(Clearwisdom.net) Practitioners from Montreal held a Falun Dafa cultivation experience-sharing conference on May 8, 2011, at Concordia University. Ten practitioners, Westerners and Chinese, spoke about how they corrected their daily thoughts and actions in accordance with the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, as a part of their progress in cultivation and saving more sentient beings.
A practitioner shares his experiences at the conference
How a New Practitioner Began Cultivation
Western practitioner Gerome talked about how he started the practice, “I obtained the Fa coming home from work on the subway. My life was empty and sad, like many ordinary people. A practitioner was giving flyers to everyone in my subway car. I observed her and felt she had very positive energy and a sincere, honest smile, and looked like a good person. I would normally never accept a flyer in the subway, but I accepted one from her.
“When she gave me the flyer and looked me in the eyes, I wanted to know more. I asked her, 'What is it?' She said, 'It's to cultivate your energy,' and she started to leave to give out more flyers. I stopped her and asked her to tell me more. She looked at me and said, “It's Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance,” and turned away. I stopped her again, insisting, 'How do you learn it?' She opened the flyer and spoke a few words, and then said, 'It's all on the website,' and again started to turn to continue giving out flyers. I was stubborn, but knew firmly that this was infinitely more important than being polite. I was stubborn, and can still be at times. I got up and asked more questions, 'How much does it cost? Where can I learn? Who will show me? How do I register? etc...' The practitioner looked compassionately in my eyes and sighed. She saw that I absolutely wanted to know more and would not give up. Our subway train was arriving at the Chinatown stop and she just said, as if we were old friends, “Come.” We both got off. We kept talking and talking. Several trains went by. Then she simply said, “Come, I will introduce you to my friends.” That night I met several more practitioners and I think I will never forget that night.
“I know that in all my lives, I have never had anything as precious as the book Zhuan Falun. Master's Fa melts the ice in my heart and is elevating me. I also know that in all my lives, I have never done anything as important as what we are doing. Words can't express how precious this chance is.”
Safeguarding the Quitting the CCP Service Center in Chinatown
The Service Center for Quitting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is already a unique scene in Montreal's Chinatown. Countless people started practicing Falun Dafa through these centers. Many learned the truth about Falun Dafa for the first time, and many withdrew from the CCP here and obtained a new life.
Mr. Hong started the practice after the CCP began its suppression in 1999. He said, “This center looks simple, and it is easy to take it for granted. However, it is through the persistent efforts of other practitioners that the center has laid a foundation and given practitioners a good environment, an ideal location to come into contact with countless Chinese from mainland China as well as local tourists. Therefore, my wish is to protect and guard this place.”
“In my opinion, the center is not just a window for clarifying the truth; it is also a platform for Dafa disciples to fulfill their mission. Furthermore, I feel that I am responsible for saving sentient beings here. I spend most of my time participating in media work. I have this experience, that when I put my whole heart into media work and put everything else aside, I would often need to put in twice the effort to finish my task. Yet when I have set aside time to participate in other projects, I discovered that my media work was not held up. On the contrary, it went exceptionally smoothly.”
Believing in Master and Dafa While Doing Sales
Mr. Wei talked about his experience selling media advertising, “In the last two years, working with my colleagues, especially with the sales team, I felt that everyone is a great practitioner. As Dafa disciples, we have different ways to follow Master and save people. Doing sales for The Epoch Times means going up against a lot of challenges. They are not really our skills, but the challenge of eliminating human thoughts, believing in Master and Dafa, and continuing to improve in cultivation. These are the real challenges, but are also the best benefits.”
Eliminating the Attachment of Seeking Comfort and Being Diligent In Saving People
Ms. He shared her experience in clarifying the truth through making phone calls, “A few months ago, under a hint from our compassionate Master, I joined the global phone calling team. Every day we made phone calls for around three hours to clarify the truth to mainland Chinese. We engaged in a battle between good and evil, making calls one after another. Every night, at least several dozen people withdrew from the CCP and its affiliated organizations.”
Ms. He said that she got up at 3:00 a.m. to make phone calls, “Time is so precious. We are running against time to save people. If I overslept, it would mean falling into the trap set by the old forces and holding up sentient beings' opportunities to be saved. I realized that I must get rid of the attachment to seeking comfort. I must overcome this fear of hardship. In reality, after I broke through this human notion about superficial 'fatigue', I discovered that it is not hard at all. Since then, I felt that I had surmounted a big test in my cultivation. With the exception of special circumstances, generally, I can persist in getting up early every morning to make the phone calls. At the same time, I have strengthened my Fa study and exercises. By doing the three things, the energy field I transmit while making phone calls will become stronger. I set a goal for myself every day – to persist in making phone calls to save people and fulfill my vows with solid, steady steps.”
Several Western practitioners also shared on how they corrected their bad habits formed in everyday society and assimilated to the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. They talked about their experiences in making use of precious time to save even more sentient beings.
