phone call. I hope you have a happy life living abroad."
Once I went to a newspaper company to place some Falun Gong advertisements. The newspaper is published every Friday with a circulation volume of twenty thousand copies per week. It is one of the favorite newspapers for new immigrants from Mainland China. The man in charge told me that they were going to publish four articles about Falun Gong. I told them not to. He argued with me loudly and wouldn't give me any chance to talk. I grasped an opportunity to tell him a story about Jesus. I sensed that his heart was a little touched by what I had said, and his tone turned down a lot. He gave me the article. I read the article on my way home, and it was an article that blemished Dafa with disgusting language. Being aware of the seriousness of the situation, I realized I had to solve the problem as soon as possible. As soon as I was home, I quickly picked up the phone and called the man in charge of the newspaper. I told him about the gravity and consequences of his actions. I also told him about the karmic relationship of how good and bad would be rewarded accordingly. My attitude was firm and my thoughts were righteous. With my persuasion, he guaranteed me that he would not let those four articles be published in the newspaper. So I realized, in the midst of safeguarding the Fa, each practitioner has an unavoidable obligation. Don't wait and don't rely on others. This is a manifestation of Dafa disciples' being responsible for Dafa as well as a manifestation of Dafa disciples' mercy. Later on, I continued clarifying the truth to this newspaper company on several occasions, and I did it with a compassionate mind. Ever since then, they have no longer published any articles to damage Dafa; instead, they have been publishing positive and promotional reports on Dafa in their newspaper.
Finding My Way Home
The memory of once possessing something kind and wonderful has been lingering deeply in my mind. I have a strong wish to seek my true home. During my juvenile years, I had thought about going to a place where everybody is kind. As I grew older my desire had also grown stronger. I had numerous sleepless nights with tears in my eyes. Truthfulness- compassion-forbearance was once the foundation of my life. Maybe my life has been lost so long that my longing for truthfulness, compassion and forbearance has become a wonderful expectation. Yet, the reality of life has broken my dream into pieces. The fast decline of human moral standards in real life had made it difficult to find a piece of pure land. I used to feel helpless, sad and miserable. To survive in the world, I used to produce huge karma. To escape from human world's agony, I used to find safe heaven by indulging myself in the world of literature and arts. I have visited the eight most beautiful countries in the world. Yet, neither the prosperity of cities, nor the serenity of the countryside has brought any happiness for me. When I became a Falun Dafa practitioner in 1999, it seemed as if I had found a resting place for my heart. My mind, which used to be restless, suddenly became tranquil and I started to feel blessed and happy. I know nothing can separate me from Dafa, because it is my real home.
Today, in China, there're hundreds of thousands of lives like ours waiting for our salvation, waiting for us to clear the puzzlement in their minds, waiting for us to clarify the truth to them. In order for them to fulfill the vows they had made long, long time ago, our merciful Teacher has been waiting and waiting.
Every day, I watched the magnificent acts of practitioners in China stepping forward to safeguard Dafa and clarify the truth. My mind also ascends to higher level accordingly. I often encourage myself with Teacher's poem "Solid Cultivation":
"Study the Fa and obtain the Fa,
Learning and cultivating under guidance,
Referring to the Fa in doing everything,
Compliance is cultivation."
With this conference, I would like to get a fresh start at a higher level. I would like to offer most merciful salvation to my dearest countrymen in my dearest motherland.
All the misery and vicissitude for the past 5000 years,
All the history and culture for the past 5000 years,
All for an arrangement made in an ancient time,
All of a sudden, a sound of cracking thunder on the eastern horizon,
It is the magnificent Buddha Fa!
Thank you Teacher, thank you everybody.
